Usually when a team rumbles back from a 30-point deficit for a comeback win, a number of players make noteworthy contributions, and the Hawks Monday were no different.
De'Andre Hunter led the team with 24 points and hit the dagger three. Vit Krejci made play after play in the third quarter and scored a career-high tying 16 points in the game. Dejounte Murray also tied a career-high with 15 assists while once again shouldering the heavy load of being the team's catalyst while a number of Hawks have remained out due to injury.
But when Quin Snyder started ticking off the list of players who made an impression, he got to Bruno Fernando quickly, perhaps more quickly than one might have expected.
"Bruno's emotion just stood out to me," he said.
When Fernando entered late in the third quarter, the Hawks had already compiled a 13-0 run and an 8-0 run to chip away at Boston's lead. But the Celtics had countered with their own run, and the Hawks needed to redouble their efforts to fully come back from 30 points down. Fernando's performance was key.
He started by sneaking up on Jaylen Brown's blind side and picking his pocket as Brown tried to post up Krejci. He followed that by scoring in the low post after a defensive switch left him with an advantage on a point guard. He later slipped a screen and dunked, and he had a gorgeous fake handoff that he finished with a spin move.
In total, the Hawks outscored the Celtics, 24-15 during Fernando's second-half stint, and when he exited, the game was tied.
All that Bruno Fernando really needed was a chance.
Clint Capela is Clint Capela, and Onyeka Okongwu can stake a claim as one of the top backup centers in the league. As a result, Fernando, the third-string center in his fifth NBA season, did not play any meaningful minutes as a rotation player until Feb. 5 when the Hawks called his number due to injury. Since then, he has contributed in a number of ways as the backup center, averaging 7.2 points and 5.7 rebounds per game in 22 games. He has also racked up totals of 20 steals and 19 blocks over that span.
Fernando reflected on his professional path after scoring a career-high 25 points in a 41-point win over Charlotte Saturday.
"But man, when I just think of it, it's such a gratifying thing for me," he said. "I'm just thankful for every moment, every opportunity. I never put my head down. I never complained. I never pointed fingers. I just always owned up to everything that I've been through."
Snyder's offense puts the center at the elbow often, a place where Fernando thrives. The strength of his offensive game lies in his ability to time and place his handoffs well while screening and re-screening to free his teammates who curl around him at that elbow.
When called on to roll after setting one of those screens, he often finds himself with the ball and a chance to make a play at the rim. He makes audacious choices at the rim – occasionally getting blocked, but more often than not, slamming home a dunk over the fingertips of the defender.
"Once you gather, you gather," he said of that approach. "There is not really much more that I can do. I can't twist and turn in the air. But it sets the tone of being aggressive offensively. I'm trying to boost the confidence of the team and myself as well."
Fernando certainly doesn't have to use the word 'try' there. By bringing a positive energy on and off the court, he has most certainly boosted the confidence of his teammates, and his recent play proves that he belongs as an NBA player.