Hawks forward John Collins is expected to return to action on Monday against Orlando, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).
Collins is officially listed as questionable, but it sounds like he’ll be upgraded later Monday. He suffered a left ankle sprain on Dec. 2 and was expected to miss at least two weeks, so his return appears to be on schedule. He has missed eight straight games with the injury.
The 25-year-old has been the subject of trade rumors for a few years, and if he performs well upon his return to the lineup, it could help facilitate a deal for Atlanta. The Jazz and Nets are among the teams that have shown some interest in the six-year veteran.
Collins is having a down season by his standards — through 22 games (31.5 MPG), he’s averaging 12.3 PPG, 7.5 RPG and 1.4 BPG on .484/.219/.845 shooting. For context, his career marks are 16.2 PPG, 8.3 RPG and 1.1 BPG on .555/.362/.783 shooting.
The Hawks went 3-5 without their starting power forward in the lineup and are currently 15-15, the No. 8 seed in the East. Fellow starter Dejounte Murray, who has been dealing with his own left ankle sprain, appears to be ahead of schedule in his recovery — he was expected to miss at least two weeks, but 11 days later he’s also listed as questionable against the Magic.
