Hawks' John Collins suspended 25 games for PEDs ahead of Kings game

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The Hawks are getting one young rising star back in their lineup with the return of point guard Trae Young, but are losing another for the foreseeable future.

Hawks forward John Collins has been suspended 25 games for violating the NBA's Anti-Drug policy, the league announced Tuesday morning. Collins is being suspended for a Growth Hormone.

The news certainly is big for the Sacramento Kings, who play the Hawks on Friday at Golden 1 Center. 

Collins, 22, is averaging 17.0 points and 8.8 rebounds per game this season while shooting an eye-opening 47.4 percent from 3-point range. He averaged 19.5 points and 9.8 rebounds per game last year, his second season in the NBA. 

The former No. 19 overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft has played the Kings just twice in his young career. Collins is averaging 14.0 points and 7.5 rebounds per game against Sacramento. 

Collins told Wojnarowski he is working with the NBA Players' Association to begin an appeals process, and issued the following statement. 

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Atlanta is 2-3 this season and needs as many games with Collins on the court as possible. If his suspension is upheld, he also won't play against the Warriors on Dec. 2, the 16th game of his suspension.

With Collins suspended, former No. 2 overall draft pick Jabari Parker likely will step into the starting lineup. He's averaging 13.8 points and 3.8 rebounds off the bench for the Hawks.

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