State of the Atlanta Hawks: Evaluating the Season & Looking Forward
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Tomorrow night, President Joe Biden will address the nation in the almost annual tradition of the State of the Union. The primetime speech is used to recap the achievements, assess challenges, and lay out the president's vision for the future.
Regardless of the president or party in power, it can be a tough watch. Luckily, this article is sure to keep you awake, which is more than what we can say for some of the country's previous state of the union addresses. So, without further ado, let's examine where the Atlanta Hawks are at the 73% mark of the regular season.
Offense
To the surprise of no one, the Hawks' offense has been superb this season. They have the second-best offensive rating, shoot the highest three-point percentage, and are top-seven in both field goal and true shooting percentage.
The rule changes implemented by the league, which was directed squarely at Trae Young, have had no impact on the All-Star point guard. Young remains the catalyst of the high-powered offense thanks to his 27.8 points and 9.3 assists per game. As of this morning, Young is second in the league in both total points and assists. That's an increase in production on higher shooting percentages and fewer free throw attempts.
As for the rest of the team, they have lacked the same offensive consistency as Young. When their floor general is on the bench, the Hawks score almost 10 points less per 100 possessions.
While Young has stepped up to the challenges, several Hawks players have regressed on the offensive end of the floor. John Collins, Bogdan Bogdanovic, and De'Andre Hunter are all averaging fewer points and shooting lower percentages than last season.
However, no player has struggled on offense more than the anchor of the team - Clint Capea. 'The Swiss Bank' is defaulting on his transactions. Capela is averaging 10.7 points per game, which is down from 15.2 points per game last season, and the fewest he has scored since his second season in the league.
Capela's challenges are highlighted by his play around the rim. Capela takes 7 of 8.2 shot attempts per game in the restricted area and hits just 63.2% of those shots. Only Jusuf Nurkic and Russell Westbrook shoot lower percentages within 5 feet of the rim on 7+ shot attempts per game. That's concerning given the number of easy looks which are created for Capela through alley-oops via Young.
Of course, the offense should not be a key concern for the Hawks. But the coaching staff must find a way to maximize the output of this young roster, especially since so many of them were just signed to lucrative deals this past offseason.
Defense
© Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
The old adage 'Defense wins championships' is true. As long as the Hawks have a bottom-four defensive rating and sacrifice 111.6 points per game, they will not be a championship contender.
General Manager Travis Schlenk designed this team to space the floor and get efficient looks on offense through threes, free throws, and close looks at the rim. Schlenk was successful in that regard. However, the glaring deficiencies on defense often offset any gains.
The lack of perimeter defenders results in opponents getting to their spots on the floor with relative ease. Much has been made of Trae Young's defense, but he's not alone in his limitations on that end of the floor. Kevin Huerter and Bogdan Bogdanovic don't provide enough resistance, which forces the Hawks' post players out of position.
Considering the heavy lifting of the frontcourt, the stats might be somewhat skewed. Only two players on the roster are net-positive defenders, and they both come off the bench - Delon Wright and Onyeka Okongwu.
Hawks head coach Nate McMillan has tried pinning the team's defensive woes on everything from poor offensive performances to outright lack of hustle. Both of which might be true, but the fact that this team is devoid of any defensive dogs remains an inescapable truth.
Since MLK Day, the Hawks have had the 14th-best defensive rating. A healthy and focused roster helps a lot. But it's on the players to continue progressing on defense or face a fate similar to fun and free-wheeling teams of the past that never won anything.
Roster
© Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Building off my last point, the Hawks roster is configured for maximum offensive efficiency. Travis Schlenk aired out his grievances in early January and dealt Cam Reddish and Solomon Hill shortly afterward. The move brought back Kevin Knox, a future draft pick, and created an open roster spot.
The public opinion of Reddish tanked shortly after Chris Kirschner of The Athletic reported that the 22-year-old quietly requested a trade this past summer in hopes of a brighter future elsewhere.
Say what you want about the questionable career choice, but the Hawks lost a key rotation player that could help in certain playoff scenarios like we saw last year. But there's no point in crying over spilled milk. Despite the Hawks maintaining an open roster, it seems increasingly unlikely that they fill it with a player bought out of their contract elsewhere.
As for the health of the roster, the Hawks are in a decent place. They have recovered from the COVID-19 outbreak in the locker room back in late December. John Collins has missed the last five games with a right foot strain, but there is no indication that the springy power forward will be sidelined for an extended period of time.
Other players with health concerns are Bogdan Bogdanovic and De'Andre Hunter. The former missed two weeks in January with knee soreness. While the latter missed 28 games after undergoing wrist surgery in November.
It's also worth noting that Trae Young is fifth in total minutes played this season by a point guard. Additionally, Mikal Bridges is the only player from the 2018 NBA Draft class who has logged more minutes in his career than Young. For an undersized point guard who takes a beating on a nightly basis, Young's minutes have to be closely monitored.
Defense is definitely a top priority, but maintaining a full roster is more important for this team as they hope to squeak into the postseason. Since we're throwing out so many axioms, 'The best ability is availability.'
Coaching
After the Hawks front office moved on from Lloyd Pierce on March 1, 2021, the team rallied around their interim head coach Nate McMillan. The veteran coach kept in place many of the same schemes as his predecessor, yet the team's defense and overall record improved dramatically.
This summer, McMillan began installing his own systems which have been met with mixed results. Moreso than the X's and O's, Hawks fans have mainly criticized McMillan's rotations.
The old-school coach keeps a shallow rotation and trusts his veterans far more than the younger players. Jalen Johnson and Sharife Cooper have essentially been redshirted this season. Johnson was drafted 20th and Cooper 48th, yet they have played the 68th and 82nd most minutes for rookies, respectively.
Almost every other team, including championship contenders, has prioritized the development of their rookies. This is one of the few areas I have critiqued McMillan. The team's offense has worked as planned, and nothing short of a bottle of Space Jam 'Secret Stuff' can turn this team into good defenders.
Postseason
(Jim Mora Sr. voice) Playoffs? Entering the season, the goal for this team was to secure home-court advantage for the playoffs and then go from there. They failed to meet that goal. Now they find themselves in a precarious situation where they will have to advance from the play-in games (if they make it there) to face one of the top Eastern Conference teams.
This team will be a tough out for anyone they face in the postseason, especially if they make it to a seven-game series. But if they get bounced in a hurry, we can expect a summer full of finger-pointing and perhaps even transactions to recalibrate the roster.
Uniforms
Let's have some fun with our final subject. Thanks to Hawks Uniform Tracker on Twitter, we get a regular breakdown of the team's record based on their uniforms. Check out the most recent tally in the tweet below.
Last year the team was almost unbeatable when wearing their 2020-21 Nike City Edtion uniforms (the 'MLK' jerseys). Since they don't have that magic working in their favor this year, they're going to have to find a set that works for them.
Also, shoutout to Nike for apparently discontinuing the 'Earned' edition uniforms the year after the Hawks make the playoffs. But the good news is next year's City Edition jerseys have already leaked. You can read more about that here.
We are almost 75% through the regular season, and it is officially crunch time for the Hawks. They repeated many of the same mistakes as last year, yet they haven't mounted the same last-season push. Any emergency switch needs to be flipped to save this season.
The good news is they have the fifth-easiest remaining schedule, and the best point guard in the Eastern Conference is on their team. Like I said earlier, they are going to be a tough out. Stay locked into Sports Illustrated's AllHawks.com for breaking news, highlights, and analysis.
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2022-23 Hawks Nike City Edition Uniforms Leaked
