I really like this squad for 2024-25

[BrazilianHawk]

Too many question marks for me to be optimistic about this team. I see many of us are very happy we improved our defense and yes I also do like it. But to win we still have to score more than our opponents. Our star is a terrible defender and a very inefficient scorer. I expect his turnovers to go up this season, and am overall not very pleased with the roster they built so far.

 

And then there's injuries. We'll see, but I don't have many reasons to be optimistic.

 

33-49

 

 

[Spud2nique]

9 minutes ago, BrazilianHawk said:

Too many question marks for me to be optimistic about this team. I see many of us are very happy we improved our defense and yes I also do like it. But to win we still have to score more than our opponents. Our star is a terrible defender and a very inefficient scorer. I expect his turnovers to go up this season, and am overall not very pleased with the roster they built so far.

 

And then there's injuries. We'll see, but I don't have many reasons to be optimistic.

 

33-49

 

 

Whoa 33-49? Wooooowww, I don’t think the media is that rough on us.  

[BrazilianHawk]

2 minutes ago, Spud2nique said:

Whoa 33-49? Wooooowww, I don’t think the media is that rough on us.  

Yeah I'm pretty pessimistic. But obviously I wish I'm wrong. 

[AHF]

32 minutes ago, BrazilianHawk said:

Our star is a terrible defender and a very inefficient scorer.

Trae Young post-rookie season:  .589% TS%

2023-24:

Jalen Brunson .592% TS%

Dame .590% TS%

Jamal Murray .586% TS%

Trae Young .585% TS%

DeMar Derozan .584% TS%

Jalen Brown .580% TS%

Bam Adebayo .576%

Antman .575% TS%

Tyrese Maxey .573% TS%

Ja Morant .570% TS%

De'Aaron Fox .567% TS%

 

Trae does not stand out in a bad way with his scoring efficiency (especially compared to other scoring point guards).  There are lots of All-Stars with comparable or significantly worse scoring efficiency.

[macdaddy]

1 hour ago, Spud2nique said:

Whoa 33-49? Wooooowww, I don’t think the media is that rough on us.  

Did we fire Quin and bring back Lloyd?

[Wretch]

3 hours ago, AHF said:

Trae Young post-rookie season:  .589% TS%

2023-24:

Jalen Brunson .592% TS%

Dame .590% TS%

Jamal Murray .586% TS%

Trae Young .585% TS%

DeMar Derozan .584% TS%

Jalen Brown .580% TS%

Bam Adebayo .576%

Antman .575% TS%

Tyrese Maxey .573% TS%

Ja Morant .570% TS%

De'Aaron Fox .567% TS%

 

Trae does not stand out in a bad way with his scoring efficiency (especially compared to other scoring point guards).  There are lots of All-Stars with comparable or significantly worse scoring efficiency.

[FL_BRYANT]

Other than Trae and JJ who is an above average player. This is a team in the middle of rebuild which will have a tough time scoring

I know the popular narrative was Trae and Murray was a bad fit but I think the problem was the Hawks didn't add the right pieces around them. A long 3 and D front court  would have truly made this a  competive teams. Now we are almost back to square one. It's nice knowing you will start each game with 50 points. A good season would be a team that grows throughout the season while developing our young players. We are a draft and free ageny away at minimal before we become truly competitive.

[Final_quest]

5 hours ago, FL_BRYANT said:

Other than Trae and JJ who is an above average player. This is a team in the middle of rebuild which will have a tough time scoring

I know the popular narrative was Trae and Murray was a bad fit but I think the problem was the Hawks didn't add the right pieces around them. A long 3 and D front court  would have truly made this a  competive teams. Now we are almost back to square one. It's nice knowing you will start each game with 50 points. A good season would be a team that grows throughout the season while developing our young players. We are a draft and free ageny away at minimal before we become truly competitive.

I would say Bogi is well above average.  We're improving the defense but we're also eliminating below average rotation players.  I'm really curious what the Dyson effect will be as Trae has never played with a dominant POA defender.  

Murray can score points, but he's not efficient.  He's not that great of a floor general either.  

[macdaddy]

 

Bey and CC are definitely guilty a bit here as they were both in big slumps, but I still maintain that DJ was not as good as his stats would suggest for us even independent of fit issues with Trae.  

[NBASupes]

43 minutes ago, macdaddy said:

 

Bey and CC are definitely guilty a bit here as they were both in big slumps, but I still maintain that DJ was not as good as his stats would suggest for us even independent of fit issues with Trae.  

Bey and CC wasn't the issue

[Gray Mule]

Ever the optimist, I believe that the Atlanta Hawks have too many good players to be as bad as some "experts" see our team.  While it's true that some will not work out as well as I now expect, others will step up and prove to be as good as advertised.

Our bench, or all those Hawk players who do not have the "starter" tag attached to their name, are much improved from last season.  We have some actually good players in this group.

35.5 wins this upcoming season?  No joke.  This is those "experts" projection for us.  Only if we have major injuries to more than one Hawk do I see this happening.  50% of an 82-game season = 41 and I expect to exceed this.

[AHF]

1 hour ago, macdaddy said:

 

Bey and CC are definitely guilty a bit here as they were both in big slumps, but I still maintain that DJ was not as good as his stats would suggest for us even independent of fit issues with Trae.  

Any lineup with Trae and DM is going to be bad.  With Bey and his defensive liabilities at the 3, you then have an abysmal 1-3 set of defenders with Trae, DM and Bey.  That is grotesquely bad.  

Add in Bey's shooting slump from last year and this doesn't completely shock me.  Agree there is too much talent for it to be the worst but I'm assuming "worst" is qualified by a minimum number of starts or minutes or something else.  But either way, we should be much better this season with our fit and lineups at the 1-3 spots.  I can't come up with a combination of our top 4 wings that won't be MUCH better than DM and Bey.

[macdaddy]

1 hour ago, NBASupes said:

Bey and CC wasn't the issue

I agree.  that's what i'm saying. folks are going to see this season just how big of an issue DJ was on the Hawks. 

[REHawksFan]

On 9/13/2024 at 9:19 AM, AHF said:

Trae Young post-rookie season:  .589% TS%

2023-24:

Jalen Brunson .592% TS%

Dame .590% TS%

Jamal Murray .586% TS%

Trae Young .585% TS%

DeMar Derozan .584% TS%

Jalen Brown .580% TS%

Bam Adebayo .576%

Antman .575% TS%

Tyrese Maxey .573% TS%

Ja Morant .570% TS%

De'Aaron Fox .567% TS%

 

Trae does not stand out in a bad way with his scoring efficiency (especially compared to other scoring point guards).  There are lots of All-Stars with comparable or significantly worse scoring efficiency.

It's the Trae narrative that won't ever die. He'll forever be the guy that shot 20% from 3pt early in his rookie season. Or so it seems. First impressions are hard to kill. 

He may not be the more efficient player in the NBA, but he's far from inefficient. 

[JayBirdHawk]

 

If the Atlanta Hawks are going to compete for a playoff spot in 2024-25, a lot has to go right for them.

The Hawks aren’t loaded with established stars, unlike the Boston Celtics or Philadelphia 76ers. They don’t have multiple players who averaged at least 20 points per game last season, unlike the Milwaukee Bucks or Indiana Pacers. They don’t have a firm defensive base to rely upon, unlike the Miami Heat or New York Knicks. Entering next season, their offensive ceiling, perimeter defense, and durability are legitimate concerns.

Can Hawks’ Four Horsemen Lead Them To NBA Playoffs?

Despite the obstacles Atlanta faces, there are a couple of reasons to believe in them.

The Hawks do have a frontcourt with a lot of defensive potential, which is key for title-contenders. They aren’t lacking for 3-point threats, which is essential in the modern era. They also have four players who have the potential to put up 20 or more points per game. In fact, one of them has averaged at least 25 points and 10 assists per game the past two seasons.

Between this quartet and their supporting cast, the Hawks have a puncher’s chance to clinch a postseason berth. It’ll be that much easier if Hawks head coach Quin Snyder, who led the Utah Jazz to seven consecutive playoff appearances, is at the top of his game.

Trae Young

There’s a lot that point to Hawks engine Trae Young having his best season in 2023-24, despite being sidelined by a thumb injury for an extended period.

The 2018 No. 5 pick averaged 25.7 points, 10.8 assists (career-high), and 1.3 steals (career-high) per game. He made 37.3 percent of his 3-point attempts, the second-highest mark of his career. It was his first season averaging at least 25 points, 10 assists, and 1 steal per game while shooting at least 37 percent from 3.

Numbers aside, he was a more assertive point of attack defender. As the season wore, he stopped dominating the ball as much. With Dejounte Murray gone, it would be easy for him to go back to hero ball, especially for a player with his offensive ability. However, he needs to build off of last season, embracing his teammates tapping into their potential.

Jalen Johnson

Jalen Johnson being the Hawks’ only untouchable player should tell people all they need to know.

At 6-foot-9 and 220 pounds, the former first-round pick is an all-around player with plenty of upside. Last season he had a career year, averaging 16.0 points, 8.7 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.2 steals, and 0.8 blocks per game. He was so dynamic he even started drawing comparisons to four-time MVP selection LeBron James.

His partnership with Young, an elite facilitator, will help determine his offensive ceiling. So will his own guard skills, as Johnson needs to sharpen up his 3-point shooting. Lastly, he has to clean up his finishes under the rim. With Murray in New Orleans, Johnson has the biggest chance to step up into a star role. With his upside, there’s a genuine belief that he can. Not many players have his combination of youth, athleticism, skill, and versatility.

 

Bogdan Bogdanovic

Bogdan Bogdanovic is almost a walking contradiction. He’s only been in the league for seven years, but he’s already 32 years old. He’s a known product, but not a household name. The Serbian shooting guard is a sixth man in the U.S., but the captain of a team that has three-time MVP selection Nikola Jokic on it.

All he might need to reconcile the difference between his identities a larger role in the NBA. With questions about who will start alongside Young in the backcourt, he just might.

The scorer averaged a career-high 16.9 points per game in 2023-24, shooting 37.4 percent from 3. In his NBA career, he’s still yet to convert under 36 percent of his 3-point attempts. If looking for a catch-and-shoot guard who can play off Young, there may be none better. Playing with the defensive intensity he displayed with Serbia in the Paris Olympics would help his case.

De’Andre Hunter

Due to the expectations of a fourth overall pick, De’Andre Hunter is characterized as an underwhelming player. He simply hasn’t taken over enough games at either end of the floor. Yet, there’s too much focus on what Hunter hasn’t been than what he has.

In three of the last four seasons, he’s averaged at least 15 points per game, proving himself capable of scoring on or off the ball. In two of the last three seasons, he’s converted at least 37 of his 3s. Though he doesn’t generate many turnovers, he’s been the Hawks’ most reliable perimeter defender for the past two seasons.

He is imperfect. The chiseled forward needs to become a more inspired rebounder, especially at 6-foot-8 and 225 pounds. He needs to play with a consistent fire offensively, like he did when averaging 21.2 points per game in the 2022 NBA Playoffs. Nonetheless, if Atlanta is going to steal a playoff spot, they’ll need him at both ends.

Can Hawks’ Four Horsemen Lead Them To NBA Playoffs? | Yardbarker

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

 

 

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[JayBirdHawk]

Bogi is listed as our #2 option and comes it at a paltry #25 

 

 

[AHF]

3 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

Bogi is listed as our #2 option and comes it at a paltry #25 

You could make an argument for him over some of the people ahead on the list but at the end of the day our fan base is split on whether he even deserves to start this year so coming in fairly low on a list of #2s makes sense.  I expect next year's list will have JJ there.

[JayBirdHawk]

 

Hope, Hope, Hope.

 

 

....but who am I kidding. I'm here for it!