Hawks Training Camp (and Season Previews)

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NBA season preview 2022-23

Atlanta Hawks

When we last saw them ...The Hawks made it back to the postseason via the play-in tournament and big wins against Charlotte and Cleveland to advance as the eighth seed. Atlanta then fell to the top-seeded Heat in the first round.

ESPN Forecast: 46-36

Hawks in ESPN's Top 100 Rankings:

• Trae Young (16)
  
• Dejounte Murray (42)
  
• John Collins (73)
  
• Clint Capela (79)
  
• Bogdan Bogdanovic (100)

Most impactful offseason move: Trading for Dejounte Murray
The Hawks paid a hefty price for their new star guard, dealing three first-round picks and a pick swap to San Antonio for Murray. Last season with San Antonio, Murray earned his first All-Star selection and finished the season averaging 21.1 points, 9.2 assists, 8.3 rebounds and a league-leading 2.0 steals per game.

Atlanta brought Murray on board to improve its defense. (The Hawks finished 26th in the league last season with a 113.7 defensive rating.) If Murray can help shore up the defensive end, it'll help Atlanta's No. 2 rated offense (115.4 offensive rating) shine even more.

2022-23 is a make-or-break season for ...
Clint Capela. Capela has been one of the NBA premier rebounders for quite a few seasons -- including leading the league with 14.9 boards a game in 2021-22 -- but the double-double machine has some competition behind him in former No. 6 overall pick Onyeka Okongwu. Capela, who is owed over $61.5 million over the next three seasons, saw his scoring dip to 11.1 points per game -- the lowest in his career as a full-time starter. His minutes dropped to 27.6 per game -- his lowest in four seasons. Okongwu, still on his rookie deal at $14.5 million over the next two seasons, made a push for playing time throughout last season.

Quote that will define their season:
"Miami showed us that we have to improve and get better and it showed Trae that you have to learn to play a different style of ball. What you did was great but you can do more, and Trae is up for that. He understands that." -- Hawks coach Nate McMillan

For all the offseason hype around the Murray trade, the Hawks' success will depend on Trae Young taking them to the next level. When they made the East finals in 2020-21, Young carved his way through the Knicks and 76ers before Atlanta ran out of steam against the champion Bucks.

Last year's first-round exit against Miami was a wake-up call in the organization, hence why they felt they needed to go out and make a trade for someone like Murray. Young took a big step forward last year in his efficiency: He hit career highs in field goal rate (46.0%), 3-point rate (38.2%) and free throw rate (90.4%).

ESPN

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Hawks look to bounce back after a disappointing 2021-2022 season

After an unexpected playoff run to the 2021 National Basketball Association Eastern Conference Finals, the Atlanta Hawks had an underwhelming 2021-2022 season. The team finished with a 43-39 record and ended the season with a Game 5 loss to the top-seeded Miami Heat in the first round of the 2022 NBA Playoffs. This season, the Hawks are poised to bounce back.

The Hawks’ struggles last season largely stemmed from heavy reliance on their Third Team All-NBA point guard Trae Young. While Young carried the Hawks in 2021, last season’s results show that he still needs support from the rest of the roster if they want to be the king of the East. Depending on Young prevented the Hawks from maintaining consistency on either side of the court.

Defensively, the Hawks lacked consistency, for reasons other than Young’s shortcomings on that end of the court. An easy excuse could be the health issues they faced: forwards John Collins and De’Andre Hunter, two of the Hawks’ best defenders, missed extensive stretches last season due to injury.

On June 29, Atlanta traded Danilo Gallinari and three first-round picks to the San Antonio Spurs for All-star guard Dejounte Murray.

Murray can do everything the Hawks need right now. As opposed to Young, who is undersized and a defensive liability, Murray is a big playmaker who led the NBA in steals last season. It is unlikely that Young has become more than a lackluster defender over the summer, but when placed in a lineup with Collins, Hunter, Murray and center Clint Capela, his flaws are easier to cover.

Murray also gives the Hawks more balance offensively. Young is no longer the only playmaker on the team, so their offensive success isn’t solely dependent on him anymore. Additionally, Young’s ability to space the floor pairs very well with Murray’s ability to attack the basket – defenses will have a hard time stopping that combination. Murray’s playmaking skills also allow Young to play off the ball more, which would give the Hawks a much-needed influx of offensive options.

Given that Young shot 48% on catch-and-shoot threes last year, such a shift could be especially effective. Moreover, head coach Nate McMillan has talked about potentially staggering the two guards’ minutes, making sure the Hawks’ offense never goes stale as it often has when Young wasn’t on the floor in previous years.

The Hawks lost several key players this summer. Those losses no doubt require some of the younger prospects to fill larger roles, specifically third-year center Onyeka Okongwu. Second-year forward Jalen Johnson could add depth to the Hawks’ bench. Many criticized McMillan for Johnson’s low minutes last season, especially considering the impressive numbers he produced in the G-League. However, without Gallinari coming off the bench, Johnson will likely be the backup for John Collins and therefore receive more playing time.

The Hawks have set themselves up for success. They made off-season acquisitions in an attempt to solve their problems and their young players are taking strides in a positive direction.

The problem? This year’s Eastern Conference is loaded. Even if everything works out for the Hawks, they still could conceivably be a fifth or sixth seed. Still, the Hawks have definitely improved. Even if the current roster doesn’t bring a championship to Atlanta in 2023, this season can bring the Hawks one step closer to winning some hardware.

The Emory Wheel

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Disappointed Capela was not named a Team Captain.

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Hawks are very good again

‘We want to compete for a championship’



“We want to compete for a championship,” Hawks forward John Collins said on the eve of his team’s opening game against the Rockets on Wednesday at State Farm Arena. “That’s the mentality.” NBA players and coaches everywhere are saying that now, even if they don’t really believe it. There are no official results to counter the sunny outlooks. But the Hawks have legitimate reasons to feel good about their chances to be an elite team. After taking a step back last season and making some key personnel changes over the summer, the Hawks are going to be very good again.

Maybe they won’t make the Eastern Conference finals as they did two years ago. That likely will require going through one of the East’s top teams. The Hawks are a notch below the Celtics, Bucks and 76ers. Those teams have a track record of playing championship-level defense (and, in Milwaukee’s case, winning a championship). The Hawks don’t. But if the Hawks aren’t top-tier in the East, they also won’t have to play their way into the playoffs as they did last season. And this time the Hawks won’t be an easy out once they get there. They have the talent to be one of the last two East teams playing. I believe the Hawks learned a lesson after their too-casual approach cost them early last season, when opponents got up to play them after their deep playoff run.

FiveThirtyEight’s statistical projection is much higher on the Hawks than the betting markets. It predicts the Hawks will post 51 victories, tied with the Heat for the third most in the East behind the Celtics and 76ers. I see the Hawks finishing somewhere between the 46 win forecasts of bookmakers and the rosier computer simulations. Make it 48 victories and fifth in the East.

The one certainty about the Hawks is they will be tough to stop. That’s been the case since All-NBA point guard Trae Young has been surrounded by enough competent NBA players. Hawks president Travis Schlenk made that happen when he reshaped the roster before the 2020-21 season. The result was ninth in scoring efficiency that season and second last season, per Cleaning the Glass (garbage time excluded).

Then the Hawks added All-Star guard Dejounte Murray over the summer. Murray, Young and Collins all have scored 20-plus points per game over a full season. Bogdanovic, Hunter and Clint Capela can put up 15 points per game. All six of those players score with good-to-great efficiency. Not many teams have a better collection of scorers and playmakers. The Heat shut down the Hawks by denying Young the ball and crowding him on the perimeter. That strategy shouldn’t be as effective for Hawks opponents this season. That approach risks letting Murray get loose to score and set up teammates for easy baskets. The Hawks will be a more dynamic offensive team once Murray is fully integrated.

It will take even longer for the Hawks to become a good team on defense. McMillan should have better options when he wants defensive lineups on the floor, but personnel is only part of the picture. There’s also attitude, execution and cohesiveness. The Hawks won’t reach their potential until they defend with the same vigor that they use to create scoring chances.

AJC