Hawks are different, but are they improved?

[Jamaaliver]

Tiago is under the belief that we will be improved...especially on defense. Which would really be saying something considering how good we were down the stretch last season:

When considering the off-season moves, Splitter expects the Hawks to be a better defensive team.

“(Howard) is a little bit more of a defensive player than Al, more rebounds, more physical presence on the court,” Splitter said. “That is going to change our team. … Dennis, he is also a great defender. He’s a better defender than Jeff. He will pressure the point guard the whole court. He is growing up and getting more solid.”

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CBS Sports's take on the subject:

It may surprise some people to know the Atlanta Hawks had the second-best defense in the NBA last season...the Hawks steadily improved throughout and became almost impossible to score on. The Hawks allowed 98.8 points per 100 possessions, which was 2.2 points per 100 behind the Spurs.

Howard is a more physical presence inside and is a much better rebounder than Horford, but the Hawks' former center was one of the best defensive big men in the NBA. His ability to defend all over the court was huge for them. Howard won't be as mobile on that end of the floor...But it doesn't mean Horford was a better defender than Howard will be; it just means it's a different type of weapon.

Being able to end possessions with defensive rebounds after protecting the rim will be huge. The Hawks were the sixth-worst defensive rebounding team in the NBA, so being able to end possessions with those boards from Howard could definitely shave some points off their defensive rating. According to Nylon Calculus, Horford actually did a better job of preventing points at the rim last season than Howard. However, it's not crazy to [expect] a turnaround for Howard in that department. He'll be in a better system with more committed defenders to help him be utilized better in protecting the rim.

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NBC Sports's take on the subject:

The Hawks allowed the second-fewest points per possession last season, behind only the Spurs.

Horford was far better defensively than Howard last season. Howard, a three-time Defensive Player of the Year, hit a higher defensive peak. But as he has aged and gone through injuries, he his defense has fallen off. Maybe Howard can get healthier and reclaim his form in Atlanta...

Horford’s defensive strengths are similar to Paul Millsap‘s, and those redundancies allowed deficiencies elsewhere. Howard is better-equipped to handle big centers and rebound, an area of concern in Atlanta. The Hawks were one of the NBA’s worst defensive-rebounding teams last year.

Schroder improved immensely defensively last season: Quick with long arms, Schroder has even more defensive potential if he focuses more on that end. Will Schroder pay more attention to defense as he gets the major offensive role he long desired?

Howard and Schroder could improve Atlanta’s defense, but the Hawks defended pretty darn well with Horford and Teague. I’m not nearly as convince as Splitter the two new starters are upgrades.

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[Jamaaliver]

Thabo chimes in on how Hawks will stack up next season:

C-Viv: Do you look at it like they’ve made these changes and you’re going to be better next year? How do you look at where you fit in the spectrum of the Eastern Conference?

Thabo: We’ve lost in some aspects. We’ve gained some with Dwight coming – great player, incredible talent – so I think it’s hard to say. We lose a guy like Al, you can’t say if it will be easy to get something that he was bringing to the team. Overall, I think we’ve still got a good core group of guys. It’s going to be on us to be a team and play as a team and to win games.

...For us, it’s going to be about building a team. Then when we go on the court – win or lose – if we fight together and everybody feels like family and everybody embraces their role, [then] we are going to be good.

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