HoopsHype: Regression likely

[HMFFL]

ADDITIONS: Jordan Crawford (Xavier), Josh Powell (Los Angeles Lakers), Pape Sy (Le Havre), Etan Thomas (Minnesota).

SUBTRACTIONS: Randolph Morris, Joe Smith (New Jersey) and Mario West.

STRENGTHS: Despite being undersized, Al Horford is one of the top centers in the Eastern Conference, a consistent scorer who takes good shots ... Jamal Crawford provides instant offense ... Crawford is an outstanding free-throw shooter ... Josh Smith is among the top athletes in the NBA ... Last season, Smith did his best job of playing within his means, taking better shots and playing more of a team game ... The Hawks have great offensive balance ... Joe Johnson is one of the league’s top shooting guards, who can hit from the outside but also strong enough to take the ball to the basket ... Atlanta showed great durability, with all five starters appearing in at least 76 games last season ... This is a solid three-point shooting team (ninth last season) ... Marvin Williams has proven to be a complimentary player, although as the No. 2 overall pick, more was expected ... With great athleticism, the Hawks are able to excel in the transition game ... Jeff Teague, in limited minutes as a rookie, showed potential and he should get more playing time his second year ... Ethan Thomas, while limited offensively, should bring some toughness to the frontcourt.

WEAKNESSES: Mike Bibby has slowed down noticeably and his minutes should continue to decline ... Bibby is a major liability on defense ... Joe Johnson must rebound from a poor postseason ... Marvin Williams has to be more aggressive offensively ... Williams regressed last year ... He has too much ability to only be taking 8.2 shots per game ... Josh Smith has gotten better, but he is still too turnover prone ... The Hawks are undersized in the frontcourt ... First-year coach Larry Drew has difficult shoes to fill replacing Mike Woodson, who was an underrated coach in helping turn this franchise around ... Atlanta could use more frontcourt depth ... Zaza Pachulia is at best a serviceable frontcourt reserve.

PROJECTION: (44-38) 3rd in the Southeast Division / 6th in the Eastern Conference

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I agree with the bold and hope it changes. 44 wins would be disappointing considering we won 53 games last season.

[raleigh]

Regression? Absolutely. The question is how much and whether it's worth it (Teague, Horford development).

[azuresou1]

I have no problem with regression if it means we have a better long term product.

In fact, I'm hoping Drew has the balls to give Teague major minutes for development even if it costs us a few wins.

[evildallas]

Hopefully a new system, more bench utilization, and more player development. I'll take some regression in the regular season record for that. And if the changes increase post-season competitiveness it will be greatly appreciated by me.

[Master8492]

Woodson an underrated coach? The man admitted to play a short rotation because he's in a contract year and that he felt guilty for not developing rookies.

Larry Drew is a complete opposite of Woodson and is saying all the right things. Too bad I can't watch the Hawks on a regular basis anymore because it's going to be interesting to see how LD changed the Hawks culture.