Hawks are a realistic playoff threat

Post #61 » by **HMFFL** » Tue Jul 23, 2019 7:30 pm

I won't have my hopes up for making the playoffs. I will be excited no matter how the season goes because I want to see growth in within the team and strong chemistry.

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Post #62 » by **Jamaaliver** » Thu Jul 25, 2019 4:42 pm

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graymule · Post #63 » by **graymule** » Fri Jul 26, 2019 5:51 pm

I expect this year's Hawk team to go to the playoffs. We have some bench players, if healthy, will be a big help. Our drafted rookies were chosen for defense. Someone posted here that we have no direction. Yes, we do. Our GM knows what he is doing.
He has a plan and he's sticking to it.

Terrible defense last season. We know. Look for it to be much better this season. Playoff bound!!

:nod:

Post #64 » by **ATL Boy** » Sat Jul 27, 2019 12:35 am

Trae's health will be more important to us than anything else this year if we want to make the postseason. Now that it's clear that they have no interest in adding an actual backup PG, if Trae goes down for any period of time it'll be a catastrophe.

Post #65 » by **HMFFL** » Sat Jul 27, 2019 4:19 am

graymule wrote::D
I expect this year's Hawk team to go to the playoffs. We have some bench players, if healthy, will be a big help. Our drafted rookies were chosen for defense. Someone posted here that we have no direction. Yes, we do. Our GM knows what he is doing.
He has a plan and he's sticking to it.

Terrible defense last season. We know. Look for it to be much better this season. Playoff bound!!

Staying healthy and having some luck from other teams not staying healthy will be key. I don't want to wish injury on any player of any team but it's part of the game.

Just focusing on our division but I expect both Miami and Orlando to be better again. We went 6-10 vs our division and 16-36 when facing our conference.

I hope for the big leaps that many expect from our Hawks!

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D21 · Post #66 » by **D21** » Sat Jul 27, 2019 11:12 am

It's hard to know the real level of last season, because it's strange that they were bad Vs East, but were almost at .500 Vs West
It's also hard to know if Schlenk wants to let them play the best they can, or if he prefers an "indirect" tanking", hoping for one last good pick.
I still think he wants to try a lot of things to see exactly how the rest of the team should be, like bringing Turner to test him at PG and see if a big PG can improve the team more than a traditionnal backup PG

Skybox · Post #67 » by **Skybox** » Sat Jul 27, 2019 11:18 am

Evan Turner is a great pickup. People are ragging on his deal but he is a really nice player. A "glue" guy that does a lot of things...the most underrated "overrated" player in the league. He makes players around him better without filling the stat sheet.

Post #68 » by **Jamaaliver** » Sun Jul 28, 2019 7:12 pm

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Post #69 » by **Jamaaliver** » Sun Jul 28, 2019 11:30 pm

Way-too-early Playoff Picture: The East is wide open and ripe for a new ruler

Atlanta Hawks

Where do they stand? This Hawks team is incredibly exciting, but their youth probably has them another year away from it turning into real wins night in and night out. Really, that’s how it should be. Hawks fans will be excited and have a little bit of naive optimism going into this season. It will be a lot of “we’re being slept on” conversations on Reddit Message Boards and in comment sections. The reality is young teams rarely win enough games and this Hawks team is crazy young. However, that’s kind of what’s supposed to happen in a proper rebuild. Fans are supposed to start overvaluing potential in the moment and believing anything is possible. Hawks are beautifully right on schedule and have made some brilliant decisions.

Biggest question moving forward? Are they too young as a core? Allen Crabbe, Jabari Parker, and Alex Len are three of the eldest statesmen on this squad. Crabbe is 27. Len just turned 26. Parker is 24. This team is crazy young. A core of Trae Young, John Collins, Kevin Huerter, Cam Reddish, and De’Andre Hunter is an impressive accumulation of talent. I’ll take their future over most, but not their present. They probably need at least a season, maybe two to be a winning squad.

Realistic expectation: I think they can creep toward 35-38 wins if things break right for them. Mostly, I think the realistic expectation is for them to be a playoff positioning ruiner in the second half of the season. The Hawks can truly build things up this season and figure out the hierarchy of everybody after Trae Young and John Collins. But they’re lacking the veterans needed to often pull out victories on coin flip nights in the regular season. Maybe a bunch of things can break right for them and they’ll be in the playoff race, but I just think that’s a 2021 type of occurrence.

The Athletic

Post #70 » by **Jamaaliver** » Thu Aug 1, 2019 1:36 pm

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Post #71 » by **Jamaaliver** » Wed Aug 7, 2019 11:13 am

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Post #72 » by **Jamaaliver** » Thu Aug 15, 2019 3:26 pm

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Post #73 » by **Jamaaliver** » Fri Aug 23, 2019 11:19 am

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Atlanta won only 29 games last season, but to watch the team after the All-Star break was to see growth materializing in definitive strides. But now expectations are lurking: Can the League Pass darlings turn themselves into a playoff team? The no. 8 seed in the East last year needed 41 wins to squeeze into the postseason. That would mean a 12-win jump for a Hawks team that will still have plenty of growing pains to deal with. Atlanta has talent and chemistry, as well as the fortune of still being able to surprise other teams. Their odds aren’t great, but they might be better than you think.

Young is the headliner, but Atlanta has also surrounded him with a perfect cocktail of young players, intriguing retreads (Jabari Parker), and solid veterans (Vince Carter, Evan Turner) who can act as experienced guides should this team pop and make it into the postseason. Atlanta is going to win more than 29 games this season (and in the weak East, a minor jump up from that total might be enough to make the playoffs). But the team will need all of its pieces to work as projected to be in the mix.

Still, the Hawks are in the honeymoon phase—they’ll be a thrill to watch once again, and fans won’t hold it against them if they don’t make the playoffs. But even though the ultimate goal this year is to take steps forward, you can bet these players will be expecting a whole lot more of themselves than that.

Post #74 » by **HMFFL** » Fri Aug 23, 2019 7:00 pm

Atlanta Hawks projected for 10th-place finish by ESPN

https://www.peachtreehoops.com/2019/8/21/20826425/atlanta-hawks-espn-projection-roundtable-eastern-conference-optimism-2019-20-season

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Post #75 » by **HMFFL** » Sat Aug 24, 2019 6:21 am

Nets’ Spencer Dinwiddie believes Hawks are dark horse candidates for the 2020 playoffs

https://clutchpoints.com/nets-news-spencer-dinwiddie-believes-hawks-are-dark-horse-candidates-for-the-2020-playoffs/

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Post #76 » by **Jamaaliver** » Sun Aug 25, 2019 12:42 pm

Tweet of the day:

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Spud2nique · Post #77 » by **Spud2nique** » Sun Aug 25, 2019 2:36 pm

Jamaaliver wrote:Tweet of the day:

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7 year old? Nah, this is the work of one Jamalo aka Braaaaaad who has never dribbled a basketball. :lol:

Ps We are going to the playoffs!

Post #78 » by **Jamaaliver** » Mon Aug 26, 2019 11:19 am

One big question for each NBA team heading into the season

Atlanta Hawks

Who will be a strong third option to help push this team towards the playoffs?

The Atlanta Hawks have emerged as one of the trendy dark horse picks in the Eastern Conference to make a real push towards the playoffs. However, if the Hawks are going to make a postseason run, they’re going to need a third option to emerge. The hope is that Trae Young and John Collins will build off their excellent seasons for last year. However, after losing Taurean Prince and Kent Bazemore during the offseason, the Hawks are going to need one of their rookies (Cam Reddish, De’Andre Hunter) to step up or Kevin Huerter will need to take another step forward.

The Hawks will be a young, interesting team next season no matter what happens. If a consistent third option emerges for the team, there’s a chance that Atlanta could become a threat to make the playoffs this season.

Sir Charles in Charge

Spud2nique · Post #79 » by **Spud2nique** » Mon Aug 26, 2019 2:49 pm

Why is this even a question. If anyone saw the 2nd half of our season last year they know there’s no stopping us. People underestimate Trae to Collins, throw in 2 top 10 pick, one of which was supposed to be a top 3 player in Cam and one who won the national title in college as the best defensive player. Huerter year 2 as well...

Ya, we are a 5-8 seed.

King Ken · Post #80 » by **King Ken** » Mon Aug 26, 2019 4:09 pm

Trae Young will make us a playoff team. Simple as that

Will the Hawks make the playoffs?