The Hawks enter this season with a familiar kind of optimism: not the loud, splashy kind, but the sort that comes from staying patient, keeping the core intact, and believing the group can keep climbing. Atlanta made only modest changes this offseason, adding three rookies and bringing in depth pieces like Lu Dort and Aaron Wiggins. That approach leaves the Hawks in the mix for a Top Six seed in the East, even if the road there won’t be easy.
If everything breaks the right way, Atlanta has a real, if narrow, path to the Eastern Conference Finals. That’s the best-case ceiling here, and it starts with the young players taking another step.
Jalen Johnson would need to jump from Third-Team All-NBA level to first- or second-team territory. Nickeil Alexander-Walker has to become more dangerous as a shot creator.
Dyson Daniels needs to become a steadier shooter. Onyeka Okongwu also has to prove that last season’s three-point spike wasn’t a one-year blip.
The Hawks would also need help from the new faces and the rookies. Dort and Wiggins were brought in to shore up a weakness, and Atlanta is hoping Kingston Flemings eventually develops into a star and the team’s future starting point.
Jock Landale has his own job to do, too. He has to show that his late-season work as the backup center was real, because the Hawks still don’t have a clear third center they can count on.
There’s a clear formula for Atlanta on the other end of the floor as well. The Hawks need to shoot better from three and find answers for their biggest defensive issue: rim protection.
The perimeter defense could be nasty, though, with Daniels, Dort, NAW, and Wiggins giving Atlanta the chance to throw wave after wave of pressure at opposing guards and wings. The offense might not crack the top five, but the ceiling is there for a top-ten attack, a top-five defense, and home-court advantage in the first round.
The floor is a lot less dramatic than a full collapse, but it still leaves room for disappointment. The Hawks aren’t built to bottom out, yet there is a version of this season where the momentum from last year fades fast. If that late surge was really tied more to an easy schedule, if the returning players stall, if the rookies aren’t ready, if Dort and Wiggins struggle, if Landale proves to be an overpaid backup, and if CJ McCollum drops off sharply in his age 35 season, Atlanta could wind up back in the play-in picture.
The same issues that could cap the ceiling could also drag down the floor. Rim protection remains a concern because Okongwu, while a good defender, can be limited by his size, and Landale is not a strong defender. And if Flemings can’t contribute right away, the Hawks could have problems at lead guard, especially with McCollum and NAW not being strong passers.
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Jalen Johnson Is Taking On A Hawks Role Fans Know Well
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This summer, those runs have offered rookies a valuable introduction to the leagues pace and physicality, with Kingston Flemings and Zuby Ejiofor getting in the gym alongside established stars. For a team still shaping its next core, those sessions matter because they speed up the learning curve and give Johnson a chance to set the tone as more than just another rotation piece. [Read more 🡒]