With expectations for the 2021-22 Hawks team sky-high, here are five keys to the season, and a few storylines to watch for:
Staying healthy
If Trae Young hadn’t stepped back onto a referee’s foot, resulting in a freak bone bruise, and the Hawks had a healthy De’Andre Hunter to deploy, would the Eastern Conference finals vs. Milwaukee have gone differently? Emblematic of an injury-plagued season, it’s a nagging question that was in the back of many Hawks fans’ minds, though one that makes no difference at this point.
The Hawks advanced farther than anyone thought it could in spite of a revolving door of injuries, but their main cast staying healthy gives the Hawks their best chance to compete for homecourt advantage in the playoffs (a top-four seed), the team’s goal to build on what it did last year (finishing at No. 5, losing a tiebreaker to the Knicks).
This likely is the biggest key for the Hawks, and unfortunately the one element outside their control. Injury woes followed the Hawks into this preseason, with Young (right quad contusion in exhibition Game 1), Hunter (right knee injury management), Bogdan Bogdanovic (recovering from knee soreness), Kevin Huerter (recovering from ankle surgery after last season), Clint Capela (left Achilles injury management), Onyeka Okongwu (out likely until January after shoulder surgery), Delon Wright (tweaked his ankle in exhibition Game 2) and Gorgui Dieng (right hand sprain in exhibition Game 3) facing some kind of injury already.
The good news? All those guys except Okongwu are expected to be ready for the regular season. If the Hawks’ core players can stay healthy, their goals become much more feasible, especially given teams will be gunning for them this year. Which brings us to our next key ...
Mental challenge of target on back
As much as the Hawks had to overcome to reach the conference finals, getting there again may be even harder this go-around. The main reason being the Hawks, once glossed over, will not be sneaking up on anyone. They play on national TV 19 times, having captured the nation’s attention after last season’s success, and it’s much less likely stars will rest when visiting Atlanta this season.
That means the Hawks will have to be consistent from start to finish, something they got much better at once McMillan took over in March.
Credit: Curtis Compton / Curtis.Compton@
Credit: Curtis Compton / Curtis.Compton@
Defensive improvement
Adding Capela to the lineup transformed the Hawks’ defense in several ways. He led the NBA in rebounding (14.3), protected the rim (fourth in the league with two blocks per game) and paired well with John Collins, who got to slide back to his natural position at power forward.
But, Capela had a lot on his plate.
Under Lloyd Pierce, the Hawks had the No. 23 defensive rating in the league (112.9) from the beginning of the season until the end of February, and under McMillan had the No. 12 defensive rating (111.3) from March 1 onward, so that improvement already was showing. The Hawks as a whole will need to take a step forward on defense, and a healthy Hunter and Cam Reddish would go a long way.
Young thriving in the spotlight
Young is the face of the franchise, around which the entire team has been built for years to come, with him signing a contract extension this offseason.
As evidenced by the playoffs (team-high 28.8 points and 9.5 steals per game), the Hawks are at their best when Young is at his best, and they’ll certainly need a big season from him to achieve their goals.
He seems poised for that, as he managed a heavy workload and constant pressure from defenses well in the postseason, making the much-improved supporting cast around him better and feeding the hot hand, increasing his activity on defense, as well. One area where Young could continue to improve is his turnovers (4.1 per game).
Young continuing the trajectory he was on last season will help the Hawks’ success carry over.
Credit: Curtis Compton / Curtis.Compton@
Credit: Curtis Compton / Curtis.Compton@
Understanding sacrifice
With so many players competing for playing time, it’s inevitable that minutes and individual stats for several players will go down. Unless, of course, injuries free more spots, though that’s obviously something the Hawks want to avoid. The Hawks have a much different mind-set than the past few years, looking to win now and play the best player rather than prepare for the future, letting young guys develop and play through mistakes in games.
Understanding that sacrifice, a lesson the team started to learn last season though mounting injuries meant the issue wasn’t forced as much as originally anticipated, will be key for this group. Will players buy in and appreciate the wins that will hopefully come from having such a deep group? If so, depth can be a major advantage for the Hawks.
About the Author
