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Atlanta Hawks: Stuck In The NBA’s Mediocrity Mud

By Nikolas Donadic

Apr 28, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Kyle Korver (26) and forward Kent Bazemore (24) celebrate against the Boston Celtics during the second half in game six of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 28, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Kyle Korver (26) and forward Kent Bazemore (24) celebrate against the Boston Celtics during the second half in game six of the first round of the NBA Playoffs at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: Mark L. Baer-USA TODAY Sports /
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For the ninth consecutive year the Atlanta Hawks made the playoffs, and for the ninth consecutive season they came up short of winning the NBA Finals

The Atlanta Hawks are nothing if not consistent. They are consistently good enough to be a top eight team in the Eastern Conference; unfortunately, they are also consistently not good enough to truly contend for an NBA championship.

As the old adage says, “numbers never lie.” Although, they do mislead those who don’t look past the simple ones. Nine consecutive teams from Hotlanta have made the postseason: four made first round exits, four lost the conference semifinals, and one single team reached the conference finals.

How successful have those nine seasons actually been? Compared to the likes of the New York Knicks, very successful; but aside from some division titles and participation awards, these teams all left early with nothing to show for their efforts.

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The eight seasons prior, Atlanta was a basement dwelling team who couldn’t reach a .500 record. Thus making these playoff appearances a welcome change, if nothing more than to boost morale among the fan base.

However, they have done nothing but keep the Hawks in an annual retooling mission whose failure is inevitable. The NBA has become divided into three “classes.” The first featuring the likes of Cleveland, Golden State, and San Antonio who are actual title contenders.

The second features the basement dwellers, whether it be due to a tanking “strategy” or sheer lack of talent, such as Philadelphia, Sacramento, and Minnesota. The final one, which Atlanta finds themselves stuck in, consists of teams which aren’t bad enough to consider rebuilding but also aren’t good enough to contend for titles.

This season ended much like last season for the Hawks, except only one round earlier. They were swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers, a much more talented team.

Albert Einstein is famously credited with saying “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, but expecting different results.” One can only wonder how long Atlanta can continue to play this game before deciding to start over.

After trading Jeff Teague, who at times looked like their best player, to Indiana and essentially receiving Taurean Prince for him, it appears they are gonna continue to toil in what can’t exactly be called mediocrity.

Regardless, the Hawks have had a successful decade. One which featured Mike Woodson helping the team to improve, Joe Johnson’s exorbitant contract handicapping their offseasons, and building a playoff team each and every season.

That being said, Atlanta is still going to be stuck in the middle next season. Their success makes tanking seem impossible, or reckless, but their consistent playoff failure makes it a considerable alternative. The modern NBA seems to force teams to be intentionally bad to get good, recruit star free agents to form super-teams, or stay in the middle and hope for a breakout year.

As presently constituted, the Atlanta Hawks have a good cast of above average players. Their problem is that, even with Jeff Teague, they had no dependable “go-to guy.” The team which made those early exits didn’t have someone to throw the ball to and have them stop the bleeding consistently.

Rather, this team was the Eastern Conference’s rendition of San Antonio basketball, minus the star power. Teamwork is key in basketball, but talent is more pivotal in the playoffs.

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Can the Atlanta Hawks win the 2017 NBA Finals? Anything is possible. Is it likely? No. Will Atlanta be a 2-5 seed – again – and make a first or second round exit? Recent history says it’s more than probable. Hotlanta has no real options, aside from signing a marquee free agent or two, to help them escape their paradoxical rut of semi-success.

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