Atlanta Hawks: Something is clearly wrong but there are no easy answers

In a year that was supposed to be the Atlanta Hawks’ encore, they’ve clearly regressed. 

This was supposed to be the Atlanta Hawks year.

Trae Young was rightfully victimized by the refs to reinforce the rule adjustments. Young’s free throws are down to 6.9. That’s an almost two whole attempts drop from last year, 8.7. He has since wised up to the rules but has his team caught up as well? It seems as though Young and John Collins have lost that spark, that connection, that chemistry even.

Those two are the cornerstones of the franchise and there is only one reliable option. If Collins could space like Danilo Gallinari, or have the defensive impact as Clint Capela, he could be more useful.

Anyone could never knock someone for getting their money, but the Collins extension could be questioned by even the basic of viewers. The five-year, $125 million contract looks nice, but that money could have been used on another partner for Young, a more complimentary piece.

The trade deadline has passed, and the Hawks are sitting 3rd – in their own division – at 28-30 below .500, behind the culture-centric, contending Miami Heat and the youthful, upstart Charlotte Hornets. They are currently 10th in the conference standings.

Atlanta showed they had the personnel and scheme to make the Eastern Conference semifinals last season, but this year, for several factors, they have regressed.

John Collins or Ben Simmons? John Collins or Domantas Sabonis? John Collins or, heck, Christian Wood? Rudy Gobert Even! The deadline has passed and not one move was made by the Atlanta Hawks (not counting Cam Reddish deal). They have enough moveable contracts to match the money of just about anyone, but with the money so spread out, it would take a perfect piece to cash in those chips. The Hawks missed their chance to improve the team in the immediate sense or for the future.

The team defense, more specifically Capela’s drop to league average as a defender, has hurt the overall team defense. Dropping down two rebounds, half a block and losing five points counts as regression. Overall, the Hawks have the 27th-ranked defense in the league.

The Hawks were without their primary defender in DeAndre Hunter for most of the beginning of the season, but no one else could fill that void? Individual defenders are the pillars of a good team defense and the Hawks wing defender and paint protector have either regressed or been out (being injured is nothing new for Hunter).

That begs the question, is too much talent a problem? If anyone should know it’s the Hawks. While balancing a 10 or 11-man rotation can be tough, head coach Nate McMillian was the right guy; an experienced, veteran coach who had playoff experience. But was McMillian a quick fix last year? Or can he figure out the next move to correct the Hawks direction?

The Hawks are going down bad and there is no parachute in sight. They lack the same motivation as the Hawks of last year.