Atlanta Hawks Season Preview

Atlanta Hawks
Last Year's Record: 30-52
Key Losses: none
Key Additions: Al Horford, Acie Law

1. What significant moves were made during the off season?

The Hawks got lucky when they pulled the #3 ball during the draft lottery- anything lower and the pick would have belonged to Phoenix. Al Horford and Acie Law were the perfect picks at #3 and #11. Horford may be the opening day starter, and all signs point to Acie Law moving up the depth chart at point.

2. What are the team's biggest strengths?

All jokes aside, the Atlanta Hawks have one of the best forward rotations in the league. All the bigs on the team can put the ball on the floor and knock down open looks. This team is young and can run the floor and finish strong (Old Man Lue, too, for 20 minutes a night). They can protect the rim very well and are an excellent free throw shooting team.

3. What are the team's biggest weaknesses?

The Atlanta Hawks still lack a true center and a true point guard, but so do a lot of teams. The Hawks don't have a good answer for Dwight Howard or Shaq, but that hasn't stopped the Hawks from beating their teams. When Lue is healthy he can push the ball just fine, but he gets picked apart on defense and opposing point guards tended to have career games against the Hawks last year. It's uncertain what Acie Law can do this year, so this is a big question mark.

It's sad that I have to mention ownership as a weakness, but honestly it's the only reason the Hawks didn't lock up Josh Smith to a long term deal this past offseason. With the future of the team in the hands of the legal system, the Hawks hands are tied. The fact that they are Billy Knight's hands is a whole different problem. In case you didn't know, the Hawks could have had Nick Fazekus or Glen Davis on the team right now instead of Anthony Johnson.

4. What are the goals for this team?

The Hawks were unable to stay healthy last year, with at least one key guy being hurt almost the entire year. Fans want to see Joe "Kid Dy-no-mite" Johnson play at the same time with the matured Marvin "Sexual Healing" Williams, Josh " Josh 2" Smith, Josh "Josh 1" Childress, and a little Al "Nickname coming soon" Horford. Last year this team was marketed locally as "The Highlight Factory", but this year they might actually deliver. This team isn't merely interested in playing exciting fast-paced basketball, they want to win. The Atlanta Hawks absolutely believe they deserve to be in the playoffs, and will fight like hell to make it. This team is starting to gel, and though they are not the best team in the league, they can run with them.

5. What the Hell is wrong with Atlanta fans?

The media are always surprised when Atlanta fans don't sell out home games when the team sucks. Half the people that live in Atlanta didn't grow up here, so the built-in fan base is small. The franchise hasn't been around long enough that the people that did grow up here have any sense of history, particularly since the team has never won a championship (or played for one) in Atlanta. The team has been around long enough, however, that fans aren't just happy to have a team (like some newer franchises). This city loves winners, but they also love exciting players. Mike Vick sold a lot of jerseys and tickets, but Joe Johnson doesn't have the flash (the man is too humble) and Josh Smith doesn't have the same marketing force behind him. A.I. could've done it and so could Kobe, but if this team starts winning the fans will turn out.

The City Too Busy To Hate unfortunately happens to be filled with haters who love nothing more than to cheer opposing teams when they dunk on (fill in the blank with any Atlanta Hawk). Last year's opener claimed to have sold out, when in reality only about 3000 people were there for tip off. If this team can get some home support, they can absolutely play the kind of exciting basketball this city has been craving for 20 years.

Predicted Record: 42-40 (Interestingly enough, John Hollinger agrees)