Despite their 29 wins, the Atlanta Hawks were an exciting team to watch last season. After a slow start, prized rookie Trae Young came alive in the second half of the season and breathed new life into the future of Hawks basketball. The duo of Young and John Collins has Hawks fans racing to the box office to watch these two play for the next several years.
After adding some intriguing pieces in the draft, the Hawks will look to continue to grow their young core in the 2019-20 NBA season. Expectations remain tempered as their core grows together, but the Hawks are primed for a season with, like their players, loads of potential.
This season is filled with both hot anticipation and lingering question marks for Atlanta. Let's break it down and make five bold predictions about the upcoming year:
5. Rookies De'Andre Hunter and Cam Reddish will be perfect fits
The Hawks had a plethora of assets in the 2019 NBA Draft. And instead of keeping their picks, they traded their eighth, 17th, and 35th picks to move up to the fourth overall spot in the draft.
GM Travis Schlenk had a clear plan in mind going into the draft, and the Hawks nabbed two athletic wings with their two top-ten picks. With the fourth overall pick, the Hawks selected Virginia's De'Andre Hunter, and with the 1oth overall pick, the Hawks took Duke's Cam Reddish.
With pieces like Trae Young, John Collins, and Kevin Huerter all showing immense promise, Schlenk added two wings to the lineup to add athleticism, perimeter defense, and more outside shooting.
Hunter was one of the best perimeter defenders in the draft, and for a Hawks team that was 28th in the league in defensive rating last year, they could use the help. Hunter was one of the big reasons why Virginia won the national championship, and the Hawks hope Hunter can bring that same defensive intensity to Atlanta.
Hunter didn't take a large volume of three's in college, but he made them at a high clip, shooting 43.8% from distance. Even with the extended NBA three-point line, Hunter's shooting should help. With a playmaker like Trae Young, Hunter will need to knock down his open three's to be effective. His upside on offense isn't terribly high, but his athleticism, ability to knock down open triples, and perimeter defense will help him make an immediate impact on the young Hawks squad.
The Hawks' 10th overall pick, Cam Reddish, was overshadowed a bit in college by the Zion Williamson show in Duke. But Reddish is an elite talent in his own right. Reddish, unlike Hunter, has high upside on offense, being an athletic playmaker who can knock down shots. Standing at 6'8″ with a 7'0″ wingspan, Reddish has the size needed to guard multiple positions in today's increasingly-positionless NBA.
With loads of talent on the roster, Reddish may not have shown what he's fully capable of at Duke, but he'll have time to grow with the rest of the Hawks' young core in Atlanta. Like Hunter, Reddish can also provide defensive versatility and the ability to knock down open three's–which will likely be what he's asked to do early on.
Improving perimeter defense, adding athleticism to the roster, and picking up two guys who can knock down three's were solid moves for the Hawks in the draft. And it should pay dividends as early as the 2019-20 NBA season, as the rookies get a chance to grow alongside the young core.
4. Rookie Bruno Fernando will earn his spot
With the 35th pick in the draft, the Hawks selected Bruno Fernando out of Maryland. Fernando has a 6'10” large frame, and can bang and bump with the best of them down low. He's a second-round gamble with low risk and high reward.
John Collins will continue to develop as a star power forward, and the Hawks will have Alex Len starting at center. But Fernando will be able to provide another big body to clog the paint and give Len some rest. With the only other center on the roster the unproven Damian Jones, Fernando has a chance to make an immediate impact.
He showed immense promise in college, finishing as one of the five finalists for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award, given to the nation's best center. He was also the only player to earn a spot on the All-Big Ten First Team and the All-Defensive Team. Fernando has the potential to be a real steal for a Hawks team looking for a large body and some interior defense.
When given the opportunity, look for Fernando to make the most of it and earn his spot as the backup center. He has the length, size, and athleticism to be explosive. And while it'll take time to adjust to the NBA, he'll show flashes of brilliance this season and has the tools to be a second-round steal.
3. Kevin Huerter will take the next step in the 2019-20 NBA season
If Travis Schlenk, who was recently named Hawks' President of Basketball Operations, is trying to model his team after the Golden State Warriors, then Kevin Huerter is his Klay Thompson. Huerter showed last season that he's more than capable as a knock-down shooter. And his shooting will continue to develop as he grows his confidence with a whole NBA season under his belt.
Last season, Huerter shot 38.5% from deep, helping lead a Hawks team that launched three's from all over the roster. The Hawks finished the season fourth in the NBA in made three's per game. Huerter, however, averaged only 9.7 points per game despite his solid three-point shooting. Expect that number to jump.
As Trae Young and John Collins get more comfortable with each and the offense, so will Huerter. The three of them form a formidable and exciting core that can only get better. Huerter showed flashes of playmaking abilities last year, and can easily reach double-digit scoring averages this season. On the optimistic end, he may even double his scoring output from last season.
Huerter has proven himself a solid shooter so far, but expect him to take the leap of becoming a big part of their offense as a reliable shooter and a secondary playmaker next to Young.
2. Trae Young will continue his evolution into Stephen Curry
Trae Young has been drawing comparisons to Stephen Curry since college. Young's ability to pull up from anywhere in the half-court, his crafty handles, and his pin-point accuracy on passes is reminiscent of the two-time MVP in Golden State.
Young had a slow start to his rookie campaign, and before the All-Star break, he averaged 16.9 points per game on 40.6% from the field and 31.2% from three. After the All-Star break, however, Young took off, averaging 24.7 points and 9.2 assists per game on 44,2% from the field and 34.8% from three.
His surge in the second half of the season rocketed him back into the Rookie of the Year conversation. And the noticeable increased uptick in efficiency is a sign that he settled down and was more comfortable operating the Hawks' offense.
This coming 2019-20 NBA season, Young will continue to rise to stardom and build off of a stellar second half. He won't turn into Steph Curry overnight, but he'll look to improve his decision-making and his shot selection in his sophomore season.
The arrivals of veteran newcomers Allen Crabbe, Evan Turner, and Chandler Parsons will provide shooting and length on the perimeter that should aid Young's growth. Collins will continue to be a force down low, and rookies Hunter and Reddish will add even more athleticism to the lineup. A player's growth is largely dependent on coaching and teammates, and Young is in a good spot right now, holding the reins to a potent Hawks' offense.
The Hawks will go only as far as Trae Young will take them, and with some good complementary pieces around him, he'll be revving up his engines for a dominant offensive season. It's only a matter of time before he starts becoming a perennial All-Star in the East, and he'll take another step forward this season.
1. The Hawks will make the playoffs
With length, athleticism, and shooting, the Hawks have the offense to compete with anyone in the Eastern Conference. The East this year will be top-heavy, with teams like the Philadelphia 76ers, Milwaukee Bucks, and Boston Celtics looking to claim the top spots. But the sixth to eighth seeds should be wide open and up for grabs.
Though they have some work to do on defense, the Hawks have the offensive firepower to carry them into the top eight. It's a tall task for a team to go from 29 wins to the playoffs the following year. But the Hawks are in a unique position to not only be exciting to watch, but also have the ability of sneaking into the playoffs and causing trouble for a contender.
With their young, promising pieces only getting better, look for the Hawks to make a serious playoff push in the 2019-20 NBA season in the wide open East. And don't be surprised if they give a top team some trouble come April.
This will be a year of growth for the young Hawks. But it'll only be a matter of time before they spread their wings and learn to fly.
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