The Atlanta Hawks have a bright future ahead of them. They have a fantastic one-two punch in John Collins and Trae Young, and the open Eastern Conference means they can compete for a playoff spot. However, the last thing Lloyd Pierce wants is his players to think that they have gotten this season in the bag.
He claimed that the Hawks have not done anything substantial to even think of making it to the playoffs. He seeks consistent growth from the team before they even start bringing up the word.
“We haven't done anything,” coach Lloyd Pierce said Friday, per the Washington Post. “I don't want any our guys thinking we've accomplished anything just yet.”
“We need to see what this little young core can do together,” Schlenk said. “Do they fit together? We certainly think they're going to fit together nicely. That's the plan. But we haven't been able to see it yet. We need to see those guys in action. That doesn't mean a month. I'm talking about seeing them together for a whole year.”
He pointed out to last year's defense as lackluster at best and is expecting improvements from his team.
He also pointed out in an AJC article that the margin of error between them making the playoffs and trying out in the lottery again is very slim. They have to do the little things right if they want to succeed in this league.
There's a lot of excitement building up in Atlanta. However, fans should temper their expectations. It's likely that they'll go through another season of development before they start seriously contending for playoff positions.