The Atlanta Hawks are coming off another disappointing season following a sweep at the hands of the Cleveland Cavaliers in their Eastern Conference semi-final series. The sobering reality is that they aren’t even close to being ready to compete with the Cavaliers at this point. That could be said about pretty much every single other team from the Eastern Conference as well but there is a silver lining in place in that the Hawks do have some talented pieces in place. Atlanta will move forward with a core group that features Paul Millsap and they can narrow their focus to a couple of key areas they will need to address this summer. Here is a breakdown of the four biggest offseason priorities for the Hawks.
Sign Al Horford & Kent Bazemore
The most pressing of offseason priorities for Atlanta will be bringing back two key players in Al Horford and Kent Bazemore. Horford has been a reliable big man over the years for the Hawks and he is coming off another strong season in which he averaged 15.2 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game. Horford will attract a lucrative contract in free agency so Atlanta may need to spend a little more to bring him back but they can’t afford to lose him at this point. Meanwhile, Bazemore’s inconsistent play at the offensive end of the floor will make him that much easier to sign in the offseason. Bazemore has the potential to be that much more consistent at the offensive end moving forward and as long as he continues to bring energy at the defensive end of the floor he will remain an important piece off the bench moving forward.
Trade Either Jeff Teague Or Dennis Schroder
One of the Hawks biggest offseason priorities is to figure out what to do at the point guard position. They’ll have a tough decision to make as they have two good players, but both are in each other’s way. Jeff Teague is coming off another solid season but Dennis Schroder continued to push him for minutes throughout the year. The bottom line remains that Atlanta needs more help at other positions and can’t over-invest here and under-invest elswewhere. Schroder is younger, more athletic and is ready to take over the starting point guard role. That could make Teague a valuable trade chip in order to acquire some help in more pressing areas of concern.
Find Scoring Help
One area that Atlanta will need to address is their scoring efficiency. The Hawks have several players capable of hitting the three-point shot on a consistent basis but the problem is that none of them were very consistent from beyond the arc this season. Atlanta is one of the best teams in the NBA when it comes to ball movement but there were clearly too many times when they didn’t do a good enough job hitting open shots. The Hawks would really benefit from adding a consistent three-point shooter that can compliment the athleticism they have on the floor next season.
Add An Energy Big Man
Horford and Millsap represent a formidable big man tandem, but one of the Hawks offseason priorities should be from the addition of an enforcer that could provide some energy for them off the bench. The Hawks finished with the third-worst rebound differential in the NBA during the regular season and then they were beat up on the boards by the Cavaliers in their Eastern Conference semifinal series. The addition of Tiago Splitter wasn’t a bad idea but he’s slow and doesn’t provide much energy. The game is moving away from players like that.
Acquiring a high-energy big man that can rumble down low and be a force on the glass could really help the Hawks overall and provide them with a boost in an area that was a major weakness for them this season. Atlanta is one year removed from finishing with the best record in the Eastern Conference and they have some considerable pieces in place. Adding another big man to provide a spark for them off the bench would help them move one step closer to contending for an NBA title.
