Writing this preview will end the chapter Season 26 for the Hawks and what a ride it was.
We went all in at the beginning of the season in trading away long-time favorite Dante Exum for Anthony Davis and mortgaging our future with trading for Otto Porter.
The goal was going for the championship. Obviously the time I write this article indicates we failed at that!
But that is honestly ok, sometimes you just fall a bit short.
I think we played a fairly good season overall and the most important part: I really enjoyed managing this team.
I don’t think we were able to play to our full abilities during the playoffs, but close. And the possibility of losing to Miami, is something you have to at least to consider if you go up against them in the playoffs lol
Hopefully I learned a little bit here and there about playoff coaching, so far our experience there was short lived, always going out quick in round 1 or 2. And we may have a chance to get into the playoffs again next year.
During the whole season we had player develop, surprise, struggle and we always kept our heads high and played a respectable regular season as a team. Here just some remarks going thru my mind …
AD: played as advertised, so steady you just can count on him most of the games. He is not the best player in the league anymore, but it is fun to plan around him
OP: I’m a fan of player like Otto or Okaro and he didn’t disappoint. I didn’t trade for him to offer a big offense outburst, he was here to bring the defensive toughness and mindset to the team. And I think he did. My favorite player this season.
Michael Young: he took another step in his development and played himself into the starting lineup. He still has to hone his game but drafting him late first round and seeing his development until here is awesome!
Justin Anderson: I was a bit surprised as he was offered as more or less salary filler in the GDP trade. But I can understand it looking at his last season. I was always a fan of him during his years of being overpaid, so it didn’t take long to accept him along with pick #8. He turned out to be an integral part of the team, especially on defense. His numbers look still blank if you care for PPG but that’s not what he was here for. He defended the best wing on the other side and if he takes a shot it is usually a good one.
Our role player all played their part, Derek White, Zach Collins, Mitch McGary and not to forget the forgotten man MCW, just crazy how he performed the last 2 seasons for us.
Which brings us to a quick outlook. The team will regress a good bit more going into next season. I want to prevent mortgaging even more future assets (but would not surprise me if I still would), so our options will be limited. Our starting 5 should be still ok, even in an estimated even stronger Easter Conference. An PG upgrade would be welcome and we need some fresh blood coming off the bench.
I’m looking forward to some off-season activity and we will see where the journey goes.
2020, 2023, 2027
