The Hawks are a REAL THREAT in the East

The Hawks are a REAL THREAT in the East

Yo, what’s going on y’all? It’s Con and today I want to talk about the Atlanta Hawks who have had one of the best off seasons out of anybody in the East. I’d say out of all the Eastern Conference teams, they’ve probably had my favorite. They’ve built out a dynamic, really well-fitting roster around Trey Young, their star point guard. And I believe he now is the best supporting cast he has ever had. And it gives them a real chance to not only win a playoff series for the first time since 2021, but make it to the conference finals for the second time in the Trey era if things really break their way, if the pieces click the way that they potentially can, if they can stay healthy and get the right matchups in what is a somewhat weakened Eastern Conference with, of course, Boston and Indiana being out of the picture. They’re not one of my front runners to make the conference finals, but it’s not out of the question. So, let’s go ahead and talk about what I like so much about this Hawks team. Uh last season they made some strides. They went 40 and 42, just two games below 500. Trey was again really good, an exceptional playmaker, led the league in assists. It’s kind of what he’s done throughout his career, but he was supported a bit more now defensively. Dyson Daniels is one of the top finishers and defensive player of the year voting. He ends up winning most improved, led the league in steals, had one of the best deflection seasons of all time. Dyson was a monster and to get him for Deontay Murray was a steal. Not to mention when you consider the fact that they themselves lost the Dejonte Murray trade and then won the Dejonte Murray trade that when they dealt him away. Uh it was a good recovery for Atlanta after making that move that I was never a fan of and clearly didn’t end up working out. Uh Jaylen Johnson was awesome when he was playing. He did deal with injury which is been an issue for Jaylen Johnson throughout the early going of his career. Hopefully that doesn’t affect him this season. That is kind of a swing factor for Atlanta. But Jaylen Johnson was awesome. I think had a chance at an all-star spot and had a chance at MIP himself if he didn’t of course like I said miss a lot of games with injury. Anyaka Kungu was really solid for them as a big Zachary Reach came in as the number one overall pick and had a really good rookie season. One that kind of flew under the radar cuz it didn’t pop off the page the way that a lot of other number one overall picks in history have. But it was just really solid across the board, especially as time went on. He got more and more efficient. I liked a lot of the defensive flashes he showed and that was all at 19 years old. DeAndre Hunter was awesome for them. They end up dealing him away at the deadlines of the Cavaliers and they do end up missing the playoffs, but all in all, pretty successful season I would say. They took steps forward. They had their best record since uh 2022 and they ended up going into this summer with a lot more optimism surrounding them. At least on my end, I’m like, “Hey, I don’t really think they have to trade Trey Young anymore.” I went to last season thinking, yeah, that’s inevitable within the next summer or two. But now it’s like, okay, well, Trey can be this high level playmaker for Reach and Jaylen Johnson and a Yaka Kungu. And if you make the right moves around them, then suddenly you’ve got a pretty intriguing core of young guys that still have a lot of potential to grow and they built off that perfectly over the course of this summer. I love them bringing in Kristoffs Porzingis. I know he’s had concerns with staying on the court, whether it was last year that mysterious illness that we still really don’t know much at all about or other injuries that have popped up throughout his career. Uh when he’s on the court, KP is really, really good. He is an amazing floor stretching, shot blocking big, which is exactly what this Hawks team needs. They need to continue to add defense because Trey is a big liability. He’s been trying more than ever the past couple of seasons, but he’s never going to be a good defender because of his size. And so you add another defender alongside Tyson Daniels and Jaylen Johnson and Yaka Kungwu and Akale Alexander Walker who they also bring in who I’ll talk about in a moment and Reach and suddenly you’ve got a lot of really solid defensive pieces around Trey to mask that weakness of his and a legitimate skeleton of what I believe can be a pretty solid defensive team next year. I’m not saying they’re going to be like top 10 or top five, but if they can just hold their ground and be solid offensively, that is the makings of a pretty good team because I trust Trey to elevate this team on the offensive end. And adding KP is going to help with that, too. Trey has never played with a legitimate floor stretching five. And now he gets to run pick and pops of them. He’s also, of course, KP a big time lob threat. He can knock down shots in the mid-range, has like crazy range, too. like he can not only spot up like right there on the perimeter but can step a few feet out. He is a massive weapon to give to Trey Young as one of the best playmakers in the sport and they needed the shooting because Dyson’s not really that premier outside threat. Jaylen Johnson is still figuring it out and Yaka Kungu can knock down some threes in very limited volume. Reach a took big steps but of course he’s a young player like they needed some outside shooting. So KP brings that. He brings more defense. He brings a unique weapon that Quinnsteider and this Hawks team have not had over the last couple of years. And that’s similar for Nquil Alexander Walker, who they also bring in, and I love it. Over the last couple years, Nikil Alexander Walker in Minnesota developed into one of the best role- playinging wings in the sport. I think a lot of people think about him as this 3 and D player, which he’s definitely capable of. He’s great at knocking down the outside shot. Again, another weapon for Trey Young in this offense. Uh he is really good defensively. again, someone to help out with that lack of defense coming from Trey, but even more so, he’s able to put the ball on the deck. He’s able to create a little bit, playmake a little bit. He is a much more versatile wing than I think people realize. And here in Atlanta, I expect him to get a lot of run, have a big time role and be a big-time reason why the Hawks are going to jump in the Eastern Conference. I think he’s one of the ideal role playinging wings to have next to a Trey Young on this roster. And that comes with the growth I do expect from the young guys. Like I loved a lot of what I saw offensively from Dyson Daniels last year in terms of growth. You know, none of it was uh perfect by any means, but it’s a lot better than what we’d seen in the past. And I think there’s still a lot of room for him to improve, and I do believe he will capture some of that development this season. Uh Jaylen Johnson, one of the best transition weapons in the sport, a freight train getting downhill, and I think the improved spacing of this team is going to make that a lot easier. Again, I’m just so high on Jaylen Johnson. I love what he’s done the past couple of seasons and I think there’s a legitimate shot, in fact, I think it’s somewhat likely that he is an all-star in this Eastern Conference. Like I said with Ree Sasha, had a great end to his rookie season and if he carries some of that over, he could be like a 37 38% shooting, pretty solid defensive wing. Again, another perfect player to have on this roster. I like what Mo Gay did last season for them in the front court. Someone that I think really flew under the radar in the back half of that Hawk season. Asa Newle I think is an interesting pickup too late in the first round. I love them adding Luke Canard as another shooter. Again, just trying to provide more and more spacing for some of those interior guys that they have. Uh one of the guys that is going to swing things for them is Kobe Buffkin. They drafted him uh in the top 20 a couple of years ago. He hasn’t managed to materialize into a real rotation player yet, but he’s just 21 years old, turning 22 going into the season and did have some nice flashes in summer league. So, that is one spot I’m keeping an eye on. Like, they are going to need good guard play. And I do think Aquille can do a little bit of that extra playmaking beyond Trey Young. But, if Kobe Buffkin isn’t able to be a real-time rotation player, they need to add another guard. So, we’ll have to wait and see on that front. That is one area of concern I do have. And of course, if Chris Porzingis can’t stay on the court, if they deal with injury issues to Jaylen Johnson, those things could all realistically derail this team. Like, there are question marks. They are nowhere near as solidified as say like the Cleveland Cavaliers or the New York Knicks in the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference for me. But I think if guys stay on the court and it clicks the way that I think it can, like there are a lot of really smart basketball players on this team, a lot of really talented guys, a lot of young players that can show development, I think there’s a world where they’re top three to four seed in the Eastern Conference. And if matchups go their way, if you know the team that they end up facing is dealing with injury, they could be back in the conference finals. It’s like there is a world where the Atlanta Hawks make it to the NBA finals if things really really break their way. I’m not going to go that far. I think if I had to predict right now, I’d probably have them as a second round exit. But to win a playoff series and go from last summer where there were a lot of discussions about when are they going to trade Trey Young, how do they blow this thing up to now I feel like general optimism from most people I’ve talked to about this Hawks team. It’s been impressive. I think they’ve done a really good job. Also, Quinn Snyder, good head coach, someone that I trust to get the most out of a lot of these players. I think the Hawks are going to be really fun. I think they’re going to be better than most casual fans realize. I think they’re going to shock some people next season. And hey, if the Atlanta Hawks are back in the conference finals for the second time of the Trey Young era, don’t be super surprised. And there’s still room for them to make a big time splash if they want to. Like, they have a very intriguing package of draft picks and young talent. I’m not saying that they’re going to, you know, blow some other offers out of the water. Like I don’t think they could match some of the stuff that San Antonio can throw out there. Maybe like a Houston or an Oklahoma City. If any of those, you know, big- time war chess juggernauts decide to go after a star, then Atlanta might not be able to match them. But they do have an intriguing package if a star becomes available. So that’s something else to keep an eye on. A few names that I’m thinking about that I won’t put out there that I think would be pretty fun here. Giannis if if Giannis ends up going on the market. I think Giannis would be super fun next to Trey in Atlanta. But anyways, uh those are some of my thoughts on the Atlanta Hawks. again, one of my biggest winners of the offseason. I think my favorite off season out east. They’ve done a phenomenal job and I’m really excited to see this team. Let me know down below in the comments what your expectations are for the Atlanta Hawks going into next season. Uh I feel like I didn’t even talk about Trey Young that much, but Trey is just a phenomenal playmaker. I think he’s taken some strides playing off the ball. I feel like he’s gotten better in that regard, and Trey still to me is underrated. I think I’ve been higher than a lot of other people on Trey Young over the last couple years. I think he’s very capable of elevating this team and I’m excited to see him try. But yeah, leave a like and subscribe if you enjoyed. Hit the notification bell so you don’t miss out on future videos. Let me know your thoughts on the Hawks down below and what other teams you want to see a video on over the course of this off seasonason because we’ve got a lot of time to kill. But for the moment, I appreciate you watching. I’ll see you all later. Rewind back.

The Atlanta Hawks had an eventful offseason that sets them up to be real threats in the Eastern Conference this season. They added Kristaps Porzingis from the Boston Celtics and Nickeil Alexander-Walker from the Minnesota Timberwolves alongside Trae Young, Jalen Johnson, Dyson Daniels, and Zaccharie Risacher to form a legitimately intimidating team in Atlanta. They might not be as solidified at the top of the East like the Cleveland Cavaliers or the New York Knicks, but they do have a chance to make it to the Eastern Conference Finals. Let’s talk about it.

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0:00 – Intro
0:50 – Last season. for the Hawks
2:59 – Kristaps Porzingis is gonna change everything
4:47 – Nickeil Alexander-Walker is underrated
5:36 – Dyson Daniels and Jalen Johnson are monsters
6:12 – Zaccharie Risacher is slept on
6:46 – Backup guard and health could be an issue
7:31 – But if it clicks they can win the East
9:45 – Outro