I know it is early...but

[gopack10]

I know it is early but this Hawks team looks better than last year's team.  I didn't think it was possible with the loss of DC but after tonight's game, I think we have a legit shot at getting back to the East Finals this year.

http://soaringdownsouth.com/2015/11/07/atlanta-hawks-lucky-7-hawks-take-wizards-bazemores-career-night/

Baze looked legit tonight and like a guy who has slid right in for DC.  Justin Holiday is going to be a 12-15 minute per game contributor as well when it is all said and done.  And we even won this one without Splitter, allowing Moose and Scott to get more minutes.

What do you guys think?  I just can't stop thinking about Charles Barkley on TNT the other night saying we wouldn't win 40 games.

[capstone21]

Last years team was special

Yes, it is too early to proclaim something like that ... People forget that we were dominating teams last year ... 

We are looking good but as good as last years team ... No not yet

[jpj2112]

I like what I see out of the gates, but know that every team around us has gotten better. The success so far in the face of back-to-backs is promising, though.  

I don't know what happened to Lamar Patterson's minutes...but I love the fact that at any given time, the end of our bench is expected to come in and  contribute as a regular part of the rotation. We're going to need that to keep everyone healthy. 

[sturt]

cap, how do you figure?... this to me is exactly  what we did last year... it was crazy not only how much we won, but that we so routinely won just this way--owning the last 5-or-so minutes of every game... what am I missing?

[Atlantaholic]

1 hour ago, capstone21 said:

Last years team was special

Yes, it is too early to proclaim something like that ... People forget that we were dominating teams last year ... 

We are looking good but as good as last years team ... No not yet

We are definitely playing up to par the last several games. Only thing keeping us from completely blowing out the likes of the Heat (on the road), New Orleans Pelicans, and the Wizards was some untimely cold spells in our shooting. This team is playing lights out right now. Only two or three teams are playing as well as us the last six games. 

[LamarHampton]

Compare this year to how we started last year and I'll definitely take it! We're off to a very great start.

[RamblinCharger]

I think we are playing better to start the year than how we ended last year, but in midseason during our big win streak we were beating teams by 15-20 almost every night. We are starting to show signs of that, but I'm not sure if we're quite there yet. I think we can get there though. I was one that thought DC was a product of the system so I am not surprised that Baze is stepping in so well.

[JETSET]

11 hours ago, jpj2112 said:

I like what I see out of the gates, but know that every team around us has gotten better. The success so far in the face of back-to-backs is promising, though.  

I don't know what happened to Lamar Patterson's minutes...but I love the fact that at any given time, the end of our bench is expected to come in and  contribute as a regular part of the rotation. We're going to need that to keep everyone healthy. 

I'm not buying the first line.  Every year we hear that every team has gotten better and every year the same teams are mediocre at best. 

[LucastheThird]

13 minutes ago, JETSET said:

I'm not buying the first line.  Every year we hear that every team has gotten better and every year the same teams are mediocre at best. 

Every offseason it's the same thing: Washington, Miami, Chicago, Milwaukee, and Orlando have gotten better this year. This is the year we don't make the playoffs or have to fight for the 8th seed. 

[jpj2112]

24 minutes ago, JETSET said:

I'm not buying the first line.  Every year we hear that every team has gotten better and every year the same teams are mediocre at best. 

Technically the first line is "I like what I see out of the gates." LOL. But not thinking those teams got better is a bit short-sighted.  About 95 percent of the East has been mired in mediocrity for so long, including us. Some of these teams have no where to go but up. 

My preliminary assessment to address the original question is that it's still early and I don't exactly expect it to be a cakewalk. 

[JETSET]

2 hours ago, jpj2112 said:

Technically the first line is "I like what I see out of the gates." LOL. But not thinking those teams got better is a bit short-sighted.  About 95 percent of the East has been mired in mediocrity for so long, including us. Some of these teams have no where to go but up. 

My preliminary assessment to address the original question is that it's still early and I don't exactly expect it to be a cakewalk. 

I will say that we have made a larger improvement from last year than just about every team in the East.  Our depth this year is insane. 

[Carmine]

Were a good team but not a great team.

[sturt]

Just 74 games to go...

[TheFuzz]

The East got better but we're still better than the East (sans Cavs).

[BigDog90]

On 11/7/2015, 11:12:37, gopack10 said:

I know it is early but this Hawks team looks better than last year's team.  I didn't think it was possible with the loss of DC but after tonight's game, I think we have a legit shot at getting back to the East Finals this year.

http://soaringdownsouth.com/2015/11/07/atlanta-hawks-lucky-7-hawks-take-wizards-bazemores-career-night/

Baze looked legit tonight and like a guy who has slid right in for DC.  Justin Holiday is going to be a 12-15 minute per game contributor as well when it is all said and done.  And we even won this one without Splitter, allowing Moose and Scott to get more minutes.

What do you guys think?  I just can't stop thinking about Charles Barkley on TNT the other night saying we wouldn't win 40 games.

Unlike last year's team around this time, Horford is healthy and in shape. He was coming off that injury and had to find his fit in the offense which he's a huge part of. 

I don't mean to be negative but it wouldn't surprise me if the Hawks go on a 10+ game win streak - at the end of the day it doesn't matter. They just need to win the ECF to shut the haters up. They're expected to make the playoffs but nobody expects them to make it to the Finals, even Grant Hill an owner of this team didn't pick the Hawks to rep the East in the Finals. 

[macdaddy]

Last year at the beginning of the season we had the same problem.   We gave up 30+ quarters and it caused us to lose some games.   We eventually quit doing that and went on an historic run.  The difference this year is we're giving up 30+ quarters and still winning the game.    Imagine when we get the defense locked in.

[AHF]

Last year, we were fighting to establish ourselves as a credible team and were still refining Bud's system.  This year, we are vets (collectively) in that system and don't have the same questions (Barkley notwithstanding).  We should be confident we will finish near the top of the East this year and should be focused on playoff success ala the Spurs.

[hazer]

We're 7-1 while alternately resting Threezus and Sef. It's only going to get better.....

[sturt]

Careful, guys.

I was thinking about this just last night.

Never in my life have I had reason to be so bullish on all of my pro teams as I was earlier this year

Nats? They were the preeminent favorites as baseball season hit. Injuries piled up. Didn't even make playoffs.

Cowboys? They were thought by many to be ready to build on last season's success that was halted by a numbskull idea of how the league defines a catch. Started off hot, but injuries piled up. And today, playoff hopes are slim at best.

I'm going to hold my breath, and hope the trend gets broken, but certainly not count on it.

[macdaddy]

I'm very optimistic but we have to remember that we had amazing continuity from last year.   Lost Demarre but other than that the only new rotation guys have been splitter and a little bit of Patterson and holiday.   Some of the teams we are facing have a lot of new faces to work in.   So it will get tougher for the Hawks.   I expect us to get better too though as we settle on a rotation and shore up the defense.