Do you think the Hawks can win the NBA championship this season?

[Vol4ever]

5% chance IMO.    We just don't have the horses.

[AHF]

3 hours ago, JTB said:

This! And do people not remember how dominating in the playoffs Dirk was that year! He's not a hall of famer for no reason.

Yep.  Dirk was a beast that year.  And the years leading up to it.  HOF level.  28 ppg on >.600ts%.

[hawkman]

12 hours ago, skimaskway23 said:

I don't get how that's relevant. Because they said that about us, raps and Celtics both make it to the ECF this year?

It's relevant because they have as good a chance as anybody in the East besides the Cavs to make it out of the East.

[RamblinCharger]

Like others have noted, I think we're an elite wing player away from being a championship team.

[Mdizzle5]

The question still remains on how to attain that wing. 

I still think it'll take a little more than that. With Bud's system it still needs another consistant shooter or two. Maybe a starting level SG. If they can be that consistent shooter, then all the better. 

[Hawkmoor]

Hawks have played better lately, but they still in show and prove mode when it comes to the playoffs. Everything slows down and defense and rebounding is magnified. I will say this, they have a better chance NOW than before Humphries came aboard to at least get to the conference finals.

 

 

[Jody23]

If the Hawks are one player away or one elite wing away from a championship, then what's the path to getting that player in the near future? 

[NBASupes]

46 minutes ago, Jody23 said:

If the Hawks are one player away or one elite wing away from a championship, then what's the path to getting that player in the near future? 

Teague. PG's are a premium in the NBA. He would be are best chances at someone with that talent or skillset 

[Jody23]

1 hour ago, NBASupes said:

Teague. PG's are a premium in the NBA. He would be are best chances at someone with that talent or skillset 

So you think Teague can net the Hawks a guy who has All NBA, future Hall of Fame level talent?  Because that's the kind of player the Hawks need to compete for and win a title.  I don't see Teague alone getting that in a trade.

[RedDawg#8]

If we were to get this elite wing player in the future, which one of our current wings are you sacrificing a spot in the rotation for?

Korver

Baze

Thabo

Hardaway Jr.

Each brings something to the table. Kyles shooting and Thabos defense are both equally elite and vital to our teams success. I personally think we are at our best when our defense is carrying us versus the common stereotype that we are an offensive squad and it is undeniable the impact that Thabo makes every night. You can have good shooting nights and bad shooting nights but great defense never takes a night off. Both are older and aren't pieces you can build around but are pieces you can build WITH to compliment a star player.

As far as the young guns, Baze is still far from his ceiling and constantly improving. His defensive impact is overrated but he is still exceptional in that area with room to grow, and his offense is actually very underrated as he doesn't have many holes in his game besides an occasional shooting slump and average handles. Passing might be his biggest liability. Him being an upcoming free agent will impact the future of our roster. THJ to me is arguably the most well rounded wing of our roster as his  vastly improved defense and overall impact on the 2nd unit has helped propel us during this recent stretch of wins.  He is not as strong in any 1 area of his game as the others but he literally has the highest overall ceiling and potential to be a star. His handles, athleticism, and scoring versatility are natural attributes. His defense, awareness, passing, and shooting efficiency are all on an upward trajectory that will give him every possibility to make a Baze-like improvement between years 1 and 2 in our system and beyond.

If we are hopefully trying to win big in the immediate future I think you have to choose between Baze and THJ to commit to long-term. Both are still young and developing their games. Baze has a slight head start but THJ has the brighter future imo. I'm not in favor of paying Baze 10+ mil dollars to be a SF for us long term, Id rather take the chance  on THJ making a similar leap in his game next year and save rotation spot and the money Baze will cost to go after a better, elite quality wing. 

[NBASupes]

2 hours ago, Jody23 said:

So you think Teague can net the Hawks a guy who has All NBA, future Hall of Fame level talent?  Because that's the kind of player the Hawks need to compete for and win a title.  I don't see Teague alone getting that in a trade.

Maybe someone we can develop,  clearly they probably won't even start next year 

[benhillboy]

57 minutes ago, RedDawg#8 said:

I personally think we are at our best when our defense is carrying us versus the common stereotype that we are an offensive squad...

+100.  Casual onlookers and even some "experts" will never grasp this concept in basketball nor football.  

It seems pretty simple: live ball defense can immediately and tangibly lead directly to points.  Vice versa doesn't apply.  Some subscribe to the philosophy of made shots allows you to set your defense, usually for teams too lazy for transition defense.  Spurs-styled teams look to catch you napping and hurt you quickly after a made basket anyway.  

I always enjoyed the Jordan and Pippen Bulls play defense, but I was hooked after Larry Brown's Pistons.  It takes considerably more effort to defend 48 minutes and hold an opponent to 90 as a team than score 100 points.  People think the adage "first to 100 wins" means "outshoot your opponent" when it really means "string stops together inside of 8 minutes."  

When the Hawks are defending the way they are now, I don't have a single gripe with any offensive shortcoming.    The System Cycle quickly calibrates and compensates as long as the blocks and steals are flowing freely.

Speaking of defense, hopefully Quinn and his crew can pull out a huge upset over Cleveland without Hayward. 

[Jody23]

12 minutes ago, NBASupes said:

Maybe someone we can develop,  clearly they probably won't even start next year 

See the problem with that is all the main guys in the Hawks "group" are 30 or older.  They're window isn't large enough for a guy who "won't even start next year".  And if a team has a player with the potential to be a future Hall of Fame type guy, they aren't trading him for Teague.

[NBASupes]

52 minutes ago, Jody23 said:

See the problem with that is all the main guys in the Hawks "group" are 30 or older.  They're window isn't large enough for a guy who "won't even start next year".  And if a team has a player with the potential to be a future Hall of Fame type guy, they aren't trading him for Teague.

We develop players much faster than most teams. We turned Tim Hardaway Jr into a productive two way player. We turned Bazemore into a solid two way player when he came here as an energy scrub. We got this.

[benhillboy]

Cleveland doesn't scare anyone, the Hawks would scald them if they played tonight.  They looked awful and got beat start to finish with no Hayward.   LeBron is basically a bum compared to 5 years ago.  I actually think they go as JR's shot and Tristan's energy goes (who can now be neutralized by Hump).   Both were flat tonight, so they get embarrassed.  Their so-called "Big 3" can get lost through lazy play at any time.  

Granted, Lue is no Quinn.  He killed them repeatedly with simple slip screens and high PNRs we use.  I see why they weren't listening to any offers on Hood, and Mack is balling.  

Toronto is the team to beat in the East for us.  They have the talent and chemistry that Cleveland will never have.

[Jody23]

53 minutes ago, NBASupes said:

We develop players much faster than most teams. We turned Tim Hardaway Jr into a productive two way player. We turned Bazemore into a solid two way player when he came here as an energy scrub. We got this.

Developing Hardaway and Bazemore into role players is not equal to developing a guy into an All NBA level player.  It's a nice accomplishment, but it's not the same.  And the question still remains...how do you get that player in the near future?

[Jody23]

9 minutes ago, benhillboy said:

Cleveland doesn't scare anyone, the Hawks would scald them if they played tonight.  They got beat start to finish with no Hayward.  Granted, Lue is no Quinn.  He killed them repeatedly with simple slip screens and high PNRs we use.  I see why they weren't listening to any offers on Hood, and Mack is balling.

We see every year that the regular season and the playoffs are two different things.  Lebron will ready roll come playoff time.  The Jazz scored a good win tonight.  But neither them or anyone in the East are beating the Cavs four games out of seven.

[NBASupes]

19 minutes ago, Jody23 said:

Developing Hardaway and Bazemore into role players is not equal to developing a guy into an All NBA level player.  It's a nice accomplishment, but it's not the same.  And the question still remains...how do you get that player in the near future?

We know that. But if they got the talent, we can develop it.

[Guest]

10 hours ago, RedDawg#8 said:

I personally think we are at our best when our defense is carrying us versus the common stereotype that we are an offensive squad ...

I mentioned this very thing a few months ago that I thought Bud was trying to win games with our offense as opposed to with our defense.  Good to see that we are now trending in this direction.

[macdaddy]

I love that our defense has stepped up and obviously that pays dividends on the offensive end too but our problem against the elite teams of the league the last 2 years has been not being able to score when it mattered most.   Hopefully we'll be more in sync offensively this year come playoff time than we were last year.