Atlanta Hawks: Media Day Quotes, Reactions

Much like how the hanging of lights and decorations signals the coming of the holidays, the slew of media days and opening practices tell us a happy fact: The NBA season is approaching.

The Atlanta Hawks media day was a time to hear from new or recovering players for the first time, as well as asking head coach Mike Budenholzer the burning questions people have been waiting to get answered.

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As someone who lives on the opposite side of the country, I wasn’t able to attend Atlanta’s media day. I’m taking a few quotes from the people who were there, and breaking down why they are significant.

Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution began his recap with this quote from Coach Bud:

"“I think defensive rebounding is an area, really since we came here two years ago and now going into year three, where if we are going to be a team that is competing at a high level I think we’re going to have to be better defensively on the boards. It’s going to take a commitment from the entire group, like we’ve been talking about the last couple of years. That is an area defensively where we would like to improve.”"

The Hawks ranked 23rd in the league in defensive rebounds last season. Certainly not great. However, the Hawks were also dead last in offensive boards. It’s interesting that the Hawks, who model their system of offense based off shooting, aren’t hungry for offensive boards. Offensive boards leading to kick-outs to shooters can be a powerful offensive asset.

Fortunately, the Hawks’ addition of Tiago Splitter should help them on that end. Splitter is a player that primarily operates in the paint and averages 8.8 rebounds per 36 minutes. Simply having one player who makes an NBA living being physical on the glass is a great first step for the Hawks to improve their rebounding on both ends.

Kris Willis of Peachtree Hoops reported that Budenholzer was not prepared to name a starter to replace DeMarre Carroll at small forward. It seems the current contenders for the spot are Kent Bazemore, Thabo Sefolosha and Tim Hardaway Jr., though starting Bazemore or Hardaway would likely move Kyle Korver to the 3 spot.

Sefolosha coming off of his broken leg he suffered in April might be at a disadvantage, especially with Budenholzer previously saying that he will have the injured guys brought along slowly. Bazemore certainly seems ready to use his chance to gain the starting job.

The trouble is that Bazemore, who is 6’5″ and weighs 201 pounds., may not have the size to defend bigger players, particularly in the low post. Neither he nor Korver have the physical endowments necessary to challenge the strongest forwards in the game (i.e. LeBron James).

Hardaway Jr., who I analyzed in this article, has yet to prove he is a deserving of a starting job, particularly on a new team that runs a very different way from his previous NBA experience. Budenholzer did not really elaborate on the starter battle, but right now, I would say Sefolosha may have the inside track.

His experience with the Oklahoma City Thunder proves his track record for lockdown-defender potential.

Vivlamore also relayed this bit of news.

This is excellent news for Atlanta, who will need these three players so the team can go into the season healthy and with competitive depth. Korver especially has become so important to the Hawks. His activity on both ends of the floor, and his absurd shooting efficiency, were a hallmark of the Hawks’ powerful offensive machine last season.

There are a lot of other quotes from the Hawks’ training camp invitees in the linked article above, as well as a funny bit from Al Horford on the team’s new uniforms. The Hawks opened practice today, and their preseason opener on Oct. 7.

Next: 25 Best Players to Play for the Atlanta Hawks

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