Atlanta Hawks: 5 bold predictions for 2017-18 NBA season

As the Atlanta Hawks prepare for the 70th season in franchise history, the team enters the 2017-18 campaign in rebuilding mode. Here are five bold predictions for the upcoming year.

Instead of vying for a playoff position for the 11th consecutive season, the Atlanta Hawks have gutted their roster as part of a complete franchise overhaul. Atlanta has parted ways with nearly every recognizable name on the roster, turning the team over to point guard Dennis Schroder.

As part of the transition, the Hawks are expected to instead battle for the right to select first overall in the 2018 NBA Draft, not be within 16 playoff victories of an NBA championship.

For a franchise that has selected a with a choice in the top-five of the NBA Draft on 21 occasions, rebuilding is part of the process. Unfortunately, winning hasn’t been.

The last time Atlanta has won an NBA championship came in 1958, when the team was still playing in St. Louis. The 59-year championship drought is the eighth-longest in North American professional sports and the second-longest in the NBA.

Only the Sacramento Kings, entering their 67th season without a championship, have suffered a longer wait to hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy. As the Hawks embark on a youth movement, here are five bold predictions as the team enters its seventh decade in the NBA.