Atlanta Hawks: 2017-18 NBA season preview
2016-17 Roster
Luke Babbitt, SF/PF
Kent Bazemore, SF
Marco Belinelli, SG
DeAndre’ Bembry, SF
Nicolas Brussino, SF
Tyler Cavanaugh, PF
John Collins, PF
Quinn Cook, PG
Dewayne Dedmon, C
Malcolm Delaney, PG/SG
Tyler Dorsey, SG
Ersan Ilyasova, PF
Mike Muscala, C
Miles Plumlee, C
Taurean Prince, SF
Dennis Schroder, PG
Offseason Additions
Marco Belinelli (traded from Charlotte Hornets), Miles Plumlee (traded from Charlotte Hornets), Dewayne Dedmon (free agent, San Antonio Spurs), John Collins (No. 19 overall draft pick, Wake Forest) Tyler Dorsey (No. 41 overall draft pick, Oregon), Alpha Kaba (No. 60 overall draft pick, France), Luke Babbitt (free agent, Miami Heat), Nicolas Brussino (free agent, Dallas Mavericks)
Offseason Subtractions
Paul Millsap (free agency, Denver Nuggets), Dwight Howard (traded to Charlotte Hornets), Tim Hardaway Jr. (free agency, New York Knicks), Thabo Sefolosha (free agency, Utah Jazz), Jose Calderon (free agency, Cleveland Cavaliers), Ryan Kelly (traded to Houston Rockets)
Quick Thoughts
The Atlanta Hawks lack name recognition and experience. Only five players have five or more years of experience in the NBA and among that group, only Kent Bazemore is expected to open the season in the starting lineup.
Mike Budenholzer has won 57.6 percent of his games since becoming head coach in 2013. While he has managed to get the most out of his players, the 2017-18 season will likely be his greatest challenge yet.
The starting lineup will likely feature three new players, with the backcourt duo of Dennis Schroder and Kent Bazemore as the only players in the group to start over 40 games in a season.
Atlanta has reached the playoffs in each of the past 10 seasons, the longest active streak in the Eastern Conference, winning an average of 45.4 games during that span. For all of their success in the regular season, it failed to translate in postseason play. During its 10-year playoff run, the Hawks have advanced in the playoffs just six times.
The best team in franchise history, a 60-win club during the 2014-15 season, managed to reach the Eastern Conference finals, only to get swept by Cleveland in the series.
Schroder is the lone key rotation holdover from the 60-win team, as the Hawks look to rebuild through the draft and savvy moves in free agency. No job in Atlanta is secure, as starting jobs and places in the rotation will likely be fluid throughout the season.