Atlanta Hawks: Biggest strengths and weaknesses for 2017-18
Weakness No. 1: Scoring
While the Atlanta Hawks have plenty of success tacking on points out of the pick-and-roll set, the offense as a whole has struggled to produce points.
Last season, the team averaged 103.2 points per game, the eighth-fewest in the league. Pouring in 100 points per game may be a challenge, considering point guard Dennis Schroder is the only player on the roster to average 15 points per game at any point during his NBA career.
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The removal of Paul Millsap, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Dwight Howard from the roster means the team lost 3,391 of the 8,459 points the team scored a year ago, or 40 percent of the total offense.
Of the team’s additions in free agency and trades, none are considered offensive threats. The team added Dewayne Dedmon, Luke Babbit, Miles Plumlee, Marco Belinelli and Quinn Cook, and not one of those players has averaged 12 points per game any season in the NBA.
Belinelli is the only player to score over 10 points per game a year ago.
The first three games of the preseason haven’t alleviated the concerns, as the Hawks have yet to have a player score 20 points. During a loss to Detroit on Friday night, second year guard Malcolm Delaney led all scorers with 15 points and only three players scored in double figures.
Atlanta has topped 100 points just once in three preseason contests, pouring in 109 points against the Cavaliers as they played without LeBron James.
The Mavericks were the only team that failed to average at least 100 points per game during the 2016-17 season, but with so much roster turnover, and a lack of proven scorers on the roster, the Atlanta Hawks may struggle to reach the century mark this year.