Atlanta Hawks: 3 goals for Taurean Waller-Prince in 2018-19

1. Improve on defense

As we saw last year, Prince more than satisfies the “3” prerequisite for a 3-and-D player. For him to reach his full potential though, he will have to get better on the other end of the court.

The numbers speak for themselves. For instance, opponents shot 47.2 percent from the field when Prince defended them last season, which is slightly higher than the league average. More importantly, the Hawks allowed 4.3 fewer points per 100 possessions when Prince was on the bench, and the opponent’s effective field goal percentage went from 54.4 to 52.3 percent.

To be fair, Prince wasn’t a complete albatross on defense. He only allowed opponents to shoot 33.9 percent from 3-point range against him. He also tied with Collins and Kent Bazemore for the team lead in defensive win shares (2.0), although it took him eight and 17 more games to reach that margin, respectively.

Add in a neutral defensive box plus/minus and you get a fairly inconclusive answer to the question: How well did Taurean Waller-Prince defend last year?

Hopefully, this season gives us a clearer answer. Prince has the length and athleticism to become a premier NBA defender. If the Hawks want to turn into a playoff contender within the next few years, Prince will have to mold himself into a player that impacts both sides of the court.