Atlanta Hawks: 5 big goals for the 2018-19 season

The 2018-19 season is right around the corner for the Atlanta Hawks. Let’s discuss five goals for the team heading into this season.

There’s no denying it — the Atlanta Hawks were pretty terrible in 2017-18. They finished last in the Eastern Conference with 24 wins and were tied with the Dallas Mavericks for the third-worst record in the league. With notching so few wins, it’s not surprising they were last in the league in attendance.

Offensively, their shooting wasn’t very efficient, they attempted the seventh most 3-pointers, but made just 36.2 percent of them. They finished 2017-18 with a 51.2 percent effective field goal percentage, ninth worst in the league. The team finished with a 102.4 offensive rating, fifth worst in the NBA.

Defensively, they were one of the worst rebounding teams in the league. Of the defensive rebounds available, they only grabbed 76.2 percent of them per game, fourth worst in the league. They only blocked 4.2 shots per game, which was tied for seventh worst. Their defensive rating came to 108.2, the 10th worst in the league.

Their low rankings are not surprising as Travis Schlenk is in season two of his rebuild of the Hawks. We should expect to see the same from the team this year, but there is more talent around this year and a couple of mentors for the young guys. Plus, some dead weight of contracts are gone, allowing Lloyd Pierce to shape this team to his liking.

While this could be a “lost” season for the Atlanta Hawks, they should be thrilling to watch. Here are five goals Schlenk, Pierce and the players can still set for their second rebuilding season.