Playing over/under with each NBA team’s projected win total

Atlanta Hawks

Projected Win Total: 36

Trae Young took the NBA by storm in the second half of last season when he made a spirited push for the Rookie of the Year award.

Overall, he averaged 19.1 points and 8.1 assists a game, not enough to be named the league’s top rookie but enough to warrant a spot on the All-Rookie first team.

He was the type of prospect many assumed would need plenty of fine-tuning. In a sense, he still does, having shot 41.8 percent from the field and 32.4 from distance along with 3.8 turnovers a game.

Yet anyone who claims to have expected this type of production so early into his career wouldn’t be telling the truth.

There’s a difference between thriving when nobody sees it coming compared to when a gameplan is geared to stop you. Heading into his sophomore campaign, it’s a distinction Young will have to overcome as the leader of this young Hawks squad.

The Atlanta Hawks are a team for the future with plenty of talent to complement its burgeoning floor general. John Collins nearly averaged 20 and 10 last season while Kevin Huerter was a surprising addition to the All-Rookie second team.

This is to say nothing of draft picks De’Andre Hunter and Cam Reddish who will help shore up the team’s depth on the wing.

Atlanta will improve on last seasons 29-win campaign on the backbone of the development from their young players. An eight-win improvement, however, is asking a bit much from a core with so much room left to grow.

Prediction: Under