4. The offense
Make no mistake, the Hawks offense was horrible last year. They scored 2.3 fewer points per 100 possessions relative to the league average and ranked 23rd in the league in that very category last year, not exactly a set of stats that make you feel like this team is on the precipice of a breakthrough.
Beneath the veneer of those woeful numbers, however, lay a League Pass-friendly scheme. They shared the ball (14th in passes per game and fifth in potential assists), created open threes (ninth in open 3-point shots, first in wide-open 3’s), converted a respectable rate of spot-up shots (13th in points per possession) and hovered around league average in true shooting and effective field goal percentage.
At this point, you’re probably asking “Well, if the Hawks’ offense generated all these clean looks, why was their offense so bad?”. It’s a fair strawman question with an obvious answer: They didn’t turn enough of those opportunities into points.
Among the lowlights: They ranked 27th in transition points per game, 29th in pick-and-roll ball-handler PPP and 23rd in open 3-point percentage. Eventually, the shots started falling — they ranked 11th in offensive rating after the All-Star break — and the Hawks are banking on that strong second half carrying over to this year. There’s a good chance of that happening for a few reasons…