Atlanta Hawks: 5 reasons to be excited for 2019-20 NBA season

2. John Collins

His forgettable performance in last February’s dunk contest notwithstanding, forward John Collins enjoyed a breakout season in 2018-19. Receiving a substantial minutes bump, the former Demon Deacon expounded on the work he put in during 2018 Summer League and became one of the NBA’s best-kept secrets.

Collins’ sophomore season has been discussed at length on this site, so here’s the short version: The bouncy big man upped his scoring on increased scoring without sacrificing volume, becoming a sturdy pick-and-roll dance partner with Trae Young.

Coming off of a season where he tallied a respectable .158 WS/48 in 61 games, the Hawks hope that Collins will continue on this All-Star trajectory. The front office has surrounded him with enough shooters to keep the lanes clear for takeoff and with Young and Evan Turner around to feed him alley-oops, we could see a lot more Collins highlights in 2019-20.

Additionally, Collins’ 3-point shooting will keep defenders from sagging into the paint on ball screens, which will benefit the perimeter players on drives to the rim and will give Collins some chances to catch some slower bigs flat-footed with an occasional off-dribble attack.

For Atlanta to take the next step in their rebuild, Collins must continue to improve. It should be a fun process to watch.