The Atlanta Hawks have taken a hard dive to the bottom of the standings after their strong 9-2 start of the 2016-17 NBA season. They have lost seven consecutive games, with several blowouts, and 10 of their last 11 games. Despite the losses piling up, the Hawks remain intact and positive they'll be out of their ugly slump soon.
"We've got to keep fighting," Hawks forward Paul Millsap said. "We've got to try to figure it out. It's early but it's definitely frustrating," he added.
Adjustment to New Personnel
Millsap missed three games and the Hawks certainly missed his production but that isn't the only reason why his team is struggling. In the offseason, they parted ways with long-time key players Jeff Teague and Al Horford. They handed the ballhandling keys to Dennis Schroder and replaced a pick-and-pop Horford with a rolling Howard.
Kent Bazemore has also struggled to stay consistent in his new role as one of the main offensive options for the team. He has shown flashes of the scorer that he can become but at times has shown immaturity by taking bad shots.
For years, Teague called the plays for Atlanta's offense which rely heavily on ball movement and player movement. Schroder has yet to figure that out and it's forcing them to take more contested shots. Kyle Korver is the clear biggest victim of the absence of their ball movement as he has struggled to get open shots all season long.
Players Only Meeting
Earlier in the season, it was Paul George who called for a 'players only' meeting after the Indiana Pacers suffered consecutive losses and it resulted in a short win streak and his team playing with more energy after.
The Hawks did the same thing, although there are no details as to who initiated it and what exactly they wanted to stress out on. One player, who wanted to stay anonymous, said that the meeting was not a heated kind of meeting and that everybody kept a positive attitude. There was no pointing of fingers and everybody knew that something has to change.
Unfortunately for the Hawks, after the meeting was the start of their 7-game losing streak. Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer changed the starting lineup for the first time by inserting Thabo Sefolosha for Kyle Korver. They played with more energy and had better ball movement but they still fell short to Russel Westbrook, who now has six consecutive triple-double, and the Oklahoma City Thunder.
It's not going to happen overnight but we showed a glimpse of us being able to do it," Bazemore said. Detroit Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy believes the Hawks' slump is only temporary. "I don't think it will last long," Van Gundy, "but I think they've gained on the defensive end. I think this is one of the real contenders of the East," he continued.
