The season has ended and it is now time for everyone to collect their grades before heading out on their summer break. Of course this post is for entertainment purposes and meant to encourage dialog so feel free to follow us on twitter (@Hawksbeat) and share with us what grade you would give the players for this season.
The grading criteria was a combination of the regular season and post season play.
To hear a more detailed breakdown of our grades check out the latest edition of the Hawksbeat Podcast. While you are there please help us out, subscribe and rank the pod. We would GREATLY appreciate it.
Coaching
Nate – A
Nate McMillan is not new this coaching thing and I’m willing to be that most people don’t know that he currently ranks 20th all-time for most wins by a NBA coach. McMillan took over in March and was the fresh voice and new face that this team needed. His messaging and game plan adjustments proved to be the right call when Schlenk decided to turn the reigns over to him. McMillan finished 5th in Coach of the Year voting and this week he was announced as the Hawks full time coach without the interim label.
Guards
Trae Young – A
Bogdan Bogdanovic – B+
Kevin Huerter – B-
Brandon Goodwin – C
Skyler Mays- C+
Lou Williams – C
Kris Dunn – INC
Breakdown:Trae Young had an unbelievable year even by his standards and despite not being named an all-star Young eventually had the last laugh during the Hawks playoff run. Going into the year the only question was can he win, and he answered those questions unequivocally this season and into the playoff run. The arrival of Bogdanovic and the maturation of Huerter gave the Hawks one of the better 3 guard rotations in the league. Once Bogi returned from his injury there was no looking back and the shooting he did in April was tremendous. Huerter played in 69 of 72 games and showed his ability to be a playmaker and showed gains defensively.
Outside of Huerter the bench was a mixed bag at times. Goodwin has lots of potential but lacks the consistency to be a true backup point guard at this point in his career. Credit to Travis Schlenk for pulling the trigger on the Rondo – Lou Williams trade. The Rondo experiment simply wasn’t working and once Lou Williams came into the fold he was a nice addition not just on the court but off it as well. Mays did ok when he got his opportunity but spending most of the year playing leftover minutes is kind of what is expected for a two-way player. Dunn saw playing time in only 4 games this season and played sparingly in the playoffs so he gets an incomplete.
Forwards
Hunter – B
Cam – C
Solo – C-
Snell – C
If there is a group to look at when considering the title hopes of the Atlanta Hawks it may be this group. Hunter quickly emerged as arguably the Hawks 2nd option after Trae because of his ability to score in the midrange and from 3. The only loss of points he got is from not being available which is no fault of his but availability is important. In the same vein the same can be said about Cam Reddish. The regular season offensive numbers for Cam were not good but he was still strong defensively. Averaging the games missed in the regular season with a strong series against Milwaukee lands Cam back at even.
Solomon Hill and Tony Snell are two vets they will probably have rosters spots on a NBA team for as long as they want to play. No flash, no sizzle just business. That is who these guys were this season. Solo was brought in to be a complementary player and was forced to playing a bigger role at times out of necessity. The same can be said for Snell. Both guys were good vets for the young guys and at the very least showed the younger guys how to go about their business as a pro.
Bigs
photo cred: Curtis Compton AP
John Collins – B+
Clint Capella – B
Danilo Gallinari – C
Nathan Knight – C
Onyeka Okungwo – C
Bruno Fernando – Inc
John Collins and Clint Capella lead the group of bigs and for two guys who hadn’t played together before Hawks fans have to be really pleased with their output on the court. Capella was the defensive anchor and Collins was as efficient as they come. There were some games you wanted more out of Collins offensively but overall he had a really good year.
Gallinari showed a lot of versatility and shot making coming off the bench which was key for the Hawks. Bench players have a luxury of having a bad game and nobody blinks at it because the spotlight isn’t on them as bright. Overall the addition of Gallo was a net positive. Onyeka Okungwo had a lot of obstacles to jump through this rookie season and if nothing else he proved to be resilient. Hawks fans saw a glimpse of what he could be as a solid rotational big who is a good defender with a high on the court IQ.
Make sure to tune into the Hawksbeat Podcast for all the detailed information regarding our year end grades.
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