The Atlanta Hawks had a great regular season last year but couldn’t follow it up with a forgettable performance in the postseason. This year, the Hawks will bring practically the same core with hopes that they find similar success in the regular season and most importantly, they now have matured enough to go deeper into the postseason.

Leading the Hawks are a trio of ultra-efficient players, who doesn’t have much of flash in their games but gets the job done quietly, at least on offence.

Jeff Teague remains the leader on the floor and will run the Hawks’ offence lauded for its similarity with the highly respected San Antonio Spurs. Like their Western counterpart, the Hawks run an offence predicated on ball movement and efficient shots. Teague led his team in points (16.8) and assists (6.7) per game during the postseason, where they lost to the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Western Conference Finals.

Along with Teague, the other two key players for the Hawks are Al Horford and Paul Millsap, the team’s starting frontcourt. Millsap led the team in scoring (16.7 points per game) in the regular season while Horford was consistent throughout the year with averages of 15.2 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.3 blocked shots per game in the regular season.

Gone from the Hawks roster is small forward DeMarre Carroll, who jumped ship to East team Toronto Raptors in free agency. Atlanta has some key additions during the offseason however, acquiring wingman Tim Hardaway Jr. (11.5 points per game last season) in a trade with the New York Knicks and centre Tiago Splitter (8.2 points and 4.2 rebounds per game last season) in a separate deal with the San Antonio Spurs.

Returning for the Hawks who are once again expected to provide some punch in their offence are sharpshooter Kyle Korver (12.1 points per game on 49.2 three-point field goal percentage) and the improving Dennis Schroder, who averaged 10.0 points and 4.2 assists per game in limited minutes in the regular season.

2015-2016 Atlanta Hawks Projected Depth Chart
Point Guards: Jeff Teague/Dennis Schroder/Shelvin Mack
Shooting Guards: Kyle Korver/Tim Hardaway Jr./Justin Holiday
Small Forwards: Thabo Sefolosha/Kent Bazemore
Power Forwards: Paul Millsap/Mike Scott/Mike Muscala
Centres: Al Horford/Tiago Splitter/Walter Tavares

Other 2015-2016 NBA Season Team Previews:
Golden State Warriors raring to prove title run was not a fluke
Houston Rockets, James Harden ready for another deep run in the new season
Memphis Grizzlies to continue ‘Grit N’ Grind’ style in new season

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