The 24-25 Atlanta Hawks surprised me some by winning 40 games. They managed to get the #8 seed but then lost two play-in games to miss the playoffs. Trae Young led the league in assists per game, but his scoring and shooting were down. Jalen Johnson was having a really good season but lost most of it to injury. De-Andre Hunter was traded to Cleveland for Chris LeVert. Bogdan Bogdanovic was also traded. Onyeka Okongwu played well after becoming the starting center and Dyson Daniels almost won Defensive Player of the Year.
Atlanta liked what they saw and made big moves in the offseason. Kristaps Porzingis was probably the biggest add as Boston shed salary. Nickeil Gilgeous-Alexander is another good wing defender to pair with Daniels. They brought in Luke Kennard to help with perimeter shooting. They get back Jalen Johnson. I think they have a solid starting unit and if Zaccharie Risacher can make strides, who knows. The East isn't as stacked as it was. I expect they'll be no worse than the #8 seed but I expect them to be a better team. They solid defenders and defense will win them games. Trae Young must play something resembling defense though and must also do a good job getting all the new pieces and parts involved in the offense. I'm not saying they make a run to the Finals but if they get hot at the right time, I think they could win at least one series in the playoffs.
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