The 7-28 Atlanta Hawks did not think they would be in this position. That position would be last in the Eastern Conference, last in the NBA in 3-point shooting, and with two 10-game losing streaks under their belt. It appears all of that is weighing on the front office, coaching staff, and the young players.
Shams Charania of The Athletic reports that there is a disconnect between Atlanta’s most important players and the coaching staff. “No energy, no one playing hard,” one source told Charania. “This shit is depressing,” another said to The Athletic. The disgruntled nature of the players is well-documented with a Trae Young blowup following a loss to the Brooklyn Nets. Jeff Shultz of The Athletic has detailed the internal frustration but highlights that head coach Lloyd Pierce is not on the hot seat.
Charania makes note that Atlanta is working the trade market to try and find help for Young. Namely, the Hawks have been searching for center and backup point guard help. Chris Kirschner of The Athletic has reported that the Atlanta is showing interest in centers Steven Adams and Dwyane Dedmon, the latter already asking for a trade out of Sacramento. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reports that the Hawks are discussing a trade with the Pistons for center Andre Drummond, though nothing is imminent.
The Hawks did not expect to make a jump from the high lottery to the playoffs in such a short amount of time, but the players reportedly did expect to be more competitive. One of the issues is the lack of a true veteran leader in the locker room to keep everything tempered. For that, general manager Travis Schlenk has taken the blame for. “I made some stupid mistakes,” he said via Schultz. “I’ll admit to that. Some of the decisions haven’t worked out. Write that. That’s what I told them. When you look at our roster, and if I could go back and change one thing, it’s that we don’t have anybody with a voice.”
