NBA Atlanta Hawks

The Quietly Efficient Dominance of the Atlanta Hawks

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By @DSchultz89

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The Cleveland Cavaliers, Chicago Bulls and most recently the Washington Wizards have been getting plenty of attention throughout the first half of the NBA season when it comes to looking at potential powerhouses in the Eastern Conference.

One team that has remained mysteriously under the radar yet again this year has been the Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks currently hold the third best record in the league at 25-8, which is also the best mark of any team in the East. Many forget how good the Hawks were last year when they were healthy, before unfortunately, losing Al Horford to a season-ending injury dramatically altered their season. But the Hawks still battled through it all, eventually securing the eighth seed and taking the No. 1 seed Indiana Pacers to seven games in the first round of the playoffs, where they ended up losing.

Now, at full strength and with head coach Mike Budenholzer being more comfortable in his second season leading a team, the Hawks are a very dangerous team that no one is talking about right now. For whatever reason, the city of Atlanta does not really care about the Hawks, evidenced by the organization finishing 24th in overall attendance for 2014. And that is an absolute travesty given just how good their team is.

The Hawks are a small market team who operate a lot like the San Antonio Spurs in how they play the game. Budenholzer spent 18 seasons as an assistant under Gregg Popovich, and he has shown early on how much of an offensive genius he is by implementing a high-motion offense that relies on spacing the floor and shooting the ball from the outside. Currently, all five of the Hawks’ starters are averaging double-figures in points per game, which is incredibly difficult to achieve. Their big man combo of Horford and Paul Millsap has been solid, while Kyle Korver continues to shoot fireballs at a scorching 51 percent mark from three-point land. They also boast an underrated bench where once unknown prospects like Dennis Schroder and Mike Scott have become key contributors.

On paper, the Hawks might appear to be merely just a pretty good team, but because of their system and the way their players are being correctly utilized, they are a legitimate contender for not just the Eastern crown, but the NBA championship as well. Budenholzer has done his best to model them like the Spurs, and so far he has done a terrific job.

It will be interesting to see if they Hawks can keep this up and hold on to the No. 1 seed for the rest of the year. As long as they secure a top seed by the time the playoffs come around, they should be in great shape. Health is the most important thing when it comes to being successful in sports, and the Hawks learned this the hard way first hand last season when Horford went down. They are now at full strength and clicking on all cylinders, and even though the media refuses to give them the attention they deserve, don’t be shocked if they fight their way to an NBA Finals appearance this season.

Dan Schultz is an NBA sports writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on twitter @dschultz89. “Like” him on Facebook and add him on Google.

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