Mike Budenholzer will tinker with Hawks starting lineups
Rotation, rotation, rotation, that is what’s on the mind of Mike Budenholzer.
The Hawks have entered full rebuild mode, and with that comes the chance for head coach Mike Budenholzer to play around with his starting lineups this season as he begins to get a feel for his team and their capabilities. Atlanta has nice depth at every position and each player will be looking to impress in a bid to get more minutes.
Gone are the days of old when the Hawks were led in January 2015 by four All-Stars (Jeff Teague, Paul Millsap, Kyle Korver, AL Horford) to an NBA record 17-0 in a calendar month, as well as a franchise record 60-22 for the season. Now the starting five will be variable night in and night out as veterans will lead the way to start but Atlanta’s young blood will seek to demand time on the court.
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The most predictable lineup will likely be what Mike Budenholzer will put out in the opener against the Dallas Mavericks. My bet is on Dennis Schroder, Kent Bazemore, Taurean Prince, Ersan Ilyasova, and Dewayne Dedmon. The backcourt is largely solidified from last season and Prince will look to make that starting small forward spot his, while Mike Budenholzer will look for an experienced frontcourt in Ilyasova and Dedmon. But as we saw even last year, Coach Bud isn’t afraid to alter his starting five if he thinks there is a better combination out there.
For one, Schroder should look for a significant increase in production from his part, but if he fails to live up to expectations we might see Summer League standout DeAndre’ Bembry take the reins. Bazemore will also look to be a starlet on the team, but he shouldn’t take solace in that certainty because a healthy Tyler Dorsey will look to impose himself on his new team at both the 1 and 2.
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Taurean Prince showed flashes of brilliance during the back-half of last season as he stepped into the starting small forward role and was able to build momentum into the playoffs. Many Hawk fans are high on his upside and are excited to for him to continue his development. Should Prince stumble in his debut though, Marco Belinelli is more than capable of slotting in to bring a stabilizing veteran presence into the team.
The power forward position will probably be tinkered with the most this season, as the Hawks have experienced Ilyasova to guide sharpshooters Mike Muscala and Luke Babbitt in their quest to stretch the floor. Muscala might get a run in before Babbitt simply because he is more familiar with the team, but Babbitt will certainly not be hedging his bets once the Hawks are up and flying.
The largest problem that Budenholzer will have this season though is that of John Collins. Collins is on a mission to dunk on the best of the best in the NBA, and should he impress with his offensive production and defensive prowess, Coach Bud will definitely think about giving him some meaningful minutes out front.
The center position probably won’t see much variation as Dedmon will shore up his spot with Miles Plumlee anchoring from the bench. The consensus is that the two will most likely split minutes with each other.
As far player combination goes, there are a couple partnerships that Coach Bud will look to nurture, as well as avoid.
Schroder and Bazemore will most likely be paired together whenever possible, as they have already developed a rapport and feel comfortable with each other’s game from the previous season.
Although Schroder will want to play more minutes, it would be more beneficial for the team to take this season as an opportunity to cultivate chemistry with different sets of players. That’s why it should be expected that the back courts will be paired together, so Bembry can expect to play alongside Dorsey/Malcolm Delaney as part of a unit.
Another combination to look out for will be Schroder on the floor with stretch bigs Muscala and Babbitt. The floor will be spread beautifully for Schroder, who isn’t much of a spot-up shooter, and will allow for him to dash and dish or drive to the basket and finish around the rim.
There will be times when he plays off the center, be it Dedmon or Plumlee, and be able to slide and slither past the defense and have three sharpshooters available to dish to on a well-worked three-point play.
Travis Schlenk has commented that he wants to play faster, and with that style of Bud-ball, it is doubtful that we will see both Dedmon and Collins paired together. They will do much of the same job and it would be more beneficial to have one rim-protecting big so that they don’t slow the pace of play and stagnate the offense in transition. Dedmon will be a mentor of sorts to Collins, as will Ilyasova, as the Hawks will look to develop their draftee into the ultimate two-way threat at the power forward position.
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Schlenk has supplied the pieces of this in-transition Hawks team so that Mike Budenholzer may be in full control to fit them into the starting five as he sees fit. It may take a period of adjustment for all the new faces to develop cohesiveness with the rest of the squad, and variations are sure to be a plenty.