The Atlanta Hawks completed their 3rd and final game at Utah Summer League on Thursday, and out of the four teams that competed, the Hawks were the only one to go winless.
Taking a step further, each of the three other teams involved finished with an identical 2-1 record – all enjoying victories over Atlanta.
Of course, winning games at this juncture is not the focus, as Summer League is a place to reflect, grow and learn the professional game at its lowest level. One glimpse at a few possessions in a row will show that many of these players are not quite NBA level.
At this juncture, the Hawks brass, led by GM Travis Schlenk and Head Coach Lloyd Pierce, who is coaching the team with a glint in his eye, should be looking to develop talent and gauge the skill level of the players they selected.
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We’ve outlined a few takeaways from the Hawks Utah Summer League jaunt, as well as a look ahead to the team’s debut in the much more in-depth Las Vegas Summer League on Saturday.
Omari Spellman perhaps looked the best of any Hawks rookie, as he put up some all-around impressive numbers and was productive in multiple facets of the game. Spellman finished the three games with per-game averages of 10 points, 7.7. rebounds, 1.7 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.3 blocks.
Those rebounding, blocks and steals numbers were all good enough to rank 4th among all players who participated in Utah Summer League in each category – showcasing that Spellman might indeed serve as the Draymond Green role if the Hawks are trying to become the Warriors of the East down the road.
In that same vein, when his point guard Trae Young got into a scuffle with vaunted instigator Grayson Allen, Spellman jumped into action and looked ready to start laying dudes out. Honestly, it was nice too see a young Hawks player look ready to throw down to protect his teammate – it shows he cares.
Both Tyler Dorsey and John Collins looked predictably excellent versus some lower-level talent. Both were named as Standout Players after the Utah league finished, with Dorsey finishing with 16.3 points per game – 5th-highest among all players.
Though Collins did not play in the third and final tilt, he pretty much dominated (as a Second Team All-Rookie member should, and he had a target on his back against the Spurs – a game in which he was severely battered by a seemingly cynical Spurs side.
Another player who had a target on his back was clearly the Hawks #5 overall pick in the 2018 Draft; yup, now we’re going to talk about Trae Young.
While it must be said that Trae had an absolutely terrible Utah Summer League (shooting 23% on 52 shot attempts – the 2nd-highest number among any player in Utah), he did show some promising signs.
His passing was definitely excellent (as advertised), however his assist numbers were relatively low compared to expectations – mostly due to the fact that his teammates were unable to hit wide-open shots with any level of consistency. Even with that caveat, Young finished with 4.3 assists per game, the 5th-highest total among any player at Utah.
Of course, there is still much of his game that needs improvement, and he will have to learn that his excellent feel and basketball IQ will sadly not be enough to solely support in the league. Once he figures that out (as well as how to play off the ball), he could become a dynamic player and scorer for Atlanta.
Finally, Kevin Huerter did not see any Utah Summer League action as he recovers from wrist surgery, Jock Landale showed solid effort on the boards (finishing tied with Omari for 4th overall at 7.7 per game) and Antonius Cleveland and Jaylen Morris both looked good on defense throughout and were effective two-way players in the third and final game.
Next: Ranking the Hawks' 7 Best Young Assets
Keep it locked to Soaring Down South for all of your Hawks offseason news, as well as for more coverage of the team’s Las Vegas Summer League exploits. The NBA never stops!