Atlanta Hawks: 3 Goals for Jeremy Lin in 2018-19

2. Average 5 Plus Assist Per Game

This season the Hawks will need to work on moving the ball around in order to help the younger players. Before rupturing his patellar tendon last season the Nets brought Lin in to be the starting guard.

Entering the 2017-18 season, Linsanity probably anticipated taking on a bulk of the scoring load.  Similar to the Hawks, the Brooklyn Nets are trying to navigate the rebuilding process. A common mistake that teams make when rebuilding is to tank without continuing to develop their current talent.

First-year head coach Lloyd Pierce needs to make sure that the coaching staff as a whole focuses on player development. In addition to player development, Lin needs to make sure that he is getting his players involved both on and off the court.

If Lin gets his teammates involved, spaces the floor and puts his teammates in a position to score, they will gain confidence. Lin averaged five or more assists during the 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2016-17 NBA season. Coupled with averaging five or more assists during the 2011-12, 2012-13 and 2016-17 seasons, Lin averaged more than 13 points per game.

Basically, when Lin remains aggressive and gets his teammates involved he becomes a scoring threat for the opposing defenses. As of now, the current roster is built around three-point shooting and athleticism, which will help Lin draw two and kick the ball out.

Both the starting lineup and second unit will benefit from Lin’s pass-first mentality. Atlanta’s last two guards in Jeff Teague and Dennis Schroder struggled with putting their teammates first. Although both guards helped, they often put their points per game before getting their teammates involved.