Reviewing the College Park Skyhawks Debut Season

Recapping and reviewing the College Park Skyhawks’ first season in the G-League.

In all the excitement about the NBA returning to play in Orlando, one bit of news was lost in the shuffle: The 2019-2020 G-League season would not be resuming. That ended the debut season of the College Park Skyhawks, the G-League affiliate of the Atlanta Hawks.

There wasn’t much carryover between the two teams, however, as the Hawks kept most of their young players away from the G-League to give them NBA experience. Both of the players signed to two-way deals – Brandon Goodwin and Charlie Brown – did split time between the two teams, with Goodwin eventually transferring to Atlanta full time.

Made up almost fully with non-NBA players, the team finished with a 20-23 record, tenth in the Eastern Conference but just a few games out of a playoff spot.

Outside of Tyrone Wallace, who played just two games with the team, two-way players Goodwin and Brown led the team in points per game, with Cat Barber leading non-NBA players with 16.9 per game.

Barber was also second on the team (behind Goodwin) in assists per game with 6.2 and led the team in field goal attempts per game.

Armoni Brooks was the lone player to appear in all 43 games and made 39 percent of his 5.7 three-point attempts per game. Former Michigan State standout Nick Ward also made an impact in his first professional experience back in the States, averaging 6.5 rebounds and 13.2 points per game.

Tahjere McCall, who made a brief appearance in the NBA last season with the Nets, was probably the team’s overall MVP, averaging 12.7 points on 46 percent shooting, 4.7 assists, 1.9 steals, and 6.1 rebounds per game. He also recorded two of the team’s three triple-doubles.

All in all, it was a successful first season for the G-League team that didn’t see many true NBA players on the roster. Their overall season was even a little better than it looks on paper, as the team struggled down the stretch, losing their final three games and seven of their last ten.

When the G-League announced the season’s cancellation, the organization put out a statement that started with: “We are disappointed that our season ended as abruptly as it did, but we believe we have established a strong foundation in College Park and are encouraged for the future of our organization.”

With the NBA season likely not returning until December, it’s unclear when the G-League will resume, but there is a  chance we see the College Park Skyhawks suit up again before the Atlanta Hawks do.

What did you think of the College Park Skyhawks’ debut season?