At 3-1, the Atlanta Hawks are off to a good start. It is very early yet, but they are sixth in the Eastern Conference — knotted with five other teams bearing the same record — with a chance to at least take sole possession of third by having one more win than the idle Miami Heat thanks to the Chicago Bulls matchup with the New York Knicks.
They’ll have to knock off the surprising Washington Wizards first, though. Despite the teams’ identical records and the road setting, Atlanta should still have the advantage.
There is one trend, at least early on, that could lead them to trouble down the road, however. Again, it probably isn’t the type of thing that should hinder them too much versus the Wizards. But the Hawks have greater aspirations than that.
This could certainly cut those dreams shorter than an alarm clock in the morning.
The Atlanta Hawks trend of slow starts has continued into this season
Atlanta is 17th in points per game. They rank 23rd in first-quarter scoring. It isn’t for lack of trying, either. The Hawks rank third in shot attempts in the first quarter. The rub is that they are shooting a paltry 35.3 percent on shots in the opening frame. That’s good for 29th in the NBA with only the Dallas Mavericks faring worse.
Their average ranking in the middle two quarters is between fifth and sixth. We exclude the fourth quarter because, despite this issue, they have two wins by sizable margins, leading to reserves closing out games and presumably taking down some of the averages.
There is only one other team averaging fewer first-quarter points per game that still has a winning record, again the Mavericks, whom the Hawks beat soundly in the opener, giving them their one blemish on their record.
At the top, however, is a who’s who of contenders from both conferences.
The Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers hold the top spots. But six of the eight other teams in the top 10 reside in the East.
That includes the Philadelphia 76ers, the reigning champion Milwaukee Bucks, the new-look Miami Heat, and the Charlotte Hornets. The latter just suffered its first loss of the season at the hands of the Boston Celtics.
It is an issue throughout the roster as only John Collins, Clint Capela, Delon Wright, and Lou Williams (who has played in one game) are even shooting above 40 percent. All three shoot 50 percent or better while the next closest Hawk is Trae Young who is shooting 36.4 percent in the opening act of games.
Nate McMillan gave props to his bench for triaging the first half, so the Hawks could sneak out with a win late. pic.twitter.com/tiVWD1rZCs
— Bally Sports: Hawks (@HawksOnBally) October 28, 2021
De’Andre Hunter is shooting 25 percent in the first quarter while Bogdan Bogdanovic and Kevin Huerter are both shooting 33.3 percent from the field to start games.
Again, this was an issue last season. But the Hawks were 14th in first-quarter scoring then. It was one of the few that looked as though it would ultimately hold them back as they worked their way through the playoffs.
They ranked 12th in the postseason in first-quarter points per game and were third in the Eastern Conference Finals over the Phoenix Suns.
However, the difference between the Hawks and Bucks first-quarter points was 3.2 points. The difference between the Suns and Los Angeles Clippers was just .8 points.
That could help explain how they were able to advance and the Hawks weren’t.
The silver-lining this season has been the Hawks rank third in opponent scoring at 97.8 points per game. Only the Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat, who own the top-ranked defense, are better.
But right there you see the issue for the Hawks who will see the Heat four times this season as a division rival. As head coach Nate McMillan continues to preach the message of ‘sacrifice’, the Hawks need to clean it up now or they will pay for it later.