Everyone remembers how Jock Landale began his first official Hawks tenure, and also how the year ended.
Two completely different stories. When he arrived via trade with the Utah Jazz, he was immediately thrown into the starting lineup, delivering a historic performance and leading the Hawks to a much-needed home victory. He finished the night with a career-high 26 points, 11 rebounds, five assists and four blocks.
His year ended just before Atlanta's impressive display of competitiveness in the postseason, however, after being taken out under the basket by Orlando's Goga Bitadze in a late-season battle.
Landale re-signed with the Hawks this offseason, a well-deserved opportunity to bounce back after recovering. At this year's media day, he didn't shy away from informing reporters about a mentality-shift in the organization following his arrival.
His acquisition laid the blueprint for the moves that would follow
One of the things that held the Hawks back in their pursuit of contention for years was, in simpler terms, a lack of dawg.
Not only did they need much more nightly physicality - they needed maturity. They needed a group of veterans to come in and change the culture.
While adding Jock Landale wasn't a move to instantly propel them into the contention conversation, it was a great step in the right direction, and he made sure to acknowledge that during his recent availability:
"When I first got here, a lot of the conversation was, 'we want men, we want men that are coming into work and understanding what it is to win', I think the guys they brought in have done a really good job of that."
Jock told me earlier that a big focus of theirs in the back-half of last season was the need for "men"
— Zach Langley (@ZachLangleyNBA) September 28, 2026
Physicality and maturity were focal points of their recent activity
Landale continued, "To take it a step further, this offseason, they brought in some obvious winning pieces who play like men as well. They're tough, physical, all of that."
Atlanta identified a weakness, brought in Jock Landale and others at the deadline to address it in the short-term, brought him back and doubled down on continuing to fix it. Sounds like an organization with a real direction, and real belief in their core.
The "men" of the Hawks will look to shock the world this season
Nobody is considering the Hawks contenders this season.
Maybe it's justifiable, coming off of a first-round exit. A major theme around this year's media day, though, is that they're using that series as motivation, and they don't want to ever suffer a defeat like that again.
If Atlanta indeed returns to the postseason, and Jock Landale is able to stay healthy, their first-round opponent needs to look out. The Hawks feel disrespected, and now that they have the right leaders in the locker room, they could soon make an impressive on-court statement.
The only way to initiate a culture shift is to go in and shift the culture. Atlanta is no longer messing around.
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