Think back to the late 1990's in Atlanta.
If you're not old enough to remember, you've at least heard the name Dikembe Mutombo. The towering size. The intimidation. The helplessness that small guards felt when driving down the lane only to be stifled by one of the most talented rim protectors in league history.
This year's Hawks may finally have the piece they need to re-create the elite defense that was so common in many yesteryear's Atlanta squads: Kristaps Porzingis.
Not only did the Hawks strike gold when they bought Porzingis ridiculously low this offseason; better yet, they have a coach with the know-how to utilize his strengths.
Quin Snyder was asked on media day about this summer splash, and after five entire months of silence, the ever-wise coach had this to say: "[Johnson/Okongwu/Porzingis] being able to play in combination can be a strength of our team... moving forward with reps and experience... that's what it means for a team to... find an identity."
Snyder will no doubt be extremely liberal with playing double-big lineups this year, so long as the trifecta can remain healthy - an identity that has proven effective in recent years across the league.
It's not just KP - the entire Hawks frontcourt is loaded.
Remember those 90's Hawks again? Think back to not only Mutombo, but also his towering co-anchors in 6'11 Christian Laettner and 6'9 Alan Robinson in '98. Their positional size and versatility allowed the entire squad to physically dominate smaller, weaker opponents.
This year's Hawks are strikingly similar - flanking Porzingis are the bulky yet nimble Onyeka Okongwu and Jalen Johnson - two power forward sized players that have the ability to play a small-ball five in a pinch.
The combination of Porzingis' size and Johnson and Okongwu's mobility will allow Atlanta to run scheme after scheme on defense to stymy opponents that attempt to attack the rim - the backline rim protection that each of these bigs offer is rivaled by very few other frontcourts across the NBA.
Thanks to Snyder's early understanding of the talent he has, expect Atlanta to dominate opponents down low this season - thanks in large part to the playmaker that will surely set them up time and again on offense - Trae Young.