The Atlanta Hawks can deliver a valuable lesson on Friday.
The Hawks have received a lot of criticism for their roster and approach to constructing it. But their opponent on Friday, the Los Angeles Lakers, has a similar record but is trending in the opposite direction despite generally taking a more aggressive approach.
That approach has led to an opportunity for the Hawks to secure a veritable triple-win if they can knock off the Lakers.
Hawks in line for triple-win against Lakers
The Lakers are one game better than the Hawks in the loss column. But they are three spots lower in the conference standings, which says as much about the East and West than the Hawks and Lakers.
LA has lost two straight games and is closing out a four-game road trip.
They are also banged up, set to be without versatile defensive ace Jarred Vanderbilt and, more importantly, combo guard Austin Reaves in the contest.
Moreover, the Hawks can help themselves on the draft front in multiple ways. Their 2025 first-round pick belongs to the San Antonio Spurs from the 2022 trade for Dejounte Murray, so making sure they are not giving up too valuable of a selection would be nice.
They also own the Lakers’ 2025 first-round pick from the 2024 Murray trade.
The Lakers sent that pick to the New Orleans Pelicans in 2025 for Anthony Davis and won a polarizing championship with him in 2020. But that drastic measure put them in this position.
Beating the Lakers would mean another actual win for the Hawks, running their streak to six straight. It would also decrease the value of the pick they owe to the Spurs and improve the pick LA owes to them.
Hawks bench mobbing
For all of the attention paid to the Hawks starting lineup, and rightfully so with how the group has performed, their bench unit has come on strong.
The Hawks rank fourth in bench points, which is especially notable considering they did not have two of the top three pieces from the group for a chunk of the season in Bogdan Bogdanovic and De’Andre Hunter.
They rank second behind only the Memphis Grizzlies’ bench since having both in the lineup.
Bogdanovic entered the season as a bench option, as did fellow key contributor Onyeka Okongwu.
But there was uncertainty about what Hunter’s role would be. He began the season as a starter but, after rookie No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher assumed the role in Hunter’s absence, the latter returned to a bench role.
He shined in that capacity last season and has continued the trend this season.
Momentum and chemistry in roster construction
The Hawks are showing what can be done when taking a pragmatic approach to roster building. Players like Dyson Daniels show how important opportunity is in the NBA. But development from players like Okongwu and breakout star Jalen Johnson is even more key.
Finding players like Young in the top-five of the draft is expected even if it does not always turn out as expected.
A player like Johnson, selected No. 20 overall in 2021, shows talent is everywhere.
It is on organizations to find and develop that talent. For all the criticism aimed at them over the years, the Hawks have seemingly identified a winning formula. Compare that to the path the Lakers are on, having essentially bought a championship but sliding after mismanagement.