A fatal mistake the Hawks must correct at the 2025 NBA trade deadline

All things considered, The Atlanta Hawks are having a good season in 2024-25; not much was expected of them after the trade away for Dejounte Murray in the offseason, but the Hawks are on track to finish above .500 for the season — not necessarily an improvement over where they were before the Murray trade, but a good trajectory to still be on their way given that they have a young, developing team that just keeps getting better.

There isn’t much urgency for the Hawks to improve the roster before the trade deadline in 2025. They aren’t exactly on track to compete for a championship this season, despite still being the only team in the NBA this year to beat both the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Boston Celtics.

Any fatal flaw the Hawks have is something they’ll want to work on without having to rush the roster building process they’re currently in. playoff team in the East, but one thing is for sure — there has to be diversification in the way Atlanta plays if they want to take the next step as a team.

This is a fatal flaw that the Hawks will have to deal with moving forward.

Are the Hawks relying too much on Tree Young to create offense?

The Hawks have already experimented in the past with bringing in another shot creator and playmaker to ease the load on Tree Young’s shoulders. Unfortunately, Dejounte Murray’s experiment went sideways very quicklyas Young’s and Murray’s playing styles were not too compatible with each other.

In 2021, the Hawks hit on a winning formula — surround Young with as many 3-and-D players as possible while letting him do the bulk of the offense. And it worked; they made it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals and had a fighting chance to make it all the way to the NBA Finals if more injury luck worked in their favor.

The Hawks replicate that formula, but it doesn’t work as well. There is a lack of secondary shots on the roster, and the problem with Bogdan Bogdanović’s injury did not help at all. Jaylen Johnson gave his all in his role as a do-it-all man and secondary playmaker, but his players still have a lot of room for improvement. Dyson Daniels is a defensive specialist who can handle the ball occasionally, but lacks the consistent ability to shoot off the bounce to threaten the defense.

Meanwhile, De’Andre Hunter is more of a finisher, someone who thrives in a playmaker setup like Young, while Zachary Rizacher is as raw as ever in the shot-making and playmaking department. Simply put, the heavy burden of generating offense falls on their star playmaker, and it results in some of Young’s worst results in years.

Young’s shooting is currently at his worst since his rookie season, and his 22.5 points per game is also his worst performance since his inaugural NBA campaign in 2018. That’s concerning; defenses can load up on Young and stifle him, forcing him to have tougher shooting nights than ever – limiting the Hawks’ offensive ceiling.

This wouldn’t be too much of a problem if the Hawks defense was solid. But even though Daniels is one of the most annoying defenders in the league, their team defense leaves a lot to be desired.

Atlanta’s defense is shaky at best

It’s always going to be difficult for any team to mitigate Trae Young’s negative defensive effects on the roster. But the Hawks must pick a battle. They should go all-in on offense or defense, and so far they’re pretty mediocre (at best) in both aspects of the game. They are currently supplementing theirs 17th-ranked offense with the league’s 21st-ranked defense. It spells disaster for them in terms of putting together winning basketball.

Acquiring a two-way wing that can help fill some of the shot-making responsibilities could help the Hawks achieve better balance on the roster.

Time to swing for the fences?

The The Hawks are a team it can contribute to the acquisition of someone like Brandon Ingram. Ingram is a three-point shooter and wing playmaker, and he can make the three-point team, provided all goes according to plan in his recovery from injury, of course.

Atlanta can build a package around De’Andre Hunter and Bogdan Bogdanovic, along with some draft capital, though the Hawks will soon have to land a big contract for Ingram if they were to bring him in.