Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce wants to see his team return to action in Orlando, positing that even 'meaningless' games have value for his young squad. Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports

Hawks' Lloyd Pierce campaigns for 30-team NBA restart

By Zac Wassink | Last updated 6/2/20

On Monday, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe reported how Oklahoma City Thunder owner Clay Bennett recently campaigned for all 30 teams to be part of the season's resumption amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Atlanta Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce is also among those who hopes to see every franchise welcomed to Orlando's Walt Disney World Resort.

For a segment that aired on ESPN's "The Jump" on Tuesday, Pierce spoke with Rachel Nichols about why he doesn't want his Hawks to be one of eight organizations not included in a model that ultimately crowns an NBA champion by or on Oct. 12:

"I coach the youngest team in the NBA. And the biggest thing we can benefit from is playing basketball, and the game has been taken away from all of us at this point.

"But if the season is going to resume and we're still not a part of it, it hurts our growth, it hurts our product, it hurts our ability to continue the momentum that we need going into next season.

"I play young guys, I have young guys. They need game experience. So, we need to play basketball, we want to play basketball."

Second-year guard Trae Young, the 21-year-old with 141 regular-season appearances on his resume when the league suspended play on March 11, leads the Hawks in multiple offensive categories. 22-year-old forward John Collins is second on the team in scoring.

At 20-47, though, the Hawks hold the fourth-worst win percentage (.299) in the Association, ahead of the Minnesota Timberwolves (.297), Cleveland Cavaliers (.292), and Golden State Warriors (.231).

Last week, Portland Trail Blazers guard Damian Lillard made headlines when he lashed out against the idea of playing in "meaningless games" if Portland wouldn't be playoff eligible upon the season's restart.

Pierce clearly believes chasing a postseason berth isn't the only reason to return to action, if only for a few weeks.

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