What is the Hawks Biggest Weakness As A Team?

There are a number of issues that the Hawks are having right now and while I would argue that not having enough capable centers/bigs and frontcourt depth is the top one, it is not the only issue.

Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes brought up a different issue, talking about how defensive pressure might be the worst issue the Hawks are facing:

"The Atlanta Hawks have done several things well since Trae Young left the lineup with a knee injury in late October, but handling pressure isn't one of them.

It makes sense, though. Take one of the most ball-dominant players out of the picture, and the guys left to handle all the dribbling and playmaking by committee are bound to struggle.

With Young on the floor earlier this season, the Hawks turned the ball over on just 10.0 percent of their possessions. Without him, the turnover rate spikes to 15.5 percent.

In a recent 27-point fall against the rugged and predatory Detroit Pistons (Atlanta's third loss in the season series) the turnover count was 20.

Although Jalen Johnson and Nickeil Alexander-Walker have shown far more shot-creation chops than expected, the Hawks knew they were in trouble during an ominous loss to the Cavs just a couple of days after Young went down.

Cleveland ratcheted up the pressure and forced 23 Hawks giveaways in that one."

Turnovers have been an issue for the Hawks, but I would argue that the lack of size and frontcourt depth outweighs that.

The Hawks traded for Porzingis to help fix some of these issues and while they did not have to give up much in the deal, Porzingis has not been on the floor much as of late due to an illness. Even when he has been on the floor, the Hawks defense has not exactly benefitted from having him on the floor.

Per Cleaning the Glass, the Hawks defense is +4.9 points allowed per 100 possessions (22nd percentile) when Porzingis is on the floor, the second lowest mark of Porzingis career. On the other hand, the offense is +9.3 points per 100 possessions when Porzingis is on the floor. He has been great on one end for the Hawks, but not as good on the other.

While I think the Hawks should wait and see what the team looks like when Young and Porzingis play together, it might be in Atlanta's best interest to look at the big man market and see what kind of upgrades are out there. It does not even have to be a big name upgrade like Anthony Davis, but if the Hawks want to be a contender in the Eastern Conference, this issue has to be fixed.

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