By: TJ Hartnett

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

Only a few seasons removed from having the best record in the NBA and only one season after a go-for-broke acquiring of superstar Dwight Howard, the Hawks have begun the process of breaking it all

down and rebuilding.

Generally any team in the midst of a rebuild can be counted on to be out  of contention come playoff time and while that is likely to be the case for Atlanta, playing in a weak conference (and in a league where so many teams get into the postseason) means that those hopes aren’t completely dashed.

If the Hawks can play scrappy basketball they could very well find themselves battling for the 8^th spot in the conference at the end of the season.

The roster is a who’s who of “who?” this year, with point guard Dennis Schroder leading the charge. His supporting cast consists mostly of journeyman players, a contingent that is hardly likely to give opposing teams the shivers.

However, there are some players to watch. Schroder can take a step forward this year and grow into a dynamic player and rookie John Collins along with Taurean Price make up a trio that will be hungry to prove themselves.

They’ll hit stumble here and hit a roadblock there, but they will be the reason to tune in and have the potential to be a good reason too.

While the rest of the team consists of journeymen, that doesn’t mean there is no talent.  The bench is made up of veterans that can make a difference on both ends of the court. There are no difference makers perhaps, but there are a lot of pieces that will keep the Hawks competitive throughout the season.

The forgotten man in all of this is Kent Bazemore. Bazemore signed a big contract with Atlanta, got hurt and got benched. If he’s healthy and can return to form, he’ll make a big difference in the Hawks’ standing at the end of the year.

There will be a lot of bad nights for this team, but if Bazemore can earn the paycheck he’s being given, it will go a long way to keeping those nights to a minimum.

Defense will be key for the 2017-18 season for Atlanta. They don’t have the scoring power that their rivals boast, but defense is a forgotten art in today’s game.

If the Hawks can get back down the court and hold their opponents’ offense, then they’ll have a chance to keep games close. It’s a very slight advantage, but they will need to find every edge over other teams that they can.

It can certainly be hard to watch a team rebuild and in a market where college football is king, the Hawks are going to be hard-pressed to get fans to tune in and to show up.

However, there certainly will be reasons to watch. Atlanta is a strong team for player development and the likes of Schroder, Prince and Collins are all players that could evolve into stars.

Plus, outside of the failed Dwight Howard experiment, the Hawks have never employed superstars. Sure, Al Horford and Joe Johnson were among the bigger names Atlanta has had on the roster over the past decade, but you’d be hard-pressed to find many who don’t follow the NBA closely that could name them.

The point being that despite the tendency towards superteams in the current era, names don’t win games, talent does.

Just to undercut my own point, this is a far cry from predicting a playoff run for the Hawks in 2018.

This team will struggle and the struggles will last beyond this one season but there is talent here already and general manager Travis Schlenk has committed to accumulating young talent and draft picks, so there will be more incoming.

Grit your teeth and get through this year Hawks fan. In the meantime, your team just may surprise you.

From time to time.