By: JJ Lanier

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

It’s been a rough few weeks for any fan that happens to pull for a team residing in the state of Georgia.

The Braves finished off what was a pleasant season with a memorable, for all the wrong reasons, playoff loss.

The Bulldogs find themselves on the outside of the college playoffs and even if certain things pan out the way they need them to, still may not be able to overcome their loss to South Carolina.

And as for the Falcons, I think the only way their season could get any worse is if they actually string together enough wins over the second half of the season that Dan Quinn keeps his job.

So, in the wake of these past few weeks I’m going to say something I never thought I would’ve said a month and a half ago, it’s time to start watching the Atlanta Hawks.

It’s not that I think the Hawks are title contenders, but they’ve got a great core of young talent that even in defeat they will be entertaining to watch- something I think will happen more often than not, despite their strong start to the season.

Of course, the excitement begins with Trae Young. Coaches like to refer to a player’s ability to shoot by saying they’re in range once the cross-half court. In most cases it’s just a figure of speech, but in Young’s case, it’s spot on.

Part of Young’s appeal is that he has more “What a dumb….holy hell that was a great play” possessions than a Harlem Globetrotter.

The other part of his appeal, and one that somewhat plays into the first part, is that he’s just as likely to commit ten turnovers as he is to rack up ten assists. You truly never know which guy you’re going to get on any given night, which makes things a bit interesting.

Surrounding the talented guard is a bevy of young players- John Collins, Kevin Huerter, De’Andre Hunter, Cam Reddish- all of whom are gifted enough to be potential All-Stars down the road.

The addition of Jabari Parker in the off-season seemed to increase the level of intrigue, at least on the offensive end.

Parker reminds you of that kid in middle school who could score on anyone, at any time, but tended to avoid playing defense like a child at a salad bar.

Parker’s just as likely to score thirty points as he is to give up thirty to the person he’s supposedly guarding.

And then there’s Vince Carter, one of the few North Carolina players this Duke fan roots for.

Obviously, the highlight reel plays don’t occur with the regularity they used to, but to see Carter still be able to perform some of athletic feats he’s capable of at his age (42) is nothing short of incredible.

There’s no doubt Atlanta has had better teams in the past, but even many of those years had a cloud of lethargy hanging over their heads due to the mundane, workmanlike feel to the games. They were exiting because the team was winning, not necessarily because of how the team played.

Not saying that’s a bad thing, but if the Hawks are still a year or two away from realistically making a playoff push, at least they’re giving you reasons to show up and watch.

If you’re going to be bad, might as well be entertaining; otherwise, you’re just the Falcons.