One weird thing about this Hawks season is that the results haven’t gotten worse as the drama increased. I kept expecting them to sink to the bottom of the standings with all the infighting, ownership missteps, injuries and issues with roster construction. Yet the Hawks are 22-22 about three weeks before the NBA’s trade deadline and getting better.
The Hawks are healthy for the first time in a while. They’ve won three consecutive games against opponents that are vying with them to avoid the dreaded play-in tournament for the playoffs. After winning five of their past seven games, with four victories on the road, the Hawks are 2.5 games out of sixth place in the Eastern Conference.
Winning won’t solve everything for the Hawks. In some ways, it could make things worse in the long run. Landry Fields, a neophyte as an NBA general manager, might get the idea that significant personnel changes aren’t needed. Team owner Tony Ressler could convince himself that it’s a good idea, actually, to have his son involved in the team’s basketball operations.
