Hawks eye the future with increased fervor following playoff collapse

The Hawks climbed their way out of Play-In purgatory, finishing the regular season with the franchise’s second-best record in a decade. But the bottom fell out, reminding the Hawks they had more work to do to reach contention status.

But while the loss to the Knicks in Game 6 still stings, the Hawks believe in the foundation they have built and the future ahead.

“I’ve been thinking about our season in totality, and it’s pretty, pretty remarkable some of the things that we did do, the positive things, and it was a success, in my opinion, at the end of the year,” Hawks general manager Onsi Saleh said in his end-of-season availability.

“Again, not how we wanted to end at all. But we were 27-31 at one point, and we ended the season like 20-6, with all the changes, the personnel. I’m just grateful for this team, our group, our staff, our front office, to our coaching staff, to the players, everybody in the building.”

The Hawks had significant turnover on their roster this season, yet built solid team chemistry in two months. That bond helped to propel them to the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference and a spot in the playoffs.

Though the Hawks fell to the Knicks in six games, capped off by a 51-point loss, Saleh believes the playoff experience is an exciting step forward for the team.

The Hawks have the NBA Draft ahead of them, where they will add even more talent to their ranks. Saleh said that no matter where they fall, the Hawks will take the best available player to them, regardless of what position they need. They figure out where they will make that pick on Sunday, May 10, with the NBA Draft lottery.

They currently have two first-round picks, including a potential lottery pick courtesy of their trade on the first night of last year’s draft.

“We’re not one player away from this,” Saleh said. “The best iteration of this team is going to be through development and our players currently getting better.

“We’re really excited about the future and what holds there, with the draft to the flexibility moving forward, all that stuff. We’re in a good place (and) position, set up moving forward.”

During his meetings with the players on Friday, Saleh tried to convey that message.

“The best version of ourselves is yet to come,” Saleh said. “I think everybody is really pissed off, frustrated from yesterday, and that’s a good thing. You got to take that, internalize that, understand what the summer entails.