If there is a downfall to dizzying heights like 60 wins and 40-8 starts and the relative Eden of the Eastern Conference finals, it’s that everybody suddenly assumes that’s the standard.
Which is fine. Mike Budenholzer, the coach and now architect of the Hawks, embraces high expectations, and nobody knows that more than his players.
“He’s never happy,” Paul Millsap said.
What makes this season unique is that if the Hawks can’t surpass last season’s success, Budenholzer is going to deal with a layer of questions that extend beyond in-game decisions. He was in charge this offseason. He also was relatively in charge all of last season, while then-general manager Danny Ferry sat in purgatory, before ultimately stepping down/being shoved out by new ownership in June.
It was Budenholzer, in concert with promoted general manager Wes Wilcox, who concluded the obvious: keeping both Millsap and DeMarre Carroll in free agency wasn’t financially feasible. It was Budenholzer who brought in Tiago Splitter, who has mostly sputtered until recently. It was he who in a three-way trade effectively dealt away the team’s first-round draft pick for Tim Hardaway Jr., who has played in only four of the Hawks’ first 30 games.
These aren’t franchise-crushing decisions. The Hawks brought back six of their top seven scorers from a year ago, as well as five of their top six rebounders, their top six assist men and seven of their top eight in minutes played. But the changes were significant tweaks that may ultimately enable the Hawks to take the next step or ultimately fall back.
Is two months enough time to gauge what kind of team this is?
“No. Maybe Golden State and San Antonio know what they have but I think there are a lot of good teams still trying to find themselves a little bit,” Budenholzer said.
They started the season 7-1. But then came a stretch of 18 games during they went 7-11 and were smoked in consecutive games by Oklahoma City, San Antonio and Miami. Four straight wins, including road victories at Boston and Orlando, have steadied things and improved the 30-game record to 18-12. But it was a this time a year ago when the Hawks started their string of 19 straight wins and this team doesn’t nearly resemble that team right now.
“We need to be better,” Budenholzer said. “We’re a little edgy. I feel like it’s moving in the right direction. But we need to stay a little edgy and not be satisfied.”
I asked him if Bud the coach second-guesses Bud the president of basketball operations on any personnel decisions?
“Not really. There are some things that are going to take time. But just like Bud the coach, I don’t think every decision I make every single game is (correct). We do the best we can. But I do believe over the course of time, a lot of it will play out well.”
Every coach wants players. Every general manager knows it’s not easy getting them. So it’s easy to imagine the conversations Budenholzer had with himself this summer.
“It would be nice to get better on the boards, get a little better defensively, maybe get a shooting element,” he said. “But it’s not easy. I’d like to get greedy and get as much as possible. But more than anything, we wanted to do everything possible to just keep the team intact. We all want to add more.”
Splitter played for five seasons in the same system in San Antonio, so his early poor play seemed alarming. But Budenholzer said, “The players are different and the nuances are different and he’s a guy who thrives in those nuances and subtleties. I’m encouraged that he’s playing better.”
Hardaway, meanwhile, looks very sharp in street clothes. In New York, he was criticized for various facets of his game but mostly defense. His upside could be a nice payoff, but is that real or fantasy?
Budenholzer said, “It’s very fair (that people are second-guessing that deal). But I’m very happy with the work (Hardaway) is doing behind the scenes. The next step is to take it to the court. There’s evolutions with teams and coaches. The first year might not look or feel great but then the light bulb goes on for the coach — like, ‘Hey, I’m the one who screwed up’ — or the light goes on for the player. But he’s put himself in a good position to make it look like a good decision.”
So the judging continues and in the end, there’s no question who will get the credit or blame.
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