The Hawks held another extended video session Monday.
Unlike the fiery early-season session, that led to the team winning 35 of its next 38 games after a 5-5 start, this one wasn’t all heated words from coach Mike Budenholzer. Instead, it was a give-and-take discussion as the Hawks look to return to the defensive form that has been the hallmark of their record-breaking season.
“I think we have (lost a bit of edge),” Paul Millsap said. “We were on such a hot streak that a lot of things were overshadowed, things that we weren’t good at but we were still finding ways to win games. Now, it’s coming back to haunt us. We’ve got to get back to what we do. Numbers-wise, we played good through that stretch. Numbers-wise since the All-Star break we haven’t been that great.”
Indeed.
The Hawks are 10-6 since the All-Star break, including a six-game win streak. They are on a season-long three-game losing skid, which included blowout losses to the Warriors and Spurs and a blown second-half lead to the Thunder. Since the All-Star break the Hawks are allowing the opposition 99.3 points per game with seven 100-plus point games. Over the past three losses, the average points allowed has skyrocketed to 117 and teams are shooting over 53 percent from the field.
“I think coaches wish there was more feedback in a perfect world,” Budenholzer said. “Players, even though they have thoughts, they may tend to keep them to themselves. In a general sense, a lot of film sessions are the coach speaking a lot more. Today … it was a better, deeper understanding of some things that we need to do better and all of us being on the same page. All of us asking a question and saying ‘What the heck?’ But ‘What the heck?’ in a good way.
“Ultimately the better they understand it, it becomes theirs. You are always going to have more success like that.”
The concern is that there a just 12 games remaining in the regular season. This is not the time of year for a slump. Not with at No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference still on the line and the postseason rapidly approaching.
“Coach was allowing us as players to give him feedback of what we like to do, what we think works,” DeMarre Carroll said. “He was giving us feedback. The film don’t lie. There were a lot of things that we were doing early in the season that we aren’t doing right now.”
Much of the discussion involved the defensive coverages between the guards and the post players. If the guards get switching help from the big men, they might get caught have to defend the opposition’s big men. For example, Jeff Teague got caught several times having to guard the Spurs’ Tiago Splitter after a switch in Sunday’s 114-95 loss. If the post players aren’t going to switch as much, the guards need to be better at the point of attack. These are a few of the nuances to the Hawks defensive coverages that need to be ironed out.
“It was collectively a good talk,” Carroll said. “We are going to need different defensive coverages going into the playoffs. You can’t stick with one. We’ve been sticking to one ever since the All-Star break has been over. Now, we want to throw out a couple of different schemes. It will be good for us.”
Budenholzer and players readily admitted Monday that there has been slippage in the defense since the All-Star break. They insisted fatigue has not an issue and that some adversity now will help come the postseason.
The Hawks (53-17) remain with a magic number of three to clinch the best record in the Eastern Conference and home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. They Hawks are returning to health. Kyle Korver is back after missing three games with a broken nose. Thabo Sefolosha is nearly recovered from a calf strain that has cost him the past 23 games. Mike Scott is 12 days into a revised timetable to miss two to four weeks with a strained toe.
“We went through a tough stretch playing in some tough games, I think it builds our character,” Elton Brand said. “You win 19 in a row and you are riding a high horse and you can never lose again. To be humbled a little bit makes you pay more attention to detail and get back to our habits that had us winning.”
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