As the Hawks return to the postseasons for the 10th straight year, it’s difficult to forget the success of the Hawks in 2014-2015— the season that the Hawks convinced Atlanta sports fans to cheer for them again.
Jake Fischer of Sports’ Illustrated’s The Crossover looks at what broke up the Hawks’ “Famous Starting Five”, DeMarre Carroll, Al Horford, Kyle Korver, Paul Millsap and Jeff Teague, and why one former Hawk says the team hasn’t been the same since.
Fischer quotes all five former starters about the Hawks’ record-breaking season including Korver, a current Cleveland Cavalier.
“‘We had a stretch there where everything was clicking,’ Korver said. ‘I’ve always been kind of a purist in that way; enjoying the cutting and the ball movement; the passing, the screening, the shooting; finding ways to get easy shots, you know? All five guys are on a string, and I felt like that was probably the best basketball that I’ve ever been a part of in that way.’”
In January of 2015, the Hawks won 12 straight games, the longest winning streak since 1968.
Ultimately, the Hawks’ season came to an end when they lost all four games in the Eastern Conference Finals to the Cleveland Cavaliers, who went on to lose to the Golden State Warriors in the Finals.
Although all five starters are now competitors on different rosters, Millsap, the sole remaining Hawk, admits he still has a soft place for the teammates who achieved so much with him.
“Millsap has shouldered the franchise while surveying his former teammates’ success. ‘I’m always keeping track of that, looking at the scores, seeing what they’re doing,’ he said.”
Fischer's full article can be ready on The Crossover.
The 2017 Hawks will play Game 2 against the Washington Wizards in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals on Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Washington’s Verizon Center.
