National Basketball Association

Atlanta Hawks: Most Intriguing Training Camp Position Battles

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Training camp is right around the corner. What are some interesting position battles that the Atlanta Hawks will have going on?

Mar 19, 2016; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Tim Hardaway Jr. (10) shows emotion after a made three pointer against the Houston Rockets in the second quarter at Philips Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

The dead period of the NBA off-season is quickly coming to an end with training camps set to begin at the end of this month. For the Atlanta Hawks, training camp starts on the 27th at the University of Georgia.

This is always the first opportunity to truly see how the team will look for the upcoming season. For the Hawks specifically, there haven’t been a ton of changes, but the ones that occurred will have major implications.

By now, losing Al Horford and Jeff Teague have sunk into Hawks’ fans comfortably and now it’s time to embrace the new era in Atlanta. Fortunately, the loss of two cornerstone shouldn’t result in a postseason appearance this upcoming season–which would make ten-straight playoff trips for the Hawks.

Training camp is where the blueprint for championship teams are drawn up. Players find their niche in new or existing roles around the new roster in order to maximize success. Relationships are formed to help build cohesion of a team both on and off the court.

It may be the hardest week for players because the intensity of two-a-days, but it’s all apart of the process.

The Hawks will have great position battles for both starting and back-up positions. Here are a few that fans should keep a close eye on.

Apr 22, 2016; Boston, MA, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Kyle Korver (26) warms up before the start of game three of the first round of the NBA Playoffs against the Boston Celtics at TD Garden. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

A Battle of the Shooters

The starting shooting guard position has belonged to Kyle Korver for the past four seasons. As one of the elite shooters the league has to offer, he has been the perfect fit for this Hawks team over the years to help stretch the defense within their 5-out motion offense.

Last season, Korver struggled according to his standards by shooting 39.9 percent from three, his lowest percentage since 2008-09 season with the Utah Jazz when he shot 38.6 percent.

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The Hawks acquired Tim Hardaway Jr. last summer to come in and fill a role as a scorer off the bench. During his first two years with the New York Knicks, Hardaway Jr. showed some ability to really shoot it well from beyond the arc as well as attacking the rim. The hopes were for him to flourish in head coach Mike Budenholzer‘s offensive system, but it didn’t go as planned.

Hardaway Jr. averaged 6.4 points in 16.9 minutes per game last season off the bench. Not exactly statistics that scream ‘starting potential.’ Still, he was adjusting to a new offense, which is never easy and can negatively impact a player’s confidence. Now that he has a season under his belt in the system, he can approach the 2016-17 season prepared with a better understanding of what is expected of him.

Korver will be 36 in March. There is worry that his 2015-16 struggles may carry over into next season. If that’s the case and Hardaway Jr. has improved over the summer, there is a realistic chance he could push for the starting position, which would bring Korver off the bench. It wouldn’t necessarily be a bad idea bringing an elite shooter like Korver off the bench to provide a spark.

Korver is a savvy professional, though. He realizes he didn’t play up to par last season and will make the adjustments to be back in the 50/40/90 club that he is very familiar with. The addition of Dwight Howard will create more open shots with the defense’s attention directed towards the paint as well.

It should make for a great training camp battle and mean for the Hawks to have dependable depth at shooting guard no matter what happens.

Mar 17, 2016; Providence, RI, USA; Baylor Bears forward Taurean Prince (21) dunks against the Yale Bulldogs during the first half of a first round game of the 2016 NCAA Tournament at Dunkin Donuts Center. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

The Young Bulls

Rookies are always ones who gain much of the attention during training camp. How are they fitting within the team? Have they improved over the summer? Are they struggling picking up concepts of the NBA game?

These are just a few questions that come to mind when evaluating rookies in their first training camp. Fortunately for the Hawks, they drafted two mature players in Taurean Prince and DeAndre Bembry.

Both players have what it takes to become immediate contributors to this team. But one thing that gives Prince the leg up is his body. If you could sculpt a realistic, but perfect built rookie to play the small forward position, Prince would be the mold. At 6’8″ 220 pounds, Prince will have no problems dealing with the physicality that comes with the NBA game. He can still improve on his lateral quickness, but even what he has now in that department is good enough to help him keep opposing small forwards in front of him.

Bembry has nice size as well at 6’6″ 210 pounds, but he isn’t as strong as Prince. Bembry makes up his ground in the comparison by making smart plays seemingly every time down the court. Whether he has the ball in his hands or is moving off the ball, he uses his basketball IQ to help make the game easier for both he and is teammates.

Prince could play at either shooting guard, small forward, or power forward in small-ball lineups. Bembry will likely stick between shooting guard or small forward. So while these rookies aren’t necessarily battling for one position, they’ll still need to beat out one another to gain Budenholzer’s trust in playing one of them more.

March 4, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Brandon Bass (2) shot is blocked by Atlanta Hawks forward Kris Humphries (43) during the second half at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Battle of the Bigs

The power forward position is one that is dominated by the Hawks’ best player in Paul Millsap. Certainly, no one is challenging for his minutes on this roster. But behind him, there are real questions.

The Hawks acquired Kris Humphries late in the season via trade. Humphries played in 21 games averaging 6.4 points and 3.4 rebounds in 14 minutes per game. For a player who had to come in right away and learn an entirely new system, he had spurts he showed potential to be the dependable reserve to Millsap.

Humphries made massive adjustments to his game last summer by extending his shooting range in order to play stretch-4 for the Washington Wizards. For a player who had just 27 three-point attempts in his first 11 seasons, he made a successful transition knocking down over 30 percent of his three’s. In his 28 games with Washington, he converted on 34.8 percent of his long-range attempts.

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Mike Scott is the player who will be pushing Humphries for reserve minutes at power forward. Scott had off the court issues to handle this summer from an incident in the summer of 2015 where he was found with an enormous amount of marijuana in his possession. Since Scott is a first-time offender, he won’t face any jail time, but the league could take action and suspend him.

There have been no signs of a suspension yet, which leaves us to assume that he will be available for the entire 2016-17 season.

In 15.3 minutes per game last season, Scott averaged 6.2 points and 2.7 rebounds while shooting 39.2 percent from three. His shot-making ability is what makes him the biggest threat to Humphries, but Humphries can bring more to the floor by crashing the glass every possession.

If Scott can show initiative in the rebounding category, this battle could get interesting. Scott will still see the floor somewhat next season even if Humphries beats him out in training camp, but of course Scott wants to be the man behind Millsap on the depth chart when camp is all said and done.

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