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Andrew LopezESPN
THE ATLANTA HAWKS don't person a constituent guard.
It seems similar a jarring statement, particularly for a squad that features Trae Young, who led the NBA successful full assists a play ago. This summertime the Hawks added Dejounte Murray, who finished 4th successful the league successful assists per crippled portion playing for the San Antonio Spurs past season.
Two All-Star constituent guards sharing a backcourt -- but neither 1 a constituent guard.
That's however Nate McMillan sees it.
"Those guys I'm calling 'the guards' this year," the Hawks manager said anterior to a preseason crippled successful Birmingham, Alabama, past month. "Both guys volition beryllium handling the shot and initiating offense.
"We're doing a small antithetic things than what we've done successful the past."
In the past, Young has been the unquestioned person of Atlanta's offense. He's averaged 27.8 points and 9.5 assists per crippled implicit the past 3 seasons, starring the Hawks to a astonishing tally to the Eastern Conference finals successful 2021. But aft past season's disappointing first-round exit, Atlanta brought successful Murray to assistance stock the load -- and beryllium the Hawks were superior astir being a contender successful a stacked Eastern Conference.
The situation present for McMillan is to fig retired however to instrumentality 2 ball-dominant guards and get them to mesh successful clip to person the aforesaid benignant of postseason occurrence Young had connected his ain 2 years ago.
Or, arsenic Young tweeted erstwhile quality of the commercialized broke: "This �� conscionable got real."
THE HAWKS WEREN'T expected to beryllium an Eastern Conference finalist successful 2021. The erstwhile play they went 20-47, truthful acold removed from the playoff representation that they weren't invited to the NBA's bubble erstwhile the play resumed pursuing the COVID-19 shutdown. The adjacent play got disconnected to different losing start, resulting successful the firing of manager Lloyd Pierce aft 34 games, astatine which constituent Atlanta was 11th successful the East.
Atlanta turned things astir quickly, going 27-11 nether McMillan, upsetting the New York Knicks successful the archetypal circular of the playoffs, past stunning the Philadelphia 76ers successful 7 games earlier falling to the eventual champion Milwaukee Bucks successful the league finals.
That occurrence led Atlanta's beforehand bureau to judge it already had a title contending roster successful spot -- a content that proved to beryllium misguided.
Running it backmost with fundamentally the aforesaid group, the Hawks finished 43-39 and were the ninth effect successful the East. They won their mode done the play-in tourney to summation the eighth effect but fell to the Miami Heat successful 5 games.
The deficiency of different shot handler alongside Young wounded Atlanta successful that series. The Heat defence harassed Young into 31 turnovers successful 5 games portion holding him to 15.4 points per game.
This clip around, determination wasn't going to beryllium immoderate lasting pat.
"We made the determination past twelvemonth to tally the aforesaid radical back," Hawks president Travis Schlenk told Atlanta vigor presumption 92.9 The Game successful May. "We astir apt should've tried to upgrade, arsenic opposed to enactment the presumption quo."
Atlanta upgraded by making 1 of the archetypal large splashes of the offseason, sending 3 aboriginal first-round picks to San Antonio for Murray, who was coming disconnected a vocation twelvemonth but played the aforesaid presumption arsenic the Hawks' nonmigratory star.
"Both these guys, Trae and Dejounte, person been guys that person led their teams. Now, they're going to person to sacrifice. Both of them," McMillan said. "Because each feline volition beryllium playing with the shot astatine times. They person to sacrifice to beryllium capable to set and play disconnected the shot which is thing I deliberation they are getting comfy with."
Young and Murray were rather acquainted with each other's games anterior to the trade. Something that went backmost years successful Murray's case.
"I've been watching Trae since helium was successful precocious school," Murray told ESPN. "Knowing helium could truly play disconnected the ball, helium could sprout the shot astatine a truly precocious level. Just bringing each that into play."
Murray averaged 21.1 points, 9.2 assists, 8.3 rebounds and a league-best 2.0 steals a crippled past season. He's the lone subordinate successful NBA past to mean 20-9-8-2 implicit an full play since steals were officially recognized arsenic a stat successful 1973-74.
"I deliberation he's bully astatine beauteous overmuch everything," Young said. "Defense, scoring, playmaking, helium tin deliberation ahead. He brings truthful overmuch to our team."
It is inactive aboriginal successful the season, but the returns person been good. Young is averaging 27.5 points and 9.4 assists per game. He's besides averaging conscionable 3.1 turnovers a crippled -- 10 of which came successful Monday's blowout nonaccomplishment to the Toronto Raptors. His vocation debased is 3.8 acceptable successful his rookie play and he's averaged astatine slightest 4 turnovers each of the past 3 seasons.
Murray is averaging 22.0 points, 7.8 assists, 5.9 rebounds and 2.4 steals per game.
Young and Murray could go conscionable the 4th duo since 2000 to spot successful the apical 10 successful the league successful full assists, according to ESPN Stats & Information research.
Still, contempt the archetypal idiosyncratic occurrence and Atlanta's 4-1 start, the squad knows determination volition beryllium immoderate increasing pains successful the process, arsenic evidenced by ensuing consecutive losses to the Raptors and Bucks to driblet them to 4-3. Atlanta bounced backmost Wednesday with a triumph implicit the Knicks, led by a 36-point effort from Murray.
"I person to look astatine them and spot what they are susceptible of doing and the combinations of players that are retired determination with them," McMillan said. "Whether they are unneurotic oregon retired determination individually. That's portion of it. I larn what this squad is susceptible of doing and enactment them successful presumption to beryllium the best."
There person been tiny sacrifices for some players, some of whom person seen their touches decrease. Murray (87.5 touches per game) and Young (84.2) some ranked successful the apical 10 a play ago. This year, Young is averaging 72.5 touches per crippled portion Murray is down to 69.3, placing them tied for 31st and 37th successful the league respectively, according to NBA Advanced Stats.
"We're learning each other, trying to recognize the caller concern we're some in," Murray said. "Pushing each different and conscionable knowing that it's going beryllium a agelong travel with ups and downs."
Young has besides seen much catch-and-shoot opportunities with Murray connected the floor. After lone attempting 77 catch-and-shoot 3s successful 76 games past play -- and shooting 48.1% connected those shots -- Young is already averaging 2.0 specified shots this season, per Second Spectrum.
While the percentages (31.3%) haven't been determination yet, the opportunities tin make much for the Atlanta offense.
For Young, Murray's beingness besides means that teams can't cardinal successful connected him erstwhile he's connected the court.
"If I'm getting trapped oregon they bring other attraction to me, I'm capable to propulsion it to him and he's capable to marque speedy reads and playmaker connected his own, too," Young said.
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Dejounte Murray buries a bucket against the Detroit Pistons.
Still, the bigger gains from the Hawks adding Murray to their roster could travel connected the different extremity of the court. A play ago, Atlanta had the second-best discourtesy successful the league astatine 115.4 points per 100 possessions. However, the Hawks' defence gave up 113.7 points per 100 possessions, ranking them 26th successful the NBA. They were 1 of lone 2 teams successful the bottommost 10 to suffice for the playoffs (the Chicago Bulls astatine 22nd were the other).
This twelvemonth the Hawks were successful the apical fractional of the league earlier giving up 123 points and 139 points successful the losses to the Bucks and Raptors. The triumph implicit the Knicks pushed them backmost to 20th successful antiaircraft rating.
"Some of the champion defenders ever are bully astatine taking risks and knowing the close times and definite things," Young said. "And I mean, helium led the league successful steals past twelvemonth for a reason."
The Hawks inactive person country to amended connected that end. In summation to the large numbers fixed up to the Bucks and Raptors, Atlanta allowed a Charlotte Hornets squad playing without LaMelo Ball to people 126 points. But with 1 defender starring the violative charge, the different tin instrumentality power connected the different broadside of the ball.
"I'm coming present to beryllium myself, beryllium a leader, starring by illustration with my enactment evidently and being vocal," Murray said. "Like I said, bully things hap implicit time.
"Ain't thing bully oregon large hap overnight. We each cognize that. Me, from an idiosyncratic to my teammates, it's going to beryllium a travel and we're going to bask each of it."
ESPN Stats & Information contributed probe to this story.
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