Things have not gone as well as the Atlanta Hawks had hoped they would in the 2021-22 NBA season. After advancing to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021, many people thought they would become a fixture in the postseason. Fast forward a few months, and the Hawks are struggling to even sneak into a spot in the NBA Play-In Tournament.
Atlanta is currently 17-22, 1.5 games behind 10th place in the conference. The team has struggled to find the same level of success that they found last postseason, which has led to some inconsistent performances.
Defensively is where the Hawks are once again coming up short. They have an elite offense, but their defensive performance is essentially as poor as the offense is great. Very little resistance exists for opposing teams when they are looking to score the ball on Atlanta.
Until they clean things up and can play two-way basketball, they will struggle to string together wins. Getting everyone on the same paged and involved also seems to be an issue for the team.
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According to The Athletic, a paid subscription website, power forward John Collins is not happy with his role on the team. Despite his constant development, he has seen his role in the offense shrink for a third consecutive season and when he tries to be a leader for the team, it is falling on deaf ears.
The Hawks committed major money to Collins this offseason to keep him as part of their core, but he is not being treated as a core member of the team.
Collins, however, has grown increasingly frustrated over his role in Atlanta, multiple sources have told The Athletic. His shot attempts per game and usage rate have decreased in each of the past three seasons — even as the athletic, energetic Collins has improved his offensive repertoire. The 6-foot-9 big man has challenged the Hawks locker room on multiple occasions to play team basketball and commit to one another this season. Oftentimes, Collins has felt his voice go unheard.
That is certainly a cause for concern. There was reportedly some friction between Collins and Trae Young last season about the lack of ball movement offensively. While winning helped quiet that, the issues seem to have never actually gone away.
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On the season, Collins is averaging 17.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, 2.0 assists, 1.1 blocks and 0.7 steals in 32.6 minutes per game. Those are impressive numbers, as Collins is making the most of his limited chances with excellent efficiency.
If the Atlanta Hawks cannot find a way to get him more involved, a trade may ultimately be the end result. John Collins is being paid as an All-Star, but the Hawks are seemingly not treating him as one, which is causing some frustrations from Collins’s perspective.
