Almost a month has passed since we took a glance at national projections for the Atlanta Hawks but, with training camp inching closer, ESPN’s Kevin Pelton released the network’s projected standings based on real plus-minus (RPM). As he notes, the estimate isn’t necessarily kind to the Hawks, with 30.4 projected victories and only a 3 percent chance to crash the playoff party.
Given the young Hawks won 29 games last season, this projection might be somewhat disappointing. The veterans that Atlanta added this summer, most notably Evan Turner, don’t figure to help the team win, and lottery picks De’Andre Hunter and Cam Reddish also project as below-replacement players as rookies.