The Atlanta Hawks have gotten off to a solid, yet unspectacular start to the 2022-23 season, sitting at 13-10 through a quarter of the season, good for fourth in the East currently, but with just a game separating Atlanta and Toronto for the 8th seed.
Given the all-in move made to trade three first-round picks for Dejounte Murray, Atlanta has high hopes for this squad, but there seems to be a gap between them and the very top contenders in the East that still exists. The Hawks have struggled with shooting so far this year, and while Bogdan Bogdanovic getting back healthy is a considerable help, the expectation is that more moves are on the horizon. There is also some lingering tension between Trae Young and head coach Nate McMillan that isn’t necessarily helping the vibes around the Hawks so far, with a report on Sunday indicating a disagreement between the two on Friday led to the All-Star guard not attending Atlanta’s win over the Nuggets.
According to Shams Charania and Sam Amick of The Athletic, Young and McMillan had a tense exchange prior to shootaround as Young got treatment on his shoulder.