Where Does Atlanta Start In The Way-Too-Early 2024-2025 NBA Power Rankings?

Can the Atlanta Hawks have a better season in 2024-2025?

Apr 6, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson (1) and Denver Nuggets forward Justin Holiday (9) scramble for a loose ball in the first half at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Michael Ciaglo-USA TODAY Sports / Michael Ciaglo-USA TODAY Sports

The 2023-2024 NBA season is now in the books after last night's dominant win by the Boston Celtics. Boston was the best team from start to finish this season and should be the heavy favorites to win another championship next year with most of their team returning.

It might be harder to do way too early power rankings for the next season in the NBA than in any other sport. The NBA offseason has now begun and there is usually a lot of movement between now and the start of next season. Projecting who should be where can be difficult, but it is safe to assume that Boston should be at the very top.

What about the Hawks?

The Hawks are officially on the clock and they are going to be one of the most interesting teams to watch in the coming weeks. They hold the No. 1 pick in next Wednesday's NBA Draft, one of Trae Young or Dejounte Murray is likely to be traded, and other veteran players like Clint Capela, Bogdan Bogdanovic, and De'Andre Hunter could be on the move as well. This team is unlikely to look the same when the new season starts.

In their recently released way-too-early power rankings for next year, Bleacher Report has the Hawks at No. 22:

"The basketball gods smiled down on the Atlanta Hawks in May, when they jumped a whopping nine spots in the draft lottery to snag the first overall pick.

In most years, that'd feel like a massive win. Even in this one, when the incoming class isn't celebrated like most, it's still better than staying at No. 10.

The Hawks have the first crack at finding a star in this draft, and he should be surrounded by more veteran talent than most No. 1 overall picks.

Even if Atlanta trades one Dejounte Murray or Trae Young (and it should), the other star guard, Jalen Johnson and Onyeka Okongwu will all be around to presumably keep the Hawks competitive.:

Chicago, Brooklyn, Toronto, Charlotte, Detroit, and Washington are the Eastern Conference teams that are ranked behind Atlanta, putting them at No. 9 in the East.

I think there is a chance that Atlanta can be higher than that when the new season begins. I think it is likely that they keep Young as their main centerpiece, Jalen Johnson looks like a future star, and whoever the No. 1 pick is will add talent to the team, even if they are not a star right away (most rookies aren't. Also factor in the potential return they could get from the deals involving Murray, Capela, Hunter, and Bogdanovic. It is fair to rank the Hawks as a below average team going into the offseason, but there is a chance they could shoot up into the top half of the league if they make the right moves.

The key word there is if.