2. Perimeter defense. After Ferry traded Marvin Williams for Devin Harris last offseason, the most puzzling question was who would guard opposing small forwards. DeShawn Stevenson and Dahntay Jones both carried 
defensive value, but their offensive limitations made it difficult to keep them on the floor. So Atlanta’s best bet was Josh Smith, who turned out to be one of the NBA’s elite wing defenders.
With Smith’s departure to Detroit, the question is once again worth asking. Conventional wisdom says recently signed DeMarre Carroll will shoulder most of the load, but he is unlikely to see more than 20 minutes a night. The rest of the roster is filled with large 2-guards who are huge defensive question marks.
Kyle Korver proved capable of guarding small forwards within the confines of a structured defense, but once isolated, his effectiveness almost completely disappeared. John Jenkins showed flashes of strong isolation defense, but his failure to rotate and close out on perimeter shooters made him a liability against elite shooting teams.
The Hawks no longer have Smith to carry the team’s perimeter defense. Despite Carroll’s tenacity, defending perimeter players could be Atlanta’s Achilles’ heel this season.
3. Offensive spacing. With longtime Spurs assistant Mike Budenholzer taking over as coach, a pick-and-roll offense dependent on crisp passes and efficient ball movement seems to be the necessary progression for this group. The acquisition of Paul Millsap allows for spacing that was not previously possible when Smith was on the roster.
As a stretch-4, Millsap’s proficient and reliable offensive game should be a nice change of pace from Smith’s erratic fluctuations from hopeless chucker to dominant inside force. Millsap and Al Horford perfectly complement each other’s offensive strengths and weaknesses, and while there may be some defensive issues with that big combo, its offensive potency should outweigh any defensive blemishes.
A pick-and-roll flanked with shooters like Jenkins and Korver will be terrifying for opposing defenses if either Schröder or Teague can deftly initiate the offense.
4. Kyle Korver’s streak. This is one of those odd, minor storylines Hawks fans have been following since the middle of last season. Korver has made a 3-pointer in his last 73 regular-season games, only 16 games shy of the record held by Dana Barros.
Korver’s streak has produced some incredible moments, namely his leading effort in a 27-point comeback against the Celtics last season in which he hit eight threes in the second half. However, the streak is primarily indicative of Korver’s importance to the team. I just wrote about offensive spacing and it is Korver who makes that possible moreso than anyone on the roster.
Keep an eye on Korver this season, for record-breaking possibilities and his positive offensive impact and lethal 
shooting ability.
5. The return and impact of Lou Williams. When Williams tore his ACL last season, the Hawks were third in the East. While it is reasonable to assume that Indiana and company still might have leap-frogged Atlanta in the standings, Williams’ absence caused a dip in the team’s offensive productivity.
Granted, that dip may not have been solely applicable to Williams’ injury — Atlanta saw Harris, Korver and Zaza Pachulia miss games last season, too – but it was the lack of a perimeter creator that often plagued the Hawks late in games.
With Williams coming back, Atlanta has another viable option for a primary ballhandler. His return is sure to jolt the second unit offense and add a dimension it missed for the second half of last season and the playoffs.
Daniel Christian is a staff writer at Peachtree Hoops, SB Nation’s Atlanta Hawks site. He previously wrote for the ESPN TrueHoop Network. You can follow him on Twitter.
It always slays me when I read fan blogs written by kids that can’t seem to grasp just how atrocious Danny Ferry really is.