Lang Whitaker is many things - executive editor of Slam Magazine, a columnist for SI.com, and most importantly, a die-hard Hawks fan. For 2007-08 , Lang will be sharing his thoughts on the team in an exclusive column for Hawks.com. Check back every Wednesday throughout the season to read his latest musings, and read him every day at www.SLAMonline.com

"A Change In Culture"
by Lang Whitaker

Wow. I mean, wow.

If I knew my motivational speeches were going to go over so well, I'd have been writing them all season.

If you somehow missed it, the Hawks are 8-2 in their last 10 games and have won four in a row. Even better, these last four games the Hawks have looked rather formidable. They're moving the ball, playing defense, running the court -- it's been almost everything I thought they could be. Sure they've had their bad moments, but for the most part they've been pretty amazing. And we've got five winnable games coming up (Toronto, Philly, Philly, Indiana, New York).

I don't know what else to say, and I'm actually a little afraid to discuss this sweet taste of victory here. As a lifelong Hawks fan, it's hard for me to enjoy it. I think all of us Hawks fans realize that even if the Hawks win 20 games in a row, it's hard to walk around not waiting for the 20-game losing streak that has inevitably followed.

We often hear about a losing franchise trying to "change the culture," and I think the current Hawks are a perfect example of that. For a long time it's been acceptable to lose, acceptable to screw up, as long as those instances were digested as learning experiences. Last week I wrote that it was time for all our young guys to grow up. The franchise had spent four years in purgatory trying to get to a point where all the experience caught up to the talent. And maybe, just maybe, that happened last week.

The thing is, we can't accept this last week as perfection. We went 4-0, but there were so many things that can be improved upon. I'm hopeful that we keep playing like this. I want us to keep showing everyone that the Hawks are a team to be reckoned with. Losing stinks, but winning smells pretty good, doesn't it?

And I pray that I didn't just jinx the whole thing with this column.

MAILING IT IN…

This week's letter comes from reader Richard in Australia, who writes…

Hi Lang,

Big fan of your weekly column. I've been following the Hawks since '90, although the coverage in Australia is somewhat limited. Therefore columns like yours and also those in the AJC are invaluable. In response to the letter posted in 'the last word' concerning the '88 Bird-Dominique shoot-out, the entire game is available as an extra on the DVD 'Larry Bird - A Basketball Legend (25th Anniversary Edition)'.

As for the Hawks, I almost forgot what meaningful basketball in April felt like. Its a good feeling at least having the hope that this season was not simply another frustrating 'growth year,' especially considering that hope for this team has been starting to wear thin with (likely) limited draft picks in the coming years.

In relation to player movements, I was relieved that the Hawks managed to acquire a solid pg in Mike Bibby for next-to-nix, and it almost felt like redemption for BK. This is now starting to resemble a favourable outcome to the BK experiment that was the previous four years, and I doubt that any severe reshuffles will take place in the next couple of seasons (bar catastrophic lack of success, or inability to resign players).

I do, however, entertain the idea that we might make a move for a legit center in the off-season, which of course begs the question as to whether the Josh's (as restricted free agents) might be used as trading pieces if their asking prices are too high. Perhaps Marvin is also on the table as well, considering his potentially huge trade value relative to his still developing game, plus doesn't his contract expire at the end of the 08/09 season? In saying that, I would hate to see any of them go because I believe that the best is yet to come from all three of these players. Let me know what you think.

Richard, thanks for writing in. So far, it appears that Bibby was totally the key to this team breaking out and becoming a Playoff-level team. But looking forward, I think it's going to be equally important to keep as many of these guys in Hawks uniforms as is possible. We didn't spend four years grooming Josh Smith and Josh Childress so they can go help another team. I agree that a big body in the paint would be a nice addition, but those dudes don't just grow on trees. Plus, I'm not so certain any team with the cash to sign one of the Josh's is going to have much we'd want in return for them in a sign-and-trade.

We'll deal with all that stuff in the weeks ahead. Right now, I don't want to look too far ahead, considering we're not even assured of a Playoff spot yet. (And I live in New York, so I saw first-hand how the Mets choked their way out of the baseball postseason last fall.) Let's just get through this year first.

We've got games to win.

Lang Whitaker is the executive editor of SLAM magazine and writes daily at SLAMonline.com. He can be reached at lang@harris-pub.com. The best email he receives each week will run in this column.