Atlanta Hawks | Last Season: 40-26 (First Round of Eastern Conference Playoffs | Draft Picks: 23, 43

Season Summary: The Atlanta Hawks are one of those teams who can be penciled in for a playoff spot every year. They can also be penciled in for an early exit. This team will look completely different moving forward without Joe Johnson and his enormous contract.

Draft Needs: Best Player Available. The Hawks will take the best player on the board. They will should lean with a 3 or a 4, because Josh Smith wants out and Marvin Williams is just useless. The wish they would have drafted Chris Paul when they would have had the chance. Quincy Miller or Perry Jones would probably be a good fit in the ATL.

Pick #23: John Jenkins | G | Vanderbilt

John Jenkins is a deadly jump shooter. He led the SEC in scoring for two straight seasons, and was a first-team All-SEC selection. Jenkins knocked down 134 3-points in his junior season which tied the SEC single-season record. Offensively, he’s as good a shooter you’re going to find in this year’s class. However, Jenkins averaged more turnovers than assists, and he’s rather undersized for a shooting guard. He’ll likely never amount to much more than a sharp-shooter off the bench.

Grade: C

2012-2013 Outlook: Another playoff berth, another early exit. It will be more of the same in Atlanta. They are trapped in one of the worst situations. Good enough to be a playoff team, bad enough to not go anywhere. Eventually the bottom will fall out but they are stick in purgatory for the time being.

Check out all of Rant Sports 2012 NBA Draft Grades from the 1st Round.