He has made it clear that he is trying to build a team of players who are selfless, play to their roles and are connected to one another. However, the assessment of his starting center would indicate that Fields presides over a roster that is incapable or unwilling to do those things on a consistent basis. Being unable to win consistently “because we think more about ourselves” is quite a label, and it wasn’t only Capela who saw it that way.

“We didn’t sacrifice enough,” guard Bogdan Bogdanović said.

The veteran was asked what that looked like. He gave an example of players being told to do something in a certain way but then not following through.

“That’s the sacrifice,” said Bogdanović, a dedicated marksman who set a career high with 16.9 points per game this season. “You’ve got to do it. That’s it.”

The disregard happened on offense and defense.

“Sometimes we are too locked in on ourselves and individual stats or whatever,” Bogdanović said.

To that end, it’s worth revisiting what Fields said before the season when asked about the main goal for the year. It was an opportunity to give fans something substantive and bold, like advancing in the playoffs or winning 50 games. Fields answered that “it’s about stressing the fact that we are unified, and we want to play unselfish basketball.”

Which is fine; it’s his answer. But the problem is that not only did the Hawks register their lowest win percentage in the past four seasons, but they also didn’t achieve the warm-and-fuzzy goals that Fields set for them.

For instance, the Hawks were second worst in the NBA in defending in transition and third worst defending the 3-pointer (per Cleaning the Glass). There are a number of reasons for either, including lack of effort, communication, size and quickness. But teams generally don’t get steamrolled on fast breaks or lit up from 3-point range because they’re unified and unselfish.

“When we play a game, we can’t always allow the best players to have the best nights and just let it happen,” Capela said. “At some point, as a team, we need to show character or, I don’t know, even one elbow. Something. Just that, you’re not going to come in here and have a nice night.”

It’s unassailably true that the Hawks were crushed by injuries, which hampered continuity and negatively impacted the record. But having to play shorthanded should have nothing to do with being, in Bogdanovic’s words, “too locked in on ourselves.” If it does, then you probably need to find new players or leadership.

“It’s more about a mindset than just injuries,” Capela said.

There were some bright spots. Forward Jalen Johnson took big steps forward in his third season. Forward De’Andre Hunter arguably had his best season, although injuries limited his availability again. Young made his third All-Star team.

This isn’t entirely on Fields or coach Quin Snyder. They inherited a lot of the players on the roster. But they also have chosen to keep them. They’re welcome to take big bites out of the responsibility pie and are charged to get this right.

This offseason would be a nice time to start.

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