'We've built enough losing streaks': Hawks looking to overcome hoodoo

Illawarra rose from the foot of the ladder with a stunning 100-82 win against the high-flying Perth last round, but now a bigger obstacle awaits.

The Hawks have not recorded consecutive wins in the NBL since April 9, 2022. That will be 616 days ago when the side play South East Melbourne on Saturday, December 16 at Gippsland Regional Indoor Stadium.

The side seems to have turned a corner with Tatum currently holding a 2-1 win-loss record since his appointment on an interim basis.

A win away against New Zealand was the start before the team tried to break a then 603-day wait for back-to-back wins however fell agonisingly short in a one-point loss against Brisbane.

But the team bounced back admirably against the more-fancied Wildcats.

Next on the agenda is a Phoenix side boosted by both the form of Mitch Creek and by their new important signing, 200-game NBA veteran Abdel Nader.

The Hawks coach said his side will need to overcome that mental barrier of such a long time without two straight wins.

"It does [become a mental thing]. Especially for players who have to play an extended amount of minutes," Tatum said.

"33-35 minutes [are what] a lot of those guys are playing. It is a mental point for those guys who are logging in a lot of minutes.

"It's very important. We tried that a few weeks ago against Brisbane but we lost by one. This one will be a tough one because South East are in the top of the bracket but I think we have the advantage because they're playing back-to-back.

"We're kind of hoping we can use that in our favour."

Building consecutive wins on the trot would go a long way to providing the Hawks some consistency that has been sorely lacking both this season and last.

Tatum added that he and the players had spoken on the topic of consistency.

"One of our main focus talking to the guys [after the Brisbane loss] was 'let's start building a winning streak'. We've built enough losing streaks. Now we have to find a way to build a winning streak and that was our motivation going into Perth."

The Hawks will also have to replicate their defensive efforts against Bryce Cotton from Perth towards Mitch Creek for the Nix following his 33 points and three rebounds in their last start win against the Kings.

They will may also need to be on high alert following the signing of import Nader. The 30-year-old most recently played with the Phoenix Suns in 2022, and featured in the NBA playoffs as recently as 2021. He was signed in the vacant import spot on the roster following the departure of Will Cummings.

The Phoenix will have to deal with two games in two days with the team playing Melbourne United on Thursday, December 14, before hosting Illawarra on the Saturday.

Nader is not available for the game against United after only arriving in the country this week, but could feature against the Hawks.