By Avi Tyagi
Spectacular. The one-word descriptor of Onsi Saleh’s first draft week. Saleh and Quin Snyder’s new front office has feasted on desperation from other teams in the early going. The Hawks metaphorically stepped up to the plate and batted in a home run on the first pitch and a 7th inning grand slam later in the game.
Boston has already cut costs to save over 200 million dollars in taxes plus salaries. It’s understandable considering the draconian limitations of the new CBA on teams that sit too long in luxury tax territory (much less the second apron) and an older core that might be completely phased out of their primes by the time Tatum’s back to being Gatorade Tatum. In short, Boston is desperate to reset their own roster timeline this season. That doesn’t change the fact that Atlanta swooped in with two somewhat negative contracts and a mid-20s first-round pick to secure the contract of a soon-to-be 30-year-old unicorn of a center, coming off a 3-year run of almost-elite center play. Porzingis has limitations and has an unfortunate tendency to get injured, but when healthy, this is a player who vaults Atlanta out of the land of mediocrity. Even if Porzingis was an infrequent contributor to Boston’s championship playoff run, he had a few key moments when healthy (Games 1 and 2 of the Finals), and generally changed the calculus of how Boston could play. With KP on the court, Boston outscored Dallas by 33 in the finals. Without him, they were outscored by 21. That wasn’t all a coincidence. KP added a different element to Boston’s offense on a team without premium passing. KP’s deep range as a quick C&S option and comfort operating out of the high post and quickly attacking face-ups presented Boston’s sometimes limited shot creators with a quick, effective option to lean on. Porzingis limited what Boston could do defensively, but he more than made up for it offensively, and he’s still a good shot blocker. It’s even somewhat fair to say that a healthy KP might have helped Boston take down New York in 5 games this season. Boston blew huge leads in the first two games of that series, as the pressure ramped up and the offense stalled. 33 points total in two fourth quarters of a playoff series is incredibly problematic when Brunson and sometimes Karl-Anthony Towns are on the floor. KP barely featured in either game and wasn’t himself. Could a healthy KP, their second-best play finisher other than maybe Payton Pritchard and their only big capable of punishing defenders with the ball in his hand, have changed the outcome of those series? Probably. Atlanta now has a complementary second star for Trae. Okongwu still gives Trae that lob threat option to fall back on, but Young’s never had a scoring pick and pop big like this. Trae has had his on-ball effectiveness chipped away at by virtue of his own game play, defensive adjustments, and a degrading surrounding roster after years of confused stagnation. The Hawks tried to determine how good they really were and what the team really needed after an unexpected 2021 conference finals berth. In doing so, they got caught in the NBA’s middle, the perennial play-in participant tier. The Hawks just had no true complementary secondary shot creator other than Bogdan Bogdanović and the offensive coaching didn’t challenge Trae’s capabilities enough until Snyder entered the mix. They asked too much of Trae on-ball in static situations and leapt after the wrong star to add to the team. Adding Dejounte Murray was an understandable experiment at the time, but neither Trae nor Dejounte developed enough off-ball to make the value proposition near viable for the heights Atlanta wanted to reach and for the salary, status of players, and trade costs involved. Additionally, Trae’s limitations were picked at often. For Trae, a smaller guard in a creator role who could be selectively doubled or stunted at when on-ball and forced into poor choices, Dejounte’s lack of shooting and questionable off-ball offensive fit on a 4-out roster that already featured paint-dwelling players didn’t really help. Dejounte’s ability to be a great point guard defensively didn’t play further up the positional spectrum. Trae was partially responsible because he’s spent years cultivating this same style with only marginal growth as an off-ball player but maybe that’s just what he is. A disciple of CP3 at heart, Trae might continue to go down that path. Atlanta now finally has the roster to surround him. Between Johnson, KP, professional pickpocket Dyson Daniels, Risacher, Okongwu, and LeVert if he’s re-signed for right around the non-taxpayer mid-level, Atlanta has a varied yet complementary set of potential lineups to employ on the court at all times. Dyson is their POA monster, Risacher is the developing 3&D wing, Okongwu is their 4-out, 1-in big who shares synergy with Trae, and LeVert is a very capable secondary or tertiary ball handler who’s already played a bench similar role in Cleveland. On a team that can sometimes struggle to turn the tides offensively, Spain Leak with Trae, KP, and Jalen Johnson might be one of several 3-man actions that can guide the Hawks through turbulent waters. Johnson in particular will benefit enormously by having more space to operate. Johnson’s been developing slowly but surely as a secondary creator worthy of taking a leap to star status and KP can help facilitate that improvement. 5-out offense is now on the table. Jalen Johnson can now attack a rim-protecting big in acres of space or freely cut and find space for layups and dunks at the rim if said rim protector is drawn out to KP. That still doesn’t cover everything Atlanta can still do.
Atlanta also has their 25 million traded player exception from the Dejounte trade. With LeVert re-signed, ATL would probably be only around 17 mill under the tax so the entire 25 million exception might not be used. Reports, however, suggest that the Hawks have interest in Nickeil Alexander-Walker. If Minny wants to slow roll Rob Dillingham and provide further competition at the bench guard spots, maybe Atlanta could execute a sign and trade around NAW and recent draft pick Kobe Bufkin. They might be able to thread the needle and still add a great 3&D wing with vision and some self-creation ability. All of a sudden, if the 2026 starting lineup is Trae, Dyson, NAW, Jalen, and KP, Atlanta might be cooking. And that’s still not even the best part.
In what can only be described as a moment of sheer desperation and instant gratification, New Orleans traded 23 and a 2026 first rounder with some extreme upside potential for Derik Queen at pick 13. Atlanta took Asa Newell at 23, potentially setting up a pathway towards Okongwu’s departure one day down the line but that’s not the story. The 2026 1st rounder is. Joe Dumars, Troy Weaver, whoever’s running that building, just donated an unprotected pick that is the MOST favorable of the Pelicans’ and Bucks’ pick. The same Pelicans who traded away Ingram and McCollum in the last 5 months, two of their three pillars of competent basketball over the past 4 seasons. The same team that just finished with a bottom-4 record. Were we watching the same league? This isn’t even a case of betting on yourself. Plenty of teams are delusional or visionary enough to believe in themselves when no one else did and either face the music or bow for the applause afterwards. No, no, if Giannis asks to be traded, Milwaukee could still accidentally tank and Atlanta could still be rewarded. And if Giannis were to be traded right now and Milwaukee wanted to kickstart their tank, you know what pick they’d value? Their own 2026 1st rounder. Atlanta just entered the Giannis discussions at the very least and the Hawks are now an early-July Giannis trade request away from a potential top 5-8 pick with a real chance at the number 1 pick. If Cooper Flagg was a top-4 most hyped prospect of the last 15 years, AJ Dybantsa might carry even more cache. Even in a league built by superstar wings, AJ’s handles and potential guard-like fluidity as a dribbler could make him truly different. Not to put the cart before the horse, but Kristaps Porzingis and Trae Young both would come off the cap sheet by 2027. If this team somehow landed Dybantsa, the roster’s only a hop and a skip away from competing with a new generation-defining star at the helm. In one week, Atlanta might have just set up 5-10 years of fun, uber-competitive basketball. That’s how it’s done.
