After adding Kristaps Porzingis on Tuesday night in a three-team trade, the Atlanta Hawks bolstered the top of their rotation. But the move came with a cost – part of the squad’s depth.
With a thinner bench as a result of their deal with Boston and Brooklyn, the Hawks are now in a precarious position. Their top six players are more paramount now than ever.
Porzingis comes aboard a roster that already has a clear starting lineup. Trae Young will run point. Youngsters Dyson Daniels, Zaccharie Risacher, and Jalen Johnson should share the two, three and four positions. The only spot that could be debated is at center, where 24-year-old Onyeka Okongwu resides.
No matter who starts between Okongwu and Porzingis, the other one should be a valuable sixth man who can provide double-digit scoring off of the bench. Both players averaged at least 13 points and 6 rebounds per game a season ago.
One cautionary tale: when looking at Porzingis’ 19.5 points and 6.8 rebounds that he recorded in 2025 with Boston, Hawks fans might be overjoyed at his price. There’s clear upside to this trade that can vault Atlanta into a conference contender. But there’s also the possibility that the oft-injured (and most recently, sick) Porzingis isn’t able to contribute much to the Hawks.
That doesn’t mean that general manager Onsi Saleh deserves criticism for this move. Almost every team who’s taken a swing at improving has to make a gut-check move like this one. For it to happen a mere month after taking over as the team’s decision-maker, Saleh’s decisiveness deserves credit.
As for the players who will be counted on the most, second-year wing Risacher is at the forefront. Atlanta’s good fortune won them the top pick in the Frenchman’s draft, even though it was sandwiched between drafts that included Victor Wembanyama and Cooper Flagg.
Despite that, Risacher’s two-way skillset gives the Hawks a player to build with, not around, for years to come. 12.6 points per game on 35.5% from three was a solid rookie output. That three-point percentage was right around the league’s average. With the loss of functional rotation players Terance Mann and Georges Niang, two of the best long-range shooters on the 2024 Hawks, Risacher should be asked to do more.
The Hawks selected Georgia forward Asa Newell at No. 23 overall on Wednesday in the first round of the NBA Draft, keeping an in-state product close to home. Newell profiles as a long finisher who can throw down inside, while still needing to develop his outside shooting and jump shot in general. Atlanta does not hold a second-round pick, but we’ll see if Saleh, head coach Quin Snyder, and the rest of Atlanta’s front office decides to re-enter this draft.