The NBA trade deadline is a little over a month away, and there is a ton of buzz surrounding the Atlanta Hawks. They have the ammunition to pull off a blockbuster deal if a star becomes available, but right now much of the focus is on which key contributors could be shipped out as the front office looks to reconstruct the core moving forward.
The most prominent name NBA insiders continue to float is Trae Young. The Hawks’ decision not to extend their All-Star point guard this past offseason was a telling sign about their long-term commitment. Since Young returned from a knee injury that sidelined him for more than a month, Atlanta is winless and has surrendered more than 125 points per game on the defensive end.
“The Hawks certainly are indicating that they’re looking for the exit ramp with Trae Young,” ESPN’s Tim MacMahon reports. “They did not make any attempt to get him signed to an extension. When that’s the case with your face of the franchise, that’s a pretty clear message that the end could be near.”
Marc Stein also reiterated those same sentiments in his most recent piece from Sunday on The Stein Line. Stein adds that the Hawks are also listening to offers for former #1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher, who hasn’t quite developed into the cornerstone piece they envisioned since they drafted him a year-and-a-half ago.
“It is also increasingly believed that Atlanta is willing to surrender Zaccharie Risacher in the proverbial right scenario, since the No. 1 overall pick in the draft just 18 months ago has not developed as the Hawks would have hoped to this point,” Stein writes. “Yet even if the Hawks are prepared to package Risacher with the expiring contracts held by Kristaps Porziņģis and Luke Kennard for Davis, it is unclear how much additional draft compensation they would be willing (or able) to add to the deal to convince the Mavericks to part with Davis in-season.”
As Stein notes, Kristaps Porzingis and Luke Kennard — two expiring contracts acquired this past offseason — could also be on the move. Porzingis has been battling an illness that has limited him to just 13 games this season, crippling the Hawks’ frontcourt. Kennard, on the other hand, simply hasn’t worked out the way the Hawks hoped, seeing his role diminish to the point that he has played just four minutes over the last two games.
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Photo: Melissa Tamez/Icon Sportswire
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