The search for role players will be imperative to the Atlanta Hawks this offseason.
The Hawks have just eight returning players under contract for next season. In order to return to contending level in the Eastern Conference Atlanta is going to have to revamp their roster. Part of the revamping needs to be the acquisition of more reserve players.
While Atlanta’s bench was decent at times throughout last season, most of them will be on the free agent market. In this case, we should expect new faces to at least be rumored around the Hawks. One need in particular could be a veteran forward to play on the perimeter to help with floor spacing, and to help take some of the weight off of the starters on a consistent basis. One free agent that could do just that for the Hawks would be Dante Cunningham.

Dante Cunningham will be entering his 9th season in the NBA next season. He was drafted in the second round of the 2009 NBA Draft out of Villanova by the Portland Trail Blazers. Since then he has played with the Charlotte Bobcats, Memphis Grizzlies, Minnesota Timberwolves and New Orleans Pelicans.
Cunningham has been accustomed to the reserve role for his entire career. He has a career high of 8.7 points per game, and has never played more than 25 minutes per game in his NBA career. That being said, he flourished in New Orleans. While still filling out his role off the bench, Cunningham started 108 games for the Pelicans in three seasons. That’s nearly three times as many starts as he had in his five seasons prior (41).
One of the reasons Dante Cunningham started having more success was his massive improvement from three point range. After making just two three pointers in his first six seasons Cunningham has gone 126/355 (35%) from three in the past two seasons combined. Considering how few three pointers Atlanta’s bigs hit last season this would be a welcome addition.
Cunningham can also attack the rim on face-ups and has to capability of playing defense as well as blocking shots. The Hawks are going to need a bit of versatility off their bench next season. A player like Dante Cunningham who can do a variety of things on the floor could be a beneficial move to make.