A deep dive on trade scenarios for the Atlanta Hawks Kent Bazemore to every contending team in the NBA.
The Atlanta Hawks currently sit at a record of 7-23, which puts them with the second-worst record in the NBA behind only the Chicago Bulls. The 2018-19 season was always going to be one in which losses piled up like presents underneath a Christmas tree, and so far the Hawks have obliged with some of the worst team stats in the league.
One player who continues to put forth stellar effort every night on both ends of the floor is the longest-tenured Atlanta Hawks player Kent Bazemore. As such, Baze has been rumored to be on the trade block as contending teams look for “difference makers” ahead of what will likely be an arduous home stretch down the end of this season.
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With every team seemingly in contention in the Western Conference and the top of the East looking as daunting as it has in the past decade, Bazemore’s skill set would great help any number of teams that are looking to upgrade their rotation on the perimeter. This is also a rare opportunity for the Atlanta Hawks to sell high, since teams are clearly seeking out a player with Bazemore’s malleable skill set.
Since we’ve already discussed deals involving the Bucks, Magic, Grizzlies and Pelicans, those deals for Baze will not be repeated here. Similarly, teams like the Raptors and the Warriors will likely be unable to make a deal for Baze, since their salaries just wouldn’t work – nor are they teams that really look to make deals with a set core at the deadline.
Also, many of these deals include either Taurean Prince or Tyler Dorsey, two young players that we love. Though we’re fans, if dealing them in order to obtain a solid draft pick is on the table, I don’t think a canny operator like Hawks GM Travis Schlenk would hesitate to make that deal.
Just to reiterate, the main focus of almost all of these deals for the Atlanta Hawks is to obtain a future draft pick with as little protection as possible, so most of these deals will be looked at from the viewpoint of the other team, since draft assets and future compensation are mostly what the Atlanta Hawks are aiming for.
Lastly, these have been organized via how likely the deals are from “Not Likely” to “Fairly Likely” to “Very Likely” and “Slam Dunks.” Let’s get the ball rolling with the “Not Likely” category.