Trade the Atlanta Hawks could make with the 4 best teams in the league in each conference.
While the Atlanta Hawks toil through another losing season, some teams that have suffered in the standings and in the playoffs in recent seasons have seen their fortunes turn around this year.
The Raptors, Nuggets and Bucks have all improved dramatically over last season, though it must be noted that the Raptors’ foibles have always been playoff-related rather than regular season issues.
The Warriors are, to the chagrin of everyone, still the Warriors and are starting down the barrel of DeMarcus Cousins returning from an Achilles rupture last season. All that to say: they’re still the favorite to win the championship this season.
Still, the Hawks have looked better than expected in recent weeks and the team’s young players seem to be gaining confidence and building chemistry ahead of a few more seasons of losing – unless they manage to draft Zion Williamson or R.J. Barrett this offseason.
All that being said, the Hawks do still have some attractive trade pieces. Sure, the veterans might have the most immediate impact, but the Atlanta Hawks do still have some valuable young players that don’t quite mesh with the team’s extremely youthful timeline.
And even though other teams might not like it, the Atlanta Hawks could swing a few deals that would benefit the top four teams in the league if they wanted to.
Read on to explore four trade ideas for the Atlanta Hawks to consider for the best teams in the NBA: Bucks, Raptors, Nuggets and Warriors.
With any of these deals, the main goal for the Atlanta Hawks should be obtain draft picks. Beyond that, if the Hawks can obtain a young player that matches their timeline without affecting a quality draft pick, they should certainly be willing to listen to deals like this one.
While the Hawks would certainly be giving up a fair bit on their end, the inclusion of OG Anunoby as a direct swap with Taurean Prince – in addition to a first round draft pick – make this an attractive trade for the Hawks.
C.J. Miles has seemingly fallen out of the Raptors’ rotation with the arrival of Danny Green on the roster and Norman Powell, though playing well of late, would have to be included as salary fodder in order to nab both Kent Bazemore and Dewayne Dedmon from the Hawks.
With Baze, Dedmon and Prince on the Raptors, they would be the clear favorites in the Eastern Conference, and would allow the Raptors to trot out switchable, versatile lineups that would torment even the Warriors.
The draft pick’s protection might be heightened if the Raptors are forced to give up Anunoby, but the Hawks are terrible on defense, and there’s where OG shines. Now on to the Bucks trade.
A great deal for both sides. Who says no, Bucks fans?!?!?!?! Just kidding, here’s the real one:
The Milwaukee Bucks are clearly in win-now mode now that Hawks expat Mike Budenholzer and transcendent talent Giannis Antetokounmpo have teamed up in Wisconsin.
The team has already made a deal to shed the salary of John Henson due to the rise of Brook Lopez as the game’s preeminent 7-foot-plus long-range bomber. However, that means that recent draft pick and tantalizing talent Thon Maker has been marginalized due to his inability to hit an open corner three. Enter the Atlanta Hawks.
The Hawks should be in the market for players such as Maker, who seem to not fit the timeline or play style of their current team.
For the Bucks, Bud would be reunited with his former rangy wing Bazemore, who broke out during Bud’s tenure with the Hawks into one of the team’s best two-way players. While it’s unclear whether Prince and Bud got along (sideline interactions seemed to indicate they did not), the Hawks would likely be willing to include other players, such as Justin Anderson or even DeAndre’ Bembry, to get this deal done.
While George Hill is definitely a solid player for the Bucks, Baze is a clear upgrade and the ball will be in the Greek Freak’s hands more often than not come playoff time. Beyond that, Eric Bledsoe and Malcolm Brogdon can capably run a pick-and-roll too.
Final note: This deal could not be completed in its current form until February 6 (one day ahead of the trade deadline) due to Hill being traded once already this season.
Though General Manager Schlenk might be reticent to deal with the team he used to be the Assistant GM for, if the Warriors offer up a good young player and a decent draft pick or two Schlenk would likely be unable to resist.
This scenario ticks that box for the Warriors. Not only would they get a capable center to replace the team’s rather thin front line (as who knows how Boogie will look once he returns), but they would also get a ton of attention due to the addition of Vince Carter (taking away eyes from the team’s seeming dysfunction of late).
Sure, it seems Vince is happy to serve as a mentor to the young guns, and those young players also seem to love Vince in return, but adding VC to the Warriors would almost guarantee him a ring – capping a legendary career for a tremendously entertaining player.
Elsewhere, Steve Kerr would be able to rid himself of the freewheeling, uninhibited (and seemingly unappreciated) play of Jordan Bell, who is often in Kerr’s doghouse for flaky play or showboating. Adding Bell to the Hawks would be sublime as his athleticism is not to be trifled with, and he would be reunited with his Oregon teammate Tyler Dorsey.
The Warriors have all their first round picks going forward, so they should be willing to give up at least one to a former employee in Schlenk.
A similar deal has been laid out previously, but the Nuggets should be very much interested in bolstering the team’s wing rotation ahead of what will (hopefully) be a lengthy playoff run for the Nugs.
Though the team seems to value what Mason Plumlee brings to the table as a brutish, change-of-pace juggernaut in comparison to the more silky style of play that Nikola Jokic (aka Big Honey) prefers, the Nuggets should be willing to part with Plumlee in order to obtain Bazemore, who would immediately become one of the team’s best defenders.
Along with his former teammate Paul Millsap, the Nuggets with Baze would be an extremely dangerous team going forward with an extremely talented offensive core of Jokic, Jamal Murray and Gary Harris in addition to the defensive talents of Baze and Millsap.
For salary-matching, the Nuggets would have to include Trey Lyles, who has seemingly fallen out of the rotation, and the Atlanta Hawks could also inquire about obtaining rookie Jarred Vanderbilt – who put up stunning rebounding numbers in college but has barely played in his rookie year.
If that occurs, however, it might impact the future draft pick the Hawks get from the Nugs – making the deal less favorable for Atlanta.
That’s it! Do these deals make the best teams in the league too good? Are these prices too steep for the contenders? Let us know in the comments and on social media! As always, keep it locked to Soaring Down South for all your Atlanta Hawks news and updates.