An in-depth look at what the Atlanta Hawks draft board might look like as we head into the offseason.
As the season winds all the way down and the dregs of April’s slate of games is finally completed, the real season (for many teams) begins in earnest. No, I’m not talking about the Playoffs – though those, of course, are very important for the team’s that have actually made the cutoff.
No, the season I’m referring to is the mad dash to the draft lottery and the incredible buildup to what will likely be one of the most impactful lotteries in NBA history.
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With the draft odds flattened, the top 3 teams all have an identical 14 percent chance at landing the #1 overall pick. Looking further down the projected draft board at Tankathon, even the #7 overall “seed” in terms of draft position has a 7.5 percent chance at the #1 pick.
Suffice to say, this draft lottery has the potential to make or break the future of franchises around the league. Of course, in what is widely believed to be a “one-player draft,” at least in terms of generation-defining talent, every team and every team’s fanbase is hoping that the basketball gods shine upon them and the ping-pong balls fall just right.
After two straight terrific drafts, Atlanta Hawks fans have high hopes for their team’s General Manager, Travis Schlenk, in delivering an influx of young talent to a Hawks team that is on the verge of big things in the coming years.
In this piece, I explore what the team’s thinking should be heading into draft day. This is neither a mock draft nor a list of the best players in the draft in order, but rather a big board based on what the Atlanta Hawks needs are going forward. As such, no point guards are on this list.
Let’s start with the utterly predictable first player on this Atlanta Hawks 2019 NBA Draft Big Board.
#1 — Zion Williamson, Freshman, Duke
Let there be no equivocation: Zion Williamson is one of the best prospects in recent NBA history. Not since Anthony Davis in the one-and-done era or perhaps even, blasphemously, LeBron James in the preps-to-pros era has a player come close to matching Williamson’s potential.
There are very few comps to Zion: I’ve heard Larry Johnson in his prime or young Charles Barkley, but neither of those players had the same verticality that Zion showcases on a night-to-night basis.
Beyond that, Williamson was literally the one thing that made Duke a formidable opponent in college ball, and when his teammates couldn’t make an entry pass to him in the post in the Elite 8, the Blue Devils lost to Michigan State by one point – ending what was one of the most entertaining NCAA team’s March Madness run before the Final Four.
In terms of his fit with the Atlanta Hawks, a frontcourt combination of John Collins and Zion Williamson would be among the most athletic frontcourts in the league – and easily the bounciest. Combine that with one of the best passers in the league in Trae Young and another strong facilitator in Kevin Huerter, and you have the makings of one of the best young cores in the NBA.
If the Hawks land Zion, that means they won the draft lottery. On that front: Basketball gods, please be kind. #ZionToATL
#2 — Jarrett Culver, Sophomore, Texas Tech
Beyond Zion, there is a vast array of choices the Atlanta Hawks could make. Just to reiterate: Under no circumstances should the Hawks even think about anyone else other than Zion if they were to miraculously land the #1 overall pick.
If they don’t pick #1, the real work for GM Schlenk and the Atlanta Hawks brass begins. To this writer, the next-best player for the Atlanta Hawks to select would be Jarrett Culver out of Texas Tech.
Culver is listed at 6-foot-5, but just looking at him, it seems that that might be a rather conservative estimate. At only 20 years old, Culver has recently been estimated between 6-foot-6 as well as 6-foot-8, but again, just glancing at his imposing, ripped frame makes it seem as if he is much larger than that height suggests.
His imposing 7-foot-1 wingspan and extremely broad shoulders also add to that size.
Culver has been a two-way dynamo so far in the 2019 NCAA Tournament, so much so that his Texas Tech Red Raiders defeated Gonzaga, a team that was widely regarded as the best in college basketball, on the way to the university’s first Final Four trip in school history.
Much of the team’s success has rested on Culver’s sculpted shoulders. On defense, Culver’s size, foot speed and length disrupted every position 1 through 4, and there is even the idea that he could guard 5’s in small-ball iterations. His defensive prowess was underscored by leading the entire country this year in defensive win shares at 3.4, according to Basketball Reference.
If he were to be drafted by the Atlanta Hawks, he wouldn’t have to create as much on offense but would still be available for easy Trae Young passes, and his perimeter defense could anchor the team for years to come.
After Zion, Culver is the next-best option for the Atlanta Hawks in this entire draft class.
#3 — De’Andre Hunter, Sophomore, Virginia
To some, this might be a rather unorthodox choice. However, De’Andre Hunter is the best player on a Virginia team that has gone from the biggest punchline in NCAA history (by losing to a 16-seed last year) to the precipice of the program’s first NCAA Championship by making its first Final Four.
The reason why Virginia has made it this far? While the “team of destiny” moniker might apply, the real reason is likely that Hunter returned to the team and has been healthy for the entirety of this season.
Though his play in the tournament has been up-and-down, he was responsible for a couple huge plays down the stretch of overtime against the Purdue Boilermakers in what was one of the greatest NCAA Tournament games of all time in the Elite Eight.
Hunter is a brilliant on-ball defender whose size and length give most wings and guards fits. As a knockdown three-point shooter (40.9 percent in his career, 42.4 percent this season), Hunter would be a perfect fit in an Atlanta Hawks system that just produced 1000 made three-pointers – one of only 8 teams to do that in NBA history.
With a wingspan longer than Culver’s, Hunter should be able to alter shots with ease around the rim, and his help defense has been a boon for the Virginia Cavaliers all season.
Again, the Hawks should prioritize defense and shooting in this year’s draft, and with the selection of Hunter, they would be ameliorating both needs at once.
#4 — Brandon Clarke, Junior, Gonzaga
Once again, this might be a rather unusual choice for the #4 player on this Atlanta Hawks big board to some. Clarke, a former San Jose State Spartan, transferred to Gonzaga during the offseason, and after that, the Zags went on to produce one of the best seasons in college basketball history.
The Gonzaga Bulldogs absolutely rolled through its conference schedule – eviscerating opponents by a sky-high 27 points in margin of victory, which stands as the West Coast Conference record.
Why was Gonzaga so effective this year? Sure, the team was loaded with talent and coached expertly by Mark Few, but Brandon Clarke certainly was a major reason why the Bulldogs were so dominant.
An extremely efficient scorer with stunning athleticism, Clarke would be an excellent fit alongside the amazing passing ability of Trae Young and, to a lesser extent, Kevin Huerter. Though the frontcourt fit of Clarke with John Collins would be supremely undersized, this super-fast and supremely bouncy duo would provide similar issues to opposing defenses that a Zion/JC frontcourt would pose: How on Earth can you keep up with the verticality and athleticism of those two?
In most cases, teams would have to go small in order to keep up with the extremely fast pace at which the Atlanta Hawks like to play as well as the huge volume of threes they take in the team’s modern offensive system.
On defense, Clarke would be able to paper over the myriad issues this team has on defense and with another strong wing defender in the fold added (perhaps via the Mavericks pick), the Hawks would be in great shape on the less glamorous end going forward.
Lastly, though Clarke is one of the oldest picks slated to go in the lottery, his amazing athletic gifts and defensive IQ should sway GM Travis Schlenk.
#5 — Cam Reddish, Freshman, Duke
For the third straight entry in this Big Board, this might be a controversial choice. Unquestionably Zion Williamson was the best prospect on Duke, and R.J. Barrett gobbled up points, headlines and double-doubles with ease at the college level.
However, he sometimes suffered from tunnel vision, and even though he was a good passer at times, he would often try to force the issue at the rim – leading to turnovers, offensive fouls and other negative plays. Despite that, Barrett will be featured prominently later on in this Big Board.
Here though, I’ve placed Cam Reddish of Duke as the #5 player on this Atlanta Hawks Big Board.
There is no doubt that Reddish had a nightmarish freshman campaign with the Blue Devils. His true shooting percentage was under 50 percent, and he only shot 35.6 percent from the field in what will likely be his only college season in Durham. Not great.
So why is he placed so highly on this list? Despite a lot of negative publicity, Reddish showed a lot of flashes in his freshman season and, at times, he was a high-level role player for this Duke team that had plenty of buzz around it all year.
That’s the key, though. Reddish is more of a high-level role player than a go-to bucket-getter at this point in his career. With the Atlanta Hawks, all they would need him to do is defend at a high level – an area in which he excelled in his freshman season, far more than on offense – and shoot the three-ball when he’s open.
Though Reddish only shot 33.3 percent from deep this season, his form is beautiful, and his percentage could be chalked up to the ball just “not going in” for him. When paired with a modern offensive system like Atlanta’s as well as a generational passer in Trae Young, and it seems likely that Reddish would flourish sooner rather than later at the NBA level.
#6 — Jaxson Hayes, Freshman, Texas
In the 2018 NBA Draft, the Atlanta Hawks only made one major mistake: Not selecting Mitchell Robinson with the #34 overall pick and instead trading it to the Charlotte Hornets.
Robinson has been one of – if not the single – best player on the New York Knicks this season, and his defensive effort and athletic gifts would be a perfect fit on the Atlanta Hawks.
This year, the Hawks should right that wrong by pondering the selection of Jaxson Hayes out of Texas in the first round of the 2019 NBA Draft. If the Atlanta Hawks land the Mavericks pick somewhere in the 6-9 range, Hayes would be an excellent choice due to his defensive upside and athletic fluidity at the center position.
Though not quite as long as Robinson, Hayes was a master of the shot block in college with 2.2 blocks per game, 71 total blocks and a 10.6 block rate – all of which were top 5 in the Big 12 conference.
Beyond that, Hayes is a fluid, natural athlete that smashed home lob dunks all season. Alongside Trae Young, Hayes would have plenty of opportunities to produce similar highlights. Since most of his shots came right at the rim, Hayes led the country with a ludicrous 73.9 true shooting percentage on the season.
Lastly, Hayes drew a lot of fouls in his sole college season (67.4 free throw attempt rate), and he shot a solid percent on those shots as well (74 percent). Another reason why he is reminiscent of Robinson is because he fouls a lot himself – 107 personal fouls was #1 in the Big 12. Hey, at least that means he’s trying!
#7 — Grant Williams, Junior, Tennessee
One of the most enjoyable teams to watch during the NCAA season was the Tennesse Volunteers. Not only were they packed with interesting players and great athletes, they also featured two of the most lovable players in the entire country anchoring the team: SDS favorite Admiral Schofield and likely mid-lottery pick Grant Williams.
Williams, who won back-to-back SEC Player of the Year awards with the Vols, led Tennessee to impressive heights, and they couldn’t quite eke past the flamethrowing of unheralded Purdue senior Ryan Cline. Even Williams, a terrific team defender, had no answers for the wild three-pointers that Cline was drilling as the Boilermakers ousted Tennessee in the Sweet 16.
Despite that, Williams showed enough to make it clear that he is an impressive lottery-level talent – despite limited athleticism. First off, once again, the Atlanta Hawks should be desperately seeking defensive talent to place around Trae Young and John Collins, and Williams certainly fits that bill.
At times, it seems as if Williams is thinking one or two steps ahead of his foes, and his weakside help defense is among the best in this draft class.
On offense, Williams is a master at drawing fouls, and during the season, he actually hit 23 of 23 free throw attempts in a win versus Vanderbilt in which he dropped 43 mammoth points:
With both Williams and Trae playing for the Atlanta Hawks, there would be a lot of free throws shot – something that could help boost the Hawks’ offense to higher levels.
Again, the issue of fit alongside John Collins is there, but Williams is a more switchable defender than JC, so the team might opt to go that route 1-4 and let Collins man the 5.
#8 — R.J. Barrett, Freshman, Duke
One of the most polarizing players in college basketball this year, R.J. Barrett was the #1 prospect coming out of high school ahead of this college season. Reddish was second and Zion was third. Then, the season started, Duke obliterated Kentucky, and everyone realized that Williamson was a generational prospect and Barrett was “just” a very good one.
Fast-forward to now and you have the Duke Blue Devils bowing out of the NCAA Tournament due, in no small part, to Barrett’s tunnel vision getting to the rim as well as his inability to feed Zion in the post – or Coach K’s lack of adjustments to somehow manage to get Zion the ball.
Still though, R.J. Barrett flashed a ton of upside this season for Duke, and if he can improve his inconsistent three-point shooting (30.8 percent on over 6 attempts a game), Barrett would be a terrific fit on the Atlanta Hawks.
With great size, length and a ferocious competitive drive that might’ve led to some of his more noticeable gaffes without Zion, Barrett is definitely a can’t-miss prospect. Clearly, he’s not as can’t-miss as some others before him, but his drive and laser-focus on winning is something that would certainly be contagious – and would fit in with Trae Young’s “chip on his shoulder” style of playing.
#9 — PJ Washington, Sophomore, Kentucky
After a rough freshman season with Kentucky, PJ Washington broke out in his sophomore year and improved across virtually every category. Washington set new career-highs in points per game (15.2), rebounds per game (7.6), assists per game (1.8), steals per game (0.9) blocks per game, field goal percentage (52.2%) and his three-point percentage jumped from 23.8 to 42.3 from his freshman to sophomore campaign.
Beyond that, he lowered his turnover percentage and committed fewer fouls than he did in freshman year in nearly identical minutes played.
Of course, statistics aren’t everything, and Washington’s fiery competitive drive passes the eye test with flying colors as well. With a sturdy 6-foot-8 frame with ripped physique and an impressive 7-foot-3 wingspan, Washington is a definite physical specimen. He also carries himself with a bit of a snarl, and it seems as if he would play the role of villain very well at the next level.
Furthermore, he utterly dominated in the 2019 NCAA Tournament, so much so that he carried the Kentucky Wildcats in the Elite Eight – nearly defeating the Auburn Tigers in overtime through sheer will alone:
Though, once again, the fit of Washington, who will likely play the four or small-ball five at the next level, is not ideal next to John Collins, the Atlanta Hawks should still take a chance on Washington as he seems to just be a true gamer.
Especially when baking in his rapid improvement from his freshman to sophomore season, and you have the makings of a seriously striking prospect.
#10 — Rui Hachimura, Junior, Gonzaga
Rui Hachimura of Gonzaga University is a no-doubt lottery pick after securing West Coast Conference’s Player of the Year honors. A solid on-ball scorer with great size and length, Hachimura showed solid athleticism in college as well as the ability to space out three-point territory for the first time in his career.
Perhaps it’s just a small sample-size thing, but Hachimura hit 41.7 percent of his triples this season for the Zags – though it was only a total of 15 makes on 36 attempts for the season. Still though, Hachimura carried Gonzaga to a brilliant win against Duke early in the season, which was, for the longest time, the only blip that full-strength Duke had on its resume:
There are questions about Hachimura’s efficiency, but he did manage to up his player efficiency rating, win shares, true shooting percentage and usage rate in each of his three seasons with the Zags, which has to count for something.
A burly 6-foot-8 forward with a 7-foot-2 wingspan, Rui would certainly fill a need on the wing and he is still only 21 years old – which would fit in just fine on this Atlanta Hawks team’s timeline.
There are better options, obviously, but the high-upside play of drafting Hachimura would still make sense if the Atlanta Hawks fall a bit in the lottery (of course, let’s hope that does not happen).
#11 — Matisse Thybulle, Senior, Washington
One of the worst defenses in the NBA (26th in Defensive Rating per Basketball Reference) as well as the worst defender in the NBA (per ESPN’s Defensive Real Plus/Minus metric) in Trae Young and one of the ten worst defenders at the power forward spot in John Collins (once again in DRPM), there is no question that the Atlanta Hawks need some defensive help.
Enter Matisse Thybulle of Washington. Thybulle was a defensive menace throughout his college career, and he is the current Pac-12 Conference’s all-time leader in total steals with 330. 125 of those came in his senior season this year, which is also a single-season record in the Pac-12. Beyond that, 125 steals in a season is the sixth-most in NCAA history – a fairly incredible defensive achievement.
The Huskies made their mark on the tournament by making it to the second round before getting waxed by North Carolina, but Thybulle is a truly special defender – which is something that would serve as a perfect addition to this Atlanta Hawks roster.
Beyond that, Thybulle would not be asked to much beyond locking down opposing guards and smaller wings and aiding and abetting Trae Young on the defensive end as much as possible.
On offense, Thybulle will likely be a spot-up specialist, which suits him as he is a career 35.8 percent shooter from beyond the arc in his career. Much of that number is dampened by a down year from outside this season after only shooting 30.5 percent from downtown in 2018-19.
Remove that down season and Thybulle is a career 38.3 percent shooter from deep in his career. Much better.
#12 — Jontay Porter, Sophomore, Missouri
By all accounts, Jontay Porter out of Missouri should be much higher on this list. Because he was only 18 last year when initially tested the waters, many draft experts were quite high on Porter’s immense basketball IQ and his pedigree, which includes last year’s #14 overall pick Michael Porter.
However, it was announced on October 21, 2018 that Porter would miss all of his sophomore season after tearing both his ACL and MCL. Though scouts were still immensely high on Porter’s fit at the next level, it was announced that he tore his ACL again during rehabilitation on March 23, 2019.
This is a deeply disturbing injury and it should give all teams pause heading into the draft. Despite that, look at where his brother was drafted last year. Sure, MPJ might’ve been a more vaunted prospect, but his younger brother Jontay seems to have better feel and more limited athleticism than Michael.
Will teams still be willing to take a chance on Jontay after two consecutive ACL tears? The answer to that question is unknown.
In terms of the Atlanta Hawks, the fit of Porter with the current Hawks backcourt of the future (Trae Young, Kevin Huerter) as well as John Collins would be fairly seamless. A solid outside shooter with size (a true 7-footer with neutral wingspan), Porter would be an excellent weapon alongside Young in the pick-and-roll, or he could space out to the three-point line for pick-and-pop scenarios.
Perhaps drafting Porter is still in the cards, but he would’ve been much higher on this list if not for the rash of injuries this season.
#13 — Nassir Little, Freshman, North Carolina
The last player on this Atlanta Hawks Big Board was widely believed to be among the Top 5 of this class before the NCAA season began. Nassir Little at North Carolina played decently for the Tar Heels, but he was far and away the best freshman prospect they had, and he was thoroughly outplayed by the delightfully coiffed Coby White – who is not on this list due to the Atlanta Hawks already having their point guard of the future in Trae Young.
Little is an athletic and physical marvel, and his 6-foot-6, 220-pound, shredded frame certainly gives him the appearance of a high-level NBA player. Mix in a 7-foot-2 wingspan and you have the makings of an impressive defensive prospect.
In actuality, Little showed very little feel during his tenure with the Tar Heels. Despite being able to use his immense physical gifts to make big plays on the offensive glass, when confronted with decision-making situations, he showed little IQ. On defense, while he uses his supreme physical profile to serve as a daunting on-ball defender, he sometimes falls asleep off the ball and shows little recognition of what’s going on around him.
Despite all that, Little would likely be a good fit on the Atlanta Hawks as the team’s three of the future, and he will still only be 21 on draft day.
What do you think of this Atlanta Hawks-themed big board? How would you re-order it? Let us know in the comments or on social media. As always, stay tuned to Soaring Down South for all your Atlanta Hawks news and updates in this fascinating offseason.