Jordan Bell
Once again, nabbing an uber-athletic Warriors big man would be a two-fold coup. First, weakening the Warriors’ coffers for future title runs is fairly appetizing, and second, obtaining a high-upside player like Jordan Bell is criminally under-utilized in Golden State would be another major win.
Bell, who was recently suspended for charging something to Mike Brown’s credit card in a hotel room (the less said the better), is an extremely talented former Oregon teammate of former Hawk Tyler Dorsey. He has shown many flashes of skill during his two seasons and notably threw an off-the-backboard alley-oop to himself in his rookie year, which Steve Kerr did not like one bit:
By most conceivable statistical measurements, Bell has had something of a down year. After screaming out of the gate with some strikingly athletic plays on both ends in his rookie season, Bell seems to be suffering from a seismic sophomore slump that should see his price tag falter considerably this offseason in restricted free agency.
As such, the Atlanta Hawks should overpay slightly in order to force Golden State’s hand. With the Warriors likely in a salary cap quandary going forward – even if Kevin Durant leaves – it seems unlikely that they’ll want to spend decent money on a second-year player that its coach isn’t a big fan of.
If that’s the case, the Hawks could benefit in a big way.