An exploration of the player that are currently enjoying playoff basketball that the Atlanta Hawks could target in free agency this offseason.
With the NBA Playoffs in full swing, the Atlanta Hawks sadly will not be partaking in the enjoyable gauntlet of heightened storylines and overblown narratives – though a potential playoff berth might be in the team’s future sooner rather than later.
Though the Hawks will likely be looking to grow organically through the draft, if a tasty trade or viable free agent candidate meets the team’s fancy, it seems likely that General Manager Travis Schlenk will make a deal happen – as he did last offseason with Alex Len and Vince Carter.
With the shape of the league likely undergoing a major overhaul this offseason with an extremely stacked free agent class, the Hawks would do well to get in on the action – especially since the team could have upwards of $50 million in space right as many of the biggest names in the NBA are in free agency.
Though landing a big name this offseason might be a pipe dream, there are a variety of players performing in the NBA Playoffs this week that might make for attractive targets once July 1 rolls around.
Let’s take a look at a few players in the playoffs that the Atlanta Hawks could poach away from their current teams during free agency this summer.
Danuel House
The 25-year-old Danuel House was not able to stick in the NBA before this season, where he had something of a breakout season with the Houston Rockets. The Rockets, who fell to the 4 seed in the Western Conference in the final game of the regular season, are currently locked in a first round battle with the Utah Jazz.
To start the year, it looked as if House might not be playing big minutes for the Rockets in the playoffs, as he was originally inked to a two-way contract – under which he would’ve been prohibited from playing in the playoffs.
With all the roster overhaul that the Rockets experienced this season (remember: Carmelo Anthony was on this team to start the year), House has managed to survive and thrive with Houston, so much so that his contract was guaranteed for the remainder of the season in March.
That was good news for Houston as well, as House produced 9.4 points per game on an impressive 64.6 percent true shooting percentage – including 41.6 percent from downtown. House was mostly employed as a three-and-D bench specialist, but he excelled in the role with a three-point attempt rate over 70 percent.
One thing we know about Atlanta Hawks GM Travis Schlenk is that he loves shooting, and House’s 6-foot-7, 220-pound frame and plus wingspan would give the Hawks some size at a crucial position in today’s NBA at the three.
Rodney Hood
After three productive seasons in Utah, Rodney Hood was traded before last year’s trade deadline in an attempt to convince LeBron James to stay in Cleveland.
With that experiment failing miserably – similar to how James’s stint has started in L.A. – Hood was traded at this year’s deadline to the Portland Trail Blazers.
Hood’s numbers have dipped as a member of the Blazers, but he was coming from a team (the Cavs) that needed scoring wherever it could get it. Though Hood accrued 0.0 win shares this season with Cleveland, that in itself is an accomplishment as the Cavs’ defense this year has been widely regarded as one of the worst in NBA history.
That’s no slight against Hood, however, who has proven himself to be a capable perimeter defender in his five-year career. Despite some miles on the tires, Hood is still only 26 and brings the vaunted three-and-D skill set that every team is looking for in the modern NBA.
With Kent Bazemore back for only one more season this year, the Hawks might look to offload his deal via trade this offseason and Hood could serve as a ready-made replacement should he sign with the Atlanta Hawks.
Though his raw production has suffered, Hood’s efficiency is among the best its best season during his time in Portland – with a career-high in field goal percentage (45.2%) and a near career-high in true shooting percentage (54.9%).
Paul Millsap
Could it be? Could the Anchorman really return to the Atlanta Hawks franchise – a franchise that provided him with four straight All-Star appearances?
It’s a possibility.
Millsap has a mammoth team option with the Denver Nuggets for next worth $30.5 million. Though Paul has played extremely well this season for Denver – leading them to the #2 seed in a stacked Western Conference – the Nugs might get starry-eyed and look to employ that $30 million in cap space on different players.
If that’s the case, that would open the door for Millsap to return to the welcoming arms of an organization that helped secure his stature in the league. The question is: Would Millsap make sense on this team?
John Collins, as electrifying as he is on the offensive end, has not been much of a difference maker on the less glamorous end. That, of course, is where Millsap is among the best in the league at the four spot, so perhaps Millsap could be used as a defensive calming presence off the bench for one of the most notable teams he’s played for in his career.
Millsap was third in the league in ESPN’s real plus/minus among power forwards with a 4.37 RPM, and he was 6th among fours in both ORPM (1.32) and DRPM (3.05).
Paul has long been an extremely effective player, and it would be nice to see him finish out his career with the team that helped mold him into the star he is today.
Nerlens Noel
The Oklahoma City Thunder are locked in a tight battle with the Portland Trail Blazers in the 3-6 matchup in the Western Conference, and its stable of stars, led by Russell Westbrook and Paul George will be looking to erase an early one-game deficit against the third-seeded Blazers.
Though Enes Kanter played for the Thunder for years and OKC head coach Billy Donovan famously claimed that Kanter “couldn’t be played,” in the playoffs, Kanter had a strong game for Portland in the first game of this series.
Another player that had a strong for the Thunder was erstwhile Process-era Philadelphia 76er Nerlens Noel.
We have previously expressed the idea that Nerlens would make for a terrific fit on the Atlanta Hawks as a rim-enforcing big man that could help smooth over the eminently rough edges of this young Hawks team on the defensive end.
Noel, who played 99 percent of his minutes at the five this year, ranks second among both power forwards and centers in ESPN’s defensive real plus/minus at 3.79. He trails only Ed Davis at the four and Rudy Gobert at the five.
This season, Noel became only the second player in NBA history to produce a block rate above 7.5 percent, a steal rate above 2.5 percent and a true shooting percentage over 60 percent. The other was Luca Nogueira last season with the Raptors last season, but Noel played 600 minutes more than the ground-bound Bebe.
After just turning 25, Noel would make for a terrific fit on the Atlanta Hawks as a rim-protector and rim-runner at the five – with far more athleticism than pending free agent Dewayne Dedmon and the incumbent Alex Len.
Kevon Looney
The Golden State Warriors, who had statistically the best offense in NBA history this season, choked away a mammoth 31-point lead against the LA Clippers in Game 2 of the team’s first round series.
The Clips ended the game on a ridiculous 72-37 run to steal game 2 from the Warriors, who, despite all their talent and pedigree, look more vulnerable than ever before – especially with the loss of DeMarcus Cousins to a torn left quad.
With that being the case, the team will have to rely on fourth-year big man Kevon Looney to play a significant role for this team. Since Looney will likely be playing more minutes down the playoff stretch, this will give Atlanta Hawks GM Travis Schlenk a better chance to get a look at Looney to see if he’ll be a good fit on the Hawks. The early returns are good, as Looney scored a career-high 19 points in game 2:
Taking a look at BBall Index’s player impact plus/minus numbers for the Warriors shows that Looney actually had a more positive impact on his team’s play than All-Star Klay Thompson (mostly proving that numbers can be deceiving). Though Klay’s offense was superior, of course, Looney’s slight positive impact on both offense and defense game him a PIPM of 0.8, while Klay’s sat at -0.2.
Looney flashed some interesting development this season, and he showed the ability to be a capable offensive and defensive player with youth on his side – as well as development in one of the best-run organizations in the NBA.
Since Hawks GM Sclenk was likely involved in the process behind drafting Looney with the final pick of the first round in 2015, perhaps he’ll prioritize bringing Looney on board as a member of this up-and-coming Atlanta Hawks team.
Ivica Zubac
Ivica Zubac has also been previously mentioned as a major target for the Atlanta Hawks in free agency, and Zubac was also involved in the incredible Clippers comeback that took place earlier this week.
Though the Clippers have an interesting strategy of letting two of the team’s best players come off the bench (Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell), it worked wonders for them against the defending champions, and LouWill continues to amaze in his 13th NBA season (Williams dropped 36 points and 11 assists in 33 minutes against the Warriors).
One starter for the Clips that only played 9 minutes was 22-year-old Ivica Zubac, who was traded by the Lakers in a head-scratching move at the deadline.
Zubac would provide some rock-solid rim protection for the Atlanta Hawks at the center spot, as he would immediately be the sturdiest center on the roster with a 7-foot-1, 240-pound frame and a 7-foot-4 wingspan.
Zubac’s raw defensive rating of 109 over his three NBA seasons per Basketball Reference would’ve been tied with Dewayne Dedmon this season on the Atlanta Hawks, but Zubac also has the benefit of youth on his side, and the Atlanta Hawks could sign him to a more lucrative deal than they Clippers could afford as L.A. goes star-hunting this offseason.
Since he’s still only 22, the Hawks could take a swing on Zubac as an inexpensive high-upside play this offseason.
Patrick McCaw
One area where the Atlanta Hawks must improve is defense in the backcourt. Who knows if rookie Jaylen Adams will be around on this team next season to continue to back up Trae Young, but one thing’s certain – neither player is a particularly good defender simply due to being undersized.
Patrick McCaw of the Toronto Raptors, who was also drafted by the Warriors under the stewardship of Assistant Warriors GM and current Atlanta Hawks GM Travis Schlenk, would certainly make for a terrific defensive upgrade in the backcourt over Young, Adams and even Kent Bazemore – who had something of a down year this season.
McCaw is a Top-40 player at shooting guard in ESPN’s defensive real plus/minus, and his career 2.5 defensive win shares greatly outweigh his offensive win shares. McCaw will have to prove himself as a better three-point shooter during his Atlanta Hawks tenure, since the team’s modern offensive system suits players who are willing to hike up long-range bombs at every position.
A career 29 percent shooter from deep on a substantial 43.3 percent three-point attempt rate, McCaw’s three-point shooting will be his sink-or-swim skill on whatever team he lands on this offseason. Despite poor shooting numbers, the Hawks would be a good fit for McCaw’s defensive talents.
Jordan Bell
The final player on this list, as well as the first Golden State Warriors player that Travis Schlenk did not have a hand in selecting – as he was happily strolling the podium to help the Atlanta Hawks select John Collins 19th overall.
In that same draft year (2017), the Golden State Warriors were lucky enough to be gifted a high second round pick by the Chicago Bulls with the only price being some cash – something that the well-endowed Warriors are not wanting for in the slightest.
This offseason, 24-year-old Jordan Bell of the Warriors will likely not be returning to the team after a rash of behavioral concerns and being in Steve Kerr’s doghouse for much of his career in Golden State.
With that being the case, bringing Bell to the Atlanta Hawks in restricted free agency would add another extremely athletic frontcourt with much better defensive instincts that has played almost 75 percent of his minutes at the center position over his two-year NBA career.
Bell has had something of a down year after an excellent rookie season, but his dip in production could be attributed to knowing that Kerr doesn’t trust in Bell in critical moments.
The Atlanta Hawks should be able to promise Bell consistent minutes, and he would likely be the team’s starting center as the team modernizes into a solely small-ball starting lineup. While this might be unlikely, Bell will almost certainly play better for the next team that acquires him. Let’s hope it’s the Hawks.
Thanks for reading! As always keep it locked to Soaring Down South for all your Atlanta Hawks news and updates. All stats in this piece are from Basketball Reference unless noted otherwise.