2019 NBA Draft: 4 Players Atlanta Hawks Could Take if They Don’t Win Lottery
By Chris Guest
A short list of players the Atlanta Hawks could take in the 2019 NBA Draft if they don’t win tonight’s lottery.
The Atlanta Hawks will be in an interesting position after the 2019 NBA Draft lottery, as they could either be sitting pretty with the #1 overall pick and the #9 overall pick (from the Mavericks), or things could go absolutely terribly, and they’ll be left without the Mavs pick and a middling lottery pick.
Of course, we’re all about positivity here at Soaring Down South, but still, Atlanta sports fans should be hardwired into pondering the worst outcome of any situation – considering the checkered past that Atlanta sports teams have produced over the years.
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With that in mind, let’s take a quick peek at some players the Hawks could draft if they don’t land the #1 overall pick, starting with:
Jarrett Culver
Jarrett Culver out of Texas Tech had a tremendous sophomore campaign with the Texas Tech Red Raiders in which he showed tremendous growth on both ends and was generally a lockdown defender against tough teams throughout the NCAA Tournament – in which Culver led his team to the Title Game, ultimately falling to…
De’Andre Hunter
De’Andre Hunter and the Virginia Cavaliers completed a fairy tale turnaround by losing to a 16-seed in the 2018 NCAA Tournament, then coming back in 2019 and winning it all. A magical March Madness run was buoyed by the presence of the team’s best player in Hunter, who was injured in last year’s tournament, which ultimately sunk the Cavs. A player with perhaps the highest floor of any prospect in this class, Hunter would be an excellent consolation prize for the Atlanta Hawks in the 2019 NBA Draft.
R.J. Barrett
A highly vaunted high school recruit, we have previously offered up an opinion that R.J. Barrett out of Duke would actually be a better fit than Cam Reddish on the Atlanta Hawks. An excellent athlete with a fiery competitive drive, Barrett could help set the culture in Atlanta after the 2019 NBA Draft.
Bol Bol
A wafer-thin center with feathery touch on his jumpshot and supreme length for shot-blocking purposes, Bol Bol’s medicals must come back clean for the Atlanta Hawks to want to take a chance on him in the lottery. If they do, however, his upside might be too much for the team to pass up on.
Next. 16 Best (and Worst) Lottery Fits for Hawks in 2019 Draft. dark
The 2019 NBA Draft Lottery will likely be the most seismic in recent history, so let’s hope the Atlanta Hawks are able to nab that elusive #1 overall pick. Even if they don’t, though, it’s not all gloom and doom – as this list makes clear.