Atlanta Hawks: 7 Best Guards to Prioritize in Free Agency

Other Options: Shake Milton, Klay Thompson

Last but certainly not least, let’s just ponder two extremely disparate options in the backcourt for the Atlanta Hawks in very different places in their careers: Klay Thompson and Shake Milton.

Though we said we wouldn’t get to Klay Thompson, his name is still just too omnipresent right now with the Golden State Warriors in the NBA Finals for the fifth straight year – especially now that he missed out on making any All-NBA teams this year, meaning he won’t be able to sign a supermax extension.

Thompson is one of the best three-point shooters in NBA history, and though his defense might be somewhat overrated overall, he can still turn it on in the Playoffs when he needs to shut someone down one-on-one – a skill that would fill a sore need on the Atlanta Hawks.

On the other side of the coin in Shake Milton. A beloved SDS favorite in the buildup to the 2018 NBA Draft, Milton was signed to a Two-Way Contract by the Philadelphia 76ers, which was never guaranteed into a “real” NBA deal – which meant the 22-year-old rookie had to watch on the sidelines as his teammates fell to the eventual Eastern Conference champion Toronto Raptors in 7 games.

It’s a shame too, as Milton (and his fellow rookie Zhaire Smith, who was available in the Playoffs) could’ve really helped the Sixers – who only had Jimmy Butler, J.J. Redick and T.J. McConnell as the team’s guards – that’s it.

Milton is a free agent this offseason, and if he wants to play way more minutes, the Atlanta Hawks could be a reasonable option.

Thanks for reading! The Atlanta Hawks offseason is only just heating up, so keep it locked to Soaring Down South for plenty more offseason and 2019 NBA draft coverage.