What Brandon Goodwin’s 2-Year Deal Means for the Atlanta Hawks

ATLANTA, GA - JANUARY 30: Brandon Goodwin #0 of the Atlanta Hawks smiles prior to a game against the Philadelphia 76ers on January 30, 2020 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2020 NBAE (Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GA - JANUARY 30: Brandon Goodwin #0 of the Atlanta Hawks smiles prior to a game against the Philadelphia 76ers on January 30, 2020 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2020 NBAE (Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images) /
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Addressing the news that the Atlanta Hawks have signed Brandon Goodwin to a two-year deal.

The Atlanta Hawks have signed sophomore point guard Brandon Goodwin to a two-year deal, reported early Tuesday morning by Shams Charania of The Athletic.

Goodwin sheds his two-way player status with the deal, although he has been up with the team since late December. He spent most of the season before December 27th with the College Park Skyhawks, posting good numbers and being named to the G-League’s Eastern Conference mid-season All-NBA team.

Goodwin has served as the team’s third point guard while up in Atlanta, playing quality minutes off the bench. Although he played just ten minutes combined in the Hawks’ previous two games, he was averaging 22 minutes per game in February before that.

In total, the home-town kid has averaged 6.9 points, 1.6 assists and 2.0 rebounds on 13.6 minutes per game. He’s 40% from the field, 32% from three.

He’s had a few breakout games including 21 points in Orlando on December 30th, 19 against the Clippers in January and 21 again last week in Boston. He’s played well both behind and with fellow bench guard Jeff Teague, and has been key in keeping the Hawks in games in which they’re missing Trae Young to injury.

What the Goodwin Signing Means Long-term

Signing Goodwin to the two-year deal rather than simply converting his two-way contract to a fully guaranteed one shows confidence in him. Last season, a similar situation played out with Jaylen Adams, a fellow two-way guard. They converted his deal for the rest of the season but cut him in Summer League before the deadline to guaranteed his contract for this season.

While the two-year deal doesn’t guarantee Goodwin a spot on next year’s roster, it certainly gives him a better shot. Jeff Teague is set to be a free agent, and the Hawks could easily consider keep BG as the full-time backup one guard.

As for this season, it doesn’t change much rather than he won’t be playing in College Park again, and fills the Hawks’ final roster spot.

Next. Player Grades from Hawks' loss to Magic. dark

Goodwin and the Hawks will next play on Wednesday when they take on the Cavs in Cleveland.