Three top prospects the Atlanta Hawks should shy away from at the 2020 NBA Draft.
For the first time in a while, there isn’t a consensus top prospect in the NBA Draft this off-season. Instead, there is a consensus top tier of players, with six or so players there, all capable of being the number one pick. It opens the door for the Atlanta Hawks to get the player they want, no matter if they win the lottery or not.
The Hawks have a roster already overfilling with young talent, and whoever they draft this fall will hopefully push them over the edge. While they should still be taking the “best player available” approach, there are some prospects you could see the Hawks not wanting to take.
Whether it be positional or scheme fit, not all top prospects should be on the team’s radar. Here we’ll be picking three top prospects the Atlanta Hawks should stay away from in the 2020 NBA Draft.
#3 – Tyrese Haliburton
Out of the four point guards expected to go in the lottery, I think Haliburton fits next to Trae Young worst. I do like his overall potential as a floor-raising ball-handler, but too many of his weaknesses overlap with Young’s.
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He’s lightweight (175 pounds) and a question mark on defense. He and Young could almost never – they shouldn’t at least – share the floor and Trae is going to be among the league leaders in minutes played.
Haliburton would be better suited going somewhere like Detroit or New York where he can play high volumes and develop by playing, not by sitting on the bench.
#2 – James Wiseman
I’m still higher on the 7-footer than most, but don’t see how he fits with the Atlanta Hawks. He doesn’t have the tools to move down to the power forward position and with Clint Capela, Dewayne Dedmon, and Bruno Fernando all on the team, it’s hard to see Wiseman having room to play in Atlanta.
Even if the Hawks’ did have room on the bench for him, his raw rim-running wouldn’t reach its peak with elite runners like Capela and Collins snatching his looks. I do believe in Wiseman to turn into a great modern center, but he wouldn’t reach that peak with the Hawks.
#1 – Obi Toppin
Unlike Wiseman, I’m not sold on Toppin as a prospect overall and far from sold on his fit in Atlanta. He’s a 6’9, offensive-minded, athletic freak with a true inability to play defense. Sound familiar?
John Collins is the oft-used player comparison for Toppin, which is fair. They’re similarly sized and Obi flashes elite rim-running ability, but he also projects to be even worse defensively than JC. Did I mention he’s the same age as Collins?
While Toppin can be just as good as Collins on offense, why would the Atlanta Hawks take him when they have an established version of him already on the roster? Toppin does have enough offensive firepower to surprise me and become an elite NBA player, but that shouldn’t be in Atlanta.