What Does The Future Hold John Collins And Atlanta Hawks?

Exploring John Collins’ role in 2020-21 and beyond for the Atlanta Hawks

John Collins has become the forgotten man in the midst of a spending spree from the Atlanta Hawks. Forgotten in the sense of him not getting paid like so many others have this offseason. The Hawks still have time to extend one of their cornerstone pieces in Collins, but the December 21st deadline is fast approaching.

The Atlanta Hawks have spent the offseason reshaping their roster to make a push for a playoff run in the upcoming season. Multiple veteran pieces, Danilo Gallinari, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Rajon Rondo, have been added that will likely push the Hawks up towards the Eastern playoff picture. One question that remains, however, is what does the future hold for John Collins and his contract extension.

The Atlanta Hawks have not played basketball in over 9 months when the season was shut down after a COVID-10 outbreak ravaged the NBA. Since then, the NBA carried on with its season inside the bubble and crowned the LA Lakers the NBA Champions.

The NBA Draft has taken place and most of the free agency has concluded. The Hawks were one of the most active teams this offseason, adding a slew of veterans to one of the youngest teams in all of the NBA.

The recent additions include Gallinari, Bogi, and Rajon Rondo. In regards to John Collins, the name to pay attention to is Gallo. After being traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder last season, Gallo cashed with a long-term, three-year deal with the Hawks.

Despite the length and money committed to Gallo, Travis Schlenk has stated the Hawks plan to start Collins and let Gallo back him up off the bench. Yet, Collins has yet to receive a contract extension despite a lot of players from the same draft class have already signed their max extensions. The Hawks’ inactivity when it comes to Collins makes you wonder what the future holds for Collins and the Hawks.

There is still time to lock up Collins to a long-term extension, securing his future with the Hawks, but time is quickly running out. The Hawks have until December 21st to get a deal done with Collins. Two days later, the Hawks will start their season as the team travels up to Chicago.

When that game tips-off, the Hawks’ intentions should be more clear to their interest in keeping or moving on from John Collins. The team could lock up Collins for five years and all this speculation could be for nothing. However, if the team decides to play the season out without getting an extension done, the rumors of a trade or offseason move will follow Collins and the Hawks throughout the season.

Regardless of what happens with the Atlanta Hawks, John Collins is in a good position for a significant payday. Despite a 25-game suspension early last season, Collins put up some of his best numbers after returning to the court. His shooting percentage improved, two-pointers and three’s. His defensive metrics improved, including his steals and blocks. Also, he turned the ball over less. Collins was starting to look like a late first-round steal for the Hawks.

Gallo coming into the fold is an interesting move for the Hawks and Collins. At face value, the Hawks had more money than most of the NBA going into free agency and had to spend it on someone. There are a lot of worse ways to spend your free agent money, especially considering the contract length. If the Hawks stick with the plan of bringing Gallo off the bench, this move could look like a steal. At 32 years old, Gallo is no longer the solid starter for a playoff team, but he can be the perfect guy to lead a second unit. Gallo can provide an instant offensive spark to the young core that will most likely make up the Hawks bench.

Gallo can also be the perfect mentor for JC, who is still a very young player in the NBA. Collins, in his four seasons with the Hawks, has yet to sniff the playoff, or even compete for the 8th seed. Gallo brings that playoff experience, along with Bogie and Rondo, that some of these young Hawks players so desperately need. For John Collins, the Gallo addition could end up being a boom for him this season.

For what it’s worth, I believe Travis Schlenk and the Hawks will end up retaining John Collins by signing him to a long-term deal. Whether it be before the season or in the middle of the season, I don’t believe Collins will be wondering about his future for too long.

On the surface, the Atlanta Hawks free agency activity could be seen as a bad sign for Collins and his future with the team. Instead, I think Schlenk is building a team that can support Trae Young, John Collins, De’Andre Hunter, Cam Reddish, and Kevin Huerter and leads this young team to their first taste of the playoffs. Collins is a cornerstone of this franchise and its future success. He will, eventually, be paid like that, too.

What do you think about the John Collins situation?