Atlanta Hawks NBA Draft: 5 prospects to target with the 20th pick

With the Atlanta Hawks out of the playoffs, attention turns to the 2021 NBA Draft, set to take place later this month. That means getting familiar with the incoming class of rookies. It is a bit odd after last season’s condensed timeline saw the draft take place last November. Regardless, it’s time for teams to add to their cores.

That applied to the Hawks, who fell short of the NBA Finals by just two games. Good luck convincing anyone in the building or fanbase that, with a few things breaking the other way, it would be them fighting for the Larry O’Brien.

The loss exposed some areas that need to be strengthened if they want to reach the NBA Finals next season. The next avenue the Hawks have at fixing the issue is via the draft.

Selecting 20th overall does make evaluating talent a little more challenging.

Things are far more fluid at that point in the draft as the difference between taking the “best player available” and “drafting for need” becomes more pronounced. Some teams might be looking for a player ready to contribute right away so you often see more three and four-year players taken in this area.

On the other hand, this is also where projects with more warts than others, but still possessing elite traits, get drafted.

There haven’t been any stars taken in this slot. But there have been several key role players. The most notable player taken 20th overall since 2000 is Jameer Nelson, former point guard for the Dwight Howard-led Orlando Magic and Denver Nuggets.

The Atlanta Hawks still have plenty of options despite being in the back half of the NBA Draft

More recently, Matisse Thybulle of the Philadelphia 76ers and Caris Levert of the Indiana Pacers before him have both been critical components to their teams.

When you go beyond 20th overall, though, there are more decorated names.

Three-time Defensive Player of the Year, Rudy Gobert, was taken 27th overall, as was the 2019 Most Improved Player, Pascal Siakam. Bobby Portis, who the Hawks just faced with the Bucks, was taken with the 22nd pick, while Atlanta big man Clint Capela was taken with the 25th.

So who are the prospects worth keeping an eye on in the 2021 NBA Draft?

Atlanta Hawks 2021 NBA Draft Prospect No. 1: Jared Butler played tremendous ball for the National Champion Baylor Bears

2021 Stats: 16.7/3.3/4.8; .471/.416/.780

Baylor point guard Jared Butler was just announced as the Big 12 Sportsperson of the Year. It’s the culmination of a season that saw him hit collegiate career-highs in points, efficiency, on the glass, and as a distributor. He even upped his defensive profile for the 2020 NCAA National Champion Bears.

Perhaps the best thing about Butler is that he improved every year while in school. We see players’ development stagnate far too often.

Right after year-to-year growth is Butler’s performance in the NCAA Tournament. The Most Outstanding Player in this year’s March Madness, he averaged 13.8 points, 4.6 assists, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.0 steals en route to the title game where he dropped 22 points with seven assists, and three boards. He shot 42.8 percent from the floor and 44.4 percent from deep.

He is a diverse scorer and while he isn’t a lockdown defender, he has better size and is scrappier on that end than Trae Young. And with Atlanta’s need for a backup point guard that could even play alongside Young at times, Butler seems to fit the bill.

There is some concern, however, as he was referred to a Fitness-to-Play panel by the NBA.

The panel, which usually deals with life-threatening cardiac conditions and blood disorders, most notably stepped in in the case of Chris Bosh whose career essentially ended with a blood clot diagnosis back in 2017.

Age, plus a slight frame (still bigger than Young at 6-foot-3 and 193 pounds), and now a cloudy bill of health. These are typical factors that cause a player with Butler’s resume to slide into the 20s.

Should his medicals check out, he’d be a nice get for the Hawks in the latter stages of the draft.

Atlanta Hawks 2021 NBA Draft Prospect No. 2: Chris Duarte is an older prospect, but he’s also NBA-ready

2021 Stats: 17.1/4.6/2.7; .532/.424/.810

Players don’t often come more complete than Chris Duarte. The 6-foot-6, 190-pound senior averaged 17.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 2.7 assists for the Ducks who bowed out of the NCAA Tournament in the Sweet 16. Duarte, to his credit, had 21 points on 50 percent shooting in the 82-68 loss to USC. He also had six assists, five boards, three steals, and a block.

In two Tournament games, Duarte averaged 22 points, 6.5 assists, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.0 steals, with just 1.5 turnovers. He also committed just 1.5 personal fouls per contest.

Duarte had 11 games with at least 21 points during the season including the NCAA Tournament. He shot 46 percent from three in those games so he’s capable of going off from outside. But he also had seven games with at least three steals and one, against Utah back in January, where he had six.

There were also seven games in which Duarte had at least four assists.

Immediately, Duarte’s age jumps out at you. The 24-year-old native of the Dominican Republic spent two years at a junior college before heading to the Northwest where he was named First Team All Pac-12 and to the Pac-12 All-Defensive team.

He withdrew from this year’s NBA Scouting Combine leading some to speculate a team may have made a promise to take him in the first round. He’d be the oldest prospect taken in the first round if that were to happen. He’d edge out Cameron Johnson of the Phoenix Suns who many scouts have compared him to.

So yes, he is older. But he’s also arguably the most NBA-ready prospect in this class.

Atlanta Hawks 2021 NBA Draft Prospect No. 3: Trey Murphy fits the mold of current Hawks forwards and could make for a nice bench option in time

2021 Stats: 11.3/3.4/1.2; .503/.433/.927

The Hawks boast some of, if not the best wing depth in the entire NBA. There are no fewer than four young, solid contributors to a contender in Bogdan Bogdanovic, Kevin Huerter, Cam Reddish, and De’Andre Hunter. Throw in savvy veteran Danilo Gallinari and this is easily a strength for Atlanta.

Trey Murphy III, a 6-foot-9, 209-pound wing is in the same mold as those guys offensively and while this is a position of strength for the Hawks, this is depth and project territory.

The 21-year-old junior transferred after two years at Rice and his numbers took a hit. And while he did score about two fewer points per game, the only real decline was in his rebounding where he went from grabbing 5.5 to 3.4 per contest.

His efficiency skyrocketed, however, and Murphy walked away with a 50/40/90 slash line.

Murphy had 12 points and four rebounds to go with a pair of steals in the Cavaliers line NCAA Tournament game. In one conference tournament game, he had 15 points, four boards, and two steals, but added two blocks for good measure. If nothing else, Murphy proved unflappable as his production stayed relatively the same regardless of the stage.

He has great length for the position but is rail-thin for his projected power forward position and, understandably, lacks the strength to be much of a factor attacking the basket or on defense.

But that stroke from beyond the arc is a skillset the Hawks could have used this postseason as their shooters went cold from outside. We saw in Game 1 of the NBA Finals how much of a difference-maker it is.

Atlanta could do much worse than Murphy, whom they wouldn’t rely on anyway, 20th overall.

Atlanta Hawks 2021 NBA Draft Prospect No. 4: Kai Jones’ performance at the end of the season offers encouragement if his skills carry over into the league

2021 Stats: 8.8/4.8/0.6; .580/.382/.689

Remember that part about seeing talented but flawed players in addition to older than others? Well, Kai Jones fits into that category. The sophomore stepped up his game towards the end of the year after a mixed regular season. It was encouraging because he more than doubled his points per game and saw increases in rebounds.

The disappointment is because, as we saw, he has the potential to be so much more.

In his final four games, including the Big 12 and NCAA Tournaments, he averaged 11 points per game and shot 40 percent from deep while blocking 1.8 shots per contest as well.

Jones had 13 points and five boards in the Big 12 Championship and put on a well-rounded performance in the Longhorns lone NCAA game. He had 11 points, three rebounds, two assists, and three blocks.

Despite concerns about his strength at the next level — he’s listed at 6-foot-11 and 220 pounds — Jones had at least two blocks in three of his final four collegiate games. But Jones isn’t viewed as an immediate contributor anyway. That could keep the Hawks from grabbing him but, with so few glaring holes, could also lead them to bank on his potential.

He’ll also need to clean up the fouls, another area where his slight build has been an issue. But if his range translates, he’ll be just fine in what is a perimeter-oriented league anyway.

There wouldn’t be many minutes for him. John Collins could get a max contract this offseason. The Hawks also just drafted Onyeka Okongwu in last year’s draft, still have Clint Capela under contract for two more years, and Bruno Fernando is hanging around.

Still, Jones offers an enticing mix of traits that a team like Atlanta can afford to wait on.

Atlanta Hawks 2021 NBA Draft Prospect No. 5: Joshua Primo makes up for his lack of production with a bag full of tools

2021 Stats: 8.1/3.4/0.8; .431/.381/.750

Not only is Joshua Primo the youngest player to make this list, but he’s also the youngest prospect in this entire draft class. That’s, in part, why he makes this list despite averaging fewer points per game than many others who will be available in this range. But as it is with Jones, it’s Primo’s tools that make him an intriguing potential option.

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The 6-foot-5, 185-pound frosh didn’t start until December and, once he did, he played a specialized role for Bama. Still, he showed glimpses of what could be.

During a six-game stretch in January, he averaged 14.2 points, shot 54.8 percent from outside, and had 1.2 steals per game. He didn’t get to showcase it in college, but he’s also shown some ability to create offense for himself and others.

Those traits are what have Primo rocketing up draft boards after he was viewed as a possible second-rounder by some.

We talked about the Hawks need for a secondary playmaker with some defensive capabilities in regards to Duarte. The same things apply to Primo, except more patience is probably needed given his age.

This is yet another raw prospect that needs to go to a situation like in Atlanta. He could sit and learn behind Bogdanovic who showed a well-rounded skill set when struggling through injury.

By the time Bogi’s contract is up, Primo could be ready to step in a fill a vital role for the Hawks.

It wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Hawks pass on Primo since there is so much projection needed to see his value. But it also wouldn’t be shocking to see a team ahead of them take him either.

It isn’t apples-to-apples, but the Chicago Bulls took a similar approach with Patrick Williams last season and he looks like he’ll be a solid two-way contributor for years.

Banking on traits, especially this late in the first round is never a bad thing. And when the payoff is as great as it could be with Primo, teams should be willing to take that risk. Will the Hawks be the team that takes that chance?