Should the Atlanta Hawks think about an Eric Gordon trade?

The Atlanta Hawks are looking to fix their roster this offseason and they are going to have to give up a little to get a little. There have been the usual trade rumors as the Hawks’ need for a second star was made very clear in the playoffs last season.

However, it is not just the second star where the Hawks have problems. Getting another player who commands the attention of the defense will help the Hawks score with and without Young on the court. However, getting a reliable, veteran 3-point shooter who has the ability to create in the second unit would be incredibly beneficial.

This is where the Houston Rockets making Eric Gordon available for trade is of potential interest for the Hawks. However, the asking price is certainly interesting, they reportedly want a first-round pick to make the trade happen. If the Hawks were not as heavily invested in this roster, this would be an easy decision to make. However, they are, and this will involve some roster management if they want to get it done.

What would it take for the Atlanta Hawks to get the deal done for Eric Gordon?

There are a couple of paths for the Hawks to get this deal done. They could trade Danilo Gallinari to another team or waive him to create the cap space required. However, this does not make sense for the Hawks as they would be replacing one 3-point shooting veteran with another veteran but with a longer contract. They would also lose their first-round pick this season.

Another avenue would be to trade John Collins to a third team. They would have to take this path,  as the Rockets have just traded Christian Wood, a similar player to Collins, in order to free up playing time for their young core.

They would have to send the 16th pick to the Rockets in return for Gordon, so the question is, would this be worth it. The answer has to be no, Gordon is not worth risking for two more seasons when he has struggled to make the court for more than 57 games over the last three seasons.

So, in short, the Hawks have almost no way that makes sense with their roster to make a trade for Eric Gordon. They should avoid this at all costs.