The Atlanta Hawks are not the likeliest team to trade for Utah Jazz star Donovan Mitchell. But that does not mean that they would not get involved. Even with Dejounte Murray in tow – and a plethora of point guard or ball-handling type players on the roster, the Hawks are being linked to Mitchell.
A three-time All-Star, Mitchell is in limbo as the Jazz embark on a rebuild. The lingering question has been whether or not they want to re-tool around Mitchell or start from scratch.
Mitchell turns 26 before the season begins and is heading into the second year of a five-year, $163 million contract. He has also not been pushing for a trade out of the only NBA city he has ever lived in.
Still, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported that the Hawks were among a list of suitors.
Dejounte Murray would seem to take the Atlanta Hawks out of the Donovan Mitchell sweepstakes
Charania’s report (subscription required) gives insight into the situation the Jazz have created following their blockbuster trade sending Rudy Gobert to the Minnesota Timberwolves. That deal essentially put the entire league on pause by putting undue pressure on the Brooklyn Nets to exceed that return in any deal sending out Kevin Durant.
The Hawks were rumored in connection with both Gobert and Durant at different points of the offseason, even being considered a front-runner by some. They have also been linked to Mitchell this summer in their search for a second star to pair with Trae Young.
None of those deals went through, though, while Murray is ready to help lead the Hawks to a championship.
At 6-foot-4, Murray provides a nice complement to what Young does and should allow the Hawks to diversify their offensive attack by getting Young off of the ball more and not falling off of a cliff when he sits. They would, in theory, be getting the same traits in Mitchell as they are in Murray.
But Murray led the league in steals to bolster his defensive reputation while nearly averaging a triple-double this past season and earning his first All-Star nod. The 6-foot-1 Mitchell is a scoring guard more in the mold of Young than a proper running mate.
In the end, this seems like a bit of old news that got included in a recap. The Hawks appear as close to set with their current roster as can be.
They did waive Sharife Cooper after a rough summer league showing. And we can’t rule out a late-developing John Collins trade. But there also doesn’t feel like there is the same pressure to get something done as there was when the offseason began.