If you’ve been keeping up with the news, you likely will have heard, per Shams Charania of The Athletic, that the Atlanta Hawks are engaged in early trade discussions for their fan-favorite power forward John Collins.
When looking at it logically, there are plenty of reasons to explore trading Collins. For one, it’s something that the Hawks have been engaged in for some time now, signaling – potentially – some twinge of regret with the contract that they’ve handed him.
As Joshua’s previous article covering the news points out, Collins signed a $125 million dollar deal two offseasons ago but has seen his production on the floor drop ever since. He’s currently experiencing career lows in points, attempts, and assists per game on the worst shooting splits and lowest usage rates in his career as well.
Despite this, Collins is still having an excellent defensive season. His 0.7 steals and 1.4 blocks per game are both the second-highest figures of his career and his 0.6 defensive win shares are 20th in the NBA so far. He’s been a real factor in the Hawks having the league’s 10th-best defensive rating.
Thus, the team is in a tricky spot. Collins is at the lowest value of his entire career, making a tremendous return for the once-touted star unlikely, but he’s also an important cog in the team’s defensive rotations. Frankly, it’s highly likely the Hawks keep him, at least for now, and try to work on his mentality and mechanics. He certainly isn’t new to playing under the “for trade” tag.
This article, though, will seek to identify some possible trade fits for Collins and what the Hawks might be able to get in return for him.