Where might the Atlanta Hawks trade John Collins?

Los Angeles Lakers

Not too long ago, a mock trade proposal was made that involved sending Collins to the Los Angeles Lakers in exchange for superstar forward Anthony Davis. While getting the Lakers to part with Anthony Davis, especially with the influence of LeBron James on the organization, may be difficult, there’s no doubt the Hawks could improve by acquiring him.

It’s no secret that both players could use a change of scenery. The Lakers sit at 4-10 in the Western Conference and quite possibly might be looking to acquire assets that give them a more stable future. They don’t have a first-round pick until 2025, and Davis, despite being in his physical prime at 29, has suffered numerous injuries and been unable to return to the production of his New Orleans Pelicans days.

At this point, both players are relative financial burdens on their team, so there isn’t the insane risk associated with Davis’ large contract if the Hawks were to swap Collins for him.

Collins may appeal to the Lakers as a project player seeing as he has the potential to be a 21-and-10 guy and is only 25 years old. A straight swap for the two players won’t get it done, though, considering Davis still averages 24.3 points, 11.2 rebounds, 1.3 steals, and 1.8 blocks per game on 54% from the floor. Those are borderline all-star numbers.

In this deal, the Hawks would likely send over Collins, multiple first-round picks, and potentially another promising youngster like Jalen Johnson or AJ Griffin to get it done.