The Atlanta Hawks are going to make changes this offseason. After an unexpected run to the Eastern Conference Finals two seasons ago locked them into a middling head coach and unreasonably high expectations, the Hawks have barely clawed their way into the playoffs the last two years and flamed out quickly against vastly superior foes.
That’s the road map to organizational change. It’s come from the top down in Atlanta, with Landry Fields taking over the front office and Quin Snyder replacing Nate McMillan as head coach. As the Hawks look over the free agent landscape, could they use Snyder’s connections with players around the league to bring in some free agent talent?
Absolutely they can. It happens all of the time; last summer, former Houston Rockets executive Daryl Morey signed P.J. Tucker, Danuel House and Trevelin Queen. Tom Thibodeau has brought in a number of his former players on the Chicago Bulls to the New York Knicks, including Derrick Rose and Taj Gibson.
Which players who formerly played for Quin Snyder could be free-agent targets for the Atlanta Hawks? Let’s look at a decemvirate of options, beginning with a veteran combo forward to shore up the bench.
Free agent target No. 10: Jeff Green, Forward
The definition of an NBA journeyman, Jeff Green has played for 11 franchises across 12 cities in his 14-year career. That included a stop in Utah in 2019-20, when he played for Quin Snyder and the Jazz.
Green is still very athletic despite being 36 years old, and he has continued to maintain a rotation spot on the best team in the Western Conference this season. The Denver Nuggets might elect to re-sign him, but if not he could be a strong signing at the minimum for the Hawks to add a veteran voice and shore up their frontcourt rotation.