Charles Barkley eviscerates Hawks after trade deadline decision

The Atlanta Hawks made three trades at the deadline. But not all of their dealing were received equally.

Atlanta’s decision to trade De’Andre Hunter – the NBA’s leading bench scorer who was re-inserted into the starting lineup two games ago – riled up Hall of Famer and current TNT analyst Charles Barkley. Barkley called Hunter the Hawks’ best player after Trae Young.

Barkley also lambasted a Hawks front office helmed by general manager Landry Fields.

said that the move was a “home run” for the Cavaliers, citing the return package of Caris LeVert, Georges Niang, two first-round picks swaps, and three seconds as being light.

“Two teams, to me, really got good today,” Barkley told his fellow panelists during TNT’s pregame show following the trade deadline on February 6. The Cavaliers … and the Milwaukee Bucks. But this right here, I have no idea what the hell the Atlanta Hawks are doing. And they got rid of Bogdanovic also. 

“[Cleveland] solidified themselves with the Boston Celtics as the two best teams in the Eastern Conference. This was a great play. And like I said, man, I don’t know what to hell the Hawks are doing.”

Fellow panelist Kenny Smith told Barkley the Hawks were planning to go young.

Their focus, Smith accurately relayed, was to lean into forwards Jalen Johnson, the No. 20 overall pick of the 2021 NBA Draft, and rookie No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher.

“They don’t even have their No. 1 pick. That goes to San Antonio next year,” Barkley told Smith. “They’re gonna be in the lottery, they’ve lost like 8,9 in a row, and that pick goes to the San Antonio Spurs. So how can they be playing for the future?

“Man, you don’t do that. That was stupid. … Listen, we better d*** GMs than them tonight.”

Charles Barkley questions Hawks’ direction amid uncertainty around Trae Young

Barkley notably was among the many prominent figures who defended Trae Young amid his latest All-Star snub.

Young’s future is back in focus following the trade deadline. He has two more seasons on his five-year, $215.1 million contract. But he also has a player option for the final season that functionally leaves him with one year on his current deal.

As Young becomes extension-eligible this summer, the franchise's direction has skewed younger.

He remains the team’s best player. But while they seemingly built the pre-deadline roster with him in mind last offseason, the collective inability to win more could spark more changes.

This offseason almost certainly will bring more tough decisions. The real question is just how drastically the Hawks believe they need to turn this roster over and how that impacts Young’s thinking.