The Atlanta Hawks are clearly confident in continuing to build on their late-season success.
While many did, in fact, believe the Hawks would make a huge shakeup in their frontcourt following a postseason defeat to the eventual champion New York Knicks, they're letting it be known that they're high on the group they already have.
According to ESPN's Shams Charania, "Free agent center Jock Landale intends to sign a one-year, $14 million deal to return to the Atlanta Hawks," presumably locking him into the roster for the 2026-27 season.
While $14 million is a steep annual price to pay, if the Hawks knew they weren't going to be able to land one of the top center free agents, they couldn't afford to lose their backup center for nothing.
Jock Landale being healthy may have allowed them to beat the Knicks
Key word: may. New York, after being down 2-1 in the series, dominated Atlanta the rest of the way. Stealing two of the first three matchups was already a longshot, and when the Hawks were indeed able to do so, the favorites locked in - abusing Atlanta's deepest, most obvious weakness.
Jock Landale, not long before the regular season reached its conclusion, was injured under the rim by Orlando's Goga Bitadze. Due to that, the Hawks were forced to enter the series with the third-seeded Knicks without their best rim-protector.
After being acquired from the Utah Jazz just before February's trade deadline, Landale was immediately thrown into a sizable role in Atlanta, and for the most part - he impressed.
It's led many to believe that if Landale were in fact healthy, the Hawks maybe would've been able to push the Knicks to seven games, or even steal the series.
They certainly wouldn't have been able to bully Atlanta down low if he were in the second unit, and Mitchell Robinson wouldn't have been able to dominate the glass like he did.
Landale has already proven he can be a great counter for Okongwu
Despite him being undersized in terms of what fans expect out of a normal modern big man, the Hawks are very confident in Onyeka Okongwu's ability to hold down the starting center role for the long-run.
He provides them with such an offensive advantage, and his improved switchability on the defensive end has quickly developed into their secret weapon.
Now, with this versatile center room locked up for the 2026-27 season, Hawks fans should be excited that they're valuing continuity, rather than throwing away over $30 million annually for an unsure fit.
Welcome back, Jock!
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