The Atlanta Hawks enter the 2026 draft with a rare sense of flexibility that they've lacked for the past several seasons.
In addition to owning the New Orleans Pelicans' first-round pick at #8, the Hawks also still possess their own first-round pick at #23. With the expectation being that this will be a generational draft class, Atlanta has the opportunity to set a new foundation in stone as their contention window begins to come into fruition.
Atlanta's biggest needs in the upcoming draft are frontcourt depth and isolation scoring, and with two first-round picks, the Hawks have a chance to add much-needed depth at both positions. If available at #8, Kingston Flemings and Mikel Brown Jr. stand out as the premier targets (assuming Darius Acuff is already off the board), but their pick at #23 is what really gives Atlanta flexibility.
Owning the 23rd-overall pick gives Atlanta a valuable asset to trade back into the lottery with, and this should absolutely be something that the Hawks should capitalize on.
Two lottery picks this year could set Atlanta up for the next decade
Rumors have already began to circulate about Atlanta potentially trading back into the lottery. Given the depth of this draft, if Atlanta feels confident in their pick at #8, there's still a chance for Atlanta to snag a top prospect at #23.
However, based on their needs and capital demands, moving back up into the lottery would aid Atlanta in their development into a contender. A name that has been most prominently mocked to Atlanta in this scenario has been Tenessee forward Nate Ament.
Ament, who shares a strikingly similar playstyle to Hawks former first-overall selection, Zaccharie Risacher, has showcased tremendous upside.
However, this acquisition would entail that Risacher would be the player to be shipped off. While it may be bittersweet to let a developing prospect go, in the eyes of the front office, this would be a tremendously smart move.
For starters, we have to address the elephant in the room. Risacher hasn't developed nearly as much as the Hawks' front office has hoped for, and shipping him off while he still has value on a rookie contract would be the smartest financial move to make.
Additionally, Nate Ament would plug right into Risacher's role, a role where he has displayed advanced technique and poise. Though Ament's stock has fluctuated in lieu of his late-season injury struggles, the smarter choice would be to secure him in the lottery rather than hoping he falls to #23.
Even if Ament does end up being drafted elsewhere, there are still plenty of other targets to aim for in the back half of the lottery. Players such as Yaxel Lendeborg and Labaron Philon Jr. serve as intriguing prospects depending on what Atlanta chooses to do at #8.
The consensus has been that the 2026 NBA Draft will be incredibly deep, so Atlanta really has the opportunity to pick their poison at #8, a guard or a big man, and shift their focus toward the latter at #23.
If Atlanta is able to trade back into the lottery and secure two sure-fire prospects, though, then the Hawks could be set up nicely for the foreseeable future. Whether they take a guard or a big man at #8 is unclear as of now, but their capital in this year's draft offers them an opportune way to truly start the clock on their championship window.
It just depends how they decide to utilize this capital.
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