Think of your dream NBA off-guard - what two skills do they possess? If I were a betting man, I'd put all my money on your inclusion of two categories - shooting and defense.
The prototypical role player has earned the '3&D' label in recent years - meaning that they possess a serviceable deep-ball and can hold their own on the defensive end of the floor.
The Hawks' acquisitions of Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Luke Kennard are therefore utterly unsurprising - adding an elite defender with a solid 3-ball and an elite shooter with some outside semblance of average defense are both sound decisions. The new tandem can be seen as two sides of the same coin when it comes to flanking the offensive maestro Trae Young.
In a recent episode , Hawks voice Brad Rowland of the Locked on Hawks podcast made a deep dive into what makes the new pairing so special alongside each other.
Kennard and NAW are the perfect bench pair for any team
Rowland broke down what makes both players elite - Kennard is the active NBA 3PT% leader, at a whopping 43%. The Hawks averaged 1.15 PPP (points per possession) last season, good for 8th best across the NBA. A Kennard 3 is worth an astonishing 1.29 PPP - a welcome acquisition to an already elite offense.
The Locked on Hawks podcast also tackled what makes NAW elite - in addition to his 38.5% 3-point shooting across the last 3 campaigns, he also ranked 99th percentile in screen navigation on the defensive end of the floor - a welcome trait to counteract the most common offensive action in the NBA today.
Unfortunately, the two have their shortcomings - Alexander-Walker is not as dangerous on his long-range looks. While he's certainly still a threat, he's a far cry from the shooter that Kennard is. Kennard, on the other hand, lacks on the defensive end of the floor - his defensive EPM ranked in the 8th percentile last season, not a great look.
When taken together, however - the two can play off each other beautifully.
Alexander-Walker's elite defense can compensate for Kennard's weakness, and vice versa - Kennard's elite deep-range shot making can stretch the defense out to allow for more wide-open NAW 3-pointers.
Quin Snyder will certainly experiment with this intriguing pairing during the course of the regular season, but only time will tell if the two will live up to their potential when sharing the court together once the playoffs roll around.