Onyeka Okongwu is the longest-tenured Hawk. Crazy, right?
Entering his seventh season with the franchise, this is the first time he's had no real uncertainty. He's the guy at the five. Nobody is in front of him limiting his minutes for the upcoming season.
With the organization's confirmed confidence in his role moving forward, a natural conversation surrounding a long-term commitment to his services has arisen.
While they don't have to ink him to an extension this offseason, if he truly projects as their starting center for the next several seasons, they should strongly consider it before the annual number goes up.
Hawks have a limited timeframe to lock him up this offseason
At this point, the offseason feels like a thing of the past, but there are still a few things the front office can do. An Okongwu extension is one of them.
They have until Oct. 19 to ink him to an extension worth $76.6 million over the course of three additional seasons. He would be looking at roughly $25 million annually, similar to what Dyson Daniels received just ahead of the 2025-26 season.
If the two sides don't agree to an extension before the approaching deadline, Okongwu will still play an important role in their expected climb, as he's locked in for the next two seasons.
If he doesn't sign the extension, though, he'll be set to hit unrestricted free agency in 2028.
Having one of the league's most cost-efficient contracts today, Okonwgu will without a doubt seek a higher payday in his next deal. There's always a chance he feels he's worth more than an annual salary of $25 million, and if he does, it could prove wise for him to hold out.
Atlanta values his role, though, and there's always a possibility he wouldn't be given as much offensive priority somewhere else.
He's worthy of a higher payday - it's just a test of the organization's late-summer aggressiveness
Just based off of his production from last season alone, Okongwu should be making that kind of money now.
It's a blessing that the organization was able to ink him to that deal several seasons ago, but if they want to keep him around, they may need to act soon.
If he continues to break out, which is a strong possibility, there's reason to believe he could seek around $30 million a year as the league-wide cap continues to rise.
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