Keyonte George has been incredible this season, and the Atlanta Hawks let him slip by them in the 2023 NBA Draft. They have to be feeling some serious regret right now. In 2023, the Utah Jazz took George with the No. 16 pick. The Hawks had pick No. 15 in that draft. They took Kobe Bufkin.
Since then, Bufkin has come and gone in Atlanta. He was traded by the Hawks to the Brooklyn Nets this summer but waived prior to the start of the season. Then, after a brief stint with the Los Angeles Lakers’ G League team, the South Bay Lakers, Bufkin inked a 10-day hardship contract with the Memphis Grizzlies.
Needless to say, it’s been a much smoother year for George.
Hawks should have taken Keyonte George over Kobe Bufkin
Obviously, the Hawks have Trae Young already. Having him and George in the backcourt would have been pretty brutal. But talent is talent, and Atlanta took a guard in Bufkin anyways.
George has been a revelation for the Jazz this season, putting up monster numbers despite their struggles as a team. He could have been a nice piece for the Hawks to have right now.
So far this year, George has appeared in 21 games for the Jazz, starting all of them and playing 34.0 minutes per contest. The 22-year-old is second on the team in minutes per game behind only Lauri Markkanen.
He is averaging 23.1 points (second to Markkanen on the Jazz), 4.0 rebounds, 7.0 assists (leading the Jazz) while shooting 44.3% from the field and 33.8% from beyond the arc on 6.6 three-point attempts per contest.
George has been a driving force of the Jazz this season, and he could have been on the Hawks all this time. Again, the fit with him and Young may have been awkward, but still, it would have been the much better pick.
Atlanta has found itself in a decent spot. Jalen Johnson looks like a potential superstar, Dyson Daniels is still a defensive menace, and the rest of its young core is playing fairly well, too.
They have to figure out the situation with Young moving forward, as he is in need of a new contract extension, but outside of that, they’re actually in a decent place. The Hawks even have the New Orleans Pelicans’ unprotected first-round pick this season.
However, picking Bufkin right before George in 2023 still has to sting, especially with how great George has been in Utah this year.