There was genuine belief that Onsi Saleh would just... let the offseason conclude without a major shakeup. That narrative was instantly put to rest on Sunday afternoon.
According to ESPN's Shams Charania, "The Oklahoma City Thunder trading All-Defensive wing Lu Dort to the Atlanta Hawks in a three-team deal that sends three second-round picks to OKC, former No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher to the Dallas Mavericks and Ryan Nembhard to Atlanta," giving Hawks fans a full look at the vision for the upcoming season.
After years of defensive inconsistencies limiting their potential to rise up the Eastern Conference standings, they've doubled, and now tripled down on improving themselves on that end.
Atlanta now has the best defensive trio in the entire NBA
Usually, a statement that bold is emotionally-driven. When there's more than enough proof to suggest a calculated hot take, though, why not go for it?
Dyson Daniels, on his own, is capable of leading a defense to the upper-half of the league. The Hawks understood his impact, and just one offseason after acquiring him, they brought in Nickeil Alexander-Walker - a proven defensive standout.
With Daniels and Alexander-Walker in the fold, opposing guards often struggled to create advantages. Both are spectacular on and off the ball, and even when the Hawks saw less than ideal play on that end from the bulk of the team, they knew they could always count on those two.
They may not have any reason left to have doubt in their abilities to control the best players in the world anymore after adding Lu Dort.
In his accomplished career with the Oklahoma City Thunder, he quickly became a villain in the Western Conference. Opposing teams hated playing against them for more reasons than one, but among the most obvious was that it's just incredibly difficult to have a good game while Dort is on the other end of the floor.
This deal gives Hawks the wing answer they've been looking for
Zaccharie Risacher, in just two seasons with the Hawks, showed plenty of flashes of excellence. After tasting some impressive playoff experience, though, they didn't want to wait around any longer and balance uncertainty.
Dort, amidst some of his offensive struggles, particularly as of late, is a sure thing. Both the Hawks and the opposing teams will know exactly what they're getting out of the 27-year-old forward - a great thing for the squad that has him, and a terrifying one for the latter.
Welcome to Atlanta, Lu!
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