Well, that destination came out of nowhere.
According to ESPN's Shams Charania, "The Boston Celtics have agreed to trade Jaylen Brown to the Philadelphia 76ers for Paul George, two first-round picks and two second-round picks," sending the former Finals MVP - long-linked to Atlanta - to their biggest in-conference rival.
Brown is heading to Philadelphia, and while many Hawks fans believed an aggressive move for him would make sense, clearly the organization thought otherwise. The thing is, though, he was clearly very attainable.
Atlanta choosing not to engage seriously once Boston's asking price dropped significantly proves that Onsi Saleh is standing by what he's been preaching all summer.
The Hawks are simply not one bold move away from contention
The Atlanta Hawks are trusting the process, and they hope it ends better than it has for some. Recent history actually shows that they're making the correct decision, with the modern NBA clearly favoring homegrown success.
When a team commits to their young core, remains patient and doesn't fall for offseason traps, they're much more likely to raise a banner and host a parade. Simply put, it's rapidly become less and less likely that taking a gamble on one player won't always move the needle, even when said player is as great at what they do as Jaylen Brown.
What's getting lost in all of this, is that Brown himself is one of the best ten players in the league. Despite all of the outside noise that ultimately resulted in him getting moved for less than his anticipated value, he's capable of leading a team to the promised land.
If the Hawks don't believe they're a Jaylen Brown away from a championship - and many, many years of contention after - it wouldn't make sense to pursue and limit the amount of flexibility to make an even bolder move in the future.
Hawks fans need to remain patient, as this team is in a quality spot
There's a real chance it gets lost in translation next season, as the possibility of them falling back into the Play-In Tournament due to many teams behind them making immediate improvements is higher than originally expected.
If that happens, though, it's important to fully understand the position they're in. Young cores take time to develop. In their first full season together, they made real noise.
The more they grow, the better they'll get, and the three rookies they added into the picture could be key contributors to their long-term success.
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