Grade the trade: Hawks proposal lands high-priced former NBA champion
Zaccharie Risacher could slot in as the Atlanta Hawks’ starting shooting guard.
His length and defense would be a tremendous asset at that spot and he appears to have the mobility to be successful. That significant domino could open the door for the Hawks to explore a trade such as the recent exploratory idea from All Hawks’ Jackson Caudell.
In it, the Hawks land Trae Young’s friend and former AAU teammate, Michael Porter Jr. along with Peyton Watson and Hunter Tyson of the Denver Nuggets.
“Two of the most interesting teams this offseason have been the Atlanta Hawks and the Denver Nuggets. Atlanta knew that it needed to make roster changes after losing in the NBA Play-in Tournament to the Chicago Bulls and they have made changes to the roster,” Caudell wrote on August 24.
“Denver on the other hand is a bonafide NBA Finals contender, but they are going to look a little different. For the second straight season, Denver lost a key part of their team.”
Most notably, the Hawks traded Dejounte Murray.
Meanwhile, the Nuggets let Kentavoius Caldwell-Pope walk in free agency. He signed with the Orlando Magic with Caudell pointing to Denver making a similar decision with Bruce Brown in 2023 when he signed with the Indiana Pacers in free agency. This deal could help both teams.
Hawks land Trae Young’s former teammate in blockbuster trade proposal
Dre to DEN
Porter averaged 16.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game while shooting 48.4% from the floor and 39.7% from beyond the arc for the Nuggets in 2023-24.
He also comes with a high cap number with a $35.8 million cap hit in Year 3 of a five-year, $179.3 million contract. Porter has a $40.8 million cap hit in the final year of the deal, an especially ominous number given his injury history which includes multiple back injuries.
Young has noted how “stiff” Porter’s back is after the initial injury.
Watson, the final pick of the first round in the 2022 NBA Draft, averaged 6.7 points, 3.2 rebounds, and 1.1 assists.
He is a poor shooter, knocking down 29.6% of his 1.9 three-point attempts in 2023-24. But the 6-foot-7 wing would help offset the loss of De’Andre Hunter, who has been the team’s best perimeter defender for several seasons now.
Hunter Tyson was a second-round pick in the 2021 draft, posting a 1.1/0.5/0.1 line as a rookie.
Moving Hunter and the remaining three years and $69.9 million of his four-year, $90 million contract might appeal to the Hawks with all of the potential help coming in.
Losing Bogdan Bogdanovic might be another story altogether. He is coming off yet another strong showing on the international stage and is one of the most versatile players on the team, specifically offensively.
This deal would also mean the Hawks have to waive two players.
Grade – B+: Pairing Young with Porter sounds good, but adding another $1 million-plus to the bottom line while swapping injury risks is a drawback. Adding draft capital is a win though.