Grade the trade: Hawks deal AJ Griffin to Rockets, land polarizing prospect

The Atlanta Hawks got their draft day started early on June 27, agreeing to a deal sending 2022 first-round pick AJ Griffin to the Houston Rockets in exchange for the No. 44 overall pick of the 2024 NBA Draft.  They were not done, though.

Atlanta then flipped the No. 44 pick along with cash considerations to the Miami Heat in exchange for No. 43. 

With that pick in hand, the Hawks selected Serbian wing Nikola Durisic, a polarizing prospect who helped himself with a strong combine. There is a significant financial component to this deal for the Hawks, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks and Spotrac’s Keith Smith.

“The Griffin trade to Houston puts Atlanta right at the $171M luxury tax,” Marks posted.  

“However, if Atlanta tenders Saddiq Bey a $8.5M Qualifying Offer, they would now go into the first apron.

“of note, it is helpful for a team trying to... avoid the tax... to have a second-round pick making the rookie minimum,” “Locked On Hawks” host Brad Rowland posted after the trade.

“(hawks did the same with mo gueye last year)”

The Hawks could have sold the pick. Instead, their deal with Miami will lock them in at the $189.5 million second luxury tax apron.

“Because they used cash in the trade-up with the Miami Heat, the Atlanta Hawks are now hard-capped at second apron,” Smith posted on X. “The Hawks are about $17.7M under the second apron. They should be fine, but something to keep an eye on a little bit.”

New league rules means this won’t just affect the Hawks before the NBA calendar rolls over.

“Typically, a team’s hard cap expires on June 30 when the current league year comes to an end, with the team getting a clean slate on July 1. However, beginning in the 2024 offseason, if a team engages in any of the trade-related transactions prohibited for first or second apron teams between the end of the regular season and June 30, the team will not be permitted to exceed that apron level during the following season,” Hoops Rumors’ Luke Adams wrote in December.

“If, for example, a team sends out cash in a trade in June of 2024 [like the Hawks just did], that team won’t be allowed to exceed the second tax apron during the 2024/25 league year. The inverse is also true — a team whose 2024/25 salary projects to be over the second apron won’t be able to trade cash in June.”

This probably has less of an impact for the Hawks’ desire to spend than it gives them further incentive to secure a trade for one of their more onerous contracts.

Grade – C+: The Hawks made some moves to work around the salary cap. But the uncertainty of Durisic, the cost of doing business, and hard-capping themselves drop the overall grade.

Houston Rockets land former 1st-round pick at a discount in trade with Hawks

Griffin slipped in the 2022 draft due to questions about his defense and durability. He has already proven both concerns to be valid during his brief NBA tenure.

The Hawks boasted a plus-1.7 net efficiency differential with Griffin on the floor as a rookie and minus-0.8, per Cleaning The Glass. But he was a non-factor during the Hawks’ postseason stay that season and found himself in a similar situation this past year.

The Hawks had a minus-1.3 differential without Griffin and minus-8.6 with him this past season.

Still, this is a player who stands 6-foot-6 and checks in at 220 pounds. He also shot 39% from beyond the arc as a rookie, a mark that fell to 25.6% this past season.

Rockets head coach Ime Udoka will need to coax that floor-spacing ability back out of him while also getting more on the defensive end. Griffin did average 14.2 points and shot 40% from deep in his six-game stint with the College Park Skyhawks in the G League last season.

The Rockets boasted a top-10 defense last season. 

They could simply be better constructed to withstand Griffin’s deficiencies than the Hawks have been in the last two seasons.

Add in the fact that the Rockets only had to surrender a second-round pick, and this is a win.

Grade – B+: Griffin can boost this grade to an “A” if he gets back into form as a shooter and finds another level defensively. But the value for Houston is great.

Heat land sharpshooter & cash to be 3rd party for Hawks

It seems rare to see one rival helping another facilitate a transaction, even if divisions don’t hold the same weight in the NBA as other leagues. Still, this one saw the Heat get the prospect they likely would have chosen initially for the gain of cash considerations.

All they did was move one slot down, selecting Arizona wing Pelle Larsson No. 44 overall. 

“Shades of Desmond Bane, Grayson Allen,” The Ringer’s Kevin O’Connor wrote pre-draft. “Versatile offensive role player who goes hard on defense and has the upside to be even more.”

Measuring 6-foot-5 and weighing in at 212 pounds, Larsson is of a similar build and experience to 2023 sensation Jaime Jaquez, though the latter was taller and heavier. Still, if Larsson can fit that mold – or O’Connor’s comps – it will only validate the Heat’s preconceived notions.

In an unrelated move, the Heat reached an agreement with Bam Adebayo on a new contract.

“The Miami Heat and Bam Adebayo – a three-time All-Star and three-time All-Defensive player – intend to reach a three-year, $166 million maximum contract extension, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium,” The Atletic’s Shams Charania reported on X on June 26. “Heat expect to lock in their cornerstone center through the 2028-29 season.”

Combined with their pick of center Kel’el Ware with the No. 15 overall pick and it was a solid two-day stretch for the Heat.

Grade – B+: The impact on the on-court product will end up being minimal, but hats off for being opportunistic.