Insider offers discouraging description of Hawks trade candidate's contract

Atlanta Hawks general manager Landry Fields expressed comfort with bringing the current roster into the 2024-25 regular season, give or take a few minor adjustments since he made the remarks following the trade sending Dejounte Murray to the New Orleans Pelicans.

The Hawks are currently at 15 players with at least partially guaranteed contracts – the limit for the regular season – and three players on two-way contracts.

However, ESPN’s Tim MacMahon suggested the Hawks GM is still working the phones.

“I'll just say we know that the Hawks have been looking to unload DeAndre Hunter, right, who is owed about $22 [million] this year, $23 [million] next year, $25 [million] the year after that,” MacMahon said on “The Hoop Collective” podcast on September 10. “That's not a great contract. Is it worth a team like the Lakers taking on that contract and what would be a financially motivated move for the Hawks?”

Hunter is in Year 2 of a four-year $90 million contract. Trade rumors from Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer in 2023 linked him to the Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers. The Cleveland Cavaliers joined the fray in 2024, per The Stein Line’s Marc Stein in January.

De'Andre Hunter still a subject of Hawks trade rumors

The Hawks were expected to explore trade options for Hunter, whom the Lakers selected No. 4 overall in the 2019 NBA Draft but traded to the Hawks in a pre-arranged deal.

The Hawks added Zaccharie Risacher with the No. 1 pick of the 2024 NBA Draft.

He has the skill set to slot in at shooting guard as a rookie. But he projects as a forward long-term. With Jalen Johnson also in tow and headed for a big extension, Hunter could be a victim of the Hawks’ roster and salary crunches.

Injuries and inconsistency have been themes of his career. He offers a versatile off-ball threat offensively and willing if unspectacular perimeter defense.

But Hawks CEO Steve Koonin made notable comments about the age of the starting lineup.

“I think we’re going to be long, we’re going to be athletic, we’re gonna be very young. And I think this team is gonna be an incredible amount of fun,” Koonin said on “Dukes & Bell” on August 30. “And there’s a good chance Trae Young is our oldest starter at 26 years old.”

Hunter – who turns 27 in December – posted career highs with 15.6 points per game and a 38.5% clip on 5.3 attempts from beyond the arc.

Young turns 26 years old in September.

Hunter might be out of the Hawks’ long-term plans. But he is also their best two-way player and has been for several seasons. Moving on without a clear-cut replacement will only exacerbate the Hawks’ long-standing issues with perimeter defense.

It is also a question of what the can get in return. When it comes to the Lakers, the Hawks may have all the intel they need.

Hawks, Lakers could be unlikely trade partners

“There was a time where there was a lot of momentum that – at least on the Lakers side – where they thought they had a great chance to get Dejounte Murray. At the end of the day, D'Angelo Russell being in that deal – and I don't know if it was they were going to have a third team or whatever – but the Hawks weren't down with that,” show host Brian Windhorst said.

Russell is on an expiring two-year, $36 million contract.

MacMahon and Windhorst argued that could make him more appealing compared to having the $18 million player option looming over the situation as it did in 2023. However, the Hawks also viewed Russell as a poor fit next to Young.

With that still in play, and given the Hawks’ intentional pivot to length and defense post-Murray, a trade to the Lakers involving Russell would likely still require a third team to complete.

There is also the matter of the Lakers’ potential interest in Young.

They were linked to him at the trade deadline in speculation. And while his switch from Klutch Sports to CAA may have put a damper on that possibility – Young has also not pushed for a trade publicly – the Lakers could choose to keep their powder dry and books clean for him.

The uncertainty around so many pieces of this Hawks team is why expectations for them are low coming into the season.