Atlanta Hawks: Zion Dream Done, Yet Hope and Options Remain

Wing Players That Could Fit With the Hawks

There will also be options a plenty on the wing for the Atlanta Hawks. Rui Hachimura is a junior power forward, who is probably best suited to play small forward in the NBA and comes as a possible plug and play prospect. Should the Hawks elect to go for upside, Romeo Langford of Indiana, Kevin Porter Jr. of USC, Nasir Little of North Carolina and Keldon Johnson of Kentucky, are all guys the Hawks should thoroughly research. Sekou Doumbouya the top international prospect in this  is year’s draft, is a combo forward who resembles a young Pascal Siakam of the Toronto Raptors. In fact the Atlanta Hawks have the opportunity to select the top two international prospects should they choose to, in Sekou Doumbouya and Goga Bitadze.

There is also a scenario, in which one of the top four wing players drops to the Atlanta Hawks at number eight. With Phoenix and Chicago both needing point guards badly to complete their starting lineups, Darius Garland of Vanderbilt is certain to be off the board by pick seven. Should Phoenix choose him at number six, there is a very high probability that Chicago decides to go with Coby White of North Carolina. White is the last point guard projected in the ESPN top 20, leaving the Bulls to look elsewhere besides the draft for a starting point guard, should they pass on White. That would create a scenario in which the Hawks see Cam Reddish of Duke, Jarrett Culver of Texas Tech, or De’Andre Hunter of Virginia, in the mix at the eighth pick. Of course the Atlanta Hawks could also chose to trade one or both of the picks for established NBA talent. The potential scenarios are numerous.

Everything Will Be Alright

Hawks star point guard Trae Young took to Twitter to let Atlanta Hawks fans know that everything will be alright:

https://twitter.com/TheTraeYoung/status/1128471209027538945?s=19

The fact of the matter is, Trae Young is correct. Having Young, the Atlanta Hawks have their first superstar in place since Dominique Wilkins. John Collins is on track to be an Eastern Conference All Star in just his third season. Atlanta also has sharp shooters Kevin Huerter and Taurean Prince to provide more than adequate spacing. DeAndre’ Bembry offers a perimeter defender and energy guy, who can also pass the ball and finish at the rim. Alex Len and Omari Spellman are quality young big men, that continue to improve and offer the ability to stretch the floor by making threes. The Hawks have the luxury of selecting the two prospects that they think will be the best long-term, even if they are not the most ready to contribute. Atlanta can work both prospects into the lineup off the bench, as they become acclimated to the NBA.

A positive about the results of this year’s draft lottery, is that three of the top four picks and four of the top six prospects, will begin their careers in the Western Conference as things are currently constructed. The improvement that the Atlanta Hawks should see in their youth such as Trae, Collins, Huerter, Bembry, Prince and Spellman alone, should add a significant amount of wins to next season’s total. Contributions from this year’s draft picks will be a bonus. As long as the Hawks have good health and sign a quality veteran point guard to back up Trae Young, there is no reason why they will not be a playoff team next season. As for the draft, general manager Travis Schlenk has already shown he can work wonders. In just two drafts, Schlenk came up gold by selecting Young at number five and he has struck pay dirt twice at number 19 with Collins and Huerter. It’s time for Schlenk to work more wonders. The Atlanta Hawks are in good hands.