It was reported yesterday that John Collins had a five-year, $125 million contract on the table from the Hawks, but he was still exploring his options, hoping for a max contract. However, with money drying up quickly in free agency, it began to look less and less likely like that would ever happen. So this morning, the 23-year-old power forward agreed to a five-year contract to stay in Atlanta.
Restricted free agent F John Collins has agreed to a five-year, $125M deal to stay with the Atlanta Hawks, @excelbasketball agents Sean Kennedy and Jeff Schwartz tell ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 4, 2021
Whether Collins received a max contract from another team or not, I don’t think he would have ever played for another team next season. The Hawks would have likely matched any offer he received from another team, even if it was a four-year max that would have paid him $120 million. However, this contract is a little more palatable for Travis Schlenk and company, who should be very happy they locked up their star power forward for the foreseeable future. The deal comes with a player option in the fifth year, and it’s very moveable if the Hawks ever decide they want to go in a different direction.
Welcome back, John the Baptist!
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