The Hawks are entering a new era under Quin Snyder. The club extended Dejounte Murray at a team-friendly rate, which likely never would’ve happened without Snyder, and more moves could be on the horizon. Onyeka Okongwu and Saddiq Bey are pending free agents, while Clint Capela and De’Andre Hunter remain trade candidates. Financially restricted, the path forward isn’t obvious.
I have no idea what are the right moves, but the Hawks are choosing to run it back with essentially the same squad, minus John Collins. The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over while expecting different results.
Even with a full offseason under Quin Snyder, this isn’t a championship-caliber roster unless one of AJ Griffin or Jalen Johnson turns into a bonafide star. That doesn’t seem likely, even if I am high on those two youngsters.
It’s not out of the realm of possibilities that the Hawks have to blow this thing up in a couple of years, which would, unfortunately, entail trading their superstar in Trae Young.
Obviously, that’s the last choice. Nobody wants to trade Trae Young. He’s the best thing to happen to this franchise since Dominque Wilkins. However, you’d be a fool to assume the club would never trade him. The worst thing to be in the NBA is a treadmill team; one that isn’t good enough to win a title but not bad enough to get a good draft pick.
Once fans accept that fact, the more happy they’ll be. It’s a tough pill to swallow but a necessary one. It’s why it’s no surprise Trae Young has been on the Lakers’ radar for a long time, according to The Athletic.
The Lakers have pursued other star guards, including Damian Lillard, Kyle Lowry and Kyrie Irving. Even into this summer, there were some in the organization, including James, who still had an interest in pursuing Irving, though the front office ultimately prioritized continuity. Trae Young has long been on Los Angeles’ radar, depending on how his situation unfolds in Atlanta.
Understandably, the Lakers are monitoring what’s going on in Atlanta. The Hawks aren’t planning to trade Trae Young anytime soon, but things could get ugly if things don’t look different this upcoming season, and there’s not much reason to believe they’ll get better with the current roster.
—
Photographer: Melissa Tamez/Icon Sportswire
You must log in to post a comment.