The Hawks will surely be shopping John Collins this trade deadline, as they have for the past three years. Atlanta is in a transition period following Travis Schlenk’s decision to step down — with Landry Fields, Kyle Kover, and Nick Ressler, the 27-year-old son of owner Tony Ressler, taking over basketball decisions. There is no telling what the Hawks will do at the trade deadline.
The team had been reeling, hovering below .500, when the bombshell dropped that the younger Ressler, who has minimal NBA experience, has had a growing voice in basketball operations, effectively forcing Schlenk to step down. It seemed the organization was headed toward a spectacularly explosive conclusion. However, the on-court performance has improved. The Hawks are on a three-game win streak, with a chance to push it to a season-high four wins tonight against the Mavericks.
Who knows what the new-look front office will do at the deadline, but there will be plenty of suitors for John Collins. The Jazz have reportedly been the most active team in pursuing JC, with a reported deal that would send Malik Beasley and Jarred Vanderbilt to Atlanta. However, you’d be hard-pressed to find a club that hasn’t been linked to Collins, and the Miami Heat are one of them.
According to reports from Heavy, the Heat are as active as any team trying to upgrade their roster before the deadline, including targeting John Collins. A deal surrounding the Atlanta big man has “gone dormant,” though. The potential trade would’ve been Duncan Robinson, Caleb Martin, and a potential first-round pick in exchange for Collins, but Miami is reportedly concerned that Bam Adebayo and Collins wouldn’t be a great fit.
This should be quite the active and pivotal trade deadline for the Hawks.
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Photographer: Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire
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