One Atlanta Hawks Trade That Could Change Everything After the Lottery

The Atlanta Hawks' draft board and options are more open, with them picking at No. 8 overall instead of jumping into the top four. Atlanta would have preferred to jump up into the top four and have the option to land one of AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, Cameron Boozer, or Caleb Wilson, but the lottery did not work out in their favor.

That does not mean that this was not a successful lottery for Atlanta. The Hawks are a team that is coming off of a playoff appearance, they have a nice core of young talent already on the roster, and they have plenty of optionality on the table for how to continue to build this roster.

One such option is being able to trade up or down in the draft. This is a draft that has talent in it, especially in the lottery and Hawks general manager, Onsi Saleh, has spoken at length about how he wants to develop his young team and add talent through the draft while acknowledging that this team is not one player away from being a championship contender.

Here is one trade that could do just that for the Hawks and change everything after the lottery.

The Trade

Hawks receive: No. 12 pick (via OKC), No. 17 pick (via OKC), and Aaron Wiggins

Thunder Receive: No. 8 Pick

Why the Hawks do this trade

This trade would help the Hawks in a number of ways.

Atlanta wants to build through the draft, and this would give them three picks to continue to build out their roster with young talent. They could still get talented players if they moved from No. 8 to No. 12, such as Michigan center Aday Mara (though that is looking less likely), Michigan forward Yaxel Lendeborg, Arizona guard Brayden Burries, Alabama guard Labaron Philon, and Kentucky center Jayden Quaintance.

The Hawks' needs coming into this draft are (in no particular order) interior size and rim protection, backcourt help, and halfcourt offense and shot creation. Saleh has also said that Atlanta plans to use a best player approach, and they could add three talented players that can grow with this core of players, and they can develop alongside them. Having cost-controlled talent is priceless in the NBA, and if the Hawks make the right evaluations, they could add three quality players to their team and build real future depth.

The Hawks bench was a glaring issue as well and Wiggins would instantly be one of their top options. He is a talented player and three-point shooter with size, but he gets lost in the shuffle due to the Thunder having an insanely talented roster. He has fallen out of the rotation in the playoffs, but that is just due to the Thunder having so many options.

Wiggins would upgrade the Hawks' bench and is on a good contract with three years left (including a team option in the final year).

Why the Thunder do this trade

For the Thunder, this is pretty simple. They already have 15 roster spots taken on next year's team, and the max contracts of Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren are going to kick in. Contending teams are going to try to avoid the luxury tax and second apron as much as they can. Oklahoma City is slated to have three picks in this draft (12, 17, and 37) and there is no way they can roster them all while keeping other members of their core. Some decisions are going to have to be made.

Of the players on their roster, Wiggins might be one who is realistically obtainable. He is already not playing meaningful minutes in the playoffs.

The Thunder have an absurd collection of talent on their roster and plenty of draft capital. This might be the time to consolidate some of them and move up to get a player they want. They might have ambitions of moving up higher in this draft, but No. 8 would land them a player that fits what they like to do, such as Kingston Flemings, Mikel Brown Jr, or even Keaton Wagler if he were to fall farther than most anticipate.

This trade would give both teams what they want. The Hawks get more young talent they can develop alongside their core four of Jalen Johnson, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Onyeka Okongwu, and Dyson Daniels, while the Thunder clear some roster space while adding a top ten talent.

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