Unleashing the Hawks: Top Trade Moves to Elevate Atlanta’s Game, Excluding Young & Murray!

Many thought that the Atlanta Hawks, with a full offseason of head coach Quin Snyder’s teaching, would be playing at a level more reminiscent of their form during the 2020-21 season. If there’s a coach who knows how to make a partnership between two ball-dominant guards work, it’s Snyder. However, the Hawks have fallen way short of expectations, and they are now likely to trade away Dejounte Murray, the All-Star guard they acquired in a trade during the 2022 offseason.

In fact, it isn’t just Murray who has found himself on the trade block. His backcourt partner, Trae Young, has also been the subject of trade rumors aplenty, although a trade of magnitude looks so far-fetched especially when Young has played at a high level for most of the 2023-24 campaign.

But beyond those two, the Hawks have a few players as well who have caught the attention of teams with contending aspirations. Atlanta has a few role players, including, but not limited to, Bogdan Bogdanovic, De’Andre Hunter, and Clint Capela, who are drawing interest on the trade market, and given that they’re not exactly franchise cornerstones to build upon, they may be available for the right price with there being only a week before the deadline passes.

With that said, here are some of the best trade the Hawks must make not involving Trae Young and Dejounte Murray.

Bogdan Bogdanovic makes the Timberwolves spookier

Hawks receive: Kyle Anderson, Leonard Miller, Josh Minott, five second-round picks

Timberwolves receive: Bogdan Bogdanovic

The Timberwolves’ core is becoming expensive really quickly. Karl-Anthony Towns and Anthony Edwards are set to receive sizable increases to their annual salary, with their max contracts kicking in at the start of next season, so Minnesota is clearly going all-in on this current squad.

This also presents a golden opportunity for the team to add talent via trade to try and help the team win now before their payroll becomes too exorbitant. Enter Hawks sniper Bogdan Bogdanovic.

At present, the Timberwolves don’t have a player of Bogdanovic’s mold on the roster. The Hawks guard loves to come off screens, and his lightning-quick trigger makes him a difficult player to defend. He is a career 38.5 percent shooter from deep on over six attempts per game,. and his addition would give the Timberwolves more offensive firepower to help grease the wheels for them as they sometimes struggle to put the ball through the hoop in the halfcourt.

The addition of Bogdanovic would also give the Timberwolves an additional ballhandler and shot-creator off the bench, and he could give the team more two-way versatility in the event that they need to go small in the postseason when teams try to scheme around Rudy Gobert.

Bogdanovic is also under contract for two more guaranteed seasons after this one, with a team option for the 2026-27 season, and he is making a reasonable amount.

As for the Hawks, keeping Bogdan Bogdanovic around Trae Young as they try to retool for the following seasons is preferable. But with this trade, they can take a chance on two youngsters in Leonard Miller and Josh Minott, both of whom have athletic gifts that give them promising two-way potential. Kyle Anderson can also step in and give Quin Snyder another playmaker to scheme his offense around, and his contract is expiring, so it shouldn’t be too big of an investment either way.

The five second-round picks could then help the Hawks add some lottery tickets for young talent in the subsequent drafts and these picks can also help them grease the wheels of any other trade they pursue moving forward.

Hawks answer the Pacers’ call for a 3-and-D forward

Hawks receive: Buddy Hield, three second-round picks

Pacers receive: De’Andre Hunter

The Pacers have already pushed their cards to the center of the table when they traded for three-time All-Star Pascal Siakam, giving the team the star power forward who fits the team like a glove. But it remains evident that the Pacers are ripe for an upgrade on the wing, even with the emergence of Aaron Nesmith.

For quite some time now, the Pacers have toyed with the idea of trading Buddy Hield, and according to the rumor mill, they have shown interest in the past in Hawks forward De’Andre Hunter. So why not finally make the trade happen?

For the Hawks, Hunter is one of their more reliable perimeter defenders. But is he really worth upwards of $20 million per year? He hasn’t expanded his offensive game, and he has been injury-prone — red flags that could give the Pacers some pause.

But Hunter is only 26 years old, and the Pacers have the offensive infrastructure that could help bring out the best in him. Meanwhile, the Hawks free up their cap sheet even further as they receive Hield’s expiring contract, and this could make them major players in free agency to try and bolster the team around Trae Young.

Atlanta unleashes Onyeka Okongwu

Hawks receive: Richaun Holmes, Olivier Maxence-Prosper, one second-round pick

Mavericks receive: Clint Capela

Will the Dallas Mavericks trade away the rookie known as O-Max before he even establishes himself in the NBA? That seems rather unlikely. But the Hawks should still try and fight for his inclusion in the event that the Mavericks revisit their interest in Clint Capela.

Dereck Lively II has performed admirably as the team’s starting center, so it’s not like this is a pressing need for Dallas. But Capela gives the team another rim-runner who is sure to flourish alongside Luka Doncic so as to not overwork the 19-year old center who has surpassed expectations in his rookie campaign.

For the Hawks, this is a great opportunity to finally unleash Onyeka Okongwu as the team’s starting center while taking a chance on a raw 3-and-D wing in O-Max.