Why the Trade Benefits the Atlanta Hawks

While much of the attention has been placed on the acquisitions of Bogdan Bogdanovic and Rajon Rondo, there has been a strong emphasis placed on improving in the frontcourt by the Atlanta Hawks.

Before the NBA’s trade deadline last season, Atlanta pulled off a trade for Clint Capela from the Houston Rockets. Then they used the No. 6 overall pick to select Onyeka Okongwu and signed Danilo Gallinari to the largest contract for a player over 30-years-old without an All-Star nod.

The predicament for the Hawks now becomes John Collins being contract extension eligible. With Gallinari primarily being a small-ball power forward, the Hawks already have a player that can slot in the starting lineup if Collins were to be traded.

The Hawks just need to build up some good players on their roster but the future needs to be kept in mind as well. If paying Collins a hefty contract extension isn’t what they want to do, trading him for a cheaper replacement that can play both forward spots wouldn’t be a bad option.