Does this trade make sense for the Atlanta Hawks?
Going out and getting Buddy Hield ahead of the trade deadline this season would surely be a big move that shakes things up in the Eastern Conference playoff picture, but acquiring Hield’s contract is not necessarily the best thing for the Atlanta Hawks to do right now.
Hield is set to make $61.5M through the 2023-24 season and with no opt-out clauses for the Hawks, they would be tied down financially to his contract unless they traded him away over the next three seasons. With John Collins, Trae Young and Clint Capela now on high-paying, long-term deals, Atlanta has to be careful with where they are spending money.
The idea of pairing Hield with Young and Collins is great, but this trade would push the Atlanta Hawks over the luxury tax threshold on the season and they would have a total payroll of about $150M over the next two seasons. It is hard to imagine that Hawks’ ownership would want to pay this much in luxury taxes, especially after they drew out John Collins’ extension so long this past offseason!
With Cam Reddish and De’Andre Hunter entering the final years of their rookie deals next season, Atlanta could be forced to choose which one of their young wings they would like to keep long-term, but by bringing in Hield, they may not be able to keep either.
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Trae Young, John Collins, Bogdan Bogdanovic, Clint Capela, Kevin Huerter and Buddy Hield would all be on long-term deals and the rest of this roster would have to be filled out by draft picks and minimum contract players. Is this a core that could contend for a championship?
Maybe they could reach the Eastern Conference Finals again, but it is hard to imagine that this core outlined above could compete against the likes of the Nets, Bucks, Heat and even the 76ers who all have All-Star duos and trios on their rosters.
Making a big move to add more talent at the expense of a guy like Danilo Gallinari is definitely a possibility for the Atlanta Hawks this season, but if they move Gallinari, it will likely be a salary saving move.
They would absolutely look to get value for the veteran forward, but they would also look to add a player on an expiring contract so they have available funds to pay Trae Young when his contract increases next season.
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Going out and trading for Buddy Hield makes sense based on fit, but logistics-wise and financially, the Hawks should stay away from this deal.
