After waffling on the idea of a full-on rebuild for at least a season, the Hawks finally dove in and accepted their fate. The franchise also shook up their front office, relieving head coach Mike Budenholzer of his executive duties and appointing Travis Schlenk the new general manager of the squad.
The fresh slate could serve the organization well as it had become abundantly clear that the lingering remnants of the Hawks team that won 60 games in 2014/15 just weren’t going to cut it as a contender in the current NBA landscape.
Put simply, the Hawks managed to get through the first summer of transition unscathed, with Schlenk’s staff wisely letting veterans Paul Millsap and Tim Hardaway Jr. pursue monster deals elsewhere. It’ll be a long road back to the top, sure, but they have to start somewhere.
Key offseason losses:
It may not have been easy but the Hawks said goodbye to four-time All-Star Millsap this summer. Considering that the 32-year-old landed a three-year deal worth north of $30MM annually with the Nuggets, they’ll be relieved that they did. Retaining the forward would have made no sense for a team in transition, despite the fact that Millsap had come to embody much of the club’s recent identity.
Similarly, the Hawks wasted no time dodging the $23.5MM salary owed to veteran big man Dwight Howard. While Atlanta was able to get out from any financial obligation to Millsap free of charge, they had to take back Miles Plumlee‘s $12.5MM-per-year albatross to shed Howard’s contract. Given that Plumlee offers less on the court than Howard does and is under contract for a year longer, it figures to be somewhat of a lateral move.
If the Hawks had any intention of bringing back 25-year-old Hardaway Jr. to play a role in the club’s rebuild, those hopes were quickly shattered when the Knicks challenged them to a game of chicken in the form of a $71MM offer sheet. Atlanta balked at the idea of paying such a disproportionate sum for their restricted free agent, opting not to match New York’s offer.
A series of smaller moves fall in line with the rest of the regime change in Atlanta, as the Hawks waived Mike Dunleavy and watched veterans like Thabo Sefolosha and Kris Humphries sign elsewhere.
Key offseason additions:
The Hawks made one of the league’s most intriguing frugal signings this summer, bringing journeyman center Dewayne Dedmon aboard for two years at $14MM. Dedmon has bounced around from team to team throughout his four-year career, but profiles as a productive asset when given an opportunity.
Another savvy, cost-effective move saw the Hawks bring back 26-year-old big man Mike Muscala. Muscala’s $10MM deal is particularly palatable considering that he’ll be able to provide the young roster with an outside threat and is already familiar with the organization.
The Hawks will also bring aboard one of college basketball’s most established low post scorers in John Collins. Whether the Wake Forest products can do for his new squad what he was able to do in the ACC remains to be seen. Rest assured, considering where the franchise falls on its current timeline, he’ll get plenty of opportunity to do work.
Outlook for 2017/18:
The Hawks saw the writing on the wall and made the decision to shed salaries and fully embrace a rebuild. After going back and forth on whether to trade Millsap, ultimately hanging onto him and squandering any opportunity to ship him out as a rental last season, the club has very little to work with heading forward.
That’s not the end of the world for Schlenk as he gets his feet wet in his new position and crafts something of his own design.
The Hawks deserve credit for being diligent financially and will have significant cap room for the 2018 free agent class. Still, a roster mostly devoid of redeeming qualities will be a difficult sell to the ’18 class when the moratorium on signings lifts next July.
It’ll be a while before Atlanta returns to relevance, even in the East, but the fact that the Hawks have managed to survive some miscues without major damage to their financial flexibility will serve them well. It’s better to start at zero than it is to start in the red.
Salary information from Basketball Insiders used in the creation of this post. Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Luke Adams contributed to this post.
