Hawks Rumors

Trade Breakdown: Dejounte Murray To Hawks

July 22nd, 2022 at 9:50am CST by Rory Maher

This is the sixth installment in our series breaking down the major trades of the 2022 offseason. As opposed to giving out grades, this series will explore why the teams were motivated to make the moves. Let’s dive into a deal that saw an All-Star head from the Spurs to the Hawks…

The day before free agency opened, the Spurs agreed to send Dejounte Murray and Jock Landale (later dealt to the Suns for cash considerations) to the Hawks in exchange for the Hornets’ 2023 first-round pick (top-16 protected), the Hawks’ 2025 first-round pick (unprotected), the Hawks’ 2027 first-round pick (unprotected), the right to swap first-round picks with the Hawks in 2026, and Danilo Gallinari.

The Spurs’ perspective:

Why would the Spurs part with a first-time All-Star who was runner-up for the Most Improved Player Award?

After making the playoffs for an NBA-record 22 consecutive years from 1998-2019, winning five championships in the process, the Spurs have been stuck in mediocrity for the past three seasons, finishing with records of 32-39 in 2019/20 and 33-39 in ‘20/21.

Last season, with Murray as the team’s best player, the Spurs finished with a 34-48 record and the 10th seed in the West — below average, but not bad enough to have a real puncher’s chance at the top pick. The team went just 4-10 in games Murray missed.

Sometimes bottoming out is the best way to improve a franchise in the long run, as unpalatable as it might be for owners, front offices, coaches, players and fans alike. The 2023 draft class features French phenom Victor Wembanyama, a player whom some talent evaluators consider the best prospect the NBA has seen since LeBron James turned pro in 2003. You can connect the dots.

Murray was a developmental success story for the Spurs. He gradually transformed from a raw prospect, selected 29th overall in the 2016 draft, into an All-Star.

The Spurs received a substantial return for him. Unprotected first-round picks are one of the most valuable commodities in the NBA, and San Antonio gained two of them with the possibility of a third if the Spurs are better than the Hawks in 2025/26.

San Antonio also gained another first-rounder with a reasonable chance of conveying at some point in the next three years – the Hornets’ 2023 pick will be lottery-protected in 2024 and 2025 if it doesn’t convey next year, then would turn into two second-round picks if it hasn’t conveyed by that point.

Gallinari, who received a partial guarantee of $13MM on his $21MM+ expiring contract, was only included in the deal for salary-matching purposes and has already been waived and subsequently signed with Boston as a free agent.

For San Antonio, the move was less about a lack of faith in Murray’s abilities and more about having a chance at the top pick in 2023 and extracting maximum value for a player coming off a career season. In ‘21/22, he averaged 21.1 PPG, 8.3 RPG and 9.2 APG on .462/.327/.794 shooting in 68 games (34.8 MPG).

Keep in mind that Murray enters free agency in 2024, the season before the first unprotected pick from Atlanta conveys to San Antonio. Considering Murray just had the best season of his six-year career, it’s possible he could continue to get better, but if the Spurs waited until next summer, he’d be on an expiring contract and would likely be seeking a maximum-salary deal in free agency, diminishing his trade value. If things don’t work out between Murray and the Hawks, or they simply don’t want to pay him a max deal in two years, the Spurs are the clear beneficiary.

Are the Hawks appreciably better by making the trade entering ‘22/23? Yes. Can Murray push them over the top in an increasingly competitive East? I’m a little skeptical.

The Celtics, Heat, Bucks, Sixers, Raptors, Bulls, Nets and Cavaliers all finished with better records than the Hawks (43-39) last season, and the Hornets had the same record before getting blown out by Atlanta in the play-in tournament (the Hawks advanced as the eighth seed after beating Cleveland in the second play-in game).

So maybe, optimistically, the Hawks finish as a top-four or top-five seed in the East. They still have to get past the Bucks, Sixers, Celtics and Heat, who eliminated Atlanta in a five-game first-round series last season. There are roadblocks.

The Nets have a formidable roster if it remains intact. The Raptors will be better with another year of experience. The Bulls and Cavaliers could be too.

There’s a reason the Spurs pushed for the unprotected picks to be years down the line, when the Hawks are much less certain to be a perennial playoff team. Even if those selections are “just” lottery picks and not highly-coveted top-five picks, they would still have considerable value. They’d have even more trade value leading up to those drafts if Atlanta doesn’t look like a good team in the future.

It’s worth noting that Murray and Atlanta’s star point guard, Trae Young, were both very ball-dominant players last season, and Young hasn’t shown much inclination to play an off-ball role. Young has been extremely effective as an offensive engine, with the Hawks ranking eighth and second in offensive rating during the last two seasons.

If Young remains the primary ball-handler, that could reduce Murray’s effectiveness. His breakout season came in the aftermath of DeMar DeRozan, San Antonio’s previous leading scorer and primary play-maker, heading to Chicago in a sign-and-trade last summer.

For as stellar as he was last season, and make no mistake, he was very good, Murray’s 53.3% true shooting percentage was below league average, his career true shooting percentage (51.5%) is even worse, and he holds just a 33% mark from beyond the arc. His career percentage on corner threes is 32.3%, including just 28% last season.

None of those percentages scream “I can spot-up when I have to and make shots consistently.”

Atlanta’s roster could also get very expensive in the future, depending on how much money the team invests to keep the players it has drafted in recent years. De’Andre Hunter is eligible for a rookie scale extension that would kick in starting in ‘23/24, and Onyeka Okongwu will be eligible for an extension next summer that would begin the following year.

Those extensions would be in addition to the major contracts already on the books for Young, John Collins and Clint Capela, all of whom are under contract through at least ‘24/25. If Murray re-signs with the Hawks on a max deal as a free agent, those four players alone could cost $140+MM, depending on how much the cap goes up. The Spurs are betting the Hawks will be hesitant to pay such a hefty price tag if they don’t find more postseason success in the next couple years.

The Hawks’ perspective:

How many times do you have an opportunity to trade for an All-Star who is just entering his prime? Not only that, but Murray, who turns 26 years old in September, has team-friendly salaries of $16.57MM in ‘22/23 and $17.71MM in ‘23/24.

Atlanta didn’t give up any win-now pieces from next season’s team. Prior to the trade, Gallinari’s partial guarantee was only $5MM, so there was no chance the Hawks were going to guarantee the remainder of that sizable deal, given the forward’s declining play and advancing age. Moving off that contract was a bonus.

It was clear the Hawks needed to make moves after an uneven regular season and a disappointing playoff exit which saw the Heat stymie Young, forcing him into more turnovers per game (6.2) than assists (6.0) and drastically reducing his scoring (15.4 PPG on .319/.184/.788 shooting vs. 28.4 PPG on .460/.382/.904 shooting in the regular season).

To aid their star, the Hawks acquired Murray, a player who has consistently improved various aspects of his game every season. General manager Landry Fields recently said they’re betting on the “character makeup” of the two All-Stars and their will to win together.

I’m very curious to see how Young and Murray complement each other on offense, since it will take significant adjustments from both players to get the best out of each other’s talents.

If Young can become much more active away from the ball – coming off screens, setting back-screens, drawing attention away from teammates — that would allow Murray to handle the ball more, and he had a lot of success as a lead ball-handler last season, ranking fourth in the league in assists (9.2), one spot below Young (9.7). Murray also posted a much better assist-to-turnover ratio than his new teammate (3.48-to-1 vs. 2.43-to-1).

I suspect that head coach Nate McMillan will experiment with staggering their minutes somewhat to give Murray more opportunities to run the show with the second unit.

Murray is a pretty significant defensive upgrade over Kevin Huerter, who was dealt to Sacramento in a trade that we’ll cover next week. Murray led the league in deflections (4.0) and steals (2.0) per game last season and is an effective point-of-attack defender.

Having said that, I do think his All-Defensive nod back in ’17/18, prior to his torn ACL, has given him a reputation that has exceeded his actual play on that end of the court the past few seasons. For example, the Spurs’ defensive rating was better when he didn’t play last season (113.4 on vs. 111.9 off), but he was still an overall net positive (+2.3) because they were much better offensively when he was on the court (114.4 on vs. 110.6 off).

Young, of course, is one of the league’s worst defenders, so it’s not as though placing him on a shooting guard instead of having him up top makes things any easier for the Hawks. They will likely still try to hide him on the opposing team’s worst offensive player.

Murray has been an excellent rebounder throughout his career, and he pulled down a career-high 8.3 boards per game last season. Atlanta ranked just 20th in the league in rebounding last season, so that’s another area in which he will definitely help the team.

The Hawks are also betting on a return to health for three players who were all hampered with various injuries last season: Collins (foot/finger), Capela (Achilles soreness/knee) and Bogdan Bogdanovic (knee). All three were key contributors during the team’s surprising run to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021, but none were healthy in the 2022 postseason.

The Hawks have youth on their side. Of the projected starting lineup of Young, Murray, Hunter, Collins and Capela, the veteran center is the eldest at 28 years old.

Okongwu, who could eventually replace Capela, won’t turn 22 until December. Atlanta’s 2021 first-rounder, Jalen Johnson, turns 21 in December. 2022 First-rounder AJ Griffin won’t turn 19 until August.

The Hawks control their own first-rounders in 2023 and 2024, have an additional lottery-protected pick from the Kings in 2024 (via the Huerter deal), and control five second-rounders over the next two drafts.

The reason I mention the youth and draft equity is because it’s not as though trading for Murray was a death knell for the future. There are still multiple pathways for the Hawks to pivot if things go south, and if they get better, they have some additional assets to continue to improve, if needed.

If Young and Murray form a dynamic backcourt and the roster continues to develop, and if the aforementioned trio return to health and form, Atlanta has the talent to potentially make another deep playoff run, but it won’t be easy.

Even if all those things go right, questions remain. The team’s defense, which ranked 26th last season and hasn’t been better than 21st over the past five years, has to get much better. Young will have to guard someone. Murray will have to make teams pay for leaving him open from behind the arc on offense.

Can Hunter be the player who can defend the big wing scorers like Kevin Durant (if he remains in the East), Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Jimmy Butler, and Khris Middleton? Who is guarding the likes of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Joel Embiid? For as good as Capela was two years ago, and he was excellent, he could not stop Brook Lopez down low when Antetokounmpo was injured in the Conference Finals, so he is definitely not stopping either of those two superstars. And that’s only in the East.

The Hawks know all that. They know the fit isn’t seamless, and asking their new backcourt to make major adjustments when they’ve already had individual success isn’t ideal. But they’re betting that Young and Murray can make those adjustments and that the team will become a sustainable winner in part due to their efforts.

The Hawks gave themselves a timeline by trading away first-round picks with no protections. If everything clicks, they have a chance to be very good. But the clock is ticking, and the Spurs are waiting.

Kyle Korver Joins Hawks’ Front Office

July 20th, 2022 at 9:08am CST by Dana Gauruder

JULY 20: The hiring of Korver is official, the Hawks confirmed today in a press release. He’ll be involved in creating and overseeing a development plan for each Hawks player, the team explained in its announcement.

“We are excited to bring Kyle back to the Hawks,” Hawks GM Landry Fields said in a statement. “He is a tremendous person and someone whose presence will benefit all of our players, both on and off the court, drawing from his unique experiences over his 17-year playing career, as a late-second round pick who later became an All-Star in Atlanta and one of the league’s all-time best shooters.”

JULY 19: The Hawks are hiring Kyle Korver to a front office position, Shams Charania of The Athletic tweets. Korver will have the title of Director of Player Affairs and Development, per Lauren Williams of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter link).

Korver served as a Nets player development coach last season after a lengthy playing career that began in 2003 and ended after the 2019/20 season. He played for six organizations, including the Hawks from 2012-17. He made the All-Star team while playing for Atlanta in 2015.

He’ll work under president of basketball operations Travis Schlenk.

The 51st overall pick in the 2003 draft, Korver appeared in a total of 1,232 regular season games – and another 145 postseason contests – for the Sixers, Jazz, Bulls, Hawks, Cavaliers, and Bucks. He averaged 9.7 PPG and 3.0 RPG in 25.3 minutes per game and was one of the top long-distance shooters of his era, knocking down 42.9% of his three-pointers during his career.

Extension Rumors: Hunter, C. Johnson, Poole, G. Williams, More

July 19th, 2022 at 4:05pm CST by Luke Adams

Of the players eligible for rookie scale extensions this offseason, Spurs forward Keldon Johnson became the first to sign a new deal worth less than the maximum. According to Jake Fischer of Bleacher Report (Twitter link), Johnson’s new four-year contract will have a base value of $74MM, with $1.5MM in annual unlikely incentives that could push the total value of the deal to $80MM.

Johnson’s contract will serve as a point of comparison for many of the other extension-eligible players who will be negotiating with their respective teams this summer and fall, Fischer writes in a full story for Bleacher Report.

For instance, representatives for De’Andre Hunter figure to seek a similar deal for their client, though the Hawks may be reluctant to invest heavily in a player who has appeared in just 76 games in the last two seasons due to injuries. One cap strategist who spoke to Bleacher Report said Hunter’s injury concerns “are very real,” and sources tell Fischer that the 24-year-old and Atlanta are approximately $20MM apart in their discussions about a four-year extension.

Johnson’s extension with San Antonio is worth roughly the same amount annually as deals signed by sharpshooters like Davis Bertans, Duncan Robinson, and Joe Harris, and all four of those deals will be reference points when Cameron Johnson and the Suns discuss a new deal, according to Fischer, who suggests an extension for Johnson could easily surpass $15MM per year.

Here are a few more notes from Fischer on rookie scale extension candidates from around the NBA:

There’s a sense that the Warriors may be best off waiting on an extension for Jordan Poole unless they can get a team-friendly rate this offseason, Fischer writes. “What’s the upside in locking him in now?” the team cap strategist said. “He’s not Luka Doncic or Donovan Mitchell, who’ve proven they can carry a team. He’s close. If he does it again, you pay him. But prior to this year he was a borderline rotation player.”
Cap experts who spoke to Fischer believes that the Celtics‘ four-year extension for Robert Williams (worth $48MM, plus $6MM in incentives) will be a benchmark for their extension talks with Grant Williams. However, rival executives don’t think the C’s will want to spend much more on Grant than they did on Robert.
The Trail Blazers and Nassir Little may both be motivated to work out a new deal this summer. As Fischer explains, Little could increase his value (and his price tag) in 2022/23 if he’s part of Portland’s new-look starting lineup, but his injury history might make him inclined to take a guaranteed payday sooner rather than later.
There has been no traction on extension talks between the Sixers and Matisse Thybulle, sources tell Bleacher Report. Fischer also classifies Bulls guard Coby White as a player who is unlikely to sign an extension before the season.

Eastern Notes: Martin, Beauchamp, Mazzulla, Parker, Celtics

July 18th, 2022 at 6:41pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Rookie Tyrese Martin signed a two-year contract with the Hawks over the weekend. The second-round selection out of UConn signed for the minimum of $1,017,781 and the contract is only partially guaranteed for $450K, Hoops Rumors has learned. The second year of the contract ($1,719,864) is non-guaranteed.

Martin averaged 13.8 PPG, 3.6 RPG and 2.2 APG in five games at the Las Vegas Summer League.

We have more from the Eastern Conference:

Bucks rookie MarJon Beauchamp delivered some solid Summer League performances, Eric Nehm of The Athletic writes, with his 3-point shooting standing out. However, it’s not always indicative of what will happen in the regular season, he adds. Nehm also breaks down the performances of two-way players Sandro Mamukelashvili and AJ Green.
The Jazz hired Celtics assistant Will Hardy as their new head coach but Joe Mazzulla, another Boston assistant, was also a finalist for the position, Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe notes. He’ll now have a front-of-the-bench role due to Hardy’s departure. Jazz CEO and president of basketball operations Danny Ainge hired Mazzulla in 2018 out of the Division II ranks. “I just liked his presence,” Ainge said. “He just had a good way about him and how he developed players. … He just has a great way about him of pushing guys, holding them accountable, and letting them know this is a serious time.”
The Spurs bounced back from losing the 2013 Finals to Miami to win the championship the following season. Retired Spurs star Tony Parker told The Athletic’s Jay King that the Celtics can use their loss in this year’s Finals as a motivational tool. “For me, the way we lost in 2013, it created what happened in 2014,” Parker said. “Maybe one of the best finals in NBA history. Maybe the best Spurs basketball that we played. In 2014, the way we played, the passing game, everything, we were maybe at the highest level of my whole career. It started with a tough loss in 2013.”

Hawks Sign Second-Rounder Tyrese Martin

July 16th, 2022 at 10:10am CST by Dana Gauruder

The Hawks have signed second-round draft pick Tyrese Martin, the team announced in a press release.

It’s a two-year contract, Lauren Williams of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tweets.

Martin, the No. 51 overall pick, was acquired with a draft-night trade with the Warriors. Martin was dealt to Atlanta, along with cash considerations, in exchange for the draft rights to Ryan Rollins, the No. 44 pick.

Through four Summer League contests, the former UConn swingman is averaging 12.0 PPG, 3.8 RPG and 1.8 APG in 24.2 MPG. He had a game-high 21 points on 9-for-14 shooting from the floor in Atlanta’s 95-88 win over Miami on July 12.

Martin saw action in 29 games for the Huskies last season, averaging 13.6 PPG, 7.5 RPG and 1.9 APG in 32.1 MPG. He transferred to UConn following a two-year stint at Rhode Island.

Martin is the 14th Hawk to receive a standard contract for 2022/23.

Landry Fields: Hawks “Bet On The Character Makeup” Of Trae Young, Dejounte Murray

July 12th, 2022 at 11:00am CST by Arthur Hill

The Hawks‘ trade for Dejounte Murray was about finding a backcourt partner who fits well alongside Trae Young, general manager Landry Fields said in an interview with Mark Medina of NBA.com. Atlanta paid a steep price for Murray, sending three first-round picks and a pick swap to San Antonio along with Danilo Gallinari, but Fields believes the deal was worth it to find a possible long-time complement to Young.

Murray and Young have both been primary ball-handlers throughout their careers, so they’ll have to work on blending their offensive games together. Defensively, Murray can take on the toughest matchups and make it more difficult for opponents to exploit Young.

“We bet on the character makeup of Trae and Dejounte,” Fields said. “Both of those guys want to win, and will do what it takes to win. They need that because their roles will be a lot different than they were last year, from both respective teams. As long as they’re able to do what it takes, Coach [Nate McMillan] then comes in and is able to get creative with how they’ll operate. From a front-office standpoint, we’ll determine if we need to inject more here, here or here. Hopefully, all three of those are working at the same time.”

Fields addresses several other topics during the interview, including:

The trade that sent Kevin Huerter to the Kings in exchange for Justin Holiday, Maurice Harkless and a future first-round pick:

“Justin Holiday gives us more length around the perimeter and an ability to shoot from the perimeter. That opens things up for Trae and Dejounte with an ability to space the floor. That gives room for Clint [Capela] and John [Collins] as they’re working down in the interior. Hopefully, De’Andre [Hunter] continues to take the steps that he needs.

“With Moe, he’s a guy that plays hard and gives us depth at the four. It’s helpful in that regard. He’s a vet. He’s got great character and we like what he brings to the locker room. He’s not the most outgoing guy, but enough so that we feel there’s an impact there, too.”

John Collins, who has been the subject of frequent trade speculation since re-signing with the Hawks last offseason:

“This isn’t one of those, ‘We have to get off of John.’ That’s absurd. There’s a misinterpretation of that. You always think of the player from that standpoint because he is constantly in talks. You try to make sure with him that we check in and make sure he’s doing all right. It’s something where it’s less about wondering if he’s the long-term fit and it’s more about the fact that he gets called on a lot. The moment those calls come up, people talk. Then all of a sudden, here we are in the media with this thought that John Collins is not wanted by the Hawks.”

The status of McMillan, who reportedly could be on the hot seat if Atlanta gets off to another slow start:

“Coach has been great. After the season, as a staff, [president of basketball operations] Travis [Schlenk] had a chance to sit with him. He was working with him throughout the offseason. It’s his renewed approach to things and his viewpoints. He was leading by taking ownership and responsibility. It was good to see. You need that. I know he’s excited about the group. But he’s also hungry to get back to where we are, too. He’s been here day in and day out in Vegas. He’s been in the gym at our facility. He’s always been there.”

Frank Kaminsky Signs One-Year Deal With Hawks

July 12th, 2022 at 10:05am CST by Luke Adams

JULY 12: The signing is official, the Hawks announced in a press release.

JULY 8: Free agent big man Frank Kaminsky has agreed to terms on a one-year deal with the Hawks, agents Mark Bartelstein and Andy Shiffman tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). It’ll be worth the veteran’s minimum, according to Chris Kirschner of The Athletic (Twitter link).

Kaminsky began the 2021/22 season with the Suns and had a regular role in the team’s frontcourt rotation, averaging 10.6 PPG, 4.6 RPG, and 1.4 APG on .545/.333/.900 shooting through his first nine games (20.1 MPG).

However, Kaminsky’s season came to an early end due to a stress reaction in his right knee, which required surgery. The Suns waived him in April, making him an unrestricted free agent, and a report last week indicated the 29-year-old was unlikely to return to Phoenix after spending the last three seasons with the team.

Kaminsky is fully recovered from that right knee procedure, tweets Wojnarowski.

Entering the day, the Hawks had only been carrying 12 players on guaranteed contracts for 2022/23 — it appears Kaminsky will become the 13th, filling one of the team’s remaining roster openings. The former lottery pick will join a frontcourt rotation headed by Clint Capela, John Collins, and Onyeka Okongwu.

Suns Trade For Jock Landale

July 6th, 2022 at 6:20pm CST by Arthur Hill

JULY 6: The Hawks have officially traded Landale to the Suns in exchange for cash considerations, Atlanta confirmed in a press release. As we noted earlier this week, Landale’s minimum-salary contract has a small partial guarantee ($46,120).

JULY 2: The Suns will acquire Australian center Jock Landale from the Hawks, tweets Shams Charania of the Athletic. Atlanta will receive cash in return, according to Lauren L. Williams of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Twitter link).

Landale, 26, was a rookie with the Spurs last season, averaging 4.9 points and 2.7 rebounds in 54 games. He was shipped to the Hawks this week as part of the Dejounte Murray trade.

Landale signed with San Antonio in 2021 after going undrafted out of St. Mary’s. He also plays internationally for Australia and won a bronze medal at the 2020 Olympics.

The addition of Landale will help fill a vacancy for Phoenix, which lost back-up center JaVale McGee to the Mavericks in free agency and is exploring trade offers regarding starting center Deandre Ayton.

Hawks Trade Kevin Huerter To Kings

July 6th, 2022 at 12:52pm CST by Luke Adams

JULY 6: The trade is now official, according to a press release from the Hawks. Within the team’s announcement, president of basketball operations Travis Schlenk referred to Holiday and Harkless as “two defensive-minded, quality veterans who can help our team on the court and in the locker room.”

JULY 1: The Hawks and Kings have agreed to a trade that will send sharpshooter Kevin Huerter to Sacramento, sources tell ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

According to Wojnarowski, Atlanta will receive forwards Justin Holiday and Maurice Harkless in the deal, along with a future first-round pick.

That first-rounder will be the Kings’ own 2024 selection and will be lottery-protected, reports Chris Kirschner of The Athletic (Twitter link). If it doesn’t convey immediately, it would be top-12 protected in 2025 and top-10 protected in 2026. If it still hasn’t changed hands by that point, the Hawks would instead receive two second-rounders, says Kirschner.

The Kings have clearly made it a priority this offseason to add reliable outside shooting to complement their two stars, De’Aaron Fox and Domantas Sabonis. Huerter made a career-high 38.9% of his three-pointers in 2021/22, attempting 5.6 per game.

Neither Fox nor Sabonis is a major threat from beyond the arc, but they should be surrounded by solid floor-spaces. In addition to striking a deal for Huerter, the Kings have also drafted Keegan Murray and agreed to sign Malik Monk since the offseason began.

The Hawks, meanwhile, will replenish their stash of draft assets slightly after giving up three first-round picks and a swap to acquire Dejounte Murray earlier in the week.

Atlanta will also move off Huerter’s four-year, $65MM contract, creating a little extra long-term flexibility and also shedding some salary in the short term. As Yossi Gozlan of HoopsHype tweets, Atlanta is hovering right around the tax line for 13 players.

While the Hawks will miss Huerter’s shooting, their first-round pick, AJ Griffin, was considered one of the top marksmen in this year’s draft class and should help make up for that loss. Assuming both are retained, Holiday and Harkless also offer some defensive versatility that Huerter lacked.

The Hawks have now agreed to acquire two of the Holiday brothers today — they also reached a deal to sign point guard Aaron Holiday.

Hawks Hiring Mike Longabardi As Assistant Coach

July 4th, 2022 at 3:26pm CST by Luke Adams

The Hawks are hiring Mike Longabardi as an assistant coach, reports Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

With former Hawks lead assistant Chris Jent leaving Atlanta to take a job on Darvin Ham‘s Lakers staff, Joe Prunty will be promoted to become Nate McMillan‘s new top lieutenant and Longabardi will essentially fill Prunty’s old role, Wojnarowski explains.

Longabardi is a veteran NBA assistant coach who spent the 2021/22 season with the Kings. He previously served as an assistant on staffs in Houston from 2003-07, Boston from 2007-13, Phoenix from 2013-15, Cleveland from 2016-19, and Washington from 2019-21.

Longabardi, who a reputation as a defensive-minded coach, won titles with the Celtics in 2008 and the Cavaliers in 2016.

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