Atlanta Hawks Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Lou Williams: 2021/22 May Be My Last Season

November 2nd, 2021 at 10:45am CST by Luke Adams

Speaking to Taylor Rooks of Bleacher Report (video link) about his NBA career, Hawks guard Lou Williams said that 2021/22 is “probably my last season.” However, Williams admitted that he thought the same thing last season and continued playing.

“Potentially,” Williams said when pressed by Rooks about whether he intends to retire after the current season. “I have the clarity, I’m OK with that. But I’m also OK with continuing to play if that’s where it takes me. I’m prepared for the worst.”

It doesn’t sound like Williams has made any decisions yet, but the fact that he’s even discussing retirement is noteworthy. The three-time Sixth Man of the Year just turned 35 last Wednesday, and some of his contemporaries have talked about wanting to play into their 40s. It doesn’t sound like the 17th-year guard expects his playing career to last anywhere near that long.

Williams, who entered the NBA as a second-round pick in 2005, has averaged double-digit points per game for 14 straight seasons, but has gotten off to a slow start this fall, averaging 6.3 PPG and 0.5 APG on .381/.333/1.000 shooting in four games for Atlanta.

While there’s plenty of time to increase those numbers, Williams’ limited playing time so far (12.3 MPG, two DNP-CDs) suggests he likely won’t have a major role for the Hawks this season. He’ll be a free agent in 2022 when his one-year, $5MM deal with the club expires.

Southeast Notes: Hawks, Hornets, Riley, Butler

October 31st, 2021 at 2:58pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The 3-3 Hawks have yet to recapture the momentum that propelled them to the Eastern Conference Finals last season, writes Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. With an intimidating schedule coming up in which Atlanta will play several 2021 playoff teams, Kirschner offers his thoughts on how the club can adjust.

While forwards Cam Reddish and John Collins have exhibited plenty of growth, other key Hawks players have struggled a bit. Point guard Trae Young is struggling to adjust to the league’s new free throw rules, while shooting guard Kevin Huerter is struggling to connect from deep.

There’s more out of the Southeast Division:

The Hornets have already enjoyed a promising start to the 2021/22 season, writes Roderick Boone of the Charlotte Observer. New additions Ish Smith and Kelly Oubre have fit in well thus far, with Oubre connecting on a solid 35.7% of his three-point looks. 2022 restricted free agent forward Miles Bridges has taken his scoring to borderline All-Star heights, and Boone is pegging his future contract in the $100MM vicinity. When it comes to perimeter depth, Boone observes that Cody Martin, Jalen McDaniels, and Nick Richards are also improving.
The hot start of the Heat has Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel wondering if team president Pat Riley has finally nailed the club’s supporting lineup around All-Stars Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. The club has wholly recalibrated its frontcourt depth around Adebayo, and the early results have paid dividends thus far. The addition of former Raptors All-Star point guard Kyle Lowry has made a huge defensive impact on Miami, though his offense is struggling so far. Sixth man Tyler Herro also appears to have taken a leap in his third season.
Heat All-Star swingman Jimmy Butler has thrived alongside new addition Kyle Lowry. Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald wonders if Butler has been newly maximized as a player alongside the former six-time All-Star point guard.

Trae Young Fined $15K For Contact With Referee

October 29th, 2021 at 7:41pm CST by Rory Maher

The NBA has fined Hawks point guard Trae Young $15K for making contact with a referee, the league announced (via Twitter).

The league also provided a video link of the incident, which occurred during the second quarter of Atlanta’s game Thursday night, a 122-111 loss to the Wizards.

Young appeared frustrated after not receiving a foul call after a slight bump from Raul Neto and a missed shot attempt, which was tipped in by John Collins immediately afterwards. Young then made contact with the referee closest to the play and received a technical foul.

Young made comments after the game that showed his frustration with the incident and the new rule changes to limit “non-basketball moves.”

Young: Hunter, Reddish Almost Like Free Agent Adds

October 25th, 2021 at 9:06pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Having De’Andre Hunter and Cam Reddish healthy and productive is almost like signing two impact free agents, Hawks star Trae Young told Marc Stein of Substack. Both of those players were limited during Atlanta’s postseason run. “We didn’t have them most of the playoffs,” Young said. “And ‘Dre … not having him in the last two series made it a lot tougher for everybody. And then Cam only being able to play the last couple games in the playoffs. Those two guys are key guys for us. Having them healthy is going to be big.” Hunter missed Monday’s game with a non-COVID-related illness.

Ressler Wants Hawks To Be Top-Tier Free Agent Destination

October 25th, 2021 at 9:54am CST by Luke Adams

Although Atlanta is one of the NBA’s largest markets, the Hawks haven’t typically been the sort of franchise stars flock to, like those based in Los Angles, New York, and Miami. Team owner Tony Ressler is hoping to change that, as Chris Kirschner of The Athletic writes.

Since assuming control of the team, Ressler has renovated State Farm Arena, built a state-of-the-art practice facility, purchased a G League franchise, and – most recently – invested huge money in several important members of the team that made a run to the Eastern Conference Finals earlier this year.

Trae Young, John Collins, Clint Capela, and Kevin Huerter have all received lucrative long-term deals in the last three months, and Ressler says he’ll have no issue with paying the luxury tax going forward as long as Atlanta continues to contend.

“How could we not be a true free agent destination?” Ressler rhetorically asked Kirschner. “We think, I would argue, our facilities are as good as any, our city is as good as any, our roster is as good as any, our investment, our dollars, our commitment to spend is as good as any. It makes no sense that historically this team has not been a top-tier free agent destination. And I think you have to earn that, and make clear that it’s a franchise committed to winning in every sense of the way.

“… One of the true objectives or genuine objectives of this ownership is to make sure that we win on a tie for great players, if we have to. That we attract great players, that we keep great players, and that players, frankly, look at Atlanta as a really great place to play. I think that takes a lot of work. Hopefully we’re pretty close.”

The Hawks operated as an over-the-cap team this offseason, but had significant cap space available for a few summers before that. In most cases, Atlanta opted to use that space to accommodate salary dumps and accumulate assets, but the club forayed into free agency in 2020, signing veterans like Danilo Gallinari, Bogdan Bogdanovic, and Rajon Rondo. Those players aren’t superstars, but Gallinari and Bogdanovic especially were a couple of the top available players on the open market.

The Hawks don’t project to have cap space again anytime soon, but if Ressler’s plan is successful, a higher caliber of player may be interested in joining the team on mid-level or minimum-salary money. That could be a factor in helping to push Atlanta over the top, though Ressler told Kirschner he believes that – even without further upgrades – the current roster is capable of winning a title.

“We expect to be contenders, man,” Ressler said. “We expect to be really good. We hope to be really good, and we’re going to see how it plays out.”

Southeast Notes: Fournier, Reddish, Ross, Kuzma

October 24th, 2021 at 11:57am CST by Arthur Hill

After spending six-and-a-half years in Orlando, Knicks guard Evan Fournier knew he was on the way out last season when he heard the Magic sent Nikola Vucevic to Chicago, writes Marc Berman of The New York Post. Orlando purged most of its veteran talent at the trade deadline as the team committed fully to rebuilding. Within a few hours, the Magic finalized deals involving Vucevic, Fournier and Aaron Gordon.

“Once they pulled the plug with Vuc — because Vuc got traded first to Chicago — I remember it was the one year where I felt, OK, this might happen for real now,’’ Fournier said. ‘When I saw Vuc, I was with my wife at home like, ‘Yeah, honey, we out,’ because obviously you trade Vuc. Then it was myself, then it was Gordon.’’

Fournier, who was dealt to the Celtics before signing with New York over the summer, is glad to be in different surroundings as he prepares to face his former team for the second straight game. With a roster full of young players, the Magic may be looking at several years before they return to the playoffs.

“That’s a rebuild, so a rebuild takes time,’’ Fournier said. “It is definitely gonna take them time to figure it out. It’s not my problem anymore.’’

There’s more from the Southeast Division:

Rival teams view Hawks forward Cam Reddish as a strong trade candidate, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. Atlanta made Reddish available at the March deadline and again heading into the draft, but couldn’t find the right deal, Scotto states. One executive told Scotto that teams would be willing to offer a protected lottery pick for Reddish.
Executives around the league expect the Magic to eventually trade Terrence Ross to a playoff team, Scotto adds in the same piece. Orlando was seeking a first-round pick in exchange for the veteran swingman last season, but teams may not be willing to meet that price. “He’ll be moved,” an unidentified executive said. “They were trying to move him at the draft. They wanted to put him in a place where he could win. I think he’s worth a couple of second-round picks.”
Kyle Kuzma, who was part of the Wizards‘ return for sending Russell Westbrook to the Lakers, believes the deal has made Washington a better team, per Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. “I mean, you gotta do that trade 10 out of 10 times,” Kuzma said. “If you have an opportunity to get five good basketball players for one, it makes sense. Granted, (Westbrook is) obviously a Hall-of-Fame player and everything. He’s an unbelievable player, don’t take that wrong. But especially for a team like Washington, if you look at the track record from the past couple of years, it hasn’t necessarily been enough ballplayers here. … It’s smart, you have to do it if you’re a GM.”

Healthy De'Andre Hunter Could Be Hawks' Difference-Maker

October 23rd, 2021 at 3:56pm CST by JD Shaw

A healthy De’Andre Hunter could be a difference-maker for the Hawks, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic writes. The 23-year-old Hunter is in his third season with the team. He appeared in 23 games last season, averaging 15 points per contest on 48% shooting.

Kevin Huerter Likes Hawks' Roster Continuity

October 22nd, 2021 at 12:54pm CST by Luke Adams

Hawks swingman Kevin Huerter, who signed a four-year, $65MM contract extension earlier this week, is excited about the fact that the team locked up several members of its core – including Trae Young, John Collins, and Clint Capela – to long-term deals this offseason, as Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution details. “We signed a lot of people to a lot of money this offseason. … As players, it speaks a lot,” Huerter said. “They kind of put their money where their mouth was. … There’s a lot of guys locked in for a couple years now as we try to make some noise.”

Collins Relieved Not To Have To Worry About Contract

October 19th, 2021 at 1:18pm CST by Arthur Hill

Hawks big man John Collins is relieved not to have to think about his contract situation this season after signing a five-year, $125MM deal with the team over the summer, he tells Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. “It’s like getting a full, restful night of sleep. That’s what it felt like to sign the paper,” Collins said. “That relief of stress and pressure just felt like I was fully awake now. It put me in a better mood. It took me a while to understand the stress but in the moment, it’s just pure bliss.”

Hawks, Kevin Huerter Complete Four-Year Extension

October 18th, 2021 at 5:54pm CST by Dana Gauruder

5:54pm: Huerter has officially signed his extension, per NBA.com’s transactions log.

4:31pm: The Hawks and Kevin Huerter have agreed to terms on a four-year rookie scale extension worth $65MM, agents Mark Bartelstein and Andy Shiffman tell Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link). The deal is fully guaranteed, according to Tim Reynolds of The Associated Press (Twitter link).

This continues Atlanta’s trend of locking up its young core. Trae Young signed a five-year max extension in August. John Collins inked a five-year extension this summer and Clint Capela received a two-year extension.

Overall, as ESPN’s Bobby Marks notes (Twitter link), the franchise has handed out more than $400MM in contracts this offseason — Young’s $172.5MM, John Collins’ $125MM, Huerter’s deal and Capela’s $46MM. Atlanta could certainly be confronted with luxury tax issues in future years but the ownership group appears willing to do whatever it takes to keep their top players in the fold.

Huerter, 23, is one of the team’s key wing pieces. He’s a 37.6% 3-point shooter over the first three years of his career. He averaged 11.9 PPG, 3.3 RPG and 3.5 APG last season in 69 regular season games, including 49 starts. During the Hawks’ run to the Eastern Conference Finals, he started 10 of 18 games and averaged 11.1 PPG, 3.8 RPG and 2.8 APG.

Huerter’s extension is similar to the one the Clippers wing Luke Kennard received last winter.