Atlanta Hawks Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Extension Rumors: Bridges, Huerter, Shamet, A. Holiday

October 13th, 2021 at 9:36am CST by Luke Adams

The Hornets have engaged in discussions about a possible rookie scale contract extension for forward Miles Bridges, according to Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. Bridges is one of 18 players who remains eligible for a rookie extension up until the October 18 deadline.

Scotto says that some people around the NBA believe $20MM per year would be the floor for Bridges on a new deal. That’s the same price that has been frequently projected for another Bridges with a similar skill set: Mikal Bridges of the Suns.

Here are a few updates from Scotto on possible rookie scale extensions:

The Suns and sharpshooter Landry Shamet have been having ongoing conversations about a possible extension, with one source suggesting that the odds of the two sides reaching a deal are about 50-50, says Scotto. Shamet has yet to appear in a regular season game for his new team, but Phoenix had reportedly coveted him for a while.
Scotto suggests that Hawks wing Kevin Huerter could get “Joe Harris type of money,” adding that some people around the league think Huerter’s value is in the neighborhood of $18MM annually. Harris signed a four-year, $72MM contract with Brooklyn during the 2020 offseason.
The Wizards and Aaron Holiday aren’t discussing an extension, but Washington likes the 25-year-old and will likely evaluate him over the course of the 2021/22 season, according to Scotto.
Extensions for Trail Blazers guard Anfernee Simons and Bulls swingman Troy Brown appear unlikely, per Scotto.

Southeast Notes: Hachimura, Magic, Huerter, Walker

October 12th, 2021 at 8:30pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

Wizards power forward Rui Hachimura has returned to D.C. after a weeks-long excused absence due to personal reasons, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington (Twitter link). Hachimura, 23, averaged 13.8 PPG and 5.5 RPG in 57 games for Washington during the 2021/22 season.

Hughes notes that the 6’8″ third-year player, a 2019 lottery selection out of Gonzaga, will now have to wait to clear COVID-19 protocols. He missed several weeks with the Wizards during the club’s 2021/22 training camp/preseason. The team expects him to return within a few days.

There’s more out of the Southeast Division:

The Magic have announced several promotions within their front office, per a team press release. Matt Lloyd and Anthony Parker have been promoted to prominent roles for the club, with Lloyd upgraded to the title of vice president of basketball operations and Parker to assistant GM.
Hawks shooting guard Kevin Huerter appears to be confident he’ll receive a rookie contract extension before the October 18 deadline, following a terrific showing in the Eastern Conference playoffs with Atlanta, writes Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. Kirschner notes that, during the 2021 offseason, Huerter had a left ankle procedure to treat long-term soreness that had afflicted him throughout the 2020/21 season. “I think both sides are saying the right things and want to get something done,” Huerter said. “I’m as confident as I’ve ever been. I think both sides want to get something done. It’s obviously just coming up with the right value.” The 23-year-old, drafted with the No. 19 pick out of Maryland in 2018, averaged 11.9 PPG, 3.5 APG, 3.3 RPG and 1.2 SPG in 69 games for Atlanta last year. He posted a shooting line of .432/.363/.781.
The Capital City Go-Go, NBA G League affiliate of the Wizards, will add rookie small forward Kyree Walker, tweets Jordan Schultz of Boardroom. Schultz mentions that Walker could be considered for the Wizards’ open two-way player slot. The Wizards previously had been preparing to add Walker to their training camp roster and may still sign him to an Exhibit 10 contract to secure his NBAGL rights.

And-Ones: Li. Ball, Restricted Free Agency, 2022 Draft, Floyd

October 12th, 2021 at 11:16am CST by Luke Adams

LiAngelo Ball, the brother of NBA guards LaMelo Ball and Lonzo Ball, is signing a G League contract and will enter the October 23 NBAGL draft, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link).

LiAngelo played for the Hornets in the Las Vegas Summer League, and Charania suggests he’s a candidate to be selected by the Greensboro Swarm – Charlotte’s G League affiliate – in the NBAGL draft. However, if the Hornets were prioritizing Ball for a spot on their G League squad, they’d likely sign him to an Exhibit 10 contract in order to make him an affiliate player.

As John Hollinger of The Athletic tweets, the G League draft isn’t expected to be packed with talent, so Ball has a good chance of coming off the board in the top 10 or 20 picks.

Here are more odds and ends from around the basketball world:

Jonathan Givony and Mike Schmitz of ESPN (Insider link) have updated their top-100 list for the 2022 NBA draft. Within the article, Schmitz identifies French center Ismael Kamagate as the international prospect who is “making the most noise” early in the season. Kamagate is the No. 36 player on ESPN’s 2022 big board.
In an interesting piece for HoopsHype, Michael Scotto spoke with a handful of agents and team executives about how restricted free agency works behind the scenes. One agent suggested that restricted free agency is “not really free agency,” since rival teams are so reluctant to sign players to offer sheets that tie up cap space for several days at the start of the league year and may just end up being matched.
The Bucks (No. 2), Heat (No. 5), Suns (No. 6), Warriors (No. 7), and Hawks (No. 11) are among the biggest risers in ESPN’s latest installment of “future” power rankings from Kevin Pelton, Bobby Marks, Andre’ Snellings, and Tim Bontemps (Insider link). For a second consecutive year, the Nets rank first and the Cavaliers are dead-last on ESPN’s list, which is essentially designed to be power rankings that cover the next three seasons.
Free agent guard Jordan Floyd, who was on the Lakers’ Summer League roster, is signing with Kolossos H Hotels in Greece on a deal that includes an NBA out, a source told our JD Shaw (Twitter link).

Hawks Sign Ibi Watson To Exhibit 10 Deal

October 12th, 2021 at 11:03am CST by Luke Adams

OCTOBER 12: Nearly two-and-a-half months after the two sides reached an agreement, the Hawks have officially signed Watson to his Exhibit 10 contract, the club announced today in a press release.

JULY 30: The Hawks have agreed to an Exhibit 10 deal with undrafted Dayton shooting guard Ibi Watson, a league source tells our JD Shaw (Twitter link).

Watson, who began his college career at Michigan, transferred to Dayton in advance of his junior year after not seeing much action in two years with the Wolverines. He emerged as a full-time starter for the Flyers as a senior in 2020/21, averaging 15.7 PPG and 4.1 RPG with a .467/.416/.757 shooting line in 24 games (37.1 MPG).

Watson, who will play for the Hawks at the Las Vegas Summer League, can officially sign his contract once the new league year begins next week.

An Exhibit 10 deal can eventually be converted to a standard NBA contract or a two-way pact. It can also put a player on track to join his team’s G League affiliate if he doesn’t make the NBA roster.

Hawks Release Jahlil Okafor

October 11th, 2021 at 3:22pm CST by Luke Adams

Veteran center Jahlil Okafor has been cut for the second time this offseason, as the Hawks announced in a press release on Monday that they’ve requested waivers on the big man. Atlanta now has 19 players under contract.

A former third overall pick, Okafor spent last season in Detroit, averaging 5.4 PPG and 2.4 RPG in a very limited role (12.9 MPG) across 27 games. The big man has also spent time with the Sixers, Nets, and Pelicans since entering the NBA out of Duke in 2015. He was traded from Detroit to Brooklyn in September and was subsequently waived by the Nets before catching on with Atlanta for training camp.

Okafor was on a non-guaranteed contract with the Hawks, so he was never a great bet to make the team’s regular season roster. However, Atlanta only has 14 players with fully guaranteed contracts, so someone with a non-guaranteed deal could still make the 15-man squad. Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and DaQuan Jeffries are among those in the mix.

Okafor, meanwhile, will be looking for another opportunity if and when he clears waivers on Wednesday.

Cooper Impressing In Preseason

October 10th, 2021 at 2:39pm CST by Rory Maher

Hawks rookie Sharife Cooper is having an impressive preseason, according to Sarah K. Spencer of The Atlanta-Journal Constitution. Cooper, the 48th pick in the draft, is on a two-way contract, and coach Nate McMillan likes what he’s seen so far, per Spencer. “I love the energy that he’s bringing,” McMillan said of Cooper. “He’s scrappy. He’s playing scrappy basketball out there. He’s trying to make a statement. He’s stepping up, and he’s not pacing himself.”

Reddish Puts Positive Spin On Trade Rumors

October 7th, 2021 at 9:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Cam Reddish heard his name pop up in trade rumors this offseason but the Hawks forward puts a positive spin on it, Chris Kirchner of The Athletic writes. “It didn’t affect me at all,” Reddish said. “It’s really a compliment when you think about it. It’s all good. I just have to control what I can control. Clearly, I have some decent value, so that’s a compliment.”
Hawks star guard Trae Young feels all the pieces are in place for a championship run, according to Michael Pina of Sports Illustrated. “We have everything,” Young said. Pina takes an in-depth look at Young’s development and his supporting cast.

Hawks Sign DaQuan Jeffries, Waive A.J. Lawson

October 7th, 2021 at 12:00pm CST by Luke Adams

12:00pm: In order to make room on the roster for Jeffries, the Hawks have waived guard A.J. Lawson, who had been on an Exhibit 10 contract, per a team press release confirming both transactions. Lawson could end up playing for the College Park Skyhawks, Atlanta’s G League affiliate.

10:57am: The Hawks have agreed to sign free agent wing DaQuan Jeffries, according to Chris Kirschner of The Athletic, who reports (via Twitter) that Jeffries will get a partially guaranteed contract.

Jeffries, 24, made his NBA debut with the Kings during the 2019/20 season and saw limited minutes for the team across two seasons before being released this past April. He was claimed off waivers by the Rockets and ended up averaging 4.1 PPG and 2.3 RPG in 31 games (15.9 MPG) for Sacramento and Houston in 2020/21.

The Rockets cut Jeffries during the final week of the regular season and he was once again claimed off waivers, this time by the Spurs. However, he didn’t appear in a regular season game with San Antonio and the club opted not to pick up his option for the 2021/22 season, making him a free agent.

The Hawks have a full 20-man roster and will have to trade or waive a player in order to officially add Jeffries. As for whether he has a chance to make the regular season squad, that remains to be seen — the size of his partial guarantee could provide a hint, once it’s reported.

Atlanta has 14 players on fully guaranteed salaries, so the 15th spot appears up for grabs. A player who spent training camp with the team might have a leg up for that spot, but camp invitees Jahlil Okafor and Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot haven’t been particularly effective in the preseason so far. Of course, the Hawks may also elect not to carry a 15th man to start the season.

NBA GMs Like Heat’s Offseason Moves, Nets’ Title Chances

October 5th, 2021 at 11:32am CST by Luke Adams

Nearly half of the NBA’s general managers voted for the Heat as the team that had the best 2021 offseason, John Schuhmann of NBA.com writes in his annual survey of the league’s GMs. Miami got 14 of 30 possible votes, while the Lakers picked up five votes. The Nets, Rockets, and Wizards were the other teams picked by multiple GMs as having the best offseason.

The Heat’s acquisition of Kyle Lowry via sign-and-trade helped tip the scales in their favor. Asked which offseason player acquisition will make the biggest impact for his new team this season, GMs overwhelmingly chose Lowry — he received 23 of 30 votes. New Lakers point guard Russell Westbrook was the only other player to get multiple votes (five).

Although the Heat and Lakers received high marks from rival GMs for their work over the summer, neither club is considered the title favorite entering the 2021/22 season. That honor belongs to the Nets, who earned 22 votes from GMs for the team that will win the 2022 Finals. The Lakers (five) and Bucks (three) were the only other teams to receive any votes.

Here are a few more of the most interesting responses from Schuhmann’s GM survey, which is worth checking out in full:

The Trail Blazers‘ trade for Larry Nance Jr. received the most votes (28%) for the most underrated acquisition of the offseason, with the Nets‘ signing of Patty Mills (17%) and the Wizards‘ addition of Spencer Dinwiddie (14%) also receiving support in that category.
The NBA’s GMs view Rockets guard Jalen Green (47%) and Pistons guard Cade Cunningham (40%) as the best bets to win Rookie of the Year, but voted Cavaliers big man Evan Mobley as the rookie who will be the best player in five years. Mobley (33%) narrowly edged out Cunningham (30%) and Green (23%) in that category.
The GMs voted the Magic‘s selection of Jalen Suggs at No. 5 (23%) and the Rockets‘ pick of Alperen Sengun at No. 16 (20%) as the biggest steals of the 2021 draft.
The Bulls (27%) are considered the best bet to be the most improved team in 2021/22, while Grizzlies forward Jaren Jackson Jr. (17%) received the most support as the top breakout candidate.
Following their run to the Eastern Conference Finals, the Hawks (50%) were overwhelmingly voted as the team with the best young core. The Rockets received three votes, while no other team got more than two.
Only two players received multiple votes when GMs were asked which player they’d want to start a franchise with: Mavericks star Luka Doncic (43%) barely beat out Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo (40%).

Hunter Ready For Breakout Season

October 1st, 2021 at 9:59pm CST by Dana Gauruder

De’Andre Hunter is eager to show he can offer more to the Hawks this season, as he told Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. Hunter was limited by a knee injury last season, appearing in just 23 regular-season games and five postseason games. “I just want to show people that I got better,” Hunter said. “I’ve been working on my game as much as I can given the surgery. I want to show everyone I’m better this year.”