Analyst Reveals What Atlanta Hawks’ Biggest Fear Should Be This Offseason

The 2024 NBA Draft is two weeks away and it’s the first big night of what should be a big offseason for the Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks have to figure out who to take with the No. 1 pick, what to do with the Trae Young/Dejounte Murray backcourt, and the futures of other players such as Clint Capela, De’Andre Hunter and Bogdan Bogdanovic hang in the balance. ‘air. This is a crucial offseason for the Hawks and they need to make the right decisions and put this franchise on the right path to contention.

What if things go wrong? What would be the worst-case scenario for the Hawks this offseason? Bleacher Report’s Greg Swartz gave his take on what would be the worst-case scenario for the Hawks this offseason and it has to do with the next pick they make in the NBA draft:

“We didn’t know who the Cleveland Cavaliers took as their first overall pick in the 2013 draft until David Stern made the announcement.

This wasn’t due to the Cavs’ successful attempt at secrecy, but rather the lack of a clear No. 1 pick. We could see history repeat itself in 2024, although hopefully with a better outcome now for the Atlanta Hawks.

Alex Sarr, Zaccharie Risacher and maybe even a few surprise candidates are still on the table for the Hawks to select first overall.

Atlanta still has a lot of growing to do this summer with the Trae Young-Dejounte Murray backcourt, Saddiq Bey’s free agency and a roster headed toward the luxury tax next season. However, missing out on the No. 1 pick and enduring an Anthony Bennett situation should be the team’s biggest fear. »

As soon as the Hawks won the draft last month, there was already a feeling that of course this was the lottery that the Hawks would win. Much has been made of the lack of superstar level talent in this draft, much like the 2013 draft. I think this draft is better than the 2013 draft, but that still means Atlanta needs to make the right choice. Whether it’s Sarr, Clingan or Risacher, the Hawks can’t afford to miss out on a key piece going forward, even if that player isn’t expected to be the best on this team. Remember, the 2013 draft also included Giannis Antetokounmpo, Rudy Gobert, CJ McCollum, and Victor Oladipo. This should be a reminder that even in drafts that don’t turn out great, there are still good players who come out of them. There will likely be some All-Stars in this draft, but the Hawks need to find one.

There are other ways this offseason could go wrong for the Hawks. Until we have a clear idea of ​​what the Hawks want to do with the team’s pieces, I think it’s fair to say that what the Hawks do in the draft might be the most important decision for the Hawks this season.