What should the Atlanta Hawks do with Garrison Mathews next season?

Garrison Mathews is the next Atlanta Hawks player who will potentially be impacted by the franchise’s win in the draft lottery. There are different schools of thought as to who they should take with the No. 1 pick, but it seems to come down to a few options, Alexandre Sarr, Donovan Clingan, or Zaccahrie Risacher.

If the Hawks decide to go with one of the two big men on this roster, it might seem like a good move to retain Garrison Mathews. However, if the Hawks decide to go with Risacher’s wing option, then life could become a little more difficult for Mathews as the Hawks will have a surplus of wing players.

The problem for the Hawks is how much they are currently paying for wingers, and that could mean a trade of Bogdan Bogdanovic or De’Andre Hunter. Both of these players looked much better coming off the bench last season, but that means only these two players on the Hawks bench are using just under $39.0 million of the salary cap.

What Mathews brings to the Hawks is a player willing to put his body on the line on defense while spacing the floor on offense. Over the last two seasons that Mathews has been a member of the Hawks franchise, he has made 43.6 percent of his 3-point attempts. That’s 95 out of 218, a respectable number in a decent sample size.

However, Mathews is a bit of a one-dimensional player. While he made 218 shots from beyond the arc, he only made 39 shots inside the arc. Fortunately for Mathews, his time on the field towards the end of last season showed that there was still development in his game.

He added a breakout dribble to his game, which means he’s going to be harder to defend. Instead of being able to rush to the perimeter to press the 3-point shot, opposing defenses will have to hang back a bit. This will give Mathews some extra time to shoot, potentially making him more dangerous from beyond the arc.

Getting this for just $2.2 million for next season could be a steal, the Hawks have a tough decision to make. AJ Griffin has the tools to become a generational shooter. Hunter and Bogdanovic are incredible players as long as they stay on the court. On top of that, Jalen Johnson is a player ready to take this team to another level who can also play on the wing.

If the Hawks guarantee Mathews’ deal, then that has to be the case if he is traded, especially if they draft Risacher. He won’t add enough to the team in the short or long term to warrant a spot on the team over a player who can develop into a more complete NBA player.