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Kevin Pelton of ESPN assessed the summer performance of every NBA team and, in short, he did not enjoy what Schlenk and company elected to do. Atlanta was given a “D-” grade and only the Charlotte Hornets (F) were graded as harshly:



The Hawks’ three biggest moves of the offseason involved point guards coming and going. When Luka Doncic slipped to Atlanta at the third pick, the Hawks opted to trade down two spots and take Oklahoma point guard Trae Young, picking up a future first-rounder from the Dallas Mavericks in the process. After an up (Las Vegas) and down (Salt Lake City) summer-league run from Young, Atlanta could regret passing on Doncic if he lives up to his statistical projections.

Atlanta used much of its cap space on adding Jeremy Lin, coming off a ruptured patella, as a veteran mentor to share time with Young. With a crowd at the point, the Hawks sent incumbent starter Dennis Schroder to the Oklahoma City Thunder as part of a deal taking back Carmelo Anthony’s contract. That trade could yield a first-round pick, but only if the Thunder make the playoffs in 2022.




All told, it would be easy to evaluate Atlanta’s offseason in a negative light, especially if one harbored significant distaste toward the Young-Doncic trade. Still, it takes a combination of three separately negative evaluations to come to a “D-” grade and that appears overly harsh when considering the team’s present-day goals.

30 Teams In 30 Days: Atlanta Hawks


2017-18 Record: (24-58, did not qualify for the playoffs)

Who’s new: Coach Lloyd Pierce, Trae Young (Draft), Kevin Huerter (Draft), Omari Spellman (Draft), Jeremy Lin (trade), Justin Anderson (trade), Alex Len (free agency), Vince Carter (free agency)

Who’s gone: Coach Mike Budenholzer, Dennis Schroder, Mike Muscala

The lowdown: Three years after winning a conference-best 60 games, the Hawks crash-landed and clearly set their sights on the Draft lottery by the 2018 All-Star break. New GM Travis Schlenk dumped Marco Belinelli and Ersan Ilasova at the trade deadline and would’ve shipped off a few more players if he could. Basically, Schlenk attempted to scrub most of the work of Budenholzer, who ran the basketball operation previously. John Collins made the All-Rookie team and Taurean Prince finished strong. However, Kent Bazemore — the club’s highest-paid player — sputtered and never felt comfortable being a volume scorer (12.9 points per game). The Hawks couldn’t win or generate much interest in Atlanta, putting the framework for a fresh era in place well before 2017-18 ended.

The Hawks held the No. 3 overall pick in the 2018 Draft. Deandre Ayton and Marvin Bagley III were off the board. What say you, Mr. Schlenk?

He made a gutsy move, bypassing European sensation Luka Doncic in favor of Young and a 2019 protected first from the Mavericks. Schlenk admitted the Hawks’ war room was evenly split on Doncic and Young, but the ’19 first-rounder was the deal-maker. That’s not an overwhelming vote of confidence for Young, and you wonder if Hawks ownership nudged Schlenk into making the deal because of Young’s star potential. The organization dropped millions to give the newly-renamed State Farm Arena some bling over the last year and obviously crave a player with flair to move the needle in Atlanta.

...the summer belonged to the deal the Hawks swung for Young. It’s one of those decisions that could make Schlenk look like a genius, especially if he scores big on the 2019 Dallas pick and Young pans out. The flip side? Doncic becomes the transcendent star in Dallas that the Hawks craved. The final verdict on this deal won’t be delivered for years. By then, will the Hawks be winners?

and, of course -- landing Linsanity.

NBA Offseason Grade for Every Team

Atlanta Hawks: Decidedly Average (C)

The Atlanta Hawks were busy this offseason, adding Jeremy Lin, dumping Dennis Schroder as part of a deal that also made Carmelo Anthony one of the shortest-tenured Hawks in history, trading Mike Muscala, hiring Lloyd Pierce to replace Mike Budenholzer, and snagging Kevin Huerter at No. 19 in the draft.

But combine all of that, and it still doesn't matter as much as the deal the Hawks struck on draft night.

If Luka Doncic is a superstar and Trae Young isn't, the Hawks will regret this offseason for years. Atlanta dealt Doncic to the Mavs for Young and a top-five protected first-rounder in 2019. Picking up an additional first just for moving down two spots sounds fantastic, but the particulars of this scenario make it a massive risk.

It could pay off if Young is a cornerstone, but his summer-league play revealed the exact shortcomings his detractors worried about. Lacking burst and struggling to create separation, clean looks were hard to come by for Young. He flashed excellent passing vision, but if he can't generate his own offense from the perimeter, Young is in for a rough ride.

Rather than cop out and wait until we know more about the Doncic-Young dynamic, we're going with an average grade. At the very least, the Hawks followed a clear vision under GM Travis Schlenk by adding assets and signing up for a deliberate rebuild. Most clubs skip steps, so kudos to the Hawks for what appears to be extreme patience.

Grading each teams offseason

Atlanta Hawks: C



Additions: Trae Young, Kevin Huerter, Omari Spellman, Jeremy Lin, Justin Anderson and Lloyd Pierce

Subtractions: Dennis Schroder, Mike Muscala

New Hawks GM Travis Schlenk is clearly trying to replicate the Steph Curry -- Klay Thompson -- Draymond gReentrio in Atlanta as seen by his Young -- Huerter -- Spellman draft selections. Unfortunately for him, his guys are all poor man's versions of the Warriors Hall of Fame trifecta, and his vision may have caused him to pass on a potential superstar in Luka Doncic.

Offseason grades for every team


Atlanta Hawks

Grade: B

The rebuilding Hawks gambled by trading Luka Doncic for Trae Young and a protected 2019 first-round pick, then got rid of Dennis Schroder to put the team entirely in Young's hands. They also picked up another first-round pick for facilitating Carmelo's exit from OKC. It's going to be a while before the Hawks are good again, but they're collecting assets along the way.

Jamaaliver wrote:

Offseason grades for every team


Atlanta Hawks

Grade: B

The rebuilding Hawks gambled by trading Luka Doncic for Trae Young and a protected 2019 first-round pick, then got rid of Dennis Schroder to put the team entirely in Young's hands. They also picked up another first-round pick for facilitating Carmelo's exit from OKC. It's going to be a while before the Hawks are good again, but they're collecting assets along the way.

CBS Sports

macd-gm wrote:Hilarious. I know of two grades B and D-. These folks don't know anything really. I agree with B. Maybe B+.

Jamaaliver wrote:

macd-gm wrote:Hilarious. I know of two grades B and D-. These folks don't know anything really. I agree with B. Maybe B+.

This surprises me.

You were extremely critical of Travis during the Budenholzer Conundrum.

Has the drafting of Trae (and Huerter) caused you to come back around on our GM?