Obnoxiously early 2019 Offseason Thread

[Jamaaliver]

Seeing how effective Gasol has been of late makes believe we can and should invest in a 2-way Center at some point in this rebuild.

(I'm still dreaming of Wendell Carter, Jr.) Goga can do all of this, offensively.

NOTE: I still don't love the thought of Centers camped out at the 3-pt line, but it's impossible to deny that's where the league has taken us...for now.

Marc Gasol was once a basketball dinosaur before becoming a Raptor



According to ESPN Stats & Information, Gasol has been one of the league's most effective 3-point shooters this postseason. Of the 32 players who have taken at least 50 3s in the playoffs, he ranks 12th with a shooting percentage of 38.8. When Gasol drains the long ball, it pays off for the Raptors, opening up the floor for the likes of Kawhi Leonard and Pascal Siakam.

Even the threat of Gasol from beyond the arc is an asset. The two-month Raptor knocked down only one of four shots from beyond the arc but pitched in 17 points, seven rebounds and four assists in 26 minutes in Game 3. Those minutes offered valued space on the floor, and Toronto secured a 2-1 advantage behind its best offensive showing of the Finals.

"We'd like him to shoot them, especially when it's a rhythm shot," Nurse says, "but Marc is one of the great big-men passers. It's always harder to convince guys to shoot more than to convince guys to shoot less. That's the battle we're in a little bit with Marc."

Left unsaid is this: Toronto needs more from its thoughtful big man, who, like so many centers, has had to contend with a shift away from a traditional low-post attack.

In addition to coveting his range, the Raptors thought Gasol could be a valuable defensive asset. In the opening round of the playoffs, Gasol held Orlando big man Nikola Vucevic to 28 percent shooting. In the next round, he held All-Star Joel Embiid to 37 percent shooting (23-of-62).

Marc Gasol shot 273 3-pointers this season. It is a necessary tool in his box now, one that, if properly executed, often tips the scales for the Raptors.

ESPN

Great write-up by Jackie Macmullan.

[Jamaaliver]

Biggest Needs for All 30 Teams in the 2019 NBA Draft

Atlanta Hawks: Frontcourt Depth

Draft Picks: 8, 10, 35, 41, 44
Key Free Agents: None
Extension-eligible: Taurean Prince, DeAndre Bembry

The Hawks have amassed a nice amount of draft capital and are also coming into a large chunk of cap space this summer, so they’ll have a number of ways to strengthen the team as they see fit. This is a young roster anchored by Trae Young, John Collins and Kevin Huerter, and they have the money to extend Taurean Prince if they choose.

The biggest hole is at center, a position they should be able address with either of their lottery picks—Texas’ Jaxson Hayes and international standout Goga Bitadze are the draft’s two top bigs, and should be available to Atlanta around the time of their pick. Targeting a forward like Cam Reddish or De’Andre Hunter also seems logical. Given that the Hawks are building around Young as a centerpiece, expect athleticism and three-point shooting to be prioritized as often as possible. The roster is already extremely young, and it’s unlikely they’ll roster five rookies, so trading or selling one or more of their second-round picks should be on the table, as well.

SI.com

[Jamaaliver]

Re: the Taurean trade--

Read on Twitter

Thursday saw the first big trade of offseason go down, as the Brooklyn Nets traded Allen Crabbe, the No. 17 overall pick, and a future first round to Atlanta for Taurean Prince and a second rounder. The idea behind the move for both teams was that the Hawks use their cap space to pick up draft capital, and the Nets use their draft capital to pick up more cap space (in addition to adding a useful rotation player in Prince on a rookie scale deal).

Around the league, the Hawks are still seen as being in asset accumulation mode despite their young core being intact, and were considered a potential threat this summer to use their cap space to take on bad contracts to acquire further draft capital. That’s exactly what the team did on Thursday, when they dealt Taurean Prince and a second round pick to Brooklyn for No. 17 in this draft, a lottery protected 2020 first round pick, and Allen Crabbe.

The Athletic

[Jamaaliver]

The Atlanta Hawks are stockpiling assets

With the Prince-Crabbe trade, the Hawks now own the 8th, 10th, and 17th pick in the first round of the draft. This gives them the ability to do a multitude of things.

They could use all three picks and continue to add prospects to a budding young core led by Trae Young, John Collins, and Kevin Huerter. They could also try to move up in the draft by packaging two of the picks together if there is a prospect in the top five that they really like.

They could also use the picks to create a package for a star on the market, whether they wanted to take a gamble on Anthony Davis, or chase a star backcourt partner to place alongside Young, like Bradley Beal...

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Atlanta now possesses six picks in this year’s draft, and it is highly unlikely that they use all six picks on their own, without trading at least one of them away. It also wouldn’t make the most sense to do that in this draft, considering it is a rather weak draft class. But for such a young team, it is a good thing to be in the situation they are in.

General manager Travis Schlenk did a good job evaluating talent in last year’s draft by selecting/trading for Young, Huerter, and Omari Spellman. The safe bet is to assume the Hawks are not done making moves, and like the Nets, could be working on something bigger.

Atlanta appears to know what they are doing, and this move only fortifies that belief.

Clutch Points

[Jamaaliver]

Trade Analysis: Atlanta is still in the asset game

The offseason started with a bang for the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday, when it was reported by ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski that the club have agreed to a deal with the Brooklyn Nets centered on Taurean Prince, Allen Crabbe, and a pair of first-round picks. The deal kicks off a summer that is sure to be full of a wide variety of moves for general manager Travis Schlenk and his staff. This particular trade is merely a precursor for what’s to come...

From Atlanta’s perspective, this deal is another home run financial move for Schlenk in the third consecutive year he’s made a move to that effect. Crabbe is wildly overpaid at $18.5 million for the 2019-20 season, but his contract expires at the end of next year and the Hawks weren’t likely to need all ~$43 million in cap space they could have created this summer. For approximately $17 million in cap space and Prince, the Hawks were compensated with a pair of first-round picks, which gives them less financial flexibility but a lot more draft flexibility over the next two drafts.

Losing Prince hurts, but essentially nabbing a first-round pick for him was the value that made the most sense if they decided to move on from the mercurial forward.

The crown jewels of the trade for Atlanta are the pair of first-rounders they picked up for the trouble of taking on Crabbe’s salary. The No. 17 pick in the upcoming 2019 NBA Draft gives them yet another asset to play with in trades, and adding a 2020 protected first-rounder will give them another infusion of young talent as their roster gets more expensive. At some point, Atlanta will transfer from rebuilding to contending, at which point the young guys they’re picking up with these draft picks will either be cost-controlled talent on a roster with two or three highly-paid stars or trade ballast to obtain those stars in the first place.

Picking up No. 17 in this year’s draft makes it clear that the Hawks are not done dealing and thus cannot be judged on this trade in a vacuum. Multiple times over the last few months, Schlenk has made mention of the fact that the team doesn’t necessarily want to bring in five rookies.

Where Atlanta goes from here will be interesting. This trade is just one piece of the puzzle; we’ll have more pieces to fill in the rest of the picture in the coming months. There are always risks involved in any deal. The risk that Prince’s defensive acumen was hidden below his lack of effort and he becomes a high-end 3-and-D player, the risk that they’re unable to offload multiple picks in this year’s draft to either move up or collect future draft assets, or the risk that they could have done better with the 2019 cap space used in this deal are all downsides that Schlenk had to weigh before pulling the trigger. However, the upside of multiple first-round selections and the asset flexibility it gives the Hawks should be well worth any potential downside risk.

Peachtree Hoops

[dms269]

Not sure I am a fan of moving 8, 10, and 17 just to move up to 5.

[jayu70]

Not sure I am a fan of moving 8, 10, and 17 just to move up to 5.

I'm totally againgst trading all 3 for that kind of move, especially in this draft.

[tbhawksfan1]

I think TS finally tipped his hand. He wants someone and thinks that player won't be available at 8. Didn't want to trade 8+10 so he picked up 17 (another 2019 FRP that he had said he wasn't looking for). Why? To combine one of 8 or 10 with 17 to get his guy.

It has to be one of the wings. One of which is almost sure to fall to 8. Must be one of the other 3; Hinter / Culver / RJ. Which one does he think he needs to trade up for?

[tbhawksfan1]

I guess there could be another likely senario; he takes one of the 3 wings that fall to 8, trades 10 for future picks and gets another player he likes at 17

[HMFFL]

Pass for me!

Atlanta Hawks: 3 Reasons Why Signing Seth Curry Should Be a Priority https://soaringdownsouth.com/2019/06/10/atlanta-hawks-reasons-signing-seth-curry/

Sent from my SM-N920P using RealGM mobile app

[Jamaaliver]

Regarding one of our top Free Agent targets:

Every Top 2019 NBA Free Agent's Biggest Red Flag

4. Klay Thompson: Can He Carry an Offense?

Among the 420 players with at least 1,000 career three-point attempts, Klay Thompson is 14th in effective field-goal percentage.

Few players in the history of basketball shot the ball as well as Klay, but he's spent his entire career alongside Stephen Curry, probably the best shooter of all time.

The spacing Curry creates by forcing defenses to account for him the moment he crosses half court has helped every Warrior for a decade. And that includes Klay, who's been assisted on 79 percent of his career field goals.

If some team is looking to pry Thompson away from Golden State, does it have a plan and the personnel in place that will allow him to continue working mostly off the ball? Or will he be asked to create a little more for himself and others?

He's qualified for a max salary worth 30 percent of the projected $109 million cap. And if that's what he gets, especially for a team other than the Warriors, he might be called upon to do more.

Bleacher Report

[macd-gm]

Klay with Trae is tempting but I'm just not comfortable tying up that much money in a guy like Klay.

[tbhawksfan1]

Hawks have three keepers in Trae/Collins/Heurter. A couple of rotation guys with Len/Spellman and that's it. Everyone else is not good or almost gone. I know the team needs some vets, but we also still need alot of talent. That's 5 players and a couple of one year rotation guys. Why not 4 rookies since we definately have the draft assets?

[Deester11]

Hawks have three keepers in Trae/Collins/Heurter. A couple of rotation guys with Len/Spellman and that's it. Everyone else is not good or almost gone. I know the team needs some vets, but we also still need alot of talent. That's 5 players and a couple of one year rotation guys. Why not 4 rookies since we definately have the draft assets?

I thought about having more swings at talent but it's not feasible with the roster make up as is. I honestly think 2-3 solid selections and using the draft capital for future picks, one stash and that'll do it.

[D21]

I think TS finally tipped his hand. He wants someone and thinks that player won't be available at 8. Didn't want to trade 8+10 so he picked up 17 (another 2019 FRP that he had said he wasn't looking for). Why? To combine one of 8 or 10 with 17 to get his guy.

It has to be one of the wings. One of which is almost sure to fall to 8. Must be one of the other 3; Hinter / Culver / RJ. Which one does he think he needs to trade up for?

I was thinking the same but...

I guess there could be another likely senario; he takes one of the 3 wings that fall to 8, trades 10 for future picks and gets another player he likes at 17

it could be this scenario I didn't think at first, except I think this one is possible if the one falling at 8 is exactly the one he wants

[Radioblacktive1]

I would love to see it.

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?s=21

[Jamaaliver]

As much as I like Klay for this Hawks squad, it'd be damn near impossible to justify paying $25+ million for a 30 year old to sit on the bench next season:

Every NBA Team's Realistic Dream Signing in 2019 Free Agency

Atlanta Hawks ($25.0 million): Klay Thompson



The Atlanta Hawks are perfectly positioned to offer Klay Thompson a max deal. They have about $35 million in practical cap space, which is enough to make things happen.

For most teams, investing that much money in a player who isn't going to play most or all of the season might seem like a bad idea. But in this case, it makes sense. By signing Thompson, the Hawks would invest in the future while letting their younger players develop. And considering they have three top-17 picks in this year's draft, as well as one of the two best rookies from last year, that's a big plus.

Now about that rookie: His name is Trae Young, and he is reminiscent of Stephen Curry. In related news, Thompson has some experience playing with Curry and could bring that acumen to a new partnership with the Hawks' budding star.

It's a deal that might also make sense for Thompson, who perhaps never got the respect he deserved playing alongside so many other stars in Golden State.

Bleacher Report

[Jamaaliver]

Maybe the Hawks will be able to make some kind of splash in free agency or the trade market this summer. Travis Schlenk’s rebuilding process has gone pretty well so far. Trae Young looks like a future star and pairing him with John Collins looks like a highlight reel for the next decade. The Hawks missed out on a chance to get Zion Williamson, but their trade of Taurean Prince for Allen Crabbe netted them a couple more draft picks. Atlanta is armed with the 8th, 10th, and 17th picks in this draft. They can use them all to keep bringing in young talent, or they can use them in a trade to go get a veteran presence to help out the kids.

...we still don’t know if Allen Crabbe will be their biggest veteran addition this offseason. Some people will want to fast track the Hawks’ development and impact on this league, but realistically we’re looking at one more bad season in the win column before they start chipping away at playoff appearances and truly scaring the rest of the residents in the East. Next summer will be a lot more important for the Hawks than this one is.

The Athletic

[hawks_fan25]

Any word on how Omari is doing this offseason? He's a player who I think could make a big jump in year two and be a real contributor off the bench. I just wonder if he's getting lean like he knows he needs to be. Good athleticism and good shooting stroke make him a great 7th or 8th man. Just needs to lose about 20 pounds to unleash all that potential.

[Jamaaliver]

Any word on how Omari is doing this offseason?

Just needs to lose about 20 pounds to unleash all that potential.

Looking...MUCH better.

Spoiler: