How do you rate the Hawks Draft and who was your favorite pick?

[Jamaaliver]

There are four times throughout the year when Schlenk and his staff rate potential draft picks. Each of those four times included Hunter and Cam Reddish in the team’s top five on its big board. It was on the team at that point to figure out how to move up.

The Athletic

[tbhawksfan1]

A+

TS clearly chooses his player and gets him. So far his picks have been gold. If he did as well this draft, Hawks are going to be special soon.

[Jamaaliver]

De’Andre Hunter and Bruno Fernando are finally Hawks



De’Andre Hunter and Bruno Fernando are Hawks – finally.

The Hawks acquired the rights to both players during the NBA draft 17 days ago. The trades were made official at 1:30 a.m. Sunday, allowing the Hawks to announce the deals following the end of the NBA moratorium on Saturday and completion through the league office. The Hawks needed the trade between the Pelicans and the Lakers that involved Anthony Davis to be completed before their two deals could be completed following the moratorium.

“We are thrilled to add De’Andre to our young core,” Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk said in a statement of the forward. “As one of the top two-way players in college basketball last season, he brings a variety of skills that will translate well on the next level. He is also a high-character individual and a winner, and we feel he will be a great fit with our group.”

Hunter helped Virginia to a national championship this year as a sophomore and was ACC Defensive Player of the Year, All-ACC First Team and All-American Third Team. He averaged 15.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 32.5 minutes.


Fernando, the first native of Angola to be draft into the NBA, averaged 13.6 points, 10.6 rebounds and 1.9 blocks for Maryland as a sophomore. He was All-Big Ten First Team and All-Defense. He was a member of the Big Ten All-Freshman team.

“Bruno is a talented, young big man who has improved during his time at Maryland,” Schlenk said in a statement of the center. “He has a nice combination of size, length and athleticism, and a strong work ethic, so we’re excited to add him to our roster.”

AJC.com

[Jamaaliver]

Hawks did their (film) work in targeting Hunter, Fernando in draft

The Hawks had their sights set on De’Andre Hunter and Bruno Fernando in the NBA draft...the fact that the team traded up to select the players was a prime indication that each was high on the draft board.

Here is another reason that goes beyond the obvious and post-draft management speak that the Hawks got players they coveted. Each sat down with head coach Lloyd Pierce for extensive film study during their pre-draft workouts. The Hawks had player-specific clips cued and ready for dissection.

“I watched a lot of film,” Hunter said of his one and only workout with an NBA team. “It was a little weird to me. That was my first workout so I thought they do this on every team. It was different. … He was quizzing me when I worked out. Did I know the plays? I felt like I did.”

Hunter said he was shown clips of Virginia in the national championship winning game and asked to break down several plays. Fernando said he was put through a similar session. He was asked to go other both plays from his games at Maryland and others from the Hawks. The film study lasted nearly a half hour.

AJC.com

[D21]

Hawks did their (film) work in targeting Hunter, Fernando in draft

The Hawks had their sights set on De’Andre Hunter and Bruno Fernando in the NBA draft...the fact that the team traded up to select the players was a prime indication that each was high on the draft board.

Here is another reason that goes beyond the obvious and post-draft management speak that the Hawks got players they coveted. Each sat down with head coach Lloyd Pierce for extensive film study during their pre-draft workouts. The Hawks had player-specific clips cued and ready for dissection.

“I watched a lot of film,” Hunter said of his one and only workout with an NBA team. “It was a little weird to me. That was my first workout so I thought they do this on every team. It was different. … He was quizzing me when I worked out. Did I know the plays? I felt like I did.”

Hunter said he was shown clips of Virginia in the national championship winning game and asked to break down several plays. Fernando said he was put through a similar session. He was asked to go other both plays from his games at Maryland and others from the Hawks. The film study lasted nearly a half hour.

AJC.com

If they really was targeting Bruno, they took a huge risk by trading this 17th pick, because it was not guaranteed at all that he would be here at 34, not to say that at this moment, ATL only had the 57th

I'm happy with these picks, but time will tell if Hunter at 4, Reddish at 10, Fernando at 34 was a better choice than, for example, Reddish at 8, Sekou at 10, Fernando at 17, and keeping all the picks we sent to jump (Reddish at 8 seems a bit high, but it was possible, and Hayes would make not sense if Fernando was targeted and available at 17)

[hawks_fan25]

I think Hunter is the perfect complement to Trae. Best wing defender in the draft and can hit open jumpers. Trae needs good wing defenders around him and he will create open jumpers. I like the move getting Hunter, but his success will be tied to the Hawks keeping both he and Trae. I view Cam as a super sub and someone who will be able to take pressure off Trae in the future. I like our picks. I think Bruno is going to make a lot of teams regret not taking him in the first round.

[D21]

...I think Bruno is going to make a lot of teams regret not taking him in the first round.

For sure, it's amazing that so many teams didn't pick him

[Ghost999]

I give it an A+. Compared to past drafts this has to be one of if not the the best draft I can remember. This goes all the way back to the early 2000s even before the 2 josh draft. For once we have a gm that is actually worth a crap. Too bad we didn't get Barrett but if we did then we wouldn't have ended up getting Reddish as well at 10 so I think that worked out well. I don't know much about Bruno but it appears that everybody on here is pretty high on him.

[shakes0]

I give it an A+. Compared to past drafts this has to be one of if not the the best draft I can remember. This goes all the way back to the early 2000s even before the 2 josh draft. For once we have a gm that is actually worth a crap. Too bad we didn't get Barrett but if we did then we wouldn't have ended up getting Reddish as well at 10 so I think that worked out well. I don't know much about Bruno but it appears that everybody on here is pretty high on him.

You don't remember 2018?????

I liked our draft a lot on draft night, but after watching the New Orleans rookies playing in Summer league I'm giving our draft a solid grade of Incomplete just so I can remain kind. I'm very nervous that this is going to be remembered as a horrific draft for the Hawks when it's all said and done.

[D21]

It's hard to judge now, when you see that some teams did not played their rookies from last year... For example, POR had Simmons and we don't know if he won't be a great player. Same for SAS and Walker... If they end up being A+, every other team will be downgraded

[Ghost999]

I did say one of the best. The "if not the best" part is certainly yet to be determined. But seriously though, aside from last year what other draft in recent memory was better? I haven't watched the summer league games but they literally just got signed and haven't had a chance to learn the system yet.

[shakes0]

I did say one of the best. The "if not the best" part is certainly yet to be determined. But seriously though, aside from last year what other draft in recent memory was better? I haven't watched the summer league games but they literally just got signed and haven't had a chance to learn the system yet.

2017.


Unless someone from this draft is better than Collins or, alternatively, 2/3 players from this draft turn out to be good players, then 2017 and 2018 will both end up being better drafts than this one.

[hawks_fan25]

I did say one of the best. The "if not the best" part is certainly yet to be determined. But seriously though, aside from last year what other draft in recent memory was better? I haven't watched the summer league games but they literally just got signed and haven't had a chance to learn the system yet.

2017.


Unless someone from this draft is better than Collins or, alternatively, 2/3 players from this draft turn out to be good players, then 2017 and 2018 will both end up being better drafts than this one.

I think it mostly rides on Cam's success (or non-success). We know we are getting a solid (but not star) player in Hunter and we believe that Fernando will be an above average big man with some development. We have no idea what kind of player Cam will be because he had probably the widest floor-to-ceiling range in this draft. I do believe that a lot of JC's success last year can be attributed to CLP's development program and Trae. So, hopefully all three of these guys will benefit from those two as well and maximize their potential.

[pacehawk]

I did say one of the best. The "if not the best" part is certainly yet to be determined. But seriously though, aside from last year what other draft in recent memory was better? I haven't watched the summer league games but they literally just got signed and haven't had a chance to learn the system yet.

2017.


Unless someone from this draft is better than Collins or, alternatively, 2/3 players from this draft turn out to be good players, then 2017 and 2018 will both end up being better drafts than this one.

I think it mostly rides on Cam's success (or non-success). We know we are getting a solid (but not star) player in Hunter and we believe that Fernando will be an above average big man with some development. We have no idea what kind of player Cam will be because he had probably the widest floor-to-ceiling range in this draft. I do believe that a lot of JC's success last year can be attributed to CLP's development program and Trae. So, hopefully all three of these guys will benefit from those two as well and maximize their potential.

Totally agree! But, I do think Cam will end up being a star player for the Hawks! In fact, in my personal opinion (Just, My Personal Opinion!) I think he will end up being the 2nd best player out of this Draft only behind Williamson!

[Ghost999]

2017.


Unless someone from this draft is better than Collins or, alternatively, 2/3 players from this draft turn out to be good players, then 2017 and 2018 will both end up being better drafts than this one.

I think it mostly rides on Cam's success (or non-success). We know we are getting a solid (but not star) player in Hunter and we believe that Fernando will be an above average big man with some development. We have no idea what kind of player Cam will be because he had probably the widest floor-to-ceiling range in this draft. I do believe that a lot of JC's success last year can be attributed to CLP's development program and Trae. So, hopefully all three of these guys will benefit from those two as well and maximize their potential.

Totally agree! But, I do think Cam will end up being a star player for the Hawks! In fact, in my personal opinion (Just, My Personal Opinion!) I think he will end up being the 2nd best player out of this Draft only behind Williamson!

I also think Cam will end up being really good. He was just stuck behind Barrett and Zion so he didn't get the opportunity to shine that he would have gotten on most other teams. But now with a talented PG to work with I'm sure things will be different. So time will tell but if Hunter and Reddish work out well and Fernando develops into at least a solid backup this could be right up there with the best drafts we've had in a really long time.

[Jamaaliver]

This was from 6 months ago. Looks like the team managed to fill its biggest need on the roster?

Every Projected Lottery Team's Biggest Need in the 2019 NBA Draft

Atlanta Hawks




Biggest need: Defense

The Atlanta Hawks have put together a promising young core of Trae Young, John Collins and Kevin Huerter. They'll want to fill holes during the draft with defensive-minded players.

Atlanta ranks 28th in defensive efficiency, allowing opponents to shoot 65.8 percent at the rim and score the third-most points (tied) leaguewide on second-chance opportunities. Opponents are also shooting a league-high 44.4 percent against Atlanta in the mid-range and 36.5 percent (seventh-highest) beyond 24 feet.

Atlanta could use a perimeter defender next to Young and a rim protector alongside Collins.

Based on early projections, the Hawks may want to target a wing defender with their first selection (Reddish, Culver, Langford) and Texas' Jaxson Hayes or Gonzaga's Brandon Clarke with the top-five-protected pick they may receive from the Dallas Mavericks.

Bleacher Report -- Feb 2019

[Jamaaliver]

The Stepien's Post Draft Review -- June 25

Draft Notes: Sticking The Landing

I want to talk about the draft as whole, but perhaps just touch on the drafts of several teams that interested me: the Pelicans, the Hawks and the Celtics.

The Hawks because they did indeed trade up with their picks, while showing either great confidence or great overconfidence in their own ability to evaluate prospects (it’s too soon to say which with any certainty). Also, because it’s relatively clear that the Hawks analytics guys, as was explained to us in February, didn’t have anything to do with the trade down for Trae Young. What’s more, Schlenk has outed himself as a GM you can hold hostage if you figure out what players he has fixated on. (The implications for the future here are every bit as important as what went on in this draft. And even in this one, what if any team 7-9 just picked Cam Reddish, who Atlanta had been linked to for months, and put Schlenk to the test?)

Schlenk locks in on his guys to almost unprecedented levels. [A rival team] picking Cam Reddish, who had been linked to the Hawks publicly enough that I wrote about it at the time of the combine, in order to extract additional value for the Hawks could have paid dividends.

...for the second year in a row, Atlanta made an arguably low value EVA move to go after the player it had locked in on ahead of the draft. This year that guy was De’Andre Hunter, a 3-position 3&D player who is nevertheless going to get smoked by jitterbug pull-up threats and the biggest, baddest big wings.

Hunter’s not an identical player to Harrison Barnes, with Barnes being more physical and having better vert pop and Hunter being better technically, but he’s the same kind of play-by-the-book limited decision-maker and thus limited O+D player, and will likely end up in that value range. He’s not the kind of player you generally trade two firsts and three high second round picks for. He’s not the kind of player teams should generally be interested in investing top 7 or top 8 picks. For the reason, that this is not the type of player that team’s should want to give maximum contracts to in the future, which is an almost inevitable result for Hunter drafted in this position if he becomes successful.

Arguably, the same could be said for Reddish and Fernando, which could mean that none of these players are long for the rebuild. Though one thing I will say about Atlanta in their favor is that they did draft three NBA players. Hunter, Reddish and Fernando should all have long careers. However, they are likely the kinds of players, at some point, the team will have to consolidate in value by way of a trade to get to where the team presumably wants to go.

[tbhawksfan1]

TS traded the farm for Hunter and got lucky to get his other guy in Cam. We'll see how good Hunter is soon enough. Solid #4 value and a chip ain't bad

[jayu70]

The Stepien's Post Draft Review -- June 25

Draft Notes: Sticking The Landing

I want to talk about the draft as whole, but perhaps just touch on the drafts of several teams that interested me: the Pelicans, the Hawks and the Celtics.

The Hawks because they did indeed trade up with their picks, while showing either great confidence or great overconfidence in their own ability to evaluate prospects (it’s too soon to say which with any certainty). Also, because it’s relatively clear that the Hawks analytics guys, as was explained to us in February, didn’t have anything to do with the trade down for Trae Young. What’s more, Schlenk has outed himself as a GM you can hold hostage if you figure out what players he has fixated on. (The implications for the future here are every bit as important as what went on in this draft. And even in this one, what if any team 7-9 just picked Cam Reddish, who Atlanta had been linked to for months, and put Schlenk to the test?)

Schlenk locks in on his guys to almost unprecedented levels. [A rival team] picking Cam Reddish, who had been linked to the Hawks publicly enough that I wrote about it at the time of the combine, in order to extract additional value for the Hawks could have paid dividends.

...for the second year in a row, Atlanta made an arguably low value EVA move to go after the player it had locked in on ahead of the draft. This year that guy was De’Andre Hunter, a 3-position 3&D player who is nevertheless going to get smoked by jitterbug pull-up threats and the biggest, baddest big wings.

Hunter’s not an identical player to Harrison Barnes, with Barnes being more physical and having better vert pop and Hunter being better technically, but he’s the same kind of play-by-the-book limited decision-maker and thus limited O+D player, and will likely end up in that value range. He’s not the kind of player you generally trade two firsts and three high second round picks for. He’s not the kind of player teams should generally be interested in investing top 7 or top 8 picks. For the reason, that this is not the type of player that team’s should want to give maximum contracts to in the future, which is an almost inevitable result for Hunter drafted in this position if he becomes successful.

Arguably, the same could be said for Reddish and Fernando, which could mean that none of these players are long for the rebuild. Though one thing I will say about Atlanta in their favor is that they did draft three NBA players. Hunter, Reddish and Fernando should all have long careers. However, they are likely the kinds of players, at some point, the team will have to consolidate in value by way of a trade to get to where the team presumably wants to go.

mmmmmm......wasn't the guy Schlenk was supposedly locked into was Jarrett Culver?
We had an entire thread about it.. viewtopic.php?f=7&t=1850466

Hunter came on the scene later as the target, no?

[Jamaaliver]

mmmmmm......wasn't the guy Schlenk was supposedly locked into was Jarrett Culver?
We had an entire thread about it.. viewtopic.php?f=7&t=1850466

Hunter came on the scene later as the target, no?

Considering we traded up and drafted Hunter over Culver...it appears all that noise was a smokescreen.

There were a few whispers we were interested in Hunter, but they paled in comparison to the volume of our interest in Reddish and Culver.

Spoiler:

8. Cam Reddish

SF | Duke | Freshman

Atlanta Hawks

Atlanta continues to remain active in exploring all its options with six draft picks in hand, and packaging Nos. 8 and 10 to move up to No. 4 or No. 5 remains a possibility. Jarrett Culver and De’Andre Hunter are the names that come up most often in those scenarios, and right now it seems unlikely either player falls to No. 8.

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Three Days before Draft

NBA Draft 2019 rumors: Hawks may move up to get Virginia's De'Andre Hunter

Atlanta is possibly interested in moving up from No. 8 to get Virginia forward De'Andre Hunter at some point in the first seven picks, according to ESPN.

The Hawks were the only team that worked out Hunter privately leading up to the draft.

Atlanta has been involved in trade rumors for the last several weeks.

It has been reported the team has thought about packaging the No. 8 and No. 10 picks to move up to No. 4 to grab Texas Tech's Jarrett Culver.

And the most recent report obviously links Atlanta to the man who locked up Culver in the National Championship game.

Sporting News -- Day of Draft

Larger picture, the fact teams selecting at #3 and #4 knew we wanted to jump in for one of those guys helped them squeeze us for all the value they could get.

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