With trade talks being stalled between the New York Knicks and Utah Jazz, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported (subscription required) that there are six teams other than the Knicks that have shown interest in Donovan Mitchell. To no surprise, one of those teams was the Miami Heat, but one of the surprises on the list was the Atlanta Hawks.
Now, if Mitchell were to be traded to an Eastern Conference team that wasn’t New York, that’d be hard to watch unfold. Although the Hawks aren’t in the Atlantic Division with the Knicks, one of the last things that fans should want is to see the three-time All-Star guard make his way to Atlanta.
However, the Hawks traded for guard Dejounte Murray at the end of June. Murray is 25 years old and made his All-Star debut last February. Atlanta’s starting lineup is going to feature Trae Young and Murray in the backcourt, so a trade for Mitchell would make zero sense.
If the trade for Murray never happened, it would then make sense for the Hawks to be included in the Spida sweepstakes. But now? No.
Hawks aren’t a likely landing spot for Knicks trade target Donovan Mitchell
Danny Ainge and the Jazz are reportedly hoping to get at least seven first-round picks in exchange for Mitchell, and as we all know, the Knicks have eight tradable picks as well as a slew of young players.
After giving up three first-round picks for Murray, Atlanta has a first-round pick in 2023, two first-round picks in 2024 (one from the Sacramento Kings), a first-round pick in 2028, and a first-round pick in 2029. The Hawks simply don’t have what the Jazz want.
Atlanta’s been linked to Mitchell previously, but based on Ainge’s demands, the Hawks don’t even have a future to mortgage to trade for the guard. And even if they did, that small-ball lineup might be fun to watch on offense, but they’d get crushed on the defensive end. Let’s not forget that Young isn’t a good defender.
Again, it’s evident that New York’s still the top landing spot for Mitchell. The Knicks have the most to give and right now, the starting shooting guard position seems to be a toss-up between Evan Fournier and Quentin Grimes. The latter should win that battle if a trade for Mitchell doesn’t happen, but now that the front office’s hopes of securing Mitchell have been made realistic, he could be the starting shooting guard come opening night.
Atlanta has Murray, so it’s safe to count the Hawks out of the Spida sweepstakes.
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