2023-24 Insider Information Thread

[ShooterSays]

15 minutes ago, Sothron said:

Been told Hawks just taking Sarr and keeping him is a building voice in the Hawks FO.

Let’s do it.

 

Edited June 24 by ShooterSays

[txsting]

16 minutes ago, Sothron said:

Been told Hawks just taking Sarr and keeping him is a building voice in the Hawks FO.

Clear heads prevailing?  Fingers crossed

[gurpilo]

I am all in with Sarr's, we need size, length and defense. He can be our JJJ or Evan Mobley. Franchise change coming.

[Dragitoff]

9 minutes ago, gurpilo said:

Well, OO and Hunter are good defenders but is not working.... no, you really need an elite guard defender to protect Trae and a Paint protector or an elite offensive Center. Those are really expensive players. Name Players that fit Trae and are available....

I only can think on De Anthony Melton and Andre Drummond, starting those 2 IS a reach in my opinión.

Non-Centers

Melton
Delon Wright
Herb Jones (tough to get, but could be had in right deal)
DFS
Cam Johnson
Matisse Thybulle
Marcus Smart (not sure how much Grizz want to trade him)

Those are just a few guys that I come up with off the cuff.  They're all making less than Hunter.  Hunter isn't a bad fit next to Trae even if you have the right other complimentary pieces. 

 

[KB21]

4 minutes ago, gurpilo said:

As I said we were a 40 win team without Trae this season.

That's one of the dumbest things anyone has ever said on here.  

[JeffS17]

Problem with Sarr is he doesn't fit with JJ, who is the only player we're dead set on keeping around (apparently).  JJ has hit some WIDE OPEN threes which is good and promising but having two wings out there that cannot reliably knock down threes is not a great formula.  Not to mention we also do not currently have a center that can reliably make threes that are not WIDE OPEN.  I'm just not sold on Sarr yet although I do love his defense.  

[Threezus]

Just now, ShooterSays said:

Let’s do it.

 

If were being honest Sarr is a Ressy type of pick as well anyways.  If you live in Atlanta or Georgia in general and listen to the sports radio shows or like me work in a sporting goods store for a living.  You literally hear everyone in georgia asking for Sarr which means thats the biggest money attraction you can get in this draft.  Thats how you speak to ressy is put dollars in his pockets and sarr atleast right away does that better than anyone based on the narrative around the state.

[gurpilo]

Ahora, KB21 dijo:

That's one of the dumbest things anyone has ever said on here.  

No, it's not, stats say that and 28 games IS not a small sample

[txsting]

1 minute ago, JeffS17 said:

Problem with Sarr is he doesn't fit with JJ, who is the only player we're dead set on keeping around (apparently).  JJ has hit some WIDE OPEN threes which is good and promising but having two wings out there that cannot reliably knock down threes is not a great formula.  Not to mention we also do not currently have a center that can reliably make threes that are not WIDE OPEN.  I'm just not sold on Sarr yet although I do love his defense.  

JJ will never be worth more than he is right now.  Not a believer that he has any more growth in him.  Would be open to trading him to get back a center (Clingan, etc) or a big move for a killer SF.

[Dragitoff]

19 minutes ago, gurpilo said:

As I said we were a 40 win team without Trae this season.

The Hawks were 14-14 without Trae this season and are 27-33 for his career in games without him.  Just because they were .500 for roughly a month doesn't mean they would've gone 41-41 if he missed the entire year.  DJ went on an absolute tear (despite inefficient shooting which Trae gets crucified over might I add) scoring wise for a few weeks that did propel that, but he's never shown the ability to be that player over an entire season, especially for a good team.  I agree with you that DJ's contract is significant value, but he has played on a team without Trae and they were not a good team despite his good stats.  Trae took a team w/o DJ to the ECF. 

Edited June 24 by Dragitoff

[KB21]

1 minute ago, gurpilo said:

No, it's not, stats say that and 28 games IS not a small sample

Yes, it is, particularly when you are playing teams that don't have anything to play for and basing that decision on those games.  

Like I said earlier.  You Trae haters are going to have to learn the hard way, and the hard way is trading him and watching this team flounder because they no longer have his gravity and ability to make everyone around him much more efficient.  Instead, we will have DJM and his desire to shoot mid-range jumpers that stifle the flow of the offense.  

[gurpilo]

hace 1 minuto, Dragitoff dijo:

Non-Centers

Melton
Delon Wright
Herb Jones (tough to get, but could be had in right deal)
DFS
Cam Johnson
Matisse Thybulle
Marcus Smart (not sure how much Grizz want to trade him)

Those are just a few guys that I come up with off the cuff.  They're all making less than Hunter.  Hunter isn't a bad fit next to Trae even if you have the right other complimentary pieces. 

 

Cam Johnson is making more than Hunter and is not a great defender, he is a good shooter through. He is not available.

Smart and Herb Jones are not available. We Hope they would be but are not.

Delon Wright and Thybulle are not starters in this league, at least on a playoffs team.

DFS cannot guard a guard

As I said Melton is the only option I see.

[Afro]

22 minutes ago, Sothron said:

Been told Hawks just taking Sarr and keeping him is a building voice in the Hawks FO.

 

[Threezus]

Just now, txsting said:

JJ will never be worth more than he is right now.  Not a believer that he has any more growth in him.  Would be open to trading him to get back a center (Clingan, etc) or a big move for a killer SF.

You might be on your own on this one my friend lol.  I think he is finally starting to scratch the surface and growing into his man body and strength while the game slows down for him as he learns.   You could see him go from a 10,5,5  guy for the start of the season last year.  To about half of his games down the final stretches being about 20+ 10+ 5  games with blocks and steals added in.   If he gets more experience and can make that go from half his games to like 90% of his games he will be a superstar quality player.    He is only 22 years old and only 1 season of starting.   To say that is his peak is sorta crazy to me he isn't even into his prime yet or had a ton of time on the floor. 

[Dragitoff]

5 minutes ago, gurpilo said:

Cam Johnson is making more than Hunter and is not a great defender, he is a good shooter through. He is not available.

Smart and Herb Jones are not available. We Hope they would be but are not.

Delon Wright and Thybulle are not starters in this league, at least on a playoffs team.

DFS cannot guard a guard

As I said Melton is the only option I see.

You have your opinions and I have mine.  We'll have to agree to disagree. 

[ShayD]

6 minutes ago, JeffS17 said:

Problem with Sarr is he doesn't fit with JJ, who is the only player we're dead set on keeping around (apparently).  JJ has hit some WIDE OPEN threes which is good and promising but having two wings out there that cannot reliably knock down threes is not a great formula.  Not to mention we also do not currently have a center that can reliably make threes that are not WIDE OPEN.  I'm just not sold on Sarr yet although I do love his defense.  

I'm open to many prospects, and I believe Sarrs fit is not as bad as many think it will be. The team spent alot of the season playing a combo of Bey and JJ. Bey shot 31% from 3, cannot dribble cannot play defense. I believe they win more games if he was even average on defense. I would think Sarr and Bey are comparable in ball handling, passing, rebounding but Sarr clears him on defensive versatility at the 3/4 and 5

[gurpilo]

hace 1 minuto, KB21 dijo:

Yes, it is, particularly when you are playing teams that don't have anything to play for and basing that decision on those games.  

Like I said earlier.  You Trae haters are going to have to learn the hard way, and the hard way is trading him and watching this team flounder because they no longer have his gravity and ability to make everyone around him much more efficient.  Instead, we will have DJM and his desire to shoot mid-range jumpers that stifle the flow of the offense.  

Let me speak for myself Who I hate and Who I don't hate. I just look at numbers and the way they play, no hate on Trae, but I truly believe is imposible to win a ring with him and numbers say that.

DJM provided really good numbers because Trae was not on the floor shooting long 3s. You seem to forget we were with a lot if injuries even starting Vit Krejci and even with that we won 50% of the games and Trae was not playing. Add Sarr, Clingan and Knetch to that team and Trae salary on a wing star and you have a really good team.

[Hawkmoor]

34 minutes ago, gurpilo said:

We were 40 win team without Trae and we would have a better roster.... How can we go to 15 wins team?

Bingo.  The Hawks didn't miss a beat without Trae toward the end of the season.  In fact, their major ratings got better:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/matissa/2024/04/03/are-the-atlanta-hawks-better-without-trae-young/?sh=491a89ab6373

With Young injured, Atlanta is free to give more minutes to guys like Jalen Johnson, De’Andre Hunter, Vit Krejci, and Garrison Matthews — all players who can score off-ball, are bigger than Young, and defend better than him.

Plus, since they have Bogdan Bogdanovic — a gifted two-level scorer with some underrated passing chops — Atlanta still has a sound secondary creator/backup point guard to flank Murray (or fill in when he’s taking a breather).

That’s why, despite losing their best player, the Hawks have improved in offense, defense, and overall net rating.

Edited June 24 by Hawkmoor

[JTB]

34 minutes ago, Sothron said:

Been told Hawks just taking Sarr and keeping him is a building voice in the Hawks FO.

Man that’s great! I hope it’s true and we are keeping Trae.

[Wretch]

5 hours ago, Final_quest said:

NEVER REPLICATED his performance vs the worst team in the G-League.  Yet people post those highlight clips from one game like it's the complete truth of who Sarr is on offense.  Ignore his body of work and believe in one game.  Even in that game he's not really showing an array of offensive moves.  

3 hours ago, Final_quest said:

I’m not making anything up.  Someone actually did post that highlight reel as evidence of how good Sarr is currently on offense.  That post got about ten likes.  I’ll DM it to you because I don’t like to put someone on blast.   

But yes I see a decent number of Hawks fans saying if they draft Clingan over Sarr the Hawks are stupid and they will no longer support the team.  Not just Hawksquawk, that take is everywhere.  Does that make you a Sarr fanboy?  I don’t really get into name calling, but maybe?  

I'm going to say this again, ahead of the draft and once more for the record

I'm sure that some people believe Sarr is NBA ready or close to NBA ready.  They probably also believe that he is the "best player in the draft" and is the best fit for the Hawks, long or short term.  That is not hardly the consensus of his supporters and that consensus, if there is one, is certainly not drawn from a single G-League performance. 

I think you're tired of the hype, which is 100% understandable and actually relatable, but because of it...you're misreading the enthusiasm and running with this idea that everyone who likes Sarr is completely blind and is overlooking his flaws.  We all know how to read a scouting report - many of us having done this for 2-3 decades.  We have seen an endless stream of rookies come in with highs and lows and we have all hit and missed at time.  Though, the idea that the people who want Sarr are blind is way off base and by leaning into it as hard as you are, you're looking past the actual reason why the majority of the board (if the polls are indicative) is interested in taking him #1 overall.

There are many, professionals who "do this for a living" included, who see upside as the primary driver for evaluating prospects in the high lottery (if not the whole of the lottery).  That being the case, the people who want Sarr have settled on him as a high (or even the highest) upside player.  If we must beat the dead horse, it's his speed, agility, and coordination at his size that are driving the interest in him.  We saw his play against the G-League not as a validator of how skilled he is, and certainly not a bar against veteran NBA defenders, but a resounding validation of how much upside he has.  He is raw, as is literally almost every rookie, but the fact that he's VERY young, coming off the bench in a pro league that prefers experience/maturity, and not being featured is why we believe that his floor may not be as low as the flaws suggest.

TL:DR: There is plenty of discussion and debate to be had as to why people believe he is the best upside prospect for us.  If you're pushing back against those who believe he is an overall better prospect than anyone else in the draft, then you're arguing with a minority contingent with unrealistic expectations.