2024-25 Insider Thread

[JeffS17]

1 minute ago, RedDawg#8 said:

Before last season Trae was hovering around #11th in jersey sales for all NBA players

Yet Ive never seen a non-Hawks fan with a Trae jersey.  This really reinforces my point imo… his fans are HERE.  And he has a lot of them.  Although maybe what Ive miscalculated, is that Trae fans and stans are so rabid, they will all follow him loyally where he goes next— which might make it a good move on his part to request a trade and increase his market.

[Packfill]

35 minutes ago, REHawksFan said:

This actually makes a lot of sense to me.  I think they have decided to build around Trae while doing so in a way that allows them flexibility to pivot IF Trae decides to leave.  The alternatives would be to sell out to keep Trae and if it doesn't work, risk losing him and having a more difficult time recovering OR just moving on from him now.  

I think they want to win with Trae so they've attempted to build around him by putting players in place that compliment him and hopefully will allow growth over the next two years.  In doing so, they are banking on young, talented pieces that fit Trae to be able to gel and take the team to the playoffs and into contention in year 2.  But they are also hedging their bets because they don't have complete control over Trae. So if he leaves, they've constructed the roster in a way that they would just be a PG away from having a good team again.  

Option A:  Put all your eggs in the Trae basket and sell out to please him

Option B:  Trade Trae and put all your eggs in the rebuild basket (but without your own draft picks)

Option C  Build around Trae in a way that allows you to move on from Trae in the easiest manner possible IN CASE Trae decides to leave on his own

I think we both agree Option B is not tenable.  We can debate the merits of Option A and C, but I think it's pretty clear what the organization has chosen.  I'm optimistic that it will work.  

How is C different then B?  Trae right now is both PG and offensive engine and without him the teams ability to get a bucket is significantly handicapped because no one else on the team has the shot creation and playmaking chops to fill that void.  The Hawks do not control their picks for the next three years and any Trae trade will most likely result in a return that includes some veteran contract filler (i.e., flippable contracts whose primary value to the Hawks is as trade bait for additional draft capital) plus future draft capital that will push the rebuild out over an extended period of time.

[AHF]

17 minutes ago, RedDawg#8 said:

Before last season Trae was hovering around #11th in jersey sales for all NBA players.

Media narratives can say whatever they want, but Trae has always been a popular player. This is a huge reason why he gets a lot of hate and labeled as overrated when most of us only hear the bad things about him.

Truth is, our attendance has been up since he entered the league, but there are also a lot more Hawks jerseys at road games too.

Whether they show up to see him succeed or struggle, it’s their business, but he is a draw and he sells tickets.

 

13 minutes ago, JeffS17 said:

Yet Ive never seen a non-Hawks fan with a Trae jersey.  This really reinforces my point imo… his fans are HERE.  And he has a lot of them.  Although maybe what Ive miscalculated, is that Trae fans and stans are so rabid, they will all follow him loyally where he goes next— which might make it a good move on his part to request a trade and increase his market.

This all makes it insane to me that our franchise doesn't just have it on autopilot to back him publicly and praise him.  In the meantime, you sell more tickets and make more money.  If you want to keep him long-term then him feeling supported and appreciated is good.  And if you want to trade him then making it known he is our franchise guy and you are going to have to pay to pry him from our fingers is the right move for leverage.  How do you get a softball like "is Trae part of the team" and come back with the equivalent of "Eh, ah I can't really commit to Trae being with the team this season.  We like Trae, but we liked DJM too.  Hmmm....this is really hard.  Who could answer such a complicated question?  Maybe you should ask Nick.  He's grabbing us some burritos for lunch but he'll be back soon."

[REHawksFan]

7 minutes ago, Packfill said:

How is C different then B?  Trae right now is both PG and offensive engine and without him the teams ability to get a bucket is significantly handicapped because no one else on the team has the shot creation and playmaking chops to fill that void.  The Hawks do not control their picks for the next three years and any Trae trade will most likely result in a return that includes some veteran contract filler (i.e., flippable contracts whose primary value to the Hawks is as trade bait for additional draft capital) plus future draft capital that will push the rebuild out over an extended period of time.

Option C is nothing like Option B.  Option B is trading Trae, Hunter, Clint, Bogi, etc... and tanking but without the benefit of your own future draft picks. Option C is trading DJ for players that fit around Trae, drafting a player that fits Trae, and trying to build out the roster in a meaningful way to support Trae. 

Option B = Suck without Trae

Option C = Build around Trae 

The two are nothing alike.  

[Wretch]

37 minutes ago, REHawksFan said:

This actually makes a lot of sense to me.  I think they have decided to build around Trae while doing so in a way that allows them flexibility to pivot IF Trae decides to leave.  The alternatives would be to sell out to keep Trae and if it doesn't work, risk losing him and having a more difficult time recovering OR just moving on from him now.  

I think they want to win with Trae so they've attempted to build around him by putting players in place that compliment him and hopefully will allow growth over the next two years.  In doing so, they are banking on young, talented pieces that fit Trae to be able to gel and take the team to the playoffs and into contention in year 2.  But they are also hedging their bets because they don't have complete control over Trae. So if he leaves, they've constructed the roster in a way that they would just be a PG away from having a good team again.  

Option A:  Put all your eggs in the Trae basket and sell out to please him

Option B:  Trade Trae and put all your eggs in the rebuild basket (but without your own draft picks)

Option C  Build around Trae in a way that allows you to move on from Trae in the easiest manner possible IN CASE Trae decides to leave on his own

I think we both agree Option B is not tenable.  We can debate the merits of Option A and C, but I think it's pretty clear what the organization has chosen.  I'm optimistic that it will work.  

I try to be a fence-walker, but I think you've backed me into a corner and summed up my position precisely lol.  In one of those responses back there, I was actually going to lay out those three options and assess them almost exactly the same way.  I think what I'm hung up on is...  Do I trust that the immediate goal is to keep Trae? 

I would like to see us add an offensive stud to the starting lineup or one of the guys we have becomes that player.  To that end, I'm actually pretty excited about seeing how this looks with Trae, DD, JJ, and Risacher.  Even if it's a nervous excitement.

Like I said, I'm not so much doubting...it's just hard for me to get a good read with the big changes we've just made and the very natural questions inbound with DD and Risacher.  I'll be more convinced of this mini-reset once I see these two with Trae.

As an aside, I was intrigued by the Ayton talk and what that would look like with Trae.  But Ayton doesn't have Hawks DNA, so that's a big fat no.

[ABH]

2 hours ago, MarylandHawk said:

Unfortunately I think you are on the money with this. For my sanity, I hope Trae goes into “Killa mode” and elevates the team as a result and we keep moving in the right direction with him. 

He's still gone..nothing going to keep him unless we get a championship team and that's not happening with this stupid FO and owners 

[JeffS17]

33 minutes ago, AHF said:

 

This all makes it insane to me that our franchise doesn't just have it on autopilot to back him publicly and praise him.  In the meantime, you sell more tickets and make more money.  If you want to keep him long-term then him feeling supported and appreciated is good.  And if you want to trade him then making it known he is our franchise guy and you are going to have to pay to pry him from our fingers is the right move for leverage.  How do you get a softball like "is Trae part of the team" and come back with the equivalent of "Eh, ah I can't really commit to Trae being with the team this season.  We like Trae, but we liked DJM too.  Hmmm....this is really hard.  Who could answer such a complicated question?  Maybe you should ask Nick.  He's grabbing us some burritos for lunch but he'll be back soon."

It's not really that insane if you just digest what he's saying instead of finding ways to call him incompetent.  Try interpreting what he's saying and what he wants you to hear instead of figuring out why he's an idiot without knowing what's going on behind the scenes.  To me, Landry is putting the fan base on notice.  It's entirely possible Trae has already asked out internally and it's a matter of when we will/can trade him.

It's not even that hard of a conclusion to come to if you just look at all of the reporting around this team.  JJ has consistently been the only Hawk reported as untouchable.  There have been swirling rumors about Trae being traded and what his value is.  There have been reports his market is cold.  Why would anyone report that if his market wasn't being tested?  Now Landry is more aggressively signaling he might not be here.  I don't have an opinion on if we plan to trade him or not, but if we are, this is generally the type of playbook teams start running to prepare fans.  You never get franchise players traded out of the blue like you would for other guys.

[JTB]

1 hour ago, REHawksFan said:

See.....it's crap like this that makes me wonder if the Hawks really are STUPID enough to trade Trae without having a legit PG option AND without having control of their own draft picks.  I've been operating on the assumption that despite all their faults, they couldn't possibly be dumb enough to trade the franchise away without any way to get better in the future.  But here we are with this idiotic answer to a softball question.  

This should literally be a 5 second clip.  Q: "Is it fair to say Trae will be on the roster this season?"  A:  "Absolutely. He's our superstar PG and he's vital to the team's success. "  

 

 

1 hour ago, GameTime said:

 

1 hour ago, theheroatl said:

At this point I would make a great GM compared to whatever clown show they are running downtown

You all are really going overboard on Landrys comments here.

He said “we have a lot of value in Trae, we really do”

Then said with a shrug “we had a lot of value in DJ”

 

then went on explaining the hard loss it was to lose DJ. 
 

look Landry isn’t the best when it comes to interviews but we already knew this! …I mean I don’t see anything here we should be mad about or Trae should be mad about.

could Landry had praised Traes name a lot better? Sure but if you guys are indicating that Landry is working on trading Trae based on this interview you’re really going overboard.

all this was , was a beginning GM that doesn’t know how to handle the media…that’s my opinion anyways.

 

when he was asked by the reporter “ do you value Trae?” …It was more than likely a surprise question that caused the smirk ….you know one of those smirks you give when getting a dumb question and that’s an obvious answer.

[theheroatl]

Just now, JTB said:

 

 

You all are really going overboard on Landrys comments here.

He said “we have a lot of value in Trae, we really do”

Then said with a shrug “we had a lot of value in DJ”

 

then went on explaining the hard loss it was to lose DJ. 
 

look Landry isn’t the best when it comes to interviews but we already knew this! …I mean I don’t see anything here we should be mad about or Trae should be mad about.

could Landry had praised Traes name a lot better? Sure but if you guys are indicating that Landry is working on trading Trae based on this interview you’re really going overboard.

all this was , was a beginning GM that doesn’t know how to handle the media…that’s my opinion anyways.

 

when he was asked by the reporter “ do you value Trae?” …It was more than likely a surprise question that caused the smirk ….you know one of those smirks you give when getting a dumb question and that’s an obvious answer.

all he has to say is..

 

"YES, trae is very valuable to us."
 

 

Come on man quit making excuses.. he just talks too long

[REHawksFan]

24 minutes ago, JTB said:

 

 

You all are really going overboard on Landrys comments here.

He said “we have a lot of value in Trae, we really do”

Then said with a shrug “we had a lot of value in DJ”

 

then went on explaining the hard loss it was to lose DJ. 
 

look Landry isn’t the best when it comes to interviews but we already knew this! …I mean I don’t see anything here we should be mad about or Trae should be mad about.

could Landry had praised Traes name a lot better? Sure but if you guys are indicating that Landry is working on trading Trae based on this interview you’re really going overboard.

all this was , was a beginning GM that doesn’t know how to handle the media…that’s my opinion anyways.

 

when he was asked by the reporter “ do you value Trae?” …It was more than likely a surprise question that caused the smirk ….you know one of those smirks you give when getting a dumb question and that’s an obvious answer.

Well my response was based on the question that I THOUGHT he was asked which was, "Is is fair to say Trae will be on the roster this year?"  

That's what the tweet said, unless I'm mistaken.  And his response in the video was saying (paraphrased) "Hey, we value Trae a lot. And we also valued DJ a lot."  

So this tells me that he's equating Trae and DJ together in terms of how the team views each player.  And considering they just traded DJ AND the question being whether it's fair to assume that Trae won't be traded, the only logical conclusion that I see is that Landry is avoiding saying Trae won't be traded.  

That's the point.  At least to me, anyway.  

[bleachkit]

3 hours ago, Bonzaii58 said:

This is the first time I’ve seriously felt like we’re trading Trae. 

I mean it's a strange thing to say if he's your guy going forward. I think Trae asked out, but we couldn't find a partner. Seems like there may be some tension there. 

[marco102]

Did anyone check that video.  Someone on twitter said it wasn't a recent video.

I'm just not going to worrry, but Landry def needs to get up on his communication skills. 

[Peoriabird]

4 minutes ago, marco102 said:

Did anyone check that video.  Someone on twitter said it wasn't a recent video.

I'm just not going to worrry, but Landry def needs to get up on his communication skills. 

That would make a huge difference

[Afro]

12 minutes ago, marco102 said:

Did anyone check that video.  Someone on twitter said it wasn't a recent video.

I'm just not going to worrry, but Landry def needs to get up on his communication skills. 

It was from the press conference today 

[marco102]

1 minute ago, Afro said:

It was from the press conference today 

Did you watch the entire press conference or are you going off the tweet?

[Peoriabird]

By the way, this confirms that Capela is going nowhere!

The trade created a surplus of options at center. There has been speculation the Hawks could trade Clint Capela, who has shared time with Onyeka Okongwu. Fields said he was trying to reach an agreement with center Bruno Fernando to push back Wednesday's deadline to guarantee Fernando's $2.72 million salary for next season.

Capela, 30, is due to earn more than $22 million next year before possibly becoming a free agent.

“I still place a lot of value in Clint, so should be fine,” Fields said.

[Hawkmoor]

4 hours ago, Wretch said:

You are having a hard time with my comments because the Squawk is and has always been very polarized.  We have these extremely binary discussions that boil down to opposite camps of either "you like the thing" or "you don't like the thing" and you guys get so caught up in the back and forth that you have difficulty processing when someone isn't trying to take a side.

[warcore]

2 hours ago, Peoriabird said:

How can y'all be fans of this franchise?

dafuq you still doing here then? Just to bitch? Your sole existence here is to bitch?

Are you proud of that? 

[theheroatl]

Vit signing…. Glad we are locking down last years losing squad 

[Peoriabird]

4 minutes ago, warcore said:

dafuq you still doing here then? Just to bitch? Your sole existence here is to bitch?

Are you proud of that? 

Yep..I do all the complaining