2024-25 Insider Thread

[Afro]

Ayton seems like a classic loving the idea of somebody rather than acknowledging the reality of them situation. 

 

I also don't see how there's any path to a "buy low". You'll have to give up a valuable asset at the very least just to take back the 34 million....

Edited Thursday at 03:05 PM by Afro

[NBASupes]

20 minutes ago, ShooterSays said:

I don’t think Ayton costs us DJM. Dejounte plays the more valuable position on a much much more valuable contract. He’d still probably be available to get us Ingram.

I think Ingram makes a lot of sense for us right now.

Trae / Zac / Ingram / JJ / Ayton

Bench: Kobe, Bogi, OO, Bey, Mo G. And maybe you could get Daniels too in a Murray for Ingram trade. 

We’re winning the division with this lineup.

He obviously doesn't. Murray trade value is significantly higher than Ayton. Capela trade value is higher than Ayton and Murray trade value is significantly higher than CC

[Vol4ever]

1 hour ago, theheroatl said:

No matter what, he produces consistently.  I can't speak to the coaching and development environment in Phoenix and Portland.

Maybe it's not on the coaching and development.  Two stops where they have unloaded him.   You got to think why they want to deal this guy away?   There is a STOP sign there.  

[Hawkish]

5 minutes ago, AHF said:

Him getting benched in the playoffs and everything isn't a good look but the clips of him just not trying are the ones that really curdle the milk for me.  

We've all seen this but WTF is he doing here?

 

“Coach— Am I allowed to get back on the court after I step out of bounds?  Should we let Jokic take all of these uncontested shots at the rim to lower their FG % and make our defensive metrics look better?”

[djjob23]

First of all… thanks so much Hawksquawk for getting me through last season and am looking forward to what next season has in store!

Completely understand now why ZR was the pick and Sarr wasn’t a culture fit. To me, I didn’t think the Spurs would ever trade with ATL unless it meant ATL paid a heavy price for our picks back or didn’t give the ATL picks back and ATL got worse in the trade (making those 3 1sts they own more valuable). Although the price seemed high, we saw a few contenders (MIN, DEN, OKC) be aggressive to move up in this draft, which makes me wonder… what type of offers did ATL get for #1? This looks to be a draft that you build a team with and not around certain players. With ATL’s cap issues drafting #1, the draft being pretty much flat (no top tier talent), and 7/10 teams having ZR as the top pick, I would’ve thought ATL could’ve benefitted trading down to get more picks (or to get NBA proven talent), target exactly who they want, and fill out the roster without worrying about the cap. However, this was likely impossible from a marketing perspective if they traded the franchise’s FIRST EVER #1 lottery pick.  

Side note… a player’s motor can sometimes be a reflection of his environment (teammates, coach, contract, support, winning, etc.) and not always related to a player’s skill (skill being more BBIQ related). Motor to me is more a personal trait that can potentially be improved if a player fits the environment and has the right motivation. Sarr was on an underperforming win-now team last year and came off the bench, which likely didn’t help his motor. It’s fine if ATL FO saw his personality as a culture fit issue, but you can’t always gauge a player’s motor without understanding a player’s environment / motivation.

…

As for the Ayton convo… having said this about motor… Ayton wasn’t a good fit in PHX (Monty Williams sucked for him), but after getting a fresh start in POR (after a few injuries), he had a great end to the season averaging 23.2p / 12.4r in the last 15 games and was even a positive leader in the locker room. His role in ATL would likely be more defined than it was in POR, but hopefully his role will allow him to focus on being more efficient/productive with his time on the court. If the value is low and they do their homework on his motor and determine it won’t be an issue in ATL, then I say go for it!

[AHF]

4 minutes ago, djjob23 said:

after getting a fresh start in POR (after a few injuries), he had a great end to the season averaging 23.2p / 12.4r in the last 15 games and was even a positive leader in the locker room. 

Why do you think they want to get rid of him if he was so positive there last year?  I see a lot of negativity on his time in Portland from fans and media there.  

[BangHolman]

Given everything that's already happened in the East with the Knicks on top of what we already knew we needed to improve to be competitive, I'm going to start getting really antsy for a trade very soon.

[ABH]

If and when would trades happen..Insiders?

[ShooterSays]

22 minutes ago, NBASupes said:

He obviously doesn't. Murray trade value is significantly higher than Ayton. Capela trade value is higher than Ayton and Murray trade value is significantly higher than CC

Exactly. We can get Ayton and still do whatever we have planned with Murray.

An Ayton/OO center rotation would be nice.

We have a lot of options here.

[macdaddy]

The Sarr stuff is concerning to me.  The whole me/we thing.  There are countless guys who came into the league with the me attitude and completely changed once they were at the highest level.  

I think Hawks DNA will eventually be on the same level as "we like our core".   Not that i disagree with Hawks DNA as a concept but it's not a league you can build a champion with around lesser talent because they are nicer guys. 

[djjob23]

35 minutes ago, AHF said:

Why do you think they want to get rid of him if he was so positive there last year?  I see a lot of negativity on his time in Portland from fans and media there.  

I chalk up Ayton’s first half with POR as him getting over the trauma with the Suns and as someone learning to trust coaches, the organization, and teammates (which he said he was able to do with POR later in the season). Unfortunately, the media and fans are quick to judge (which we know far too well in ATL) and claimed he wasn’t the future in POR early on even though the team had a green coach (Billups), team injuries, and a questionable roster build. During the draft, POR likely saw an opportunity to draft a quality/coveted/more defensive oriented big in Clingan. POR likely sees Clingan as a 2-fold win-win: (1) Ayton’s backup replacing Robert Williams III who has health issues; (2) cheaper big who can become the starting C should they move on from Ayton. I wouldn’t say POR wants to get rid of Ayton. I’d say the POR FO is like a squirrel that needs to pick a direction.

Edited Thursday at 03:50 PM by djjob23

[aali34]

I would steer clear of Ayton, he's one of those childish NBA players that forget that they're grown men and not teenage boys.

 

[Final_quest]

43 minutes ago, AHF said:

Why do you think they want to get rid of him if he was so positive there last year?  I see a lot of negativity on his time in Portland from fans and media there.  

His cost is fairly high with two years left.  Even if they like Ayton, Capela would offer a shorter path to cap relief.  

[Final_quest]

I’m not saying Ayton is the guy, but at some point we have to gamble on a guy like him BI or Siakam.  Capela + Hunter don’t bring back guys like Herb Jones.  

[Hawkish]

8 minutes ago, Final_quest said:

I’m not saying Ayton is the guy, but at some point we have to gamble on a guy like him BI or Siakam.  Capela + Hunter don’t bring back guys like Herb Jones.  

Can we get Ingram for just Hunter/Capela?  

[NekiEcko]

I'm curious if they will attempt to trade DJM before the new NBA calendar year starts, possibly due to financial reasons or other factors.

While Ayton carries some risk, currently there's a lack of size at the Center position. Even with the addition of better wings, the team will still be outmatched in the post and rebounding. Therefore, taking a chance on him might be necessary unless another player can fulfill that role.

[macdaddy]

OO needs to start in my opinion.   Ayton going to be a chemistry issue if he's asked to come off the bench i would think.  

[Jody23]

I don't see the Hawks pursuing Ayton.

[dalamchops]

8 minutes ago, macdaddy said:

OO needs to start in my opinion.   Ayton going to be a chemistry issue if he's asked to come off the bench i would think.  

Trae
BOGI/ZR
JJ/ZR
OO
DA

[capstone21]

Ayton will be a step backward for the Hawks

OpposIng teams will have a field day against us with both DA and Trae.  

He is an empty stats guy who doesn’t help improve a team at all.