A New Report Says Atlanta Was Not Interested in Giving Brandon Ingram A New Contract

Brandon Ingram was mentioned as a potential candidate for the Hawks to trade for this offseason

Nov 4, 2023; New Orleans, Louisiana, USA; New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram (14) dribbles against Atlanta Hawks guard Dejounte Murray (5) and forward De'Andre Hunter (12) during the second half at Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports / Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

For the early parts of the offseason, the Atlanta Hawks and New Orleans Pelicans were mentioned as trade partners that made sense for each other. The Hawks were likely to breakup the backcourt of Dejounte Murray and Trae Young, as well as potentially moving either Clint Capela or Onyeka Okongwu at center. Atlanta was looking to add size and length at the wing position as well. The Pelicans needed a point guard and a center this offseason. It seemed like there was a potential deal there.

The two teams did in fact make a deal, just not the one that most thought they might. Atlanta sent Murray to New Orleans for Dyson Daniels, Larry Nance, EJ Liddell, Cody Zeller, and two first round picks. Brandon Ingram was not involved in the trade and neither were the Atlanta centers.

There have been multiple people saying over the past few days that the Hawks did not seem all that interested in acquiring Ingram this offseason. The most recent was William Guillory at The Athletic. Guillory covers the Pelicans and had this to say about the Hawks and Brandon Ingram:

"As it turned out, Atlanta didn’t have much interest in giving Ingram his next contract or moving either of its top two centers (Clint Capela and Onyeka Okongwu), according to league sources."

You can read the full piece here.

On a recent episode of the Hoop Collective podcast, ESPN's Brian Windhorst gave some brief clarity to the Hawks and Ingram when he was discussing the New Orleans Pelicans:

"The Hawks were not interested in taking Brandon Ingram."

This is not totally surprising. While Ingram could be seen as a fit next to Trae Young due to his size and ability to create his own shot, he is on an expiring contract and is reportedly seeking a max contract, which I am not sure the Hawks are interested in paying. Ingram is a very good player, but he is injury prone and might not be worth a max contract.

With multiple reports out from credible reporters, it is safe to say that the Hawks are not willing to pay Ingram the full max he wants, even if he did make some sense as a trade target.

The day of the Murray trade, Yahoo Sports NBA insider Jake Fischer said there had been no substantive talks between the Hawks and the Pelicans around Brandon Ingram:

"Atlanta is another popular landing spot league figures have pointed to for Ingram, but there have been no substantive talks between the Hawks and Pelicans, sources said, since the two teams discussed trade scenarios regarding Dejounte Murray before February’s trade deadline. Atlanta had been laser focused on figuring out its No. 1 pick in this week’s draft, and then the Hawks were determined to trade into the second round, sources said, as Atlanta ultimately came away with Nikola Đurišić. The Hawks are certainly expected to now gauge trade possibilities for Murray, All-Star guard Trae Young, Clint Capela and the rest of their rostered players who aren’t named Jalen Johnson and Zaccharie Risacher, sources said. Young does have the Pelicans in mind of preferred possible next teams, league sources told Yahoo Sports, in addition to the Spurs and Lakers, but Young’s fit has never made much sense for a New Orleans situation that currently features C.J. McCollum in its backcourt."

It will be interesting to see when and where Ingram gets moved, but is seems to be increasingly clear that it won't be Atlanta.