National Analyst Names Atlanta As A Team That Is Regretting the 2024 Offseason

The Hawks have remade their roster around Trae Young this offseason

Apr 14, 2024; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) dribbles the ball while Indiana Pacers guard Ben Sheppard (26) defends in the second half at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Mandatory Credit: Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports / Trevor Ruszkowski-USA TODAY Sports

Welcome to the quiet part of the NBA offseason.

Any basketball news over the next couple of weeks is only going to come from Team USA and it seems like most rosters for the 2024-2025 season are set. The Hawks still have some pieces to shuffle around, but any major moves seem unlikely at this point.

Atlanta has made some major moves this offseason and has restructured their roster around Trae Young to help better fit him. The Hawks won the NBA Draft Lottery and then selected French forward Zaccharie Risacher, who turned in two solid performances in Summer League. Risacher has added size and length to the lineup and shooting is supposed to be a strength of his.

The biggest move the Hawks made this summer was trading Dejounte Murray to the New Orleans Pelicans. Atlanta added Dyson Daniels, Larry Nance, E.J. Liddell (recently traded to Phoenix for David Roddy), Cody Zeller, and two first-round picks. I have talked about the trade plenty of times before and while it is not a grand slam, getting Daniels and an unprotected 2025 Lakers pick was solid. I have argued that the Hawks have actually had a solid offseason, but not everyone feels that way.

Not everyone feels that way though. In a recent article, Bleacher Report's Greg Swartz listed Atlanta as one of five teams that is regretting the 2024 offseason:

"If the Atlanta Hawks' plan is to wallow in mediocrity while not controlling any of their draft picks for the next three years, then this organization is doing a bang-up job.

Atlanta did the smart thing by trading Dejounte Murray, yet took a draft-pick heavy return over actually improving the roster.

Last season with Trae Young on the floor without the players who either were traded or signed elsewhere (Murray, Saddiq Bey and AJ Griffin), the Hawks had a net rating of minus-4.3 in 698 possessions with a defensive rating of over 120.0 (18th percentile, via Cleaning the Glass).

Unless the Hawks do something else this summer, this looks like a team that will take a step back from the 36-46 record it mustered a year ago.

No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher's pro comparison is Harrison Barnes according to Bleacher Report draft expert Jonathan Wasserman, which isn't going to be enough to lift this team into the playoffs anytime soon. Clint Capela is entering the final year of his contract and there's been no extension yet for promising power forward Jalen Johnson.

Atlanta doesn't have the option to tank since the San Antonio Spurs own their first-round selection in 2025 and 2027, with the right to swap in 2026 due to the original trade for Murray.

There has to be another move coming for Atlanta, as this current roster isn't good enough to make the playoffs and won't even get a lottery pick to show for it.

The Hawks should be pursuing trades for veterans who complement Young and now have two extra first-round picks from the New Orleans Pelicans in order to do so.

As of now, this has been an extremely disappointing offseason for Atlanta with no real direction in sight."

I disagree with this analysis. Again, I don't think Atlanta has had a fantastic offseason, but they have done the most with what they had in front of them. The Hawks got two useful players back in Daniels and Nance and Daniels was not mentioned once here. He has shown in the Olympics this summer what his potential as a two way guard could be and he is seemingly a perfect next to Trae Young, especially on defense.

I don't think there is another major move coming to Atlanta this offseason and there should not be. Atlanta does not have much draft capital, even after getting the two picks from New Orleans. Making another big trade feels unneccessary because there is no move out there to be made that makes the Hawks contenders. Staying patient and letting this young team (no pun intended) come together is the best course of action for this front office.

Atlanta has been been better with Young running the show alone and now he has Daniels, Risacher, Jalen Johnson, Onyeka Okongwu, Bogdan Bogdanovic, De'Andre Hunter, Nance, and Kobe Bufkin. That is a solid core that I think is more capable of challenging for a playoff spot than most around the NBA seem to think.