The 2024 NBA Trade Deadline Has Come and Gone and The Atlanta Hawks Are Standing Pat

The Hawks elected to not make any moves at the deadline

After months of speculation and rumors about what the Atlanta Hawks might do at this year's NBA trade deadline, they ended up riding this year out with the same roster that they started the season with. 

The 3:00 p.m. deadline has passed and the 22-29 Atlanta Hawks have put off any big changes to their roster until at least the summer. 

What made the Hawks decide to stand pat after the months of trade rumors, especially surrounding Dejounte Murray? Could it have been that they did not like any of the deals that were made to them? Could it have been that the Hawks are playing better (winners of four of their last six) and finally getting healthy? 

That is unclear at this time. 

What will happen now is that a team that had hopes of avoiding the play-tournament for a third straight season will likely end up there yet again. The Hawks are currently in 10th place in the Eastern Conference, two games back of the 9th-place Chicago Bulls and five games back of the 8th-place Orlando Magic. 

Dejounte Murray vs the 76ers / Kyle Ross-USA TODAY Sports

Can the Hawks make a move up the standings? 

With the Hawks not making any moves, the ideal scenario (in my opinion) for Atlanta for the rest of this season is to 1) stay healthy and see how this team can perform and 2) move up to 7th or 8th place to try and avoid the second play-in game. While I don't believe the Hawks are capable of winning a playoff series against any of the top teams in the Eastern Conference, they need to avoid playing the Celtics in the 1 vs 8 series. Boston is a matchup nightmare for Atlanta (and anyone for that matter) and the Hawks's preferred matchup might be the Milwaukee Bucks. 

With their porous defense and inability to stay completely healthy, I would put the Hawks's chances of getting the No. 7 seed slim. 

Is this the right course of action for the Hawks? It might be the only one that made sense for now, but this summer is going to be a crucial one for the direction of this franchise. 

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