National Basketball Association

The Hawks trade for Hardaway is a rare move for the team

Published Jun. 27, 2015 12:41 p.m. ET

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By Miles Wray

After so many days and weeks of palpable buzz, the 2015 NBA Draft dramatically underwhelmed, from a pure entertainment value, with its incredible lack of trades. There were no trades involving players selected in the lottery — none of the lottery picks were exchanged before draft night, either — and the few NBA veterans who were traded were role players.

The general lack of action really focused everybody’s attention on a three-way trade between the Atlanta Hawks, Washington Wizards, and New York Knicks. The Hawks were making the 15th selection in last night’s draft — they had earned the rights to swap picks with the Brooklyn Nets (who were relegated to pick No. 29) thanks to the Joe Johnson trade from many moons ago. In their trade last night, the Hawks sent away the No. 15 pick (Kelly Oubre to the Wizards) and received two second-round picks from the Wizards and, presumably the trade’s centerpiece, Tim Hardaway Jr. of the Knicks.

Insta-reaction to the trade was definitely not in the Hawks’ favor. Bo Churney of HawksHoop wrote that, while the trade does save Atlanta room under the salary cap, the move looks to him to be more cheap than savvy:

The move is a weird one for the Hawks, but there is some sense to be made from it. With the move, the Hawks will save at least $500,000 in cap space from not having to pay the required rookie salary for the 15th pick. Hardaway also has some value in that he’s an above-average shooter. However, the weaknesses with Hardaway are clear. Despite his 6’6” size, Hardaway has not been a good defender at the NBA level. Hardaway also has few established skills other than shooting, and he has a tendency to chuck the ball at an inefficient rate.

If you think about this trade happening, say, in the middle of the season, instead of on draft night, it does feel pretty weird: Hardaway, who couldn’t stay in the starting lineup for one of the league’s worst teams, traded for the 15th overall pick?

While I second all of Churney’s concerns about the trade, I’m also inclined to give the Hawks the benefit of the doubt after their incredible, out-of-nowhere 60-win season. The main reason I hesitate to say that the Hawks “lost” the trade, full stop, is that this is a team that hardly ever trades for players.

Actually, out of the 16 players who appeared in a Hawks uniform last season, only one of them, Kyle Korver, was acquired via trade. And even then, Korver wasn’t actually exchanged for another player: the Chicago Bulls, somehow, were totally fine letting Korver go simply for cash and a trade exception. Instead, the Hawks have built their team both through the draft (Jeff Teague, Al Horford, Dennis Schroder, Mike Scott) and mostly through free agency, especially on the cheaper end (DeMarre Carroll, Paul Millsap, Mike Muscala, Shelvin Mack, Kent Bazemore, Thabo Sefolosha, Pero Antic).

So, since his price was the No. 15 overall pick, Hardaway represents a hefty, hefty price — for the Hawks — on the trade market. And, since Korver was acquired before the arrival of head coach Mike Budenholzer, Hardaway represents the first time that Budenholzer has been a part of trading for a player.

It’s no surprise, then, that Budenholzer is excited in Hardaway’s potential. Kris Willis of Peachtree Hoops reported what the coach had to say after the trade:

“The ability to acquire a player who has established himself in the league after two years as somebody who can help a team, help us, and acquiring a couple of second round picks as assets as we continue to build and create flexibility in the future and opportunities in the future was a very good night for us,” said head coach Mike Budenholzer as he met with media during the draft. “You weigh what your options are and what’s in front of you. We felt like adding Tim Hardaway Jr was what was best for us.”

It’s a lot easier to see Budenholzer’s point of view when you remember that just about all of the Hawks’ previous personnel moves have been efficient successes. I don’t see how Hardaway fits with the Hawks, but given how Budenholzer has transformed players from the dregs of the league into winners, I feel like I’ll be proven wrong sooner rather than later.

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