The Atlanta Hawks Will Soon Boast Best Small Lineup in East

The Atlanta Hawks made a huge trade on draft day, to move up four spots and select forward De’Andre Hunter. The move will pay off in due time, resulting in Hunter being the power forward, for the best small ball lineup in the Eastern Conference.

Atlanta Hawks general manager Travis Schlenk again made a move in the draft, to get the player he wanted most. Last season it was a move down to acquire point guard Trae Young, the player he wanted all along, while also securing an additional first round pick. That pick was recently used to select forward Cam Reddish. This year the move was made upward four spots, to secure the services of defensive minded combo forward De’Andre Hunter. As you can see in the trade details above, the Atlanta Hawks paid a fairly steep price to move up. However as you will soon see on paper, the move will prove to be worth it in the long run.

Atlanta Hawks GM Travis Schlenk was unable to speak directly about the deal, because it will not be official until July 6, when the NBA salary cap will be set for the new season. However he did give the following statement to Chris Vivlamore of the AJC, that hints at the move:

"“We feel good about the way the draft played out. Since I’ve gotten here, we spent a lot of time accumulating assets. Tonight we decided to cash some of those in for guys we feel like are going to help us in the future.”"