In his first media availability for the reason that commerce of four-time All-Star Trae Younger, Atlanta Hawks normal supervisor Onsi Saleh on Monday thanked Younger for all he did for the franchise however stated the Hawks preferred the gamers they received again and weren’t the kind of crew to attend if that they had a superb deal.
The commerce late final week, which leaked close to the top of Atlanta’s win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday however didn’t turn out to be official till Friday, despatched Younger to the Washington Wizards for 34-year-old guard CJ McCollum and reserve ahead Corey Kispert. Across the NBA, it was broadly seen as a wage dump to keep away from Younger’s $49 million participant possibility for subsequent season.
“If there are offers to be executed, why wait, is my philosophy,” stated Saleh, who changed Landry Fields in April. “When you like one thing that makes loads of sense, we’re going to try this. We simply do what’s finest for our group. And, you already know, I’m not one to essentially wait on something like that. Trae has been so big in our group.
“Him and (his spouse) Shelby, what they’ve executed, we simply want them the perfect. They’ve been phenomenal for our group. (We’re) speaking a couple of man that’s been the face of our franchise for fairly a very long time. I actually want him the perfect, and he’s going to do some cool stuff over there, too.”
“However we just like the commerce, and what we did was one thing we actually thought would assist us now and sooner or later,” Saleh added. “The gamers coming again, I feel they’re glorious matches with us and make loads of sense for us, and we get deep in our rotation, too. I feel you guys type of noticed a little bit little bit of that final night time (in a 124-111 win over the Golden State Warriors).”
Eradicating Younger’s $49 million contract from subsequent season’s books additionally provides the Hawks appreciable offseason flexibility, together with the potential for being a cap-room crew in 2026-27, and Saleh didn’t deny that was a part of the commerce logic.
“After we undergo all of the calculus of creating the deal, there’s parts of the monetary flexibility, the optionality, which is large for us, but additionally (liking) the gamers we’re getting again,” Saleh stated. “And simply having that optionality on this present cap surroundings, you guys are seeing it. You guys have seen the repercussions of it and the results in the event you’re not diligent in the way you spend, in your cap house.”
The emergence of younger stars Jalen Johnson and Nickeil Alexander-Walker, particularly, served as catalysts for the commerce. Though Younger had performed in solely 10 video games attributable to an early-season knee damage, the core had confirmed in his absence that it may nonetheless thrive.
“We’ve realized so much about our crew this yr,” Saleh stated. “I feel you guys need to, proper? Watching our group and the evolution of the fellows that now we have on the market and the youth motion that we’ve received happening as effectively. I feel, once more, the emergence of some gamers on our group, and the way it all matches collectively was actually key right here …. It was simply the correct transfer for us.”
“Jalen’s sport has developed a lot, and he’s performing some superb issues on the courtroom. Most significantly, I feel he’s making his teammates higher as effectively,” he added. “And that’s how we type of take a look at this as like because the group grows. It’s the group, it’s not merely only one participant both, proper? It’s Jalen, it’s Dyson (Daniels), it’s Onyeka (Okongwu), it’s Zacch (Risacher), it’s Nickeil. We received two guys, Nickeil and Jalen, who’ve simply made great leaps, and when Dyson’s on the ball, we’ve seen that leap as effectively. So, once more, it simply comes right down to what we’re seeing and the way this matches your entire group somewhat than one particular person.”
Lastly, Saleh wouldn’t touch upon a potential extension for McCollum, whose deal expires after the season.
“We’ll see the place that every one goes because the season comes alongside, however CJ’s been superior,” Saleh stated. “He’s anyone that I feel may match right here long run as effectively. I’m actually, actually enthusiastic about having him right here. However yeah, I can’t actually say something about extension talks and negotiations.”
