NBA Trade Grades: Nets move Allen Crabbe to Hawks
Atlanta Hawks
According to The Ringer‘s Kevin O’Connor, the Hawks have been trying to move Taurean Prince for awhile now, and by snagging two first-rounders, they did a pretty solid job in the process.
Sure, they’ll have to take on Crabbe’s $18.5 million contract, but he’s an expiring deal who, in a worst-case scenario, soaks up cap space for a year before coming off the books next summer. He’s also a useful 3-point shooter who will help space the floor in head coach Lloyd Pierce’s offense if given the chance, and he shot 37.8 percent from deep on a whopping 6.0 attempts per game last year.
Crabbe is basically in his prime at 27 years old and is a career 39.4 percent shooter from downtown, so even with a hefty price tag attached, this deal is worth it for his skill-set and the draft compensation.
Initial takeaway is that I like the deal for the Hawks.
— Brad Rowland (@BTRowland) June 6, 2019
Also signals that there is more coming, because ATL now has six (!!) of the top 44 picks and three of the top 17.
Atlanta now holds three picks in the top-20 at Nos. 8, 10 and 17, plus picks at Nos. 35, 41 and 44, which means this team is probably not done making moves.
The Hawks could very well try to package some of those picks to move into the top-five, and the New York Knicks make sense as a potential trade partner. If the Knicks are unable to trade for Anthony Davis but want to round out their roster with young talent to support the big-name free agents they’re hoping to lure this summer, moving their No. 3 pick for picks at No. 8, 10 and 17 could be an option.
Another possibility would be targeting the Cleveland Cavaliers’ pick at No. 5, as Wojnarowski mentions:
Atlanta had been motivated to keep No. 8 and use 10 to trade back for a future asset, league sources tell ESPN. Now, Nos. 8, 10, 17, 35, 41 and 44 give the Hawks the flexibility to move up -- perhaps as high as Cleveland's pick at No. 5. Hawks GM Travis Schlenk has options. https://t.co/RqjV5uxkNG
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) June 6, 2019
The 2020 selection is likely to convey given Brooklyn’s upward trajectory and its ample cap space to attract star players this summer, but even if the Nets wind up missing the postseason next year and keep the pick, it’ll most likely convey after that anyway (further protections pending).
Prince is a good, young player with a bright future, but his fit in Atlanta wasn’t great given his regression on defense and the fact that he missed 27 games. Rather than have to worry about his production in a contract year and his ensuing restricted free agency in 2020 the Hawks landed quite a deal that allows them the flexibility to make more moves while still adding complementary talent to the roster.
Grade: A-