Atlanta Hawks and the Importance of Depth

[Lipoli390]

As top players continue to get knocked out by injuries, we're getting a lesson in the importance of depth. And the Atlanta Hawks have better depth than any of the teams that have competed in this year's playoffs. In fact, I would argue that Atlanta's depth is a major reason why they're in the Eastern Conference finals with a good chance of ending up in the NBA finals. Bogdanovic goes down for some games and Huerter fills the gap. Hunter goes down and the team doesn't miss a beat. Gallinari is stepping up too. Trae Young misses tonight's game and Lou Williams steps in with 20 points. They have two high caliber bigs in Capella and Collins with a really talented young big named Okongwu contributing in the playoffs. High lottery pick, Cam Reddish, has been out injury and is now contributing significantly.

[SameOldNudityDrew]

Absolutely.

They've got 11 guys who could legitimately get playoff minutes, counting Okongwu, Reddish, and Hill.

They've got a decent veteran presence along with a bunch of promising young guys.

They've got closers who can create shots, which you need in crunch time and the playoffs (and which is why I'm glad Ant can do that).

They've got two long, defensive wings in Hunter and Reddish (who looked spectacular on D for a few possessions last night).

Okongwu is shorter than you'd like for a guy with his skillset, and he's not quite the fire hydrant PJ Tucker is, but he looks like a really good defender and hustle guy with decent offensive skills too (that stretch he had in the 2nd quarter last night was really impressive).

Ultimately, this team is going to evolve. You can't just pay all these young guys what they will be worth on their second contracts without going way over the luxury tax, so I'm guessing they'll be looking to maybe trade a couple of these younger guys for a more established star at some point. I also think they have a bit of a dilemma with Collins. You don't want to lose him for nothing, but if you sign him to a max, is that a neutral value contract you can trade without giving up too many assets? Maybe. If not, it could hamstring their ability to keep their good vets and keep their best young guys together because that's going to eat up a lot of their cap space. Right now, the team is benefitting from having so many guys on their rookie contracts they can afford Capela, Lou Will, Gallinari, and Bogdanovic. But at some point soon, as these rookie deals end, they're going to have to choose who to move and who to keep, or they will find themselves very deep in the luxury tax.

[Monster]

And coaching still matters in the NBA.

Lou Williams has played 18 seasons in the NBA and has made 80 million. It kinda boggles my mind how little (relatively speaking) he has gotten paid at times. Some of that has been luck of when he was a FA. Some of that is I don't think the last couple contracts he went for the most money he could possibly get which I think should be a credit to him. After being disappointed being traded he is now in the eastern conference finals and his championship hopes are alone while the Clippers are done.

The reality is the Hawks and the Suns are both teams that can give young teams hopes of becoming good someday. It's also a unique playoffs with injuries but Atlanta has dealt with their own injuries too. This has been a good year to have gone all in...if you can stay healthy or weather those injuries.

As for affording keeping good players can they sometimes pick a guy or 2 to trade and get back draft picks or other cheap talent to keep things going? Can they continue picking good young players?

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

Getting positive production from guys on rookie deals is just so huge.

[Lipoli390]

Getting positive production from guys on rookie deals is just so huge.

That's another reason to hold onto McDaniels and stick with Okogie for the last year of his rookie deal. Although he'll no longer be on a rookie deal, Vando can likely be re-signed for very little. Naz Reid's production far outstrips what he's getting paid. Then there's Nowell on a cheap contract as a 2nd round pick. I wouldn't trade any of those guys in pursuit of a star or an expensive vet.

[Monster]

Getting positive production from guys on rookie deals is just so huge.

That's another reason to hold onto McDaniels and stick with Okogie for the last year of his rookie deal. Although he'll no longer be on a rookie deal, Vando can likely be re-signed for very little. Naz Reid's production far outstrips what he's getting paid. Then there's Nowell on a cheap contract as a 2nd round pick. I wouldn't trade any of those guys in pursuit of a star or an expensive vet.

Here is a question I asked myself watching the early games of the Clippers Suns. Torrey Craig is a decent player is a solid wing defender not much of a scorer but basically is a vet min guy. How is Josh Okogie better than he is? Craig is a better 3 point shooter. Okogie is younger but honestly his potential just isn't all that high at this point and I really like Okogie. If I felt confident I was going to be able to keep Okogie for Jake Layman money or honestly less...yeah I agree I probably wouldn't move him either.

I'll say this though if I was getting a younger legit player pack that played one of the spots of the young cheap guys you mentioned Lip...I'd be willing to let someone go especially if they were a guard. It's pretty crowded in that area and if we add someone even more established than what we already have? Yeah that's not going to allow for some guys to be able to have opportunities.

[AbeVigodaLive]

Getting positive production from guys on rookie deals is just so huge.

That's another reason to hold onto McDaniels and stick with Okogie for the last year of his rookie deal. Although he'll no longer be on a rookie deal, Vando can likely be re-signed for very little. Naz Reid's production far outstrips what he's getting paid. Then there's Nowell on a cheap contract as a 2nd round pick. I wouldn't trade any of those guys in pursuit of a star or an expensive vet.

Here is a question I asked myself watching the early games of the Clippers Suns. Torrey Craig is a decent player is a solid wing defender not much of a scorer but basically is a vet min guy. How is Josh Okogie better than he is? Craig is a better 3 point shooter. Okogie is younger but honestly his potential just isn't all that high at this point and I really like Okogie. If I felt confident I was going to be able to keep Okogie for Jake Layman money or honestly less...yeah I agree I probably wouldn't move him either.

I'll say this though if I was getting a younger legit player pack that played one of the spots of the young cheap guys you mentioned Lip...I'd be willing to let someone go especially if they were a guard. It's pretty crowded in that area and if we add someone even more established than what we already have? Yeah that's not going to allow for some guys to be able to have opportunities.

For all those wondering about the value of an Okogie or Culver...

Milwaukee signed Craig (after Craig was in the playoff rotation for Denver) for only $1.7M. And then they traded him to Phoenix for cash.

Yet the Wolves would be paying Okogie $4M+ and Culver $6M+ next season... and arguably, neither guy is as good. Now granted, that's not a lot of money. But it goes to show you that there are cheaper (better fitting) options out there. And that goes for other teams, too. It's why I don't see anybody taking on Culver's salary without sweeteners added when there are better options at a fraction of the price.

[Monster]

Getting positive production from guys on rookie deals is just so huge.

That's another reason to hold onto McDaniels and stick with Okogie for the last year of his rookie deal. Although he'll no longer be on a rookie deal, Vando can likely be re-signed for very little. Naz Reid's production far outstrips what he's getting paid. Then there's Nowell on a cheap contract as a 2nd round pick. I wouldn't trade any of those guys in pursuit of a star or an expensive vet.

Here is a question I asked myself watching the early games of the Clippers Suns. Torrey Craig is a decent player is a solid wing defender not much of a scorer but basically is a vet min guy. How is Josh Okogie better than he is? Craig is a better 3 point shooter. Okogie is younger but honestly his potential just isn't all that high at this point and I really like Okogie. If I felt confident I was going to be able to keep Okogie for Jake Layman money or honestly less...yeah I agree I probably wouldn't move him either.

I'll say this though if I was getting a younger legit player pack that played one of the spots of the young cheap guys you mentioned Lip...I'd be willing to let someone go especially if they were a guard. It's pretty crowded in that area and if we add someone even more established than what we already have? Yeah that's not going to allow for some guys to be able to have opportunities.

For all those wondering about the value of an Okogie or Culver...

Milwaukee signed Craig (after Craig was in the playoff rotation for Denver) for only $1.7M. And then they traded him to Phoenix for cash.

Yet the Wolves would be paying Okogie $4M+ and Culver $6M+ next season... and arguably, neither guy is as good. Now granted, that's not a lot of money. But it goes to show you that there are cheaper (better fitting) options out there. And that goes for other teams, too. It's why I don't see anybody taking on Culver's salary without sweeteners added when there are better options at a fraction of the price.

Yeah I mean why not even consider signing RHJ for the vet min (non guaranteed even) instead of either guy at a higher salary? Or try and find the next Craig or Mann or Nunn or reclamation project like Payne?