ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — Atlanta Hawks general manager Onsi Saleh finished second in NBA Executive of the Year voting, the league announced Tuesday.
Saleh finished behind Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens, who won the award for the second year in a row.
The second-place finish is validation of Saleh’s first season as Hawks general manager.
He has made several key trades and signings at the helm that have completely remade the team. The most obvious is trading long-time superstar Trae Young to the Washington Wizards for CJ McCollum and Corey Kispert, but he made several lesser trades that paid dividends for the Hawks.
Saleh traded a second-round pick to the Minnesota Timberwolves for Nickeil Alexander-Walker; Alexander-Walker went on to win the Most Improved Player award after setting career highs in nearly every major offensive statistic.
Saleh was also aggressive trading short-term contracts at their highest value; offseason signings Kristaps Porziņģis and Luke Kennard spent less than a season in Atlanta, flipped for picks and key bench pieces.
The Hawks escaped the mire of the play-in tournament by exploding after the Trae Young trade, going 27-15 after the trade. The highlight of their second half was an 11-game winning streak with just two wins under double digits.
Game 5 of the first-round series between the Hawks and New York Knicks is Tuesday at 8 p.m. The series is tied 2-2.
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