{"id":583817,"date":"2026-02-05T09:52:43","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T09:52:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/583817\/"},"modified":"2026-02-05T09:52:43","modified_gmt":"2026-02-05T09:52:43","slug":"onsi-salehs-trade-maneuvers-put-hawks-in-dynasty-position","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/583817\/","title":{"rendered":"Onsi Saleh’s Trade Maneuvers Put Hawks In Dynasty Position"},"content":{"rendered":"

COMPARED to Trae Young<\/a>, who now headlines a Washington Wizards team that features Anthony Davis<\/a>, Atlanta Hawks forward Jalen Johnson<\/a> is not as openly confident about his ability to lead a team. Regardless, his numbers speak for themselves.<\/p>\n

Onsi Saleh\u2019s Trade Maneuvers Put Hawks In Dynasty Position<\/p>\n

Johnson\u2019s one of three players averaging at least<\/a> 20 points, 10 rebounds and five assists per game, the other two being Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic<\/a> and Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo<\/a>, both of whom are multi-time NBA MVPs. This season, he has more games with 15+ points, 10+ rebounds and 5+ assists than anyone else (h\/t StatMuse on X). He leads Atlanta in points (23.2), rebounds (10.5) and assists (8.0) per game. He\u2019s also the first player in Hawks history with 10 triple-doubles, notable for a franchise that\u2019s had players like Young, four-time All-Star Paul Millsap<\/a>, five-time All-Star Al Horford<\/a>, nine-time All-Star Dominique Wilkins<\/a> and 11-time All-Star Bob Pettit<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Already a 6-foot-8 plus athlete, Johnson\u2019s been consistently developing his guard skills and scoring ability since entering the league. That\u2019s the culmination of the work he\u2019s put in so far. The fact that he\u2019s only 24 is incredible. With that being said, if he ends up plateauing, he\u2019s already a cornerstone player. If he continues getting better, the sky is the proverbial limit for he and a potentially dynastic Hawks team.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s A Marathon, Not A Sprint<\/p>\n

Saleh\u2019s moves shimmer like the stars in Orion\u2019s Belt. Of course, the trade that sent Young to the Wizards is his most noteworthy transaction. However, that move came after he signed Nickeil Alexander-Walker<\/a> and Kristaps Porzingis<\/a> last summer.<\/p>\n

Alexander-Walker, 27, is typically thought of as a 3-and-D wing. However, this season he\u2019s played more of an on-ball role than in the past. Accordingly, he\u2019s averaging career-highs of 20.3 points and 3.5 assists per game in 2025-26. Porzingis got off to a good start with the Hawks too, appearing to shake off the illness that fatigued him<\/a> in 2024-25. Yet, not only did symptoms of the mystery malady return, the 30-year-old was routinely injured. As a result, he\u2019s only played 17 games this season, an impetus behind Atlanta\u2019s stalled or failed pursuit<\/a> of Davis.<\/p>\n

With that being said, Porzingis\u2019s signing isn\u2019t important because he worked out for the Hawks. It\u2019s because his expiring $30.7 million contract allowed Atlanta to complete a blockbuster trade<\/a> with the Golden State Warriors. Swooping in out of nowhere, the Hawks have acquired Jonathan Kuminga<\/a> and Buddy Hield<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Balancing Act: The Hawks Have It All<\/p>\n

Kuminga is the main attraction of the trade and not just because of his publicized falling out<\/a> with Warriors head coach Steve Kerr. At 23 years old, the former seventh overall pick is still relatively raw in terms of guard skills and decision-making. Yet, he\u2019s had sustained moments of excellence, providing evidence of his star upside<\/a>. This would make him a polarizing player no matter what the circumstances were. However, playing for the NBA\u2019s most recent dynasty team put his lack of polish under the microscope.<\/p>\n

Still, just because he was developing too slow for Kerr\u2019s liking doesn\u2019t mean he has to be the Hawks\u2019 redheaded stepchild. He\u2019s likely to come off the bench in Atlanta simply because 2024 No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher<\/a> accepts the 3-and-D role he\u2019s asked to play. To that point, Risacher complements Johnson better, on paper. Nonetheless, a featured role in the second unit should allow Kuminga to play to his strengths.<\/p>\n

A physically gifted and scoring-minded forward, Kuminga has an attacking mentality. With his athleticism and highlight plays, he\u2019ll infuse the game with energy. Facing off against reserves, he can wreak havoc against lesser defenders. Him coming off the bench also has an intrinsic benefit for Atlanta. When Johnson is off the court, the Hawks no longer have to worry about if a frontcourt player not named Onyeka Okongwu<\/a> can get buckets. That\u2019s been a major issue for them all season, and one reason they\u2019re 1-4 when<\/a> Johnson hasn\u2019t played.<\/p>\n

Hield, 15th all-time in career 3s (2,194), can\u2019t be dismissed though. The 33-year-old joins Luke Kennard<\/a> and Corey Kispert<\/a> as the team\u2019s 3-point specialists. He hadn\u2019t been his usual self with the Warriors. Nevertheless, he\u2019s Atlanta\u2019s only player with more 3-pointers than McCollum (2,113).<\/p>\n

Atlanta Hawks Projected Depth Chart<\/p>\n

As of today, the Hawks\u2019 current depth chart looks like this:<\/p>\n

PG: Dyson Daniels, CJ McCollum, Keaton Wallace, RayJ Dennis*<\/p>\n

SG: Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Luke Kennard, Buddy Hield<\/p>\n

SF: Zaccharie Risacher, Jonathan Kuminga, Nikola Djurisic, Caleb Houstan*<\/p>\n

PF: Jalen Johnson, Corey Kispert, Mo Gueye<\/p>\n

C: Onyeka Okongwu, Jock Landale, Duop Reath, N\u2019Faly Dante, Christian Koloko*<\/p>\n

*- Player on two-way contract<\/p>\n

Having decided to build around Johnson, Atlanta now boasts one of the more balanced teams in the NBA.<\/p>\n

Mixing, Matching & Mo Gueye<\/p>\n

22-year-old Dyson Daniels<\/a> put himself on the map as a Defensive Player of the Year candidate last season. Since the New Year, he\u2019s averaging 11.3 points, 7.2 assists, and 1.8 steals per game while shooting 51.2% from the field. Though he\u2019s not the type of scorer or shooter modern-day point guards tend to be, that\u2019s okay. The first player behind him on the depth chart is CJ McCollum<\/a>, a 13-year veteran averaging 19.5 points per game on 39.6% shooting from 3 for his career.<\/p>\n

With Alexander-Walker starting alongside Daniels, their first unit has one of the staunchest backcourt defenses. However, with Kennard and Hield, they now have more defensive liabilities than plus-defenders. That\u2019s what makes the perimeter defense of their frontcourt stick out, as it would be best to stick Kennard and Hield on the opponent\u2019s weakest scorer.<\/p>\n

Keeping that in mind, none of Atlanta\u2019s starting frontcourt players have trouble guarding out in space. Looking at their second unit, Kuminga and Kispert make players work for their points but they have flaws. In terms of off-ball awareness, Kuminga can be slow on the uptake. If matched up against a crafty shot-creator, Kispert can be peeled off. That\u2019s what makes it likely that 23-year-old Mo Gueye<\/a>, a dynamic defender, will still receive playing time.<\/p>\n

The Hawks Have At Least One More Move To Make<\/p>\n

Atlanta now has 16 players on standard contracts, which is one too many. However, this is easily correctable. Logically, the most feasible solution is to waive or trade one of two players:<\/p>\n

Duop Reath<\/a>, whom the Hawks acquired in a trade<\/a> with the Portland Trail Blazers, is on an expiring minimum-salary contract. He\u2019s also out for the season after undergoing surgery to address a stress fracture in his right foot. If they can\u2019t re-route him to another team, he\u2019s the most likely candidate to be waived by the Hawks when the smoke clears.<\/p>\n

N\u2019Faly Dante<\/a>, who was signed last summer, is another potential cut. Dante is also out for the remainder of 2025-26, sidelined with a torn ACL since last December. He\u2019s owed $4.5 million through next season but his age (24) and upside as a rotation-caliber big man could make him a viable target.<\/p>\n

After acquiring 6-foot-11 center Jock Landale<\/a> as part of a three-team trade<\/a> with the Memphis Grizzlies and Utah Jazz, Reath and Dante are only more expendable.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"COMPARED to Trae Young, who now headlines a Washington Wizards team that features Anthony Davis, Atlanta Hawks forward…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":583818,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3776],"tags":[676,208,3874,7,206,677,2990,867,871,6,7170,2828,379,4193],"class_list":{"0":"post-583817","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-atlanta-hawks","8":"tag-atlanta","9":"tag-atlanta-hawks","10":"tag-atlantahawks","11":"tag-basketball","12":"tag-dyson-daniels","13":"tag-hawks","14":"tag-jalen-johnson","15":"tag-jonathan-kuminga","16":"tag-kristaps-porzingis","17":"tag-nba","18":"tag-nba-trade","19":"tag-nba-trade-deadline","20":"tag-nickeil-alexander-walker","21":"tag-onsi-saleh"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116017414302137318","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583817","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=583817"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/583817\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/583818"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=583817"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=583817"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=583817"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}