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With not many NBA teams having the kind of salary cap space to create fireworks in free agency, trades surrounding the draft have made late June the ideal time for blockbuster moves.
Kevin Durant traded to Houston. Desmond Bane traded to Orlando. Jrue Holiday traded to Portland for Anfernee Simons.
The Boston Celtics continued to reshape their roster under Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens. Boston reached a deal to send Kristaps Porziņģis to Atlanta in a three-team deal that gives the Brooklyn Nets another first-round pick in the draft on Wednesday, June 25.
The Nets get Terance Mann and the No. 22 pick in the draft from Atlanta; he Hawks get a second-round pick in addition to Porziņģis; and the Celtics received Georges Niang from Atlanta and a second-round pick.
Grading the Celtics-Hawks-Nets trade:
Brooklyn Nets: A
The Nets, who have won just 58 games the past two seasons, now have five first-round picks in the 2025 NBA Draft: No. 8, No. 19, No. 22, No. 26 and No. 27 — and it wouldn’t be a surprise if they packaged picks to move up in the draft or make a deal for a big-name player.
They are undergoing another rebuild and are trying to regain as much draft capital as possible to expedite the process. Though Mann is entering the first season of a three-year contract extension he signed with the Los Angeles Clippers before getting moved to Atlanta at the 2025 trade deadline, it’s a manageable deal at approximately $15.5 million per season.
Boston Celtics: B-
This was a move the Celtics, frankly, needed to do. In conjunction with the Jrue Holiday trade, the Celtics are now out of the second apron, which triggers massive penalties and sanctions on teams that exceed the threshold. With the Celtics under new ownership, the bill for building their star-studded starting lineup was essentially coming due.
According to an ESPN front office insider, the Holiday and Porziņģis trades are trimming $180 million in luxury tax payments. Georges Niang is, at best, a player that will come off the bench, but one who can go on scoring spurts. Does the trade make the Celtics more competitive? No. Does it give them roster flexibility? Unquestionably. Now, the team can look to make corresponding moves to stay competitive on the cheap.
In a wide open East — one in which the Pacers, Celtics and Bucks will be dealing with torn Achilles injuries to star players — the Hawks could emerge as a sleeper team. Trae Young is the team’s unquestioned leader and led the NBA with 11.6 assists per game. Adding Porziņģis, a stretch big with deep range, should open up Atlanta’s offense. Porziņģis is also a plus rim protector who should bolster Atlanta’s defense, which was tied for 18th in defensive efficiency (114.8).
With Young, Porziņģis, 2024 No. 1 overall pick Zaccahrie Risacher, budding star Jalen Johnson, Defensive Player of the Year finalist Dyson Daniels and the improving Onyeka Okongwu, the Hawks have a strong, young core. But, as always with Porziņģis, who has played in 258 of a possible 400 games since 2020, the big question is health.
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The search for missing 16-year-old Benjamin Braithwaite is over. Atlanta police announced just before midnight Thursday that he had been located, more than a week after he vanished from his Regency Trace home.
The department shared the update on social media but did not release additional details about where he was found or the circumstances surrounding his recovery.
Braithwaite had been missing since the night of April 27, when he was last seen around 9 p.m. at his home in Atlanta. His family said they had no contact with him during the entire time he was gone.
The disappearance of the KIPP Atlanta Collegiate High School sophomore and basketball team member had galvanized the Atlanta community. His family, teammates, Atlanta police officers and neighbors gathered at the school last week to raise awareness about his disappearance. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, where his mother works, joined the search effort — asking the public to watch for him at MARTA stops and fast food restaurants.
A $10,000 reward had been offered for credible information leading to his safe return.
“Even small details matter. Your awareness could make the difference,” the airport wrote in an Instagram post earlier this week.
FLOWERY BRANCH – The Atlanta Falcons are gearing up for rookie minicamp this weekend after a flurry of player moves over the last several weeks. General manager Ian Cunningham is not finished making changes to his roster, and the front office has reunited with another former player.
According to a press release from the team, the Falcons have signed cornerback Darren Hall and released safety Tysheem Johnson in a corresponding move.
Hall was originally selected by the franchise in the fourth round (108th overall) of the 2021 NFL Draft out of San Diego State. Over his four seasons with the Falcons (2021-22) and Arizona Cardinals (2024-25), he has appeared in 48 games (12 starts), registering 85 total tackles, three tackles for loss, six passes defended, one sack, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery.
In the time between his stints in Atlanta and Arizona, Hall was a member of the Indianapolis Colts’ practice squad (2023).
As a college player for the Aztecs, he tied the FBS lead for pass breakups with 16 in 2019. He appeared in 34 games (22 starts) over his three seasons (2018-20) with San Diego State, recording 134 tackles (101 solo), 31 passes defensed, eight tackles for loss, six interceptions, three forced fumbles, 2.5 sacks, and one fumble recovery. He was a first-team All-Mountain West selection following the 2020 season.
As a pro, Hall’s career has not gone exactly as he would have hoped. 10 of Hall’s starts came with the Falcons, and he largely struggled in 2022. He surrendered 362 receiving yards and four touchdowns on 27 receptions against 37 targets. The Falcons waived him in August 2023 in favor of rookie Clark Phillips III, Jeff Okudah, Tre Flowers, and Mike Hughes.
Hall is still a versatile player with solid tackling ability, giving him a shot at being a depth cornerback on this roster or earning a spot on the practice squad. He will face stiff competition to earn that spot, with Phillips, Cobee Bryant, Darnay Holmes, Mike Ford Jr., C.J. Henderson, and Natrone Brooks all standing in his way.
For now, he is the second player from that 2021 draft class (Terry Fontenot’s first as a general manager) to receive some form of a second contract (Kyle Pitts was franchise tagged earlier this offseason) – it just did not happen the way anyone expected. Hall now becomes the third former Falcon to join the roster via free agency this offseason after stints with other franchises (Austin Hooper and Olamide Zaccheaus).
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EMS crews often face waits of an hour — or more — to transfer patients into hospital care.
A medical crew wheels a patient across the parking area into Grady Memorial Hospital after parking across the street because the ambulance bay was full on Friday, May 1, 2026. (Ben Hendren for the AJC)
Some Georgia ambulances are reaching hospitals with a patient on board and then shifting into park.
And waiting.
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A ambulance leaves the parking bay outside the Marcus Trauma and Emergency Center at Grady Memorial Hospital on Friday, May 1, 2026. (Ben Hendren for the AJC)
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Asia Simone Burns is a rapid response reporter for the AJC. Burns was formerly an intern in AJC’s newsroom and now writes about crime. She is a graduate of Samford University and has previously reported for NPR and WABE, Atlanta’s NPR member station.
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