Atlanta, GA

NBA Analyst Reveals The Atlanta Hawks’ Biggest Win And Loss Of The 2024 Offseason

Published

5 months ago

August 28, 2024

NBA Analyst Reveals The Atlanta Hawks’ Biggest Win And Loss Of The 2024 Offseason

In the 2024 offseason, the Atlanta Hawks made their fair share of moves. They’ve added good rotation pieces to the roster in Dyson Daniels and Larry Nance Jr, traded away former All-Star guard Dejounte Murray, drafted Zaccharie Risacher with the first overall pick, re-signed Vit Krejci on a long-term deal and signed Summer League standout Keaton Wallace to a two-way contract.

They did not trade either of Clint Capela or DeAndre Hunter, who stick out as the most obvious trade candidates. Capela’s lack of secondary skills outside of his rebounding and his waning defensive skills do not match up with his $22.2 million dollar salary. On the other hand, Hunter is a solid two-way wing whose injury history and inconsistent play have not merited the cap hits of $21 million, $23 million and $24 million that he has for the next three seasons. Trading either of them for a solid return could have also impacted the quality of this offseason.

Dan Favale of Bleacher Report recently ranked the biggest win and loss of the 2024 offseason for every team in the NBA – including the Hawks. Unsurprisingly, he had the trade of Dejounte Murray as the biggest loss for the Hawks. Favale had this to say about Murray’s departure:

“Trading Murray stings on three fronts. It is first and foremost an admittance that the Hawks never should have acquired him. After that, Atlanta must grapple with having accepted a largely future-focused return despite not really controlling its own future. (See: Draft obligations to San Antonio). And finally, regardless of how you feel about his fit or the return on his departure, the Hawks are now tasked with replacing 22.5 points, 6.4 assists and 7.1 three-point attempts per game.”

I do think there were several candidates for the Hawks’ biggest win of the NBA offseason. Landing Dyson Daniels, getting the first overall pick and getting back into the 2025 NBA draft by way of the Dejounte Murray trade all stick out as candidates. However, Favale ultimately went with the headliner and suggested landing the No. 1 overall pick was Atlanta’s biggest win of the offseason. He had this to say about winning the draft lottery:

“Winning the draft lottery is a HugeFreakingDeal for a franchise that doesn’t control its next three first-rounders. Whether you think the Atlanta Hawks made the most of that pick is debatable. Zaccharie Risacher seems more plug-and-play than conventional star prospect. But 1) we can’t know for sure until he plays the games, and 2) that’s not the end of the world. Risacher’s hustle in transition and half-court floor navigation will translate, and his value skyrockets should he consistently bang in triples, even if only from the corners. Also, even with De’Andre Hunter and Dyson Daniels in the fold, Risacher is likely Atlanta’s best shot at having someone next season who qualifies as a two-way wing.”

Overall, I agree with his assessment that landing Risacher was Atlanta’s biggest win of the offseason. His ceiling may be in question, but he clearly offers skills that the Hawks need right now on their roster. His defense in transition and at the point-of-attack, promise as a shooter and connective passing will all gel next to a potential star duo of Trae Young and Jalen Johnson. Whatever the case, the No. 1 pick is often transformative for franchises – for better or worse – and landing it clearly has the highest potential to improve Atlanta’s fortunes.

Murray’s loss is also significant, but I think it is significant in the amount of good it can do for the roster. Last year, Murray had the second-worst defensive box plus-minus of his career and accrued the second lowest defensive win shares of his career as well. Advanced stats don’t tell the full story on defense, but Murray looked fairly uncomfortable guarding anyone other than point guards last year. His defensive impact was overstated and his shot attempts are now avalaible for Johnson and Risacher. Ultimately, ceding more offense to those two should allow for a smoother fit around Young, which is what ultimately matters for the 2024-25 Atlanta Hawks.

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Atlanta, GA

4 passengers injured as hundreds evacuate Delta flight by emergency slide in Atlanta

Published

7 hours ago

January 10, 2025

Press Room

4 passengers injured as hundreds evacuate Delta flight by emergency slide in Atlanta

Hundreds of passengers were forced to evacuate a Delta airlines flight by emergency slides in snowy conditions Friday after an aborted takeoff in Atlanta — leading to at least four injuries and one hospitalization, authorities said.

Roughly 200 people hurriedly deplaned Minneapolis-bound flight 2668 on the tarmac at Atlanta International Airport at 9:10 a.m. due to an engine problem, airline officials said.

Footage posted on social media shows frazzled travelers, including children, running with their luggage from a Boeing 757-300 plane in several inches of snow, according to atlantanewsfirst.com.

Hundreds of passengers were forced to evacuate the flight by emergency slides in the snow. X/KarlenePetitt

Four passengers reported minor injuries and one was taken to the hospital, while the others were treated at the scene, the airport said.

Details about the engine problems were not immediately clear.

Delta apologized to passengers for the nerve-wracking experience.

delta plane — Passengers deplaned by slide after the aborted takeoff. X/KarlenePetitt

“Delta’s flight crew followed established procedures to suspend the takeoff of flight…after an indication of an engine issue,” Delta said in a statement.

“Nothing is more important than the safety of our people and customers, and we apologize to our customers for their experience.”

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Atlanta, GA

Houston faces Atlanta on 3-game win streak

Published

15 hours ago

January 10, 2025

Press Room

Houston Rockets (25-12, second in the Western Conference) vs. Atlanta Hawks (19-19, ninth in the Eastern Conference)

Atlanta; Saturday, 3 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Houston seeks to continue its three-game win streak with a victory over Atlanta.

The Hawks have gone 10-7 at home. Atlanta ranks third in the Eastern Conference with 17.5 fast break points per game led by Jalen Johnson averaging 3.6.

The Rockets have gone 12-6 away from home. Houston averages 113.1 points and has outscored opponents by 6.0 points per game.

The Hawks’ 13.1 made 3-pointers per game this season are just 0.7 more made shots on average than the 12.4 per game the Rockets give up. The Hawks average 113.1 points per game, 6.7 fewer points than the 119.8 the Hawks give up to opponents.

TOP PERFORMERS: Johnson is averaging 19.8 points, 10.1 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 1.5 steals for the Hawks.

Alperen Sengun is averaging 19.3 points, 10.5 rebounds and five assists for the Rockets.

LAST 10 GAMES: Hawks: 5-5, averaging 119.2 points, 41.2 rebounds, 30.5 assists, 11.2 steals and 5.3 blocks per game while shooting 47.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 121.5 points per game.

Rockets: 7-3, averaging 113.7 points, 48.0 rebounds, 19.9 assists, 8.9 steals and 4.4 blocks per game while shooting 45.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 108.9 points.

INJURIES: Hawks: Kobe Bufkin: out for season (shoulder), Larry Nance Jr.: out (hand), Jalen Johnson: day to day (shoulder), Cody Zeller: day to day (personal).

Rockets: Tari Eason: day to day (injury management), Jabari Smith Jr.: out (hand).

——

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

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Atlanta, GA

MLS apologizes for falsely announcing Atlanta United transfer

Published

24 hours ago

January 9, 2025

Press Room

MLS apologizes for falsely announcing Atlanta United transfer

Major League Soccer apologized Thursday for publishing a story on its website that identified the wrong player as having transferred to one of its clubs, Atlanta United.

The league’s website, MLSSoccer.com, published a story Wednesday that falsely reported that Celtic FC and Japan forward Kyogo Furuhashi had been acquired by Atlanta. The article was quickly removed.

“Major League Soccer’s website mistakenly posted an article that named the wrong player as having signed with an MLS club,” the league said in a statement to The Athletic. “The article was immediately removed and corrected. MLS extends its sincere apologies to the impacted parties.”

The false report is no longer available, and the link now directs to an error message.

The mistake appears linked to Atlanta’s transfer hint for another player, US-born Cayman Togashi, a former Japanese youth international who spent his entire professional career in Japan. Atlanta teased on social media the arrival of a Japanese player, fueling those rumors even more.

The club later announced it signed Togashi through the 2025 season with an option for 2026. The 31-year-old signed on a free transfer from Sagan Tosu in Japan’s top flight.

Last month, the Daily Mail reported that Atlanta submitted a $12 million bid for Furuhashi. The club also recently named Ronny Delia, a former Celtic manager, as its head coach. Around the time of the false report by MLS, Furuhashi played in Celtic’s 2-0 win against Dundee United, coming on as a substitute for Adam Idah in the 62nd minute.

(Photo: Craig Foy / SNS Group via Getty Images)

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