Even before the Atlanta Hawks won the NBA Draft Lottery, they were going to be one of the most interesting teams to follow in the NBA this offseason. The Hawks were the most talked about team leading up to the NBA trade deadline, but they declined to make any moves and stuck with their team as it was.

It does not feel like they are going to be doing that this offseason.

Atlanta seems likely to be splitting up the backcourt duo of Trae Young and Dejounte Murray and other players such as Clint Capela, De’Andre Hunter, and maybe even Bogdan Bogdanovic or Onyeka Okongwu could be on the move. On top of all that, Atlanta shockingly won the draft lottery, adding an interesting layer to an already pivotal offseason.

With all of those questions lingering over the franchise, what should be the top storyline for the Hawks this offseason? Bleacher Report analyst Dan Favale gave his answer and it was a pretty obvious one:

“Busting up the backcourt pairing of Dejounte Murray and Trae Young has mutated into an inevitability for the Atlanta Hawks. They were outscored by over six points per 100 possessions this season when the duo shared the floor and don’t currently have the requisite wings or defensive versatility to hold out hope for better results next year.

Tripling down on the Murray-Young twosome with a splashy acquisition or three mostly feels out of the question. Landing the No. 1 pick does arm the Hawks with a primo asset, but it’s not clear what that can land on its own. People in the know aren’t exactly smitten with this year’s draft class, and Atlanta is limited in how much it can sweeten packages when San Antonio controls its next three first-rounders.

So, which guard will the Hawks trade?

Conventional wisdom suggests they should and will move Murray. Despite all of his flaws, Young is the more dominant player. But Atlanta could be overly worried about assembling a top-notch-ish defense around him. Both sides could also be ready for a change, or the front office may recognize the 25-year-old with an All-NBA selection under his belt will garner a heftier return.

Beyond that, there’s no telling how bagging the first-overall selection impacts Atlanta’s thinking. Netting Alex Sarr or Zaccharie Risacher likely isn’t enough to fire up the total-rebuild machine and flip both Murray and Young. Then again, is that really off the table?

Proximity to the luxury tax looms over everything. The Hawks will enter the offseason over the line—without even accounting for Saddiq Bey’s restricted-free-agent hold. Chances are the C-Suiters won’t allow that to stand. And if shedding salary is the mandate, it will no doubt factor into the calculus of who they trade as well as what they prioritize in return.”

If this draft had a can’t miss prospect, what the Hawks did in the draft would probably take the No. 1 spot, but it does not and the potential of either of these players being traded will be one of the top storylines of the entire offseason.

I still think that at the end of the day, Young is going to remain in Atlanta and Murray will be traded. The Hawks have a much higher ceiling with Young as their centerpiece and now that they have the No. 1 pick, they can work on putting a better team around him than they have up to this point.

There is going to be no shortage of storylines in Atlanta this season and this team will likely look much different when the new season tips off in October.

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) – The Atlanta Dream (3-2, 1-0 Eastern Conference) take on the Connecticut Sun (7-0, 4-0 Eastern Conference) on Sunday on PeachtreeTV.

Where/When: College Park, Georgia; Sunday, 3 p.m. EDT

WATCH ON TV: PeachtreeTV, which is channel 17.1 over the air. If you are on the Dish Network or DirecTV, tune into channel 17. If you have Xfinity or Spectrum, find us on channel 7. Here’s how to watch it LIVE on PeachtreeTV. It will also air on Peachtree Sports Network across Georgia (Channel 17.2, Comcast Spectrum or YouTubeTV).

BOTTOM LINE: Connecticut Sun visits the Atlanta Dream after Brionna Jones scored 22 points in the Sun’s 74-72 victory over the Dallas Wings.

Atlanta went 19-21 overall and 11-9 in Eastern Conference action a season ago. The Dream gave up 84.0 points per game while committing 19.3 fouls last season.

Connecticut went 14-6 in Eastern Conference play and 27-13 overall during the 2023-24 season. The Sun averaged 82.7 points per game while shooting 44.5% from the field and 36.0% from 3-point distance last season.

INJURIES: Dream: None listed.

Sun: None listed.

RELATED STORIES:

ANF to broadcast Atlanta Dream WNBA game vs. Caitlin Clark, Indiana Fever

Tina Charles thought she was retired — then the Dream called

WATCH: 2024 Atlanta Dream season preview

Atlanta Dream sells out 10 home games

Copyright 2024 WANF. All rights reserved.

RUPERT, Idaho (KMVT/KSVT) — While high school sports are over and done with for the year, one Minico baseball player will be heading to Atlanta, Georgia to represent his heritage on the diamond.

Cole Huff is set to be a senior at Minico High School this next year and he was selected as one of 50 players nationwide of to compete in the third annual Atlanta Braves Native American All-Star Showcase next week.

The event, as its name suggests, only takes kids of Native American descent. Huff will be representing his mother Michelle’s tribe, the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa, based in North Dakota.

He will also be representing Idaho at the showcase.

The event includes pro-style drills and practices with college and professional coaches on day one leading into events for players and their families that night including the final game on Sunday afternoon.

Huff spoke about what this opportunity means to him.

“I’m super excited. I know that not very many kids get to go and I’m grateful for the opportunity. By no means will I be the best kid there, but I’m super excited for the opportunity to represent my grandparents and great-grandparents and their mothers and fathers and grandparents too, just all my ancestors,” Huff said.

Huff will head to Atlanta with his family in a little less than a week to represent both the tribe and the state.

The game will be played next Sunday afternoon at Truist Park, the home of the Atlanta Braves.

Copyright 2024 KMVT. All rights reserved.