Proposed blockbuster three-team trade sends Trae Young + Josh Giddey to San Antonio, Atlanta gets assets to rebuild

The Atlanta Hawks were going to have a busy offseason and some roster decisions to make, but their offseason was turned upside down on Sunday when they won the 2024 NBA Draft Lottery despite having just 3%. chances of doing so. Most analysts believe this is a weaker draft, perhaps even the weakest draft since 2013, when the Cleveland Cavaliers selected Anthony Bennett, but moving up from 10th to No. 1 is huge regardless of the draft and there are prospects who could help Atlanta reset. and move forward.

Even though they landed the No. 1 pick, Atlanta is still likely to break down their backcourt duo of Trae Young and Dejounte Murray. The team didn’t get the results they were hoping for when they sent out a huge package of picks to get Murray and they will have to choose one of the guards to keep and one to trade.

While I still believe Murray is the guard most likely to be traded (even if it’s just a guess), there has been a lot of speculation about where Young might end up. Young would likely fetch more in a trade than Murray and that could lead Atlanta to decide to keep Murray and trade Young.

One of the teams mentioned as a destination for Young is the San Antonio Spurs and that’s not hard to see. San Antonio needs a point guard to pair with Victor Wembanyama and the Spurs could return their picks from the Murray trade to the Hawks, meaning Atlanta could completely rebuild if they wanted to.

A proposed trade by Bleacher Report’s Andy Bailey has the Hawks, Spurs and Thunder pulling off a blockbuster trade with each other.

The Spurs receive: Trae Young and Josh Giddey

Hawks receive: Keldon Johnson, Kenrich Williams, a 2026 first-round pick (via Atlanta), a 2027 first-round pick swap (via Atlanta), and a 2029 first-round pick

Thunder Receiving: Zach Collins, Garrison Mathews and a 2030 first-round pick

“For Spurs, this deal is about making life a little easier for Victor Wembanyama, who has already shown himself more ready to compete at the highest level than anyone could have hoped in year one.

Some reports suggest San Antonio isn’t too keen on pairing him with Trae Young, but he would undeniably be better at the 1 than the combination of experienced Jeremy Sochan and Tre Jones.

Even with all of his defensive flaws, Young is one of the most dynamic offensive engines and pick-and-roll playmakers in the game. He would get Wemby several wide-open looks, including at the rim, every game.

Taking a flyer on Josh Giddey could also give San Antonio one of the highest-scoring rosters in the league. And his lack of outside shooting might be masked by the volume of Young and Wembanyama out there.

For the Atlanta Hawks, this ends the hapless Young-Dejounte Murray backcourt, restores some of the future assets spent to acquire Murray, and gives the team some depth on the wing with Keldon Johnson and Kenrich Williams .

And for the Oklahoma City Thunder, Zach Collins strengthens the front line a bit, without sacrificing the ability to play 5-out. »

This could be a deal that pleases all three teams, although I think Atlanta will want their 2025 pick in the deal so they can move the other guard and start a rebuild and have their own pick in what is supposed to be a loaded deal. 2025 NBA Draft Class. Keldon Johnson and Kenrich Williams are solid role players, but the draft capital the Hawks receive in return is what would be the real price of the deal.

The Thunder are an ascending team that has a chance to advance to the NBA Finals this season, but there are times when Josh Giddey is played off the court due to his shooting ability (or lack thereof ) and its defense. would it be a better fit in San Antonio? Maybe.

There will be endless trade rumors this offseason until the Hawks make a decision on what they want to do. What is known, however, is that they have many options on the table after winning the Draft Lottery.