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ATLANTA HAWKS: state of the franchise

State of the Franchise

Projected Cap Space (before luxury tax): $35.6 million

Background: It feels like it was ages ago, but it has only been a few years since the Hawks were legitimate title contenders with a totally different core, boasting a trio of SG Joe Johnson, PF Josh Smith, C Al Horford, and emerging young PG Jeff Teague. Fast forward to today: Johnson and Smith are long gone, Teague has become one of the better starting point guards in the whole league, and Horford has become the face of the franchise. Former Utah Jazz PF Paul Millsap became a much more cost-efficient replacement for Josh Smith, and sharpshooter SG Kyle Korver was brought in from Chicago, as well as a flurry of other “3 and D” wing players. Now, the Hawks are title contenders again and are by far the best team in the entire Eastern Conference.

Current Financial State: With just $41 million committed in contracts next year, including minor steals in two of their best players, C Al Horford ($12 million) and PG Jeff Teague ($8 million), the Hawks have money to burn. Of course the mastermind, GM Danny Ferry isn’t going to "burn" that money on unworthy players. A star small forward has been on the Hawks’ wish list for quite a few years now (see: Josh Smith and Joe Johnson days). However, it is absolutely critical that the Hawks retain All-Star Millsap, hopefully for something close to the steal of a deal that he is currently on ($9.5 million). Assuming that deal takes about $14 million annually on a 3 year deal, that should leave the Hawks with about $21 million in cap space.

Targets: Unfortunately for Atlanta, the small forward class is not particularly deep this year, with most expiring contracts either being player options or restricted. LeBron James (CLE), Jeff Green (MEM), Luol Deng (MIA) and Thaddeus Young (MIN) all have player options that they are likely to accept with their current teams; Kawhi Leonard, Jimmy Butler, and Tobias Harris are all restricted.  However, the Chicago Bulls could be very tied down financially, leaving them hard-pressed to match an offer for Jimmy Butler. This gives the Hawks and their $21 million to burn the opportunity to swoop in (no pun intended) and snag Butler for the maximum they’re allowed to pay him, a 4 year/$67.7 million deal, which is well above what Butler asked for from Chicago in pre-season extension talks, where the two sides could not agree on a deal. The Bulls, who turned down an offer worth $56 million over 4 years, can only watch in regret as Butler pads his value game by game in his monstrous breakout campaign. The Bulls may still match Atlanta’s offer sheet, but I'm sure Danny Ferry will have a backup plan at small forward should they strike out on Butler.

The Fit: I know what you're thinking: "Hey, I thought Jimmy Butler was a shooting guard!", and you're right. For the most part. However at 6’7” and just two inches shorter than big man teammate Taj Gibson, it's hard to say that Butler can't play small forward. As a flashy two-way star that the Hawks have been longing for since Dominique Wilkins ran the show (okay maybe that's a little too far back), Butler gives the Hawks everything they need and instantly puts them as favorites in the weaker Eastern Conference. A defensive specialist nicknamed "The Lebron Stopper" (if there ever was one), Butler has firmly established himself as one of the premier wing defenders in the league, and putting him on a team that needs one makes this a perfect fit. He has shown vast improvement in his shot this year as well, averaging 21 points and a three per game on 46% shooting from the field, and would slide in perfectly as a potential go-to scorer in Mike Budenholzer's system. In addition, Butler offers 2 steals, 6 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game. Just imagine the spacing and ball movement on offense in a lineup of Teague, Korver, Butler, Millsap, and Horford. A match made in heaven, if the money works.
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