Exiting the NBA Playoffs in getting swept will give any NBA team questions about their team going forward. Do subsequent NBA Rumors mean Atlanta Hawks ?s = Philadelphia 76ers answers?
The Atlanta Hawks were a very good team in the regular season for the past two years. They won games, lots of games. Last year, they ended the season with 60 wins and 22 losses. This year they ended the season with 48 wins and 34 losses. Combined, the team earned 108 wins compared to just 56 losses. But despite the ravaging of the NBA in the regular season, the team simply runs into a roadblock when the team enters the NBA playoffs. That roadblock came in the form of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
In two straight years the Atlanta Hawks were decimated by clean sweeps at the hands of the Cleveland Cavaliers. In fact, the Atlanta Hawks are now 0-12 in post season when facing LeBron James. It’s crystal clear that the Atlanta Hawks are in desperate need of a shot blocker in the paint – and that is an area the Philadelphia 76ers can help to address. In the crunch moments of game four, point guard Jeff Teague sat on the bench and watched his reserve Dennis Schroder play the entire quarter. At the trade deadline, the Philadelphia 76ers worked hard to pry either Teague or Schroder away from the Hawks. Following their second drubbing by the Cavaliers two consecutive years, it’s clear that the team needs to take steps to overcome the Cleveland blockade.
The trouble with any elements of mixing parts from a bad team in transactions form parts from a good team, the good team gets a waiver on the equation. In essence, the first glance perspective from any third party bystander automatically incorporates the Hawks 40+ win season in comparison to the Sixers 10 win season, and rationalizes that the Sixers must surrender four times the worth of the Hawk’s corresponding player.
More from Rumors
- Grade the Trade: 76ers swap Tobias Harris for superstar PG in mock deal
- 76ers: Grading 4 Knicks trade packages for Joel Embiid from trash to cash
- Grade the Trade: 76ers snag MVP candidate in this blockbuster proposal
- Grade the Trade: 76ers land new franchise centerpiece in wild proposal
- NBA analyst expects the 76ers to go after LeBron James in 2024
But this is not a build up of the Sixers, but a retooling of the Atlanta Hawks, a team which coasts through the regular season, but fails to make so much as a dent in the armor of the juggernaut Cleveland Cavaliers. To improve the team going forward, the Atlanta Hawks need a player who is versatile, strong defensively, but someone the team can develop into a true starter moving forward.
As a stroke of good luck might have it, the Philadelphia 76ers have two such players who could make an immediate upgrade to the Atlanta Hawks in defending the paint – Jerami Grant and Nerlens Noel.
Next: Ask, and it will be Granted
Ask, And It Will Be Granted
The Philadelphia 76ers are a young team, but one with players who could excel on the Atlanta Hawks roster. Jerami Grant is a defensive standout, and his acumen for disrupting the opposing team shots would be an incredible plus for the Hawks. Just 22 years old with just completing his second year, his blocks per game would place him second in that regard on the Atlanta Hawks roster, just behind Paul Milsap.
The Atlanta Hawks worst nemesis is LeBron James, and they had hoped that the tandem of small forwards Kent Bazemore‘s offensive outpouring paired with Thabo Sefolosha‘s defensive prowess would keep James off balance just enough to turn the tide in the series. James instead averaged 24.3 points per game and 42.1% accuracy from three points.
While Grant has never developed a deadly three pointer, he has improved his shooting from the floor to 41.9% and his 4.7 rebounds per game would slot at fourth on the Hawks roster. Grant’s 26.8 minutes per game average are nearly an identical replacement for Hawk small forward Thabo Sefolosha. Packaged with a late first round pick (where the Hawk’s can select one of any number of point guard prospects to play behind Schroder), this type of a deal would be quite intriguing. The upside is that Grant has not played on a balanced team the likes of the Atlanta Hawks. By mid-season, he should be fully acclimated to his role on their well disciplined team, and that structure will only accelerate his development.
More from The Sixer Sense
- 3 Sixers players who could help Team USA Basketball
- 76ers 2k24 ratings: 3 most underrated players on Philadelphia roster
- 76ers head coach Nick Nurse bares lofty plans for Paul Reed this season
- Grade the Trade: 76ers swap Tobias Harris for superstar PG in mock deal
- Sixers Podcast: Danny Green returns + James Harden bombshell
Could the Philadelphia 76ers use Jeff Teague? Well the Sixers will be in the market for a point guard, unless they have a change of heart and retain Ish Smith. Teague brings a better trey , shooting 40% on his perimeter shot, with just 33.6% from Smith. Teague also brings something the Philadelphia 76ers will need – NBA playoff experience. Teague also tends to have a better sense of shot selection: despite shooting 2.3 fewer shots per game than Smith, Teague actually averaged a full point per game better per average.
Now the remaining piece. What is fair compensation for a deal of this nature? Straight up, there is no deal here. Teague, a seven year veteran of the Atlanta Hawks, has been competitive if not outstanding, for four consecutive years with the Atlanta Hawks. But the upside of Jerami Grant is hard to project with tight accuracy, and right now the difference in quality is noticeable. When the team chased Atlanta Hawk’s reserve point guard Dennis Schroder, the Hawks were giving a smorgasbord of value to consider the trade: Philadelphia reportedly offered Nik Stauskas, Ish Smith and one of the team’s three potential first-round picks in the 2016 NBA Draft, but it still wasn’t enough to get Atlanta to bite.
In this scenario, with a clear and definable need on the Hawks roster, I believe that offer should be modified for two reasons. It’s clear that Schroder, not Teague, is the more valued player by both teams – ergo, any trade package for Jeff Teague should offer less as a result. Previously, the incentive to deal was all on the Sixers, who were clearly forced to present a high premium to even gain and audience with the Hawks. In this deal, I believe it should be the Hawks who approach the Sixers with a “Teague for your best offer” scenario. In that instance, the Sixers will no longer have rights to Ish Smith, but could package Stauskas, Grant and a late first round pick to make it happen.
Next: The Nerlens Wall
The Nerlens Wall
Perhaps the Atlanta Hawks are not interested in Jerami Grant. That’s their option. Perhaps they want to crash the ceiling on defensive skills, and pull out one of the NBA’s best defenders. Where do they go? To Philadelphia of course, but towards defensive standout center/power forward Nerlens Noel.
Nerlens Noel has 2 of the 4 best DBPM seasons by a player younger than 22 https://t.co/AxmEqJmehW pic.twitter.com/pAsQNmWWLp
— Basketball Reference (@bball_ref) April 11, 2016
Nerlens Noel is a much closer value to Jeff Teague, in fact, he may be of equal value. Teague, as we know from our discussion so far, is very consistant but he falls short of a player who can step up in a “must win” situation like the NBA Playoffs. While Noel doesn’t have NBA playoff experience, he also hasn’t hit his ceiling yet either.
Noel has been hindered by the youth of the Philadelphia 76ers in the regard that he is an outlet scorer. The Sixers offense is planned to move the ball quickly to the open man, who then takes higher percentage shots and score. Unfortunately, the team had a volume scorer at point guard, inconsistent scoring from the perimeter, and virtually no mid range action unless Elton Brand or Carl Landry stepped onto the basketball court. Those struggles kept the opposing team defense bunched at the post, which mitigated the full impact of Noel’s defense. While his season totals ran at 11.1 points per game, by seasons end he was averaging well over 12 points per game.
We had brought up the fact that Nerlens Noel merely needs to develop a wider variety of shots, and consistency, and he will be in line for an NBA All-Star nomination. Is that the type of player who should intrigue the Atlanta Hawks? He certainly should, particularly since he remains on his rookie contract. If the Sixers do not see Noel as one of the key players going forward, and if they are happy to settle on Teague, then the team could sweeten the deal with the 26th pick of this NBA draft.
In any case there’s no guesswork that the two teams will be engaged in trade talks, having stated they would revisit the possibility of a trade this off-season. The Altanta Hawks, swept two years in a row, must now realize they must change their roster to have a real chance at defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Philadelphia 76ers have stockpiled young talent who are ready to take it to the next level. They can fill the vacancy in the front court with the debut of Joel Embiid or Dario Saric.
Next: 76ers In Need Of Veteran Point Guard
Deals only work if both teams walk away stronger. Atlanta can walk away with strong young defenders and a first round draft pick at low cost, while Philadelphia can add a playoff veteran to their back court to bridge the roster through the 2016-2017 roster. Its a win-win deal for both teams. The Hawks bolster their defense significantly, the 76ers fill the vacuum of a veteran point guard.
Now we just need to sit back and allow the Atlanta Hawks and the Philadelphia 76ers to reach the same conclusion.