The long-awaited move has finally transpired. The Hawks handed the torch to Dennis Schroder on Wednesday when the team opted to move Jeff Teague in a three-way deal to with the Utah Jazz and Indiana Pacers. George Hill is headed to Utah, the Hawks get the 12th overall pick, and the Pacers get Teague, barring more details.
The Hawks essentially get a lottery pick for a year of Jeff Teague and if they draft well they can now control their pick for 8 years with the current state of the NBA. The Hawks deal from a position of strength here and may even be able to use their 21st overall selection to move up even more. It will be hard to grade this move initially, but the fanbase should have more perspective after the Hawks make their selection tomorrow evening. Given their assets and the way the board appears it will shake out, the Hawks have a very outside shot of grabbing Buddy Hield if they were to move up. Realistic options appear to be Jakob Poeltl, Ante Zizic, Wade Baldwin, Patrick McCaw or Jaylen Brown. If the Hawks can grab Brown, this could be an incredible trade for the team.
Some of these names aren’t exactly sexy, but neither was Dennis Schroder’s just a few years ago. Now he has the keys to the Hawks as they appear to be going younger as they prepare for the future.