Hawks select Luka Doncic with the 3rd overall pick
Early in the draft process, reports suggested the Hawks were not as interested in European prospect Luka Doncic and favored some of the elite front court prospects available at the top of the draft. However, recently multiple sources have suggested the Hawks are high on Doncic and will likely be selecting him if he slips past the Kings at number two.
.@SeanDeveney has reported that the Hawks are unlikely to take Jaren Jackson at 3, but the time is likely to take Luka Doncic if he is still available.
— SportsTalkATL.com (@SportsTalkATL) June 18, 2018
On Zach Lowe’s podcast “The Lowe Post”, both Lowe and ESPN’s Jonothan Givany agreed that if there is one thing that is clear heading into the draft, it is that the Kings are very low on Luka Doncic. If that is the case, the likelihood of Doncic being available for the Hawks sky rockets. The European phenom has been playing professional basketball since he was sixteen. He has accomplished feats that no European, let alone Slovenian, player has been able to reach before. At this point, he is probably the most NBA ready prospect heading into the 2018 season, and the Hawks will select him with the third overall pick.
Hawks trade the 2018 19th pick, 2018 34th pick, 2019 top-10 protected first-round pick from  the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Clippers for the 2018 12th overall pick. Atlanta drafts Collin Sexton.
According to many experts around the NBA, a lot of movement is expected up and down the draft from several teams. The Hawks, who own four picks in the top 34 selections and are one of the few teams with available cap space, look to be the perfect candidate to experience such movement. The Clippers hold both the 12th and 13th selections in the draft, making them a possible mover as well.
The Hawks will be looking to move up to draft one of the top point guards available. Trae Young might be the player the Hawks have their eye on, but he will be selected in the top ten, too far for the Hawks to move up and snag him. That leaves Kentucky’s Shae Gilgeous-Alexander and Alabama’s Collin Sexton as the most likely candidates to fall outside of the top ten. It should not be a surprise to anybody if Gilgeous-Alexander is the first point guard off the board, but Atlanta would settle for either of these guys with the 12th selection.
Hawks trade Dennis Schroder and the 30th overall pick to the Suns for Brandon Knight and the 16th pick in the draftÂ
Schroder has made it well known to the organization and to the public that he is unhappy playing for a loser. Nobody likes to lose, but Schroder’s attitude has been a growing question mark ever since he was arrested for battery about a year ago. Even with multiple first-round draft picks, the Hawks are still focused on a couple of years down the road, not the now. Trading up and taking a point guard also shows Dennis Schroder’s time in Atlanta is coming to an end.
After drafting DeAndre Ayton with the first selection in the draft, Phoenix’s attention turns to finding a player who can run the offense. With all three of the top point guard options off of the board come the 16th pick, trading for Dennis Schroder makes sense. Still only 24 years old, Schroder is already a proven NBA-starter, and many believe there is still some untapped potential. Rather than taking a risk with a reach, the Suns make the move hoping Schroder can be point guard presence they desperately need. It also does not hurt that Atlanta is willing to take the last two years of Brandon Knight’s contract off their hands either.