NBA Trade Rumors: Exploring the 3 best possible trade destinations for John Collins.
After the Atlanta Hawks‘ surprise Eastern Conference finals run just last season, the team agreed to a five-year, $125 million extension with young star John Collins. Just a few months later, Collins is drawing extensive interest from many teams in the trade market.
The 24-year-old’s contract runs through the 2025-26 season, meaning any team trading for him would have to view him as a part of their future. A player making that sort of money has to be someone to build around, and Collins has proven himself as a complementary fringe star next to point guard Trae Young.
This season, Collins is averaging 17.3 points and 7.8 rebounds on 54.3 percent shooting and 44.3 percent shooting from distance. The Wake Forest product’s ability to both finish around the rim and stretch the opposing defense from beyond the arc makes him a unique offensive threat, a type of player that almost any team would love to add to their roster.
His main problem lies on the defensive end. Ideally, Collins would be able to hold up as a small-ball center, standing at 6-foot-9, but he hasn’t been able to be effective from that position so far in his career. He’s had to play alongside either Clint Capela or Onyeka Okungwo to maintain a productive defensive unit, as any lineup with him at center gives up points at will.
On the whole, Collins has been one of the Hawks’ few positives this year, as he has the highest net rating of any rotational player (+9.4). Despite this, the big man is upset with his lack of concrete role in the offense, as his field-goal attempts have decreased each of the last two seasons. With the Hawks in the midst of a disastrous season, sitting at 17-25, 12th in the Eastern Conference, Collins is on the trade market.
A player of this caliber at just 24 years of age will garner interest from plenty of teams around the league, but let’s look at three individual destinations that make sense for both the team and the Hawks.