Hawks' John Collins is 'unlikely to be dealt before the deadline'
Atlanta Hawks big man John Collins
has surfaced in trade talks in recent weeks, but now it appears
that he won't be moved prior to Thursday's trade deadline.
According to NBA insider Marc
Stein, "the Hawks discussed numerous trade scenarios with
numerous teams in recent weeks," but recent momentum suggests that
"Collins is now unlikely to be dealt before the deadline."
The Hawks have won eight of their
last 10 games and look like a completely different team since they
traded Cam Reddish to the New York
Knicks on Jan. 13. Now, they "appear increasingly prepared to
push a potential Collins trade into the offseason," writes Stein.
Shams Charania of The
Athletic reported that the Hawks had
expressed interest in Philadelphia 76ers star Ben Simmons in recent
weeks, with the two sides discussing a package of Collins, Bogdan
Bogdanovic and draft compensation for Simmons. It's unclear where
those talks currently stand.
This season, Collins
is averaging 16.9 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.3 threes and 1.1 blocks
per game, while shooting 54.0% from the field, 39.7% from three and
79.1% from the free-throw line.
The 24-year-old is
the Hawks' highest-paid player, earning $23,000,000 this season.
He's under contract through the 2025-26 campaign, when he'll make
$26,580,000.
After advancing to
the Eastern Conference Finals last season, the Hawks have been one
of the NBA's biggest disappointments this year, as they are
currently 25-27 (which ranks 10th in the East). However, given
their recent success, perhaps Atlanta is once again turning things
around midseason.