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Earlier in the week, Michael Scotto of The Athletic reported that the Atlanta Hawks have eyes on a trade that would involve the No. 19 and No. 30 picks in exchange for a selection in the latter portion of the lottery. On Thursday, Scotto reemphasized that reporting in the midst of his newest mock draft ($$) but, in addition, he inserted a nugget with regard to a specific target in the form of Miami guard Lonnie Walker.
The Hawks have also dangled their No. 19 and 30 picks to move up in the draft, league sources told The Athletic. The Clippers (picks 12 and 13) and Nuggets (pick 14) are among the targets for Atlanta, league sources say. Atlanta is targeting Miami’s Lonnie Walker IV in an attempt to move up from No. 19, league sources told The Athletic.
While much of the focus of specific trade rumors and buzz surrounding the Hawks is viewed the prism of Oklahoma’s Trae Young, Walker (full scouting report here) is an interesting potential target. At 6’5 with a 6’10 wingspan, Walker is a very good athlete with a nice shooting stroke and the ability to create for himself.
On the flip side, he wasn’t particularly efficient at the college level and, even with caveats that his team situation wasn’t ideal, it would be easy to argue that the 19-year-old did not perform like a lottery pick during a brief stint in Coral Gables.
Walker is certainly a higher caliber of prospect than the Hawks could hope to attain at No. 19 overall but, in the same breath, there are other players in the theoretical range (Miles Bridges, to name one) that would be more enticing in my personal view. It is easy to see why the Hawks and other teams would be intrigued by Walker as a shooting guard that can attack close-outs, theoretically defend multiple positions and present creation upside.
Still, this may not be the best use of resources and it will be interesting to see if the smoke turns to fire.
Stay tuned.