Hawks Need To Figure Out Okongwu Future, And Soon

Just a few years ago, the Atlanta Hawks were the envy of the NBA. They had a budding superstar in Trae Young, a deep young core consisting of multiple high lottery picks, and money to spend.

Fast forward to today, and the Hawks are wrapping up the second offseason in a row where they had to salary dumb a starter (Kevin Huerter last summer, and John Collins just a few months ago) only to make the money make sense.

Instead of committing to their young core, the Hawks decided to spend their money on multiple veterans, such as Danilo Gallinari, Bogdan Bogdanović, and trading for Clint Capela. While Gallinari is long gone, the decision to mix veterans and young players to the extent that they did created suboptimal environment for player development.

Instead of being the envy of the league, the Hawks have become a cautionary tale of how not to balance two timelines.

This brings us to center Onyeka Okongwu, who is entering his fourth season, and the final year of his rookie contract. The former sixth overall pick has started a grand total of 28 games over the course of his professional career, despite clearly being good enough to justify his draft slot. But with Capela in-hand, the Hawks haven’t been able to find a spot in the starting unit for him.

Okongwu, who stands 6’8, is not yet a shooter, making it hard to justify him as a frontcourt pairing with Capela, who himself is a notorious rim-runner. And yet, the Hawks need to once and for all figure out that situation.

Not only is Okongwu good, but under certain circumstances he’s better than Capela. He’s more efficient, for one, and has a larger capacity for creating his own scoring looks. While still reliant on being set up – as over 71% of his offense is assisted – Okongwu does possess the ability to navigate himself into quality shot attempts, which allows him to be more effective in half-court sets.

Defensively, he isn’t much of a downgrade from Capela, although he gives up a little size – Capela is 6’10 and plays even bigger. Where Capela is more reactive, and relies on his great instincts, Okongwu is a thinker. He prioritizes positioning, surveys angles, and maps out the floor more due to the fact that he’s undersized.

You wouldn’t know it by looking at his numbers. Adjusted to Per36, Okongwu produces 15.4 points, 11.2 rebounds, and 2.1 blocks per game, while converting on almost 64% of his shots, and over 78% from the foul line. He also rarely turns the ball over, and he’s gotten better at fouling less every single year of his career.

So, what’s the problem with having two capable centers, you might wonder?

On the surface, nothing. But Okongwu’s contractual situation lingers. Teams around the NBA are well-aware of his talents, and teams with cap space next summer could easily swoop in and offer Okongwu a major offer sheet.

If so, the Hawks will find themselves in a rough spot – yet again – financially. Even if they match a rich offer sheet, in the area of $20 million per year, they’d be forced to make a decision long-term at the center spot. And should they then decide to shop either Okongwu or Capela, teams will squeeze them on the price, ultimately risking the Hawks finding themselves in a similar situation as they were in with Huerter and Collins.

Alternatively, we should consider Okongwu himself in all of this.

He’s entering his fourth season projected as a backup, knowing full-well he’s capable of starting on at least a handful of teams around the league. Could be a sneaky candidate to pick up the one-year qualifying offer, and thus become an unrestricted free agent in 2025?

That’s obviously a fairly aggressive move, and it should be deemed unlikely. Players want long-term financial security, and there’s no reason to expect Okongwu to be any different. That said, it’s an option that he has at his disposal, if he’s inclined to seek out a larger role.

The Hawks need to be keenly aware of this situation with Okongwu, as losing another young core piece wouldn’t be optimal.

Unless noted otherwise, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball-Reference. All salary information via Spotrac. All odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook.