The Atlanta Hawks have been rumored to be on the verge of blowing everything up for the last couple of weeks. On Thursday afternoon, they took what might have been the first step towards a total rebuild by getting rid of Kyle Korver in a rumored trade to the Cleveland Cavaliers. Korver, who has long been one of the best shooters in the league, had been in Atlanta for five years, so getting rid of him signified that the team could be ready to move on to a new era.
But for the Hawks to do this, they would probably need to get rid of Paul Millsap. While he’s been a cornerstone for the team for the last few years, Millsap makes more than $20 million a year and could end up bringing in a huge return if he goes to the right place. There have been rumors of Millsap being on the move for a few weeks, and according to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, this move could happen sooner rather than later.
https://twitter.com/WojVerticalNBA/status/817184366925324289
Additionally, Alex Kennedy of Basketball Insiders reports that the decision to move Millsap has the front office torn.
Source close to the situation says the Atlanta Hawks' decision-makers are split on whether to trade Paul Millsap at the moment.
— Alex Kennedy (@AlexKennedyNBA) January 6, 2017
Of course, it’s important to remember that these talks may not go anywhere and the Hawks may just sit on a Millsap deal until the trade deadline. The team could even keep Millsap, which seems like it could be a bad move, but it’s plausible that Millsap’s contract could get in the way of a trade.
Keep in mind, teams may not be willing to give up as much for Millsap since he's a UFA in July. They're trading for what could be a rental.
— Alex Kennedy (@AlexKennedyNBA) January 6, 2017
Would a team that wants to take down Cleveland or Golden State, either now or sometime in the next few years, be willing to give up that much for what could be a rental (Yahoo! Sports reported that four teams – Denver, Sacramento, New Orleans, and Toronto – are interested)? Heck, could the Warriors or the Cavs get really silly in their arms race to take the other team down and bring Millsap into the fold? Probably not, but NBA fans are always fascinated by who the biggest name will be at the trade deadline.
It appears that Millsap will be that guy, and if he’s not, it could be because he was already sent elsewhere.
