The Atlanta Hawks just had one of those draft nights that makes you think someone in the front office actually knows what they’re doing. Onsi Saleh and his crew walked away with Houston’s Kingston Flemings at No. 8, St. John’s Zuby Ejiofor at No. 23, and then snagged North Carolina’s Henri Veesaar in a second-round swap with the Clippers. That’s three picks that fit real needs, not just names on a board.
But the draft was the easy part. Now comes the hard part: filling out a roster that can actually compete in the Eastern Conference. And that got a lot tougher with Tyrese Halliburton coming back healthy for the Pacers and Giannis Antetokounmpo landing in Miami via trade. The East is not getting kinder.
So what does Atlanta do next? Here are a few moves that make sense, from the realistic to the dreamy.
Isaiah Hartenstein and Tyus Jones should be targets in free agency
The 2026 free-agent class is thinning out fast. A bunch of impact guys are already signing extensions, so the Hawks aren’t looking at a deep pool. LeBron James is out there, sure, but Atlanta isn’t his destination. That’s fine. What the Hawks need is depth at specific spots, not a splashy name for the billboard.
Isaiah Hartenstein should be the first call. He’s not a lock to hit the market — the Thunder are trying to stay under the second tax apron while keeping their core together. Oklahoma City already made one move that helped Atlanta, shipping Aaron Wiggins to the Hawks for two second-round picks earlier this week. Then they sent Isaiah Joe to Detroit for two more seconds. If they keep trimming payroll, Hartenstein might actually become available.
If he does, the Hawks should be all over it. Hartenstein is a defensive anchor who can score inside and rebound. He’s got playoff and championship experience. In the Western Conference Finals back in May, he was the Thunder’s answer to Victor Wembanyama, and it worked. Reports say Saleh has had Hartenstein on his radar for a while. Might as well make it official.
Tyus Jones is the other realistic target. After the Trae Young trade, Atlanta’s half-court offense fell apart in the first-round series against the Knicks. When transition buckets dried up, there was nobody to create a shot. Jones is a steady veteran who won’t cost much, and he’d let the Hawks run Dyson Daniels and Nickeil Alexander-Walker as primary ball handlers while giving Flemings time to develop behind a real point guard. Someday Flemings might start, but he doesn’t have to right now.
Jaylen Brown would be the home run, but don’t hold your breath
There have been reports that the Hawks have interest in Jaylen Brown. That’s one of those trades that sounds great in theory and probably stays in theory. But let’s talk about why it makes sense anyway.
Saleh is clearly building a young, long, athletic team that can switch everything and run. That works against most teams, but it didn’t quiet the questions about Jalen Johnson after the playoffs. Johnson made his first All-Star team and earned All-NBA honors, but can he be the guy on a contender? The Hawks gambled when they traded Trae Young, partly because they believed in Johnson’s ceiling. If that ceiling isn’t as high as they thought, Brown could step in as the 1A option.
Lost in all the Celtics talk is that Brown is still in his prime. Boston was expected to be near the bottom of the East after Jayson Tatum tore his Achilles in the 2025 playoffs. Instead, they finished second and took the Knicks to Game 7. Brown carried that team. He proved he can be the best player on a playoff team. If the Hawks trade for him, that’s exactly the bet they’d be making.
Will it happen? Probably not. But after a draft that already filled three holes, Atlanta has the flexibility to go big. Adding Aaron Wiggins was a nice move. Flemings, Ejiofor, and Veesaar are solid pieces. Maybe they don’t need another trade unless it’s a blockbuster that puts them in the title conversation. Jaylen Brown would do that. Hawks fans shouldn’t pretend otherwise.
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