AROUND the NBA:

[DanSchwartzgan]

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7224940...fs-game-3/


The unlikely duo of Kuminga and McCollum has the Hawks in position to upset
the Knicks.

Two notes related to Dallas.  I suspect by the end of next season Flagg will be better than Johnson if he isn't already.  Atlanta isn't in this position because of the strength of a singular star and they don't have a second star.

Much like Dallas did when it added PJ and Gafford that year, Atlanta has added some guys who are a bit better than replacement level (that most of us wouldn't have wanted if polled at the TDL).  You wouldn't create that team in a lab if given the choice.  Okongwu is too small.  Daniels can't hit from 3.  McCollum is too old and makes too much money.  They are getting absolutely nothing from their recent draft picks.

But, as a group, this is working right now.  The team is +14.8 when Kuminga is on the floor and + 9.8 when McCollum is on the floor.  Those ended up being nice adds basically off the scrap heap.  Not impossible for Dallas to replicate.  Two years ago they made a trade for an offensively limited Daniels.  They gave up an injured PG, a Laker first and a fake first (worst of).  We have those too.  It helped that NOP didn't want to pay (or couldn't afford to pay) Daniels.

Last summer they grabbed NAW for a second round pick.  Again, the prior team didn't want to or couldn't afford to pay the player, but Atlanta did.  We have that kind of flexibility over the next year or two.  I think there is a path back to relevance and, as we've seen with Atlanta, it doesn't require nailing every single move.  It does require at least some of the moves going better than most of us would have imagined when the moves were made.