Wretch

And he is trying to win now. This is what he was saying in one of his latest podcasts. He wants to be in Atlanta, but he also wants to win.

34 minutes ago, marco102 said:

That's not what me nor @Afro are arguing. His original post said he was upset with Trae for him giving the team an ultimatum  which hasn't been reported.  We are saying that's not a reason to be frustrated with Trae because no one has actually reported that. 

We are just trying to clarify what has been confirmed by reporting because some of the social media posts have made many assumptions about things that have not been said.   There are many valid reasons to not like Trae, but getting frustrated over some social media assumptions is just wanting to be mad when you can't find a report to support your assumptions and you are going off likes and vibes. 

Again, I don't care if you dislike Trae or not, but when you say you are frustrated at him for something that hasn't been reported to have happened,  then I'm going to try to bring some reason to your post. 

There are two social media items I'm bothered by.  One is the apparent apathy towards our pick.  The second is him showing support for this idea that management has failed to help him. That's what Kenyon Martin is saying and is not an assumption. Dropping a like on that is the same as anyone in here dropping reactions on our back and forth. 

Neither of these things are absolute fact. I'm not trying to rally support for an anti-Trae army. I don't care who agrees with me. The *IDEA* that Trae might be trying to play GM (like LeBron) bothers me so I'm taking a step back from the news and rumors (and trying to step away from the Squawk).

I'm not trying to invent things to be worried about, or dislike Trae over, or hating on him. What I'm seeing doesn't sit well with me. Particularly, the idea (RUMOR) that he's more interested in mortgaging the last couple of years on his contract to win now.

2 minutes ago, marco102 said:

That's fine. Be mad. 

You're having circular arguments with actual Trae haters and pulling me into it.  I'm not mad. I'm disappointed in our franchise player.  I have a right to do that, just as you have a right to ignore it.

If you can't respect that, then we just have nothing else to talk about.

1 minute ago, Afro said:

I never said you were a Trae hater. I said youre talking yourself into having problems with him because of the way you decide to look at things. 

Which is exactly what you just posted lol. Read Marcos post. You're looking at a bunch of stuff and interpreting it one way so you can have an issue with Trae about it. 

You can't say you have an issue with him liking what Martin said and then turn around and say you aren't looking for things to be mad about lol. 

This is what you said:

Man, with all due respect, some of yall talk yourself into having a problem with Trae way too much. 

The implication here is that I'm part of a larger group of posters who don't like Trae and find reasons to dislike him.  These kinds of people are typically referred to has "haters."  You are literally lumping me into that group.

It also isn't something I'm looking to be mad about.  It's like you're trying not to understand the message he's sending.  That whole clip is mouthed by someone who clearly has no idea what is going on in our front office.  Trae can't feign ignorance - he was a part of "getting the help" and "firing coaches."  

I'm not sure what you guys are confused about here.

1 minute ago, marco102 said:

There's is a difference between social media and actual reporting. You are getting yourself worked up over nothing.  No one has reported (which means going back, verifying and having confirmation) that Trae Young has stated anything other than he wants to understand what the teams plans are. 

If someone said those things in the video about me, I'd like it to. They are saying people don't like him because he buss their ass and all he does is work his butt off.  Would you not like that post if someone said those things about you? When the general media is dragging you everyday?

Again, you have not shown me anything where someone reported that Trae Young gave the team some ultimatum.  You aren't holding JJ, DJ,OO, Clint Capela, Hunter to the same standard as Trae.  None of them have said anything about the number one pick to my knowledge.  The only thing DJ said was this is going to be a crazy off season.  What do you want Trae to do exactly that these other players haven't done. 

It's like y'all find reasons to be mad or stressed out about things. 

Again... "ya'll"

People have got to stop bunching everyone together.  We don't all have the same opinion, even if we have similar ideas.  I'm not looking for anything to hold against Trae and I'm not reading into things.  I don't like when players try to play GM - and literally Trae marched into Schlenk's office demanding help after year 2.  At best, Trae is doing absolutely nothing to dispel the gossip.

Regarding the clip...when you "like" on something, you co-sign on it.  If I go out here and drop a heart on swimsuit picture of my wife's best friend, it sends a message.  Trae is sending a message.  Agree to disagree if you want.

29 minutes ago, Afro said:

Man, with all due respect, some of yall talk yourself into having a problem with Trae way too much. 

Dude, I have been Trae's white knight since he put on a Hawks uniform. The notion that I'm a part of "ya'll" is preposterous.  It's crazy to me how binary we are with our discussions.  You love Trae or you're a hater...that's it.

No, that's not it. I've got concerns about his attitude towards the upcoming season and our immediate future.

22 minutes ago, marco102 said:

Where/when did Trae say this? The only thing he said is he wants to know their plans from the reports I've read. If they plan on moving all the veterans on the team for draft picks and want to keep Trae for ticket sales.  Is it not fair for him to say he wants out? 

That team would have been fine if Giannis and Lillard hadn't gotten injured though. They'd be playing the Knicks right now and probably on their way to the ECF.

The message of this clip is "quit changing coaches", get him some help, and he's doing all he can."  This is a casual observer's opinion of the Hawks - what someone who DOESN'T watch us or know what's going on would say.  Trae is co-signing on everything said in this clip by reacting to it.  He's had a significant voice in shaping this roster, so it's a little duplicitous for him to try to line up with this.

I don't have the energy to get into Trae, cryptic messages, social media and all that.  If you don't understand how these things are used to send signals, then we're on opposite sides of the planet with no way to communicate.  For me, it's pretty clear what's going on behind the scenes and I don't like that kind of thing.

I have been a very vocal Trae supporter.  I think he's a fantastic player, I think he's a superstar, I believe he should be the future of our franchise.  For all the love I've given Trae, he is not without flaws.  The biggest being questions over his leadership/maturity from day one.  His intentional silence and apathy after one of the biggest things to happen to the franchise is not helping that image.

I'm not a Trae hater and I have no idea what conversations are really taking place.  But I'm not blind and I don't like what little I'm seeing right now.

1 minute ago, JeffS17 said:

Same.  Send him to an owner that just wants to sell tickets and get back quality players.  Or send him somewhere like New Orleans (will not stop repeating this one as I think it makes the most sense) where we could poach Herb Jones and use Ingram as salary filler.

I'll tell you what is making my stomach turn...  I'm legitimately warming up to the "dark side" and here's why.  You complain and demand for help, better coaching, and lobby for certain guys either to come here or get paid here.  The front office does all of that...then he turns around and says, "I'm doing all I can.  Do your job and you gotta get me some help or I'm out." 

That's some LeBron/diva type stuff and I don't want to think that about Trae.  I almost want to say that he's playing up the narrative with his social media with his recent silence, cryptic themes, and likes. Just be a professional and you've been WELL compensated and appeased. Play ball and support the franchise and the fans that have been in your corner.  

Stay out of management's ear and let them do what they have to do.  Dip at the end if you ain't where you want to be.  Either that or just man up and sh!t on the fans like all these other stars do when the ring means more than the game.  I got no stomach for this cryptic stuff and I'm not a fan of players who play those kinds of games.

Yeah......I'm probably gonna check out.  I don't believe all the rumors, but something about all this doesn't sit right with me.  I've spent way too much time on the Squawk these last couple of days anyway.

@Sothron, if I'm not lurking here... I'll hit you up on FB for updates you're allowed to share.

One thing to really keep in mind when you're looking at Sarr...

He came off the bench in the Aussie pro league.  Competition is pretty good over there and they favor the vets/experienced guys.  His numbers are quite respectable for the time he was given and the role he played.  Had he been featured in a notable college program, a lot of people are speculating that he would have emerged as a clear cut favorite in this class.

He did go up against his peers/age group vs the GLeague Ignite and he absolutely dominated if you haven't seen it:

I would be LIVID if we passed on him.

Just now, macdaddy said:

I'm not in denial.  I just think it's a monumental mistake that will take years for this franchise to recover from.  From both a basketball and fan interest perspective.   You can't keep sending out talent and expect fans to be interested.  

Lots of folks spout the line 'this ain't 2k' well my fear is that Landry thinks it is.   That he wants to build what he thinks is the right way which basically means take it down to the studs and start over.  I'm tired of that crap.  If Trae goes then we're basically back to being a typical middle of the road team with no stars, no all stars, that might 'play the right way' as we're bounced by the first round every year until we ultimately just get rid of everyone good and collect draft picks again.  

My worst fear.  I wouldn't sit through that process again and it would be DISASTEROUS for a franchise that has been an afterthought for decades for this very reason.  I can't do it again.  I need relevancy and I would rather endure total failure than be a perennial punching bag for contenders.

Just now, KB21 said:

So basically, your bias against Trae is showing.  

Ya'll and this hard-coded, left/right, binary Squawk talk.  Read the post above yours if this is directed at me.

I also need to stress...that I am NOT in favor of getting our picks back and tanking.  If we had a shot at getting those picks (or some of them) and KEEPING Trae, I would reroute those picks to land a SG or stretch big.

39 minutes ago, AtLaS said:

Did you watch that actual Woj clip?  He moreso suggests that he thinks we might look at trading Trae.  It was just him being an analyst in that clip, it's not him reporting insider info regarding Trae. He didn't say my sources told me we are looking to trade Trae at all.  But of course news headlines picked that up and blasted out that Hawks are looking to move Trae Young.

 

 

They want to spin the narrative that Trae wants out.  I wouldn't be surprised if agents/teams were involved trying to create a narrative that benefits them by landing Trae.

30 minutes ago, Afro said:

Hawks-"Our plan is to tank, so we want those top 5 picks back" 

Spurs - "oh sure, that's the exact situation we were hoping for, but wed be happy to help you out instead for some reason!" 

Do people really think this makes sense? Lol.

Like all the Spurs have to do is get literally any other PG, wait for the Hawks to explode, and laugh their way to the bank. 

Why would the Spurs deal those picks?

For one, same reason why we might deal the #1 pick.  A bird in the hand and all that...

Secondly, it's not set in stone where those picks land - and one of them is just a pick swap.  It's not guaranteed that the Hawks will be a lottery team.  I mean literally, that's the whole point of this offseason - to get Trae back in the playoffs.  If the Hawks make the playoffs the next 2 years, those are mid first rounders at best.  Outside of the lottery, there's something like <2% chance of finding an All Star...let alone a franchise cornerstone.

Even if they are lottery picks, there is no guarantee of anything.  Trae and DJ are both young, legit All Star talents at PG - right now.  Trae is putting up unheard of stats.  A PG like him comes along once in a blue moon, DJ twice in a blue moon, and even then you're not guaranteed to even have a shot at him.  If he's a consensus, everyone is going for him.  If he's not, it's just another gamble.  We can all count the number of lottery picks that didn't become franchise saviors.

It's not a stretch.  Would we give up two unprotected picks for a legit All Star SG or stretch 5 with comparable stats to Trae?  In a nanosecond.  The Spurs would take Trae without blinking (they'd take DJ with one blink). We're drooling over Trae/Sarr...but somehow Spurs fans wouldn't go absolutely apeshit for Trae/Wemby...?

49 minutes ago, kg01 said:

Nah, tanking is a tool and not a philosophy.  Tanking, as an overall philosophy, simply perpetuates losing.

But you can use tanking in very limited scenarios and come out in a better place.  You just have to be intentional about not falling in love with the fools gold of it. 

I can't stress enough how much I despise the idea of "tanking" and all of the conversations around it. Regardless of how it's defined, it really only makes sense (and only to an extent) to "lose on purpose" when Wemby, Shaq, Duncan, or LeBron is in play and your team sucks.

Otherwise...your team is just not good and you're REBUILDING. Losing, or sacrificing wins for growth, is just a part of the process. Tanking and rebuilding are two different things.

It's ok to rebuild. It's not ok to "tank," but I don't have an official opinion where a consensus generational talent is available at #1. In which case, I would simply look the other way

3 minutes ago, REHawksFan said:

I'm sitting here trying to watch the OKC game and Dallas is so freakin boring. OKC can't hit anything right now so Dallas prolly gonna win, but it's boring as heck right now. 

Also if we end up with a dallas boston finals I'm rioting. It may be a riot of 1 but I'm doing it. 

Yuck..............................................................................  Can Horford just retire already. That's all I really care about. Like FORK Boston, but I can stomach a Celtics championship without him.

9 hours ago, macdaddy said:

Bradley is truly the worst when it comes to Hawks takes.  Can't believe he's still employed honestly. 

10 hours ago, REHawksFan said:

The fact that Mark Bradley is advocating for something (anything at all) is all the proof I need that my opposite position is correct.  Between him, Jeff Schultz, and Terrance Moore, the AJC back in the day had the market cornered on hilariously bad sports takes.  

Mark Bradley...  Y'know, I just instinctively lol'd when I initially read this thread.  Then I sat down and thought about it...and REALLY lol'd.  I wonder if there's a lot of teams that deal with local writers like him or if it's just a Hawks thing that we have such a hometown hater. 

45 minutes ago, HawkingAwesome said:

yeah i'd like to see 190lbs wemby try and get him off his spot get real dude

Immediately sprang to mind....rofl

Just now, NekiEcko said:

Yeah, it is not going to be simple as that but good try tho.

I don't see why not.  San Antonio wants a point guard and DJ is a fantastic one.  There is lots of love between them.  He's a leader.  He's still young enough to grow with the team.  They've got room to absorb him and he's locked into a team-friendly deal.

If they want him and are willing to offer up lottery picks, the framework is there for a 3rd team to deliver the win now asset(s) we covet.