Hawks locker room is not healthy after "quiet" trade deadline

[Sothron]

I have spoken a few time with my source about what I am about to post. This has been confirmed with @thecampster in our private talks so you guys and gal know this isn't just one of us hearing this.

Hawks morale is low. This has been mentioned before but I will say it again: current and former Hawks players and coaches and people in the organization are lurkers/posters on the Hawksquawk and at realgm.com as well as other places like hawks reddit. 

Trae wants to play with Ben Simmons. Trae was willing to see anyone on the team traded to make that happen and he still does. This has led to some angry and hurt feelings in the locker room. Some players who were thought to be out the door at the trade deadline heard how some of their teammates really feel about them or their play on the court. It was not pretty. 

The team is upset with Trae's lack of effort on defense. Apparently the coaching staff has basically given up on trying to motivate Trae on defense and instead focus on the other players defense and lack of it. This has some guys mad because there is no objective defense of Trae's lack of effort on defense. The only thing that is in Trae's favor is his argument that he has made to Travis and others in the FO is that Trae has too much put on him. Meaning: he's the only real playmaker on the rosters. He's the only person that can go get a damn bucket when we need it. No one, not even Jordan, was asked to do those two things AND ALSO play great defense. 

When the Bulls got Pippen and he started to blossom it took a lot of the pressure and full offensive energy off Jordan allowing him to give more on defense. Trae is begging the team to bring in another playmaker and scorer to take some of that burden off him because he wants to play better defense. Trae is very aware of how his teammates feel about his lack of defense and that Trae was ready to ship all of them off just to get Simmons.

Other Hawks players to talk about here: Capela and Collins are 100% fed up with the lack of defense from Trae and the wings. Bogi is the most talked about Hawk on defense, even more than Trae, because unlike Trae's excuse with doing 100% on offense Bogi can't say that. Bogi's quick to do a take foul versus actually moving his feet. Bogi will grab a big with a ball rather than try to play position defense or knock the ball out of his hands for a steal or even a jump ball.

Bogi, for his part, is wanting one of two things: either make him a starter again in the summer or trade him. He picked to come to Atlanta to be a starter and to show he could handle the ball a little and be a little bit of a playmaker as well as a shooter. He did that last season in the second half. He is beyond furious that he's glued to the 2nd unit because the coaching staff has told him that Kevin is so much better as a starter than a bench player that Bogi's ability to come off and hit shots makes their roles what it is. 

What is being left unsaid...and that's not really true because Bogi has been told this to his face...is Bogi's defense and lack of effort on defense is why he's on the bench. I fully expect Bogi to be traded in the offseason. 

Capela, for his part, is fed up with guys only caring about stats. Trae tells everyone about his stats and his records. Capela wants him and the rest of the team to talk about their defense. He is fed up with the lack of team effort on defense and the literal sense of entitlement that settled in the summer after our playoff run. 

Capela ALSO knows he's being shipped to Phoenix in the offseason if we can agree to terms with Ayton and Phoenix. He is not happy about that at all. He signed the extension to stay in Atlanta. Same with Collins. Both are upset and insulted that their names are out there to be traded. 

Btw all of the chatter here on the Squawk especially gets filtered back to the team including players/coaches/FO. Several players resent how they are perceived because they point the finger at the next guy not giving any effort on defense. None of them want to be traded. None of them want Nate fired. They truly believe that they will just "get in" the playoffs this year and repeat the magic of last season.

This Pollyanna  view point is not shared by the FO, the coaches or players like Capela and Collins.  Capela giving that interview with Chris Kirschner was not an accident. It was calculated by Capela to light a fire under the rest of the team and frankly try to get them to show pride in their defense. Knowing some of the egos in that locker room and yes I do mean Trae Young...I think that could be Capela crossing the Rubicon. If it works, great, he can use this for a reason to keep him and not flip him for Ayton in the offseason. If it doesn't work, well, this just makes it easy for the other players and FO that aren't really sold on him long term to justify trading him for Ayton.

I hesitate to say this because this might upset some people. I can only repeat what I'm hearing. Bogi, Gallo and Kevin's lack of defense and offensive consistency and being held accountable for it by the media and, yes, get ready for it the Hawks fans especially here on the Squawk is being seen by several players as passive racism. Meaning: Bogi, Gallo and Kevin  are getting a free pass because they are white. They resent that other players like Trae, Delon, Collins, Capela etc. have been routinely criticized this season but hardly anything is said negatively about the three white players. 

I don't want to turn this into a political thread but I privately have noticed that Kevin especially has been given a free pass this season. My source said that winning games and making the playoffs covers up a lot of these resentments and hard feelings. When that is removed, well, you have some hard truths to face without winning to cover it up. Capela has went to the media about this. I wouldn't be surprised if Collins also says something to the local Hawks media that echoes what Capela was saying.

End of what I've heard and had confirmed. I will speak now as just a fan. This team needs a come to Jesus moment so badly it hurts. We are not entitled to make the playoffs because we had a great run last  year. We need to get another playmaker and another consistent scorer to take pressure off Trae to do both of those things, all the time, literally every possession on the court. 

I almost want to laugh but my source was adamant about this. Solomon Hill was a true glue guy that not only played defense but he was the guy that was cool with the other guy and also THIS guy so he could keep the team morale up. We are really missing him and his ability to bark out assignments on defense and keep the guys cool with each other in the locker room. So we need to either bring him back in the offseason or find someone that has that kind of effect in the locker room.  

I know this was a "quiet" deadline but this team has some real issues to deal with. 

[JayBirdHawk]

[thecampster]

In our private conversations, I said I won't speak on the above but I will talk on another aspect. Players talk to each other and the Hawks locker room issues reached other teams and management expressed frustration this crippled them in off-season trade talks. They were very upset it hurt their negotiation position with Bogi, Gallo, Collins, potential deals. The original deal to move Cam to Cleveland was pulled after Cleveland got wind of the locker room issues. Similar hesitancy from Minny, Portland dealing with others.  I wouldn't call it a mess, but a few more losses it will be.

[marco102]

Oh well. Trade everyone if they refuse to play defense. 

They seemed to play better tonight or maybe they were carried by Trae?

[marco102]

Would add that these are the growing pains of a young team struggling with expectations. They need to learn from it.

[Plainview1981]

14 hours ago, Sothron said:

I have spoken a few time with my source about what I am about to post. This has been confirmed with @thecampster in our private talks so you guys and gal know this isn't just one of us hearing this.

Hawks morale is low. This has been mentioned before but I will say it again: current and former Hawks players and coaches and people in the organization are lurkers/posters on the Hawksquawk and at realgm.com as well as other places like hawks reddit. 

Trae wants to play with Ben Simmons. Trae was willing to see anyone on the team traded to make that happen and he still does. This has led to some angry and hurt feelings in the locker room. Some players who were thought to be out the door at the trade deadline heard how some of their teammates really feel about them or their play on the court. It was not pretty. 

The team is upset with Trae's lack of effort on defense. Apparently the coaching staff has basically given up on trying to motivate Trae on defense and instead focus on the other players defense and lack of it. This has some guys mad because there is no objective defense of Trae's lack of effort on defense. The only thing that is in Trae's favor is his argument that he has made to Travis and others in the FO is that Trae has too much put on him. Meaning: he's the only real playmaker on the rosters. He's the only person that can go get a damn bucket when we need it. No one, not even Jordan, was asked to do those two things AND ALSO play great defense. 

When the Bulls got Pippen and he started to blossom it took a lot of the pressure and full offensive energy off Jordan allowing him to give more on defense. Trae is begging the team to bring in another playmaker and scorer to take some of that burden off him because he wants to play better defense. Trae is very aware of how his teammates feel about his lack of defense and that Trae was ready to ship all of them off just to get Simmons.

Other Hawks players to talk about here: Capela and Collins are 100% fed up with the lack of defense from Trae and the wings. Bogi is the most talked about Hawk on defense, even more than Trae, because unlike Trae's excuse with doing 100% on offense Bogi can't say that. Bogi's quick to do a take foul versus actually moving his feet. Bogi will grab a big with a ball rather than try to play position defense or knock the ball out of his hands for a steal or even a jump ball.

Bogi, for his part, is wanting one of two things: either make him a starter again in the summer or trade him. He picked to come to Atlanta to be a starter and to show he could handle the ball a little and be a little bit of a playmaker as well as a shooter. He did that last season in the second half. He is beyond furious that he's glued to the 2nd unit because the coaching staff has told him that Kevin is so much better as a starter than a bench player that Bogi's ability to come off and hit shots makes their roles what it is. 

What is being left unsaid...and that's not really true because Bogi has been told this to his face...is Bogi's defense and lack of effort on defense is why he's on the bench. I fully expect Bogi to be traded in the offseason. 

Capela, for his part, is fed up with guys only caring about stats. Trae tells everyone about his stats and his records. Capela wants him and the rest of the team to talk about their defense. He is fed up with the lack of team effort on defense and the literal sense of entitlement that settled in the summer after our playoff run. 

Capela ALSO knows he's being shipped to Phoenix in the offseason if we can agree to terms with Ayton and Phoenix. He is not happy about that at all. He signed the extension to stay in Atlanta. Same with Collins. Both are upset and insulted that their names are out there to be traded. 

Btw all of the chatter here on the Squawk especially gets filtered back to the team including players/coaches/FO. Several players resent how they are perceived because they point the finger at the next guy not giving any effort on defense. None of them want to be traded. None of them want Nate fired. They truly believe that they will just "get in" the playoffs this year and repeat the magic of last season.

This Pollyanna  view point is not shared by the FO, the coaches or players like Capela and Collins.  Capela giving that interview with Chris Kirschner was not an accident. It was calculated by Capela to light a fire under the rest of the team and frankly try to get them to show pride in their defense. Knowing some of the egos in that locker room and yes I do mean Trae Young...I think that could be Capela crossing the Rubicon. If it works, great, he can use this for a reason to keep him and not flip him for Ayton in the offseason. If it doesn't work, well, this just makes it easy for the other players and FO that aren't really sold on him long term to justify trading him for Ayton.

I hesitate to say this because this might upset some people. I can only repeat what I'm hearing. Bogi, Gallo and Kevin's lack of defense and offensive consistency and being held accountable for it by the media and, yes, get ready for it the Hawks fans especially here on the Squawk is being seen by several players as passive racism. Meaning: Bogi, Gallo and Kevin  are getting a free pass because they are white. They resent that other players like Trae, Delon, Collins, Capela etc. have been routinely criticized this season but hardly anything is said negatively about the three white players. 

I don't want to turn this into a political thread but I privately have noticed that Kevin especially has been given a free pass this season. My source said that winning games and making the playoffs covers up a lot of these resentments and hard feelings. When that is removed, well, you have some hard truths to face without winning to cover it up. Capela has went to the media about this. I wouldn't be surprised if Collins also says something to the local Hawks media that echoes what Capela was saying.

End of what I've heard and had confirmed. I will speak now as just a fan. This team needs a come to Jesus moment so badly it hurts. We are not entitled to make the playoffs because we had a great run last  year. We need to get another playmaker and another consistent scorer to take pressure off Trae to do both of those things, all the time, literally every possession on the court. 

I almost want to laugh but my source was adamant about this. Solomon Hill was a true glue guy that not only played defense but he was the guy that was cool with the other guy and also THIS guy so he could keep the team morale up. We are really missing him and his ability to bark out assignments on defense and keep the guys cool with each other in the locker room. So we need to either bring him back in the offseason or find someone that has that kind of effect in the locker room.  

I know this was a "quiet" deadline but this team has some real issues to deal with. 

Could it be that Trae, Collins and Capella get much critisism because they're signed long term and are expected to be the team's best players?

People have been critical of Gallo all season. Bogi has been injuried, but we all know he isn't a long term piece to the puzzle. He is only a one trick pony role player.

Until recently, most people haven't been that critical of Hunter and OO.

I think Huerter deserves more attention because he just signed an extension that he doesn't deserve, but to pull the race card is absurd.

If this is true, it sounds like the players are trying to blame fans for their lackluster play. Everyone but OO deserves some blame.

[hylndr11]

I mean, I see tons of critique of white players here, and Im biracial since it seems its implied if someone says what your saying is potentially true based on what your hearing, but we literally very easily find critique on all these on squawk, I would argue Huerter has been getting crucified especially lately, I hear an entire monologue on this guy on the radio today. 

Good for Clint on stepping up and seeing the big picture, I can see everyones POV on why they are upset, It all makes sense, but Clint is right, the younger guys are going to be a little more self centered its apart of being a professional - we all went through this in our 20s I would imagine, if we went on to be successful in our careers, their is a time where it kinda clicks. 

 

Edited February 16, 2022 by hylndr11

[sturt]

Thoughts... worth about half the price you paid to read them...

- I worry less about this kind of thing when a team isn't having the success they expected than I do if they are.

- Rough times routinely do one of two things... spell your demise, or build confidence that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger

- This team has had two 7-game winning streaks this season, and also has a history of serving crow to those who think they've got nothing

- Not much about CC's quotes I think anyone can legitimately argue against, and to the contrary, I feel like there's more upside to him going on the record than not

- As a rule, I can't put much confidence in any assertions that an off-season trade has already been largely settled on... too many variables, some of which might not even yet be revealed or have evolved.

[bleachkit]

Who is saying this stuff? I mean Deandre Hunter does not seem like the type to air grievances, he barely even talks. Kevin would wash the ocean floor if the team asked him to.  Gallo is a pro's pro that has been on numerous teams, he is not a drama starter. Capella might say things, but they are always professional and well intentioned. Primary beef is probably between Trae and John, who both have somewhat strong personalities. Lobbying for a Ben Simmons trade with management was a sure way to alienate an important teammate. 

[sturt]

5 minutes ago, bleachkit said:

Who is saying this stuff?

If I had to guess, it's the ancillary staff... the equipment guys... the trainer guys... maybe even custodians... people with access and who aren't all that tight lipped.

[capstone21]

I think it’s cool that there are players on here .

[JTB]

DAMN!

I knew something was up. That was a lot to take in. Lots of thoughts running through my mind after reading that so I will keep my points short as possible from a fan perspective.

 

1)  While I believe most true NBA stars are cocky, it kinda hurts to hear that our only superstar since Nique….Trae Young is cocky in the locker room spitting out his stats to his own teammates. As a big fan of the hawks and my favorite player being Ice Trae that part really upsets me that he throws his elite offensive weight around the locker room!….he’s a generational offensive talent but he’s not going to get far on any team if he’s cocky inside the locker room towards his own team….UNLESS we don’t know the full story and this is a self defense reasoning from Trae then I kinda understand why he’s doing it I guess. He’s young and excited still and it just hasn’t clicked yet that his stats will not generate wins alone.

 

2)   I should stay away from this one but I can’t. Ok I will admit it ….Many including myself has always given white players a pass on defense due to the widely false narrative that white players can’t defend. But I’m mature and grown now. I know This isn’t true at all and we’ve seen players like Divencio and the kid from Chicago (can’t think of his name ) defend at a very high level …

Typically in the NBA and NFL we see more black athleticism  then we do white athleticism throughout all these years, so unfortunately it’s apart of the narrative and its hunted both sports for a long time! That’s why Cooper Kupp on the LA Rams stick out so much. We aren’t use to a white WR being a top 3 WR in the nfl…we are use to white WRs being like a Wes Welker…again it’s the narrative of these sports that we’ve heard for so long that were never true.….

If JC, Hunter, Capela are truly mad at this and even Trae…..I do see why they’d be upset because ALL players should be held accountable. I’ve been preaching this for at least the last 2 months but you can’t blame the defensive woes on one person on this team that’s just crazy.

 

3)  I knew former players and writers read the squawk and hawks Reddit….I say that to say hey I’m honored if you’re a former player, coach, beat writer, FO member or current player, coach, beat writer, FO member  reading my comments ….that’s dope! 

 

4)  Back to Trae…i love that Trae takes that Kobe approach and screams get me some damn help!… I know some will find that negative but shit also staying quiet don’t get you any help….did not work for Joe Johnson, Horford, Millsap…so personally I think it’s good he ask for help and demands it! Good! Keep the front office on their toes…it took the hawks decades to get another star and Trae knows it so I’m not surprised he has a little power. Sucks we aren’t more of a historic franchise cause if we were say the lakers or Boston that shit wouldn’t work but hey this is the ATL home of very few stars in our franchise from an NBA perspective…..with that said he need to chill on showing his power towards his teammates! That will backfire in a heartbeat! He don’t want the harden reputation. He wants to be known as winner but doing that towards your team won’t get that done.

 

5)  Trae, Collins, Bogi have arrogant strong personalities …this wasn’t shocking honestly but we see it with Trae more because he’s public with it on the court which I think is dope (the kid is entertaining…don’t care if you don’t like it). I don’t mind arrogant players…my favorite player of all time Kobe Bean Bryant was arrogant and I loved it. But what I don’t like is when you’re arrogant and naive. Trae in my opinion is not naive about his lack of defense he knows that dark cloud has been over his head probably since his HIgh School days and he ain’t crazy, he knows he need to improve on that end…but Bogi and JC are arrogant and naive in my opinion  …Bogi and JC are not as good as they think they are offensively and if they were there wouldn’t be any need of an additional scorer/playmaker but there is because those two are limited offensively.

 

6)  EGOs….it’s good to check Egos and not run away from it.  I believe if Smart or Draymond was on this team Trae would feed off of that even if he barked with him a lot during practice. One thing I can’t stand in this generation are those with no thick skin and thinking they have to like everyone they work with! Sometimes you don’t have a choice and sometimes it’s best you work with someone you don’t necessarily like.

You can’t have a player with an ego like Traes and expect things to go well all the time especially if there’s no pusher on the other side. Curry, Klay, & Draymond all have egos but they use it to challenge each other and put their differences aside when it’s game time. 

Schlenk cannot make everything comfortable for Trae or any of the other players. We need a Marcus Smart type player in the locker room that demand respect and results just as much as Trae does.

 

[JayBirdHawk]

1 hour ago, marco102 said:

Would add that these are the growing pains of a young team struggling with expectations. They need to learn from it.

It's either gonna make them stronger or they will fold.

[Iverwig]

This is usually par the course for a young team. It can make the Hawks better or it can make them worse. I don’t have a problem with Trae wanting another superstar here at the expense of some of his teammates. That’s usually what stars ask for.  No real comment necessary on JC. While we all like JC no one is going to miss him if he’s traded. Bogi can go because he like some of his teammates are inconsistent and sucks on defense. If the rest of the players don’t like what Trae did then they need to step up and play better consistently. As far as I'm concerned the whole team minus Trae and OO can go. 

[terrell]

1 hour ago, marco102 said:

Oh well. Trade everyone if they refuse to play defense. 

They seemed to play better tonight or maybe they were carried by Trae?

The defense still didnt look good tbh...

[marco102]

1 minute ago, terrell said:

The defense still didnt look good tbh...

It was better. The cavs got most of their points because Garland cooked Kevin until he finally started to play real defense in the last few minutes.

[h4wkfan]

I hope this is getting blown out of proportion a bit. But boy oh boy if they are in their feelings from reading here and the ATL media. They better pray they don’t end up in LA, NY or BOS and find themselves on a struggling team. 

[JayBirdHawk]

2 minutes ago, h4wkfan said:

I hope this is getting blown out of proportion a bit. But boy oh boy if they are in their feelings from reading here and the ATL media. They better pray they don’t end up in LA, NY or BOS and find themselves on a struggling team. 

They should take note about what is happening to Cam after asking for a trade. The grass is not always greener on the other side or as @Gray Mule said...it's greener because it's full of shit, lol.

[GameTime]

Too soon for Trae demanding out and us settling for Kyrie and picks?

[terrell]

Trae telling the other players about his stats? Im not shocked by the other stuff, but this is crazy.. lol