Atlanta Hawks Elevate Former FSU Star To Standard NBA Contract
The NBA season is in its final stretch leading up to the playoffs as teams across the league jockey for positioning in the standings. The next couple of weeks will be crucial for the franchises who have yet to secure a spot in the postseason.
The Atlanta Hawks sit as the No. 10 seed in the Eastern Conference, guaranteeing them the final spot in the Play-In Tournament if the playoffs began today. With that being said, the Hawks recently saw star guard Trae Young undergo surgery on his pinky that will sideline him for at least the next month. There's no certainty that this club can stay in the race without him.
Atlanta is making at least one small move to add continuity to the lineup with 24 games remaining in the regular season. On Wednesday, the Hawks elevated guard Trent Forrest from a Two-Way deal to a standard NBA contract. That means Forrest is eligible to suit up for the Hawks for the remainder of the year after previously being active for 50 games - the limit for players on Two-Way deals.
Forrest is in his fourth year in the league. He's averaged 2.0 points, 2.1 assists, 1.1 rebounds, and 0.4 steals in 10.5 minutes per game over 20 appearances this season. While Forrest has spent the last two years with the Hawks, he began his professional career with the Utah Jazz after going undrafted in 2020.
The Florida native appeared in 60 games, with six starts, during the 2021-22 campaign, averaging 3.3 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 1.8 assists in 12.8 minutes per game. In his six starts, Forrest's numbers bumped up to 9.2 points, 3.2 rebounds and 4.8 assists in 28.4 minutes of action. The Jazz went 4-2 when the Florida native had to enter the starting lineup. He even ended up scoring a career-high 18 points on 6/7 shooting while tying a career-high with eight assists.
Prior to his time in the NBA, Forrest became one of the top players in program history at Florida State. He averaged 8.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.6 steals in 25.4 minutes per game over 137 career appearances (69 starts). Forrest concluded his college career as the all-time winningest player at Florida State (104 wins), ranked third in total steals (224), third in games played (137), and fifth in total assists (455). He was selected to the 2019-20 All-ACC Second Team and All-ACC Defensive Team while garnering All-ACC Academic Team honors in each year with the Seminoles (2017-20).
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