2025 NBA Trade Deadline: Grading the Bogdan Bogdanovic Deal for the Atlanta Hawks

Did the Hawks get a good return for the Serbian sharpshooter in the recent trade that sent Bogdanovic to the Clippers?

Jan 20, 2025; New York, New York, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Bogdan Bogdanovic (13) is guarded by New York Knicks forward OG Anunoby (8) and guard Cameron Payne (1) during the second half at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

After much speculation leading up to the trade deadline, the Hawks made the difficult decision to part ways with veteran shooting guard Bogdan Bogdanovic today. Per ESPN's Shams Charania, the Hawks have traded Bogdanovic to the Los Angeles Clippers ahead of today's 3 p.m EST deadline.

In exchange for Bogdanovic and three second-round picks, the Hawks received Terence Mann and Bones Hyland.

In terms of what this means for the rest of the season, Atlanta is going to be in a very difficult spot when it comes to spacing. Bogdanovic wasn't shooting particularly well from deep (30.1% from deep on six attempts a game), but the larger sample size tells a different story. He's a career 38% shooter from the three-point line and he hasn't shot below 36% from deep for a season since entering the NBA. If Bogdanovic does find his form, the Hawks will not be able to experience the benefits of that.

That's a problem considering how bad the Hawks have been from beyond the arc this year. They are 28th in three-point percentage this year across the NBA and rank 22nd in points from beyond the arc. In an NBA that is reliant on shooting, that's a hard model to find success with. Instead, they're 3rd in points in the paint. Without the threat of Bogdanovic, teams have one less credible shooting threat to account for. They can load up on Trae Young and force Atlanta's other shooters to beat them. Outside of DeAndre Hunter (38.7% mark from deep on 6.6 attempts a game), no one else on Atlanta can reliably hit those shots on a night-to-night basis. With Hunter and Bogi gone, things are going to be even more difficult.

Still, Bogdanovic's shooting struggles this year make the loss easier to swallow. He's been in and out of the lineup with injuries, which has played a role in his precipitous decline from last year. Going from shooting 37.4% on 8.1 attempts a game to barely above 30% on less attempts is extremely worrying. Even with his track record, it doesn't bode well for the rest of the season. Furthermore, Bogdanovic is 32 and consistently misses time. It's looking like the 79 games he played last season may be a massive outlier and that's a problem for an Atlanta team that always seems to have injuries strike at the worst time.

From a financial perspective, it's not hard to see why this happened. Bogdanovic's deal runs through the 2026-27 season and this season's struggles made him an easy candidate to be moved to duck the luxury tax. If the Hawks had been doing better, perhaps they would have kept him on the roster. Unfortunately, Jalen Johnson's injury makes this a lost season for Atlanta where they need to seriously explore every reasonable option to give themselves more flexibility in future years.

Bogdanovic's departure points to things changing rapidly for the Hawks' roster. After signing with the Hawks on a four-year, $72 million dollar deal, he became a reliable shooter during the fantastic 2020-21 season. While his postseason numbers weren't always the best, he shot the cover off the ball in the regular season to the tune of a 43.8% mark from deep on 7.6 attempts a game. He ends his five-year tenure in Atlanta as the team's leader in three-pointers made and three-point attempts. The 2024-25 season hasn't been a banner year, but Bogi deserves respect for being one of the team's best shooters during a high point in the franchise's history.

Getting back Mann and Hyland in this deal is pretty interesting. Mann was excellent for the Clippers in their run to the Western Conference Finals, but it's been a while since he's showed that form. This season, he's averaging 6.0 points and 2.9 rebounds on 44.6/34.7/71.9% shooting splits. He had finger surgery earlier this season and hasn't quite looked the same after coming back. Last year was also a difficult year on offense for the former postseason hero. On defense, he's a solid defender who can hold his own at the point of attack.

Still, it'll be interesting to see if he can improve his numbers by playing off of Trae Young and getting back into form. Hyland is an offense-only backup point guard who can help Atlanta's scoring in the non-Young minutes, but it's hard to picture him adding much beyond that. He's averaging 7.2 points on 39.1/38.8/88.5% shooting splits. It would have been nice if Atlanta could have gotten a more proven or willing shooter for Bogdanovic, but that probably was not going to happen. If Mann gets back to being the player he was prior to his last two seasons.

Grade: B-

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