If Atlanta Does Not Love Alex Sarr, They Need to Look at Trading Down And Remaining In The Top Five

It is always nice to have options and the Atlanta Hawks have plenty on their table following their Draft Lottery win on Sunday. Atlanta was going to have a very busy offseason regardless of if they won the lottery, but winning it gives them flexibility that they did not previously have. There is still the question of what Atlanta does with their backcourt of Trae Young and Dejounte Murray, but having the No. 1 pick makes parting with one of them easier.

Since the Hawks won the lottery, there seems to be a consensus forming that they should keep the pick and take Alex Sarr, a 7'1 forward/center from France who checks a lot of the boxes the Hawks need on their team and is considered by many to be the prospect with the highest ceiling in the draft. He is the favorite to go with the No.1 pick, but this draft could also be the most unpredictable since the 2013 draft, which was famous for the shocking Anthony Bennett pick.

I have written about Sarr's fit with the Hawks and how I think he should be the pick, but it is unknown if Atlanta is going to come to the same conclusion. Yesterday, Atlanta Hawks head coach Quin Snyder, general manager Landry Fields, and assistant general manager Kyle Korver were sitting courtside to watch potential No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher play in the playoffs in France.

After Atlanta has done their due diligence and they like players more than they like Sarr, they need to be calling the four teams picking behind them (Wizards, Rockets, Spurs, and Pistons) and seeing if one of them would like to trade up. That would give Atlanta extra draft capital and they still get one of the players that they want.

Bleacher Report's Dan Favale had two trade proposals where the Hawks do exactly that. One with the Wizards at No. 2 and one with the Spurs at No. 4.

The Trade

Atlanta Hawks Receive: No. 4 pick, 2025 first-round pick (its own)

San Antonio Spurs Receive: No. 1 pick

Why The Hawks Do It

"Moving down three spots requires the Hawks to believe there isn't much separating this year's top prospects—or for them to simply lack a preference. If the player whom they prefer projects to be available at No. 4, re-acquiring their own 2025 first-rounder would give them some runway heading into next season, diminishing the urgency with which they must operate over the summer.

Whether that's enough of an incentive is debatable. San Antonio also controls Atlanta's first-rounders in 2026 (swap) and 2027 (outright), so it's not like the Hawks suddenly have the license to start over without regard for draft obligations.

As an asset management play, though, this absolutely tracks. Atlanta would get a top-five prospect and carve out a (limited) window in which it can entertain more seismic changes ahead of the 2024-25 campaign without worrying about forfeiting a glitzy lottery selection next June.

Why The Spurs Do It

Because they're smitten by the idea of playing Victor Wembanyama alongside Alex Sarr. Or because they're enamored with pairing him and one of the other options and worried their favorite prospect will be scooped up by Atlanta, Washington (No. 2) or Houston (No. 3).

Sending back the Hawks' 2025 first-rounder may not sit right with the Spurs. But it wouldn't free Atlanta up to clean its entire slate willy-nilly. The Hawks would still have to worry about two additional obligations to San Antonio in the following years.

Unless the Hawks somehow parlay that 2025 first-rounder into a prospect or trade acquisition who obliterates the upside of their 2026 and 2027 picks, the Spurs would still be sitting on two massively appealing bites at the draft apple."

This is one trade that the Hawks should be interested in if they don't want to take Sarr. They would get their own pick back next year, which would help if they have an underwhelming season, they only fall three spots. Would they just go back to No. 4 if they like Risacher the most in the draft? That would be the smart thing to do in that scenario. They get the player they want and their own pick back next season.

Let's look at the other proposed trade.

The Trade

Atlanta Hawks Receive: No. 2 pick, No. 26 pick, Chicago's 2026 second-round pick

Washington Wizards Receive: No. 1 pick

Why The Hawks Do It

"Because they know who the Wizards want, they don't want him, and they're looking to mine extra value out of the draft while still getting whomever they do want.

Picking up another late first-round pick and a second-rounder two years out to move down from No. 1 would be a non-starter in most years. This isn't most years, though. If the top of this draft genuinely lacks a consensus top prospect, the chance to secure another first-round pick on a cost-controlled rookie scale without torpedoing your own top-of-the-lottery interests would be a nice piece of business.

Accepting this offer would get harder if, say, Alex Sarr emerges as the clear-cut option.

Front offices with better track records and the job security that comes with them might move down anyway if they're more gaga over someone else. Hawks general manager Landry Fields doesn't exactly fall into this bucket. But again, for our purposes, we're taking the ambiguous and unflattering evaluations of this draft at face value.

Why The Wizards Do It

To get the No. 1 pick. Duh.

Coughing up another first-rounder to move up one spot in what might be an underwhelming draft and taking someone who may be available when you're on the clock anyway wouldn't be the most earth-shattering or sexiest play. So be it.

Washington wouldn't go into this attempting to stage a coup—a reverse Markelle Fultz-for-Jayson Tatum, if you will. It would make this trade because a late first-rounder and future second is a justifiable price to pay for determining your own fate.

If general manager Will Dawkins, team president Michael Winger and their scouting department believe there is a material difference between their top guy and everyone else, the chance to determine their own fate would go from luxury to potentially franchise-altering."

Again, if Atlanta does not think Sarr is the top player on their board, move down one spot, pick up an extra first rounder and a second rounder next year from the Bulls, and still get your guy, whether that is Risacher, Buzelis, Clingan, or maybe a wild card like Ron Holland.

If I am the Hawks, I would sit there and take Sarr because I think he is the best player and he would be a tremendous fit. Atlanta has struggled on the defensive end of the floor for the past few seasons and lacks size, athleticism, and length, which Sarr brings in droves. He is 7'1, 220 LBS, and has a 7'4 wingspan. He uses his athleticism well and would be an impact guy on that end of the floor immediately. He is arguably the highest-ceiling prospect in the draft at a position of need for the Hawks. He is the presumed favorite to be selected No. 1 for a reason.

This draft might not have a superstar, franchise-altering player in it, but for a team like Atlanta, it has the perfect complementary piece in Sarr. He would fill a massive defensive need with his shot-blocking and rim-protecting ability, while also having the athleticism to guard on the perimeter. His three-point shooting and rebounding might be slight concerns, but playing with an elite playmaker like Trae Young would ease those concerns. A future lineup of Sarr, Young, Johnson, and Okongwu could be the cornerstone of the Hawks franchise if they can make it work.

If they don't think that way though, they should trade down a few spots and collect more draft capital.