Atlanta Hawks NBA Draft Rumors: What’s Real, What’s Smoke, and What to Watch

The 2026 NBA Draft is finally almost here.

Ever since the Lottery set the order for this year's draft, there has been a countdown to this year's draft, which has been one of the most anticpated in recent memory from an overall talent and depth perspective.

The Atlanta Hawks were hoping that the draft pick they acquired last summer from the New Orleans Pelicans would turn into a top-four pick where they could take one of AJ Dybantsa, Darryn Peterson, Cameron Boozer, or Caleb Wilson. That did not happen, though; the Hawks are the only playoff team with a top-ten pick and one of two playoff teams with a lottery pick.

But what are the Hawks going to do at No. 8 and at No.23? Atlanta has not been a team that has been talked about a lot when it comes to the top of the draft, but they have been linked to several players, and here are the latest rumors about Atlanta heading into tomorrow night.

Hawks are open for business with both No. 8 and No. 23

One thing that has been consistent with the draft intel coming in about the Hawks is that they are open for business with both picks.

In his mock draft last week at The Athletic, Sam Vecenie wrote that "The Hawks are open for business with this pick. Sources have said Atlanta is discussing both trade-up and trade-down scenarios. But it also could stay here and take the player it wants."

Going back before that, insider Marc Stein wrote that "The Hawks, as mentioned above, have a lottery turn at No. 8, but league sources say that Atlanta has informed rival teams that it will happily field offers for No. 23."

There has been more noise about the Hawks looking to move out of the No. 23 spot, either by moving up or by moving the pick for a future pick.

I think there is real smoke behind all of this talk about Atlanta being open for business with both picks. I don't know exactly what Atlanta is going to do, but it would not shock me if they moved down from the No. 8 pick, traded the No. 8 pick for a veteran player that fits their timeline, packaged an asset with No. 23 to move back up in the draft to get another player they really wanted, or moved the No. 23 pick for a future asset.

With that being said, I think it is of course going to depend who is on the board. While the top four seems to be set in stone, what happens after that is anyones guess. What the Clippers, Nets, and Kings do before Atlanta is on the clock will affect their plans. If there are a couple of surprises ahead of No. 8, the Hawks could elect to stay put, even if they are getting offers from other teams wanting to move up.

The same goes for No. 23. Atlanta could go into the draft wanting to move the pick for a future asset, but if a player unexpectedly falls to them at that spot, they might reverse course and take another rookie.

While the talk around No. 8 has revolved around Atlanta moving down, it is noteworthy that this past week, NBA insider Jake Fischer said this about the possibility of Atlanta moving up from No. 8:

"Sources add that Atlanta has shown no interest to this point in moving up from No. 8. Indications repeatedly relayed to me from teams in the 5-to-10 slots are that the separation between players projected to land in that range just isn't wide enough to justify the cost required to move up."

I think the Hawks are going to be a fascinating pivot point in this draft, and they are keeping everyone guessing as to what they are going to do.

Hawks linked to guards and Michigan center Aday Mara at No. 8

When there has been talk about the Hawks and who they may select at No. 8, the group of guards consisting of Keaton Wagler, Kingston Flemings, Mikel Brown Jr, and Brayden Burries, as well as Michigan center Aday Mara, is consistently mentioned as the players the Hawks are interested in.

Atlanta's two biggest needs coming into the offseason are backcourt depth and halfcourt shot creation, as well as adding to the center position and getting bigger with more interior size and improved rebounding. All of these players fit these needs and while the team reportedly re-signed CJ McCollum yesterday to a one-year, $21 million deal, they still have work to do when it comes to the guard position.

I think this is real, and it would be a surprise to me (assuming Atlanta stays at No. 8) if one of those guards or Mara is not the pick. I don't mention Darius Acuff Jr because of the projected picks in the 5-10 range, he is the least likely to be on the board.

Hawks linked to Texas forward Dailyn Swain

There have not been many players linked to Atlanta with their second first-round pick, but over the weekend, Fischer mentioned that the Hawks liked Texas wing Dailyn Swain:

"I've also heard that Atlanta sees great value in Swain at No. 23, but the Hawks have been signaling for some time that they are prepared (and perhaps even prefer) to trade their second pick in the first round after No. 8 for future draft capital. It sounds as though Atlanta will invite external trade interest for that pick until it is actually on the clock to make the selection Tuesday night."

Swain would be an interesting player to take if he does indeed fall to No. 23. He has intriguing tools and the kind of positional value and size that NBA teams are searching for

What to watch

As we have discussed throughout this piece, the Hawks are going to be a fascinating team to watch on Tuesday night. It truly feels like they could move around the draft board, but there are high-level prospects who could fit their biggest needs.

The No. 8 pick could come down to whether they prefer one of the guards on the board or a center like Mara.

I think Atlanta is going to make at least one selection in this year's draft and will do something at No. 8 or move down. There has been a lot of smoke with Atlanta looking to either move out from the No. 23 pick and get a future asset or move up and I lean toward them moving this pick.

The Hawks have already been an active team this offseason and things are only going to get more interesting on Tuesday night.

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