Atlanta Hawks Stock Report: 3 Players I'm Buying, 3 I'm Selling In The Preseason

The preseason is almost over for the Atlanta Hawks, and they enter Friday's game vs. Dallas with a 3-1 record, and they have won three consecutive games since losing their preseason opener to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Preseason games can be hard to analyze because it is rare that every team is going to have every player available in every game. The Hawks have rested at least one starter in each of their games, and in the first two, top offseason acquisition Lu Dort did not play. In last night's game vs. the Thunder, Atlanta sat six of their top seven rotation players. It would make sense to do so again on Friday since it is the last preseason game before Atlanta tips the season off against Orlando next Wednesday.

When looking at this preseason, whose stock has risen and whose stock has fallen?

Stock up: Kingston Flemings

I don't think that Flemings is going to be in the running for Rookie of the Year or anything, but he has looked the part of a No. 8 overall pick, and he looks ready to be the backup point guard for this team.

So far this preseason, Flemings has played in every game and gotten two starts. He is averaging 10.3 PPG and 3.8 APG in nearly 23 minutes per game while shooting 46% from the field and 33% from three. He has been a pest on defense and looks in control when running the offense.

He is not going to have a starting role on this team to begin the year, but Flemings is going to continue to improve and can play a real role on this team.

Stock Down: Corey Kispert

Kispert was facing an uphill battle for playing time when it came to the regular season because of the Hawks' emphasis on defense this offseason. For him to earn regular minutes on the court, he had to be better on that end while also hitting a high volume of threes.

He has not done either of those things despite playing plenty of minutes.

Kispert is shooting 38% from the field and 33% from three, bad marks for a player known for being a sharpshooter. Atlanta also has a 119.1 defensive rating when he is on the court, second worst on the team this preseason.

Stock up: Kobe Johnson

Kobe Johnson is not going to play a minute for the Hawks this season, but that should tell you about how impressive he has been for me to mention him.

Johnson is likely just going to spend the year in the G League, but he has improved so much as a player over the course of Summer League and the preseason. He played fewer than 10 minutes in every game, but he found a way to make an impact in every game. In the win over the Thunder, he scored 10 points, pulled in three rebounds, and also had two steals. He made clutch plays last night and should have a big season in College Park.

Stock Down: Dorian Finney-Smith

Finney-Smith was the most recent addition to the Hawks roster and after a down year with the Rockets last season, there was hope that he could find a way to have a bounce back season and help Atlanta.

The preseason has not been an indicator that is going to happen. Finney-Smith has averaged just 11 minutes per game and not made a meaningful impact in any of the games.

Stock Up: Hawks Two-Way Contracts

Similar to Kobe Johnson, Jalen Wilson and RayJ Dennis are not likely going to play major roles on this team, but having those two players as two-way contracts is a huge luxury for a team to have.

In limited minutes, Wilson averaged 8.5 PPG on 40% shooting from the floor and 50% from three and pulling in three rebounds per game. He played a lot of minutes for the Brooklyn Nets over the past few seasons and might be overqualified to be a two-way player.

Dennis averaged 9.0 PPG and shot 47% from the field. He shot poorly from three, but also contributed 4.5 APG as well.

Two-way players can work their way into roations and the Hawks are lucky to have these two deep on the bench.

Stock Down: Lu Dort

I want to preface this by saying that I think Dort is going to find a role with the Hawks and make a big impact this season.

But I wanted to see Dort play in more games and he has only played in one. He scored only seven points in that game and shot 1-4 from three. When that is the only performance that you have with the rest of the team, it is hard to judge how Dort is fitting in and how he looks. Will he figure it out? I think so, but we don't have much to go on.

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