Grading The Atlanta Hawks Trade For Luguentz Dort and Ryan Nembhard

After bringing in Aaron Wiggins, the Atlanta Hawks have added another member of the Thunder's title team.

Per ESPN's Shams Charania, the Hawks have acquired Lu Dort from OKC in exchange for three second-round picks and are sending former No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher to the Dallas Mavericks. They will take back Mavericks point guard Ryan Nembhard as part of the deal.

BREAKING: The Oklahoma City Thunder trading All-Defensive wing Lu Dort to the Atlanta Hawks in a three-team deal that sends three second-round picks to OKC, former No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher to the Dallas Mavericks and Ryan Nembhard to Atlanta, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/4ewUxhRQA5
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 19, 2026

The Thunder picked up Dort's team option this summer with the intention of trading him and the Hawks have decided to take the decision on. Personally, I find this to be a really intriguing move and it's a clear signal from Onsi Saleh that he will not let roster spots go to waste if there's no hope of contribution.

Earlier this summer, we discussed why the Hawks might benefit from adding Dort in free agency assuming that the Thunder declined his team option. Since they haven't, he'll be locked into an expiring deal of $17.7 million for this season. Risacher is making $13.8 million and Ryan Nembhard is making $2.1 million. That's about $6 million added to the Hawks' cap sheet for this season and it puts them about $6 million away from hitting the luxury tax threshold.

Financially, it won't be difficult for the Hawks to take this on. However, it will be fascinating to see how Dort fits into the Hawks' rotation on the court.

Additive Perimeter Defender

Hawks, Atlanta Hawks, NBA, Dort, Lu Dort, Thunder, OKC Thunde — May 30, 2026; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle (5) controls the ball against Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort (5) in the second quarter during game seven of the western conference finals for the 2026 NBA playoffs at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Hawks got exposed by the Knicks on the perimeter during the playoffs. They were able to hang due to New York's over-reliance on Jalen Brunson and some incredible shooting from CJ McCollum. Once the Knicks started running more offense through Karl-Anthony Towns and McCollum cooled down, the gaps in Atlanta's shaky perimeter defense became obvious. They weren't going to be able to compete with a team that shot 39.1% from deep as a team throughout the playoffs and finished third in three-pointers made per game. Adding Dort will help them change that.

His defense wasn't great in the 2025-26 playoffs, but he's just a season removed from being a important part of OKC's defensive identity during their 2025 championship run. He did a nice job on Jamal Murray in the Western Conference semifinals and doesn't shy away from the difficult assignments. That's of huge benefit to the Hawks - they already have Dyson Daniels as their main stopper and can now throw out Dort as a competent counterpart.

It is true that the Thunder's defense was better by defensive rating when he was off the court. They had a solid 110.2 defensive rating when he was on the floor and had an elite defensive rating of 104.1 when he sat. However, Dort is still a decent perimeter defender at bare minimum. He was in the 87th percentile for stop percentage, which measures how often he forced steals and drew offensive fouls. Being able to draw offensive fouls is a very valuable skill and Dort is one of the best in the NBA at it - he was in the 99th percentile last season.

The Hawks have struggled to improve their perimeter defense for multiple seasons in a row and Dort will certainly help in fixing that problem.

Rotation Optionality

Hawks, Atlanta Hawks, NBA, Dort, Lu Dor — May 24, 2026; San Antonio, Texas, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder forward Luguentz Dort (5) drives the ball while defended by San Antonio Spurs guard Dylan Harper (2) in the fourth quarter during game four of the western conference finals for the 2026 NBA playoffs at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Adding Lu Dort also makes a lot of sense from a rotation standpoint. Before this move, the Hawks still had question marks at their SF spot. Nickeil Alexander-Walker can play in that role, but it forces CJ McCollum to be considered as a starter. Dort gives them more options.

Next season, the Hawks can field a lineup that features Dyson Daniels and NAW in the backcourt while slotting Dort in as the SF. While he's a little shorter than NAW, he's almost 15 lbs heavier. That makes him a more natural fit for taking on the bigger matchups at small forward. For example, over the past two years, Dort has held Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen to 9.0 points and a dreadful 39.2 TS% in 174 possessions. Markkanen is 7'1 and weighs 240 lbs. Dort is very capable of punching above his weight and it'll help the Hawks be a stronger defense while keeping NAW on as a scorer.

In addition, it allows the Hawks to play CJ McCollum as a sixth starter and keep him fresh throughout the season. That's going to be critical because he's 34 years old. The Hawks have to be smart about keeping everyone healthy heading into the playoffs and Dort has played in 65+ games for the past four years while also taking on significant postseason minutes.

It also replaces a non-rotation contributor in Zaccharie Risacher with a player who clearly fits with the rest of the team. Risacher does have youth, better shooting potential and overall height on Dort. However, the reality is that he did not take a stranglehold on the starting SF spot when he had a chance to. He will get a better chance in Dallas to develop as they build around Cooper Flagg.

Noticing Nembhard

Hawks, Atlanta Hawks, NBA, Nembhard, Ryan Nembhar — Jan 1, 2026; Dallas, Texas, USA; Dallas Mavericks guard Ryan Nembhard (9) looks on during the game between the Mavericks and the 76ers at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Ryan Nembhard is an intriguing - albeit confusing - add for the Hawks as well. The main piece is Dort, but Nembhard played well at times for the Mavericks and he had an AST% of 37.2% as a rookie. He played reasonably well with Cooper Flagg and showed that he can be a decent playmaker as a rookie. However, it's going to be hard for him to break into the rotation for Atlanta.

The Hawks already drafted Kingston Flemings and they've got two guards who soaked up starting minutes last season in Dyson Daniels and CJ McCollum. They also can play NAW at the SG spot and traded for Devin Carter this offseason. That's a really crowded backcourt and it's far more likely that Nembhard is either re-routed elsewhere or stashed in the G League to develop.

Grading the Deal

Hawks, Atlanta Hawks, NBA, Dort, Luguentz Dort, OKC Thunder, Thunde — Oct 25, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort (5) controls the ball against the Atlanta Hawks during the first half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

On paper, this is a very opportunistic acquistion for the Hawks and it makes sense given the team context. It doesn't compromise their future salary cap and they'll be a better perimeter defense in 2026-27. Dort's shooting is always a question and he regressed from being a 41.2% shooter from deep in 2024-25 to a 34.4% shooter on the same volume last season. He doesn't offer much as a ball-handler and there are times where he's going to cripple the offense if he's missing his shots.

However, the cost of three second-round picks is a negligible price and I think this was a shrewd acquisition for Atlanta. It will be a problem if they give him an expensive extension, but I like this deal for the Hawks,

Overall Grade: A-

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