Analyst Names Which Atlanta Free Agent Is Most Likely To Leave This Summer

The NBA is in the final stretch of its season and while most of the focus around the league is on the playoffs, there are always eyes on what is set to come in the summer with either free agency or with trades. There are going to be a number of free agents this summer, including a few from the Atlanta Hawks.

While Atlanta has locked down their core already, they have some depth pieces that are set to hit the market this summer. Clint Capela, Garrison Matthews, Larry Nance, and Caris LeVert are all going to be free agents this summer and it will be interesting to see if the Hawks are interested in bringing any of these guys back. LeVert has been huge for the Hawks off the bench since being acquired from Cleveland and has been a great option around Trae Young to help take pressure off of him in clutch situations. Capela and Nance are currently injured, while Matthews has fallen out of the rotation. LeVert seems like the player most likely to be brought back this summer.

Which player is most likely to leave this summer? Bleacher Report's Eric Pincus shared his thoughts on which Hawk is the biggest flight risk:

Atlanta Hawks: Clint Capela

"Many free-agent decisions speak more to whether the team wants to spend money to keep a player and less on who might steal them.

The Hawks must decide if Clint Capela is their starting center of the future or whether they should hand the reins to 24-year-old Onyeka Okongwu. Capela is taller (6'10") than Okongwu (6'8"), but he's almost 31 and has slowed with age.

The Hawks can look for a center in the draft (via the Los Angeles Lakers and/or Sacramento Kings' first-rounders) or in free agency. Capela should find suitors elsewhere, although he'll undoubtedly be taking a pay cut from his $22.3 million salary this season. He should sign a new deal in the $5-14 million-per-year range."

Other flight risks: Caris LeVert, Larry Nance Jr., Garrison Mathews

With the way that Okongwu has played since taking over as the starting center, it seems very, very unlikely that Capela is going to be the starting center for the Hawks going forward. Could he return as the backup? That can't be discounted because one thing about the Hawks right now is that their defense gets much worse without Okongwu on the floor. Capela is not as good as he used to be on that end, but he does provide help.

It will be interesting to see who the Hawks will prioritize in free agency this summer, if any of them. There is a case to be made for all of these players to be brought back at the right price.

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