Five Players To Watch For the Atlanta Hawks In Today's Final Four Matchups

A trip to the NCAA championship is on the line for four teams today - and the Atlanta Hawks should be watching closely.

Michigan forward Yaxel Lendeborg (23), left, and guard Nimari Burnett (4) answer questions at break out room ahead of practice at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis for practice on Friday, April 3, 2026. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Atlanta Hawks have a lot invested into the 2026 NBA Draft.

Even if it wasn't an incredibly talented class on paper, the 2026 draft was always going to be the first offseason that really mattered for general manager Onsi Saleh. He did an excellent job last offseason by signing Dyson Daniels to a big extension and trading for Nickeil Alexander-Walker on a new contract. If the lottery goes their way, they'll be able to add one of the four best players in the country in Duke forward Cameron Boozer, Kansas guard Darryn Peterson, BYU wing AJ Dybantsa or North Carolina forward Caleb Wilson.

However, none of those teams are playing in the Final Four. Instead, tonight's set of games might determine the Hawks' contingency plans. If they fall out of the top-four and have to settle for a top-eight selection, there are several players that might make sense for Atlanta to select. Furthermore, they also have a late-round swap with the Cavaliers projected at the 22nd overall selection. There's a good chance that the Hawks can land a franchise star and a rotation contributor with their two first-round picks and that one of those players is playing tonight.

Brayden Burries, G, Arizona

Mar 28, 2026; San Jose, CA, USA; Arizona Wildcats guard Brayden Burries (5) celebrates after a three-point basket against the Purdue Boilermakers in the second half during an Elite Eight game of the West Regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at SAP Center. Mandatory Credit: Eakin Howard-Imagn Images | Eakin Howard-Imagn Images

What would duplicating Nickeil Alexander-Walker look like for the Hawks?

If everything goes right, that's probably the question Saleh would be answering by taking Brayden Burries with a top-eight selection. He averaged 16.1 points, 4.9 rebounds and 2.5 assists on 50/40/80 splits for the Wildcats this season as a freshman. The pairing of Burries and Koa Peat has been incredibly fun to watch in the tournament, but Burries looks like he's a cut above his teammate. He was lights out against the Arkansas Razorbacks in the Sweet 16 with an efficient 23 points and he went 4-7 from deep with three steals against Purdue to punch a Final Four ticket.

As a 21-year old rookie, there's still a decent amount of NBA development left for him and he already contributes to winning in several ways. Burries has a DREB% of 14.5% as a guard and shoots 65.2% at the rim, which are both above-average. One of the most intriguing parts of his game that he's an absolute sniper in the paint, hitting 45.7% of his attempts from midrange albeit on limited volume. He's insanely physical on both ends of the floor and plays bigger than his listed 6'4 and 205 lbs. Burries is also great in transition, especially as a passer. He isn't an amazing halfcourt passer and here are questions about how real the three-point shooting is at the NBA level. However, he's a great consolation prize for the Hawks if they fall out of the top four.

The ceiling may not be as high for Burries as some of the other names playing tonight. However, it's hard not to want more of what NAW has brought to the Hawks this season. Burries should translate instantly as a sixth or seventh man and profiles well as the eventual successor to CJ McCollum.

Keaton Wagler, G, Illinois

Mar 28, 2026; Houston, TX, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini guard Keaton Wagler (23) controls the ball against Iowa Hawkeyes guard Kael Combs (11) in the second half during an Elite Eight game of the South Regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

The Hawks haven't exactly been a bad passing team with Trae Young in the fold for the past few seasons. However, the ball rarely gets stuck with Jalen Johnson as the conductor for their offense. They lead the NBA in assists per game and the playmaking leap of Dyson Daniels also has something to do with this. Still, the Hawks really need someone who can run the bench units while pairing with Johnson and Daniels to supercharge one of their strengths. Keaton Wagler has an excellent chance of being that player.

He's averaging 17.9 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.3 assists on 44.5/40.7/79.6 shooting splits as a freshman and there's a clear case for him to be one of the heroes of this tournament. Illinois doesn't make it past Iowa without Wagler scoring 25 points on 60% on two-pointers and a perfect 7-7 from the charity stripe. He had a double-double of 13 points and 12 rebounds against a tough Houston defense in the Sweet 16 and he's made 2+ threes in every game of the tournament thus far.

Still just 19 years, there's a lot of projection also associated with Wagler's game. He's got a seven-foot wingspan and stands at 6'6 already, so the athletic tools are there for him to be a good defender in time. However, he isn't a great one right now. His rebounding should immediately translate for a Hawks team that doesn't bring it on the glass consistently - he's a 98th percentile level offensive rebounder - and he draws a lot of contact. However, Wagler struggles to finish at the rim, shooting 56.3% despite heavy volume.

Wagler could be a star - he's drawn some comparisons to Austin Reaves with a higher defensive floor. That's certainly an intriguing player for the Hawks to take. However, there's also a chance that he never hits that high-end outcomes due to the flaws in his game.

Yaxel Lendeborg, F, Michigan

Michigan Wolverines forward Yaxel Lendeborg (23) reacts during practice ahead of a Final Four game on Friday, April 3, 2026, at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. | Christine Tannous/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Yaxel Lendeborg is going to be an NBA contributor and probably, one of the better rookies in the NBA. But how good can he really be?

At 23 years old, the prevailing opinion on Lendeborg's game is that he's essentially reached the end of the development curve. However, he's been a massive part of Michigan's success through the tournament. He's scored 23+ points in each of the last three rounds of the tournament and he's doing it on an efficient 52% from the field while shooting 37.2% from deep and 81.6% from the charity stripe.

Yaxel pairs his 6'9 frame with a 7'3 wingspan that helps him make plenty of defensive plays. He's shooting an impressive 73.5% at the rim and draws a lot of contact. He's also a surprisingly good player, dishing out 3.3 assists on an elite 3.1 AST/TO ratio. He probably won't be an elite shooter at the next level, but its not entirely impossible if he adds that to his game considering how much he's developed in college. It'd be pretty surprising if he was a true star, but Lendeborg has a great chance to carve out a career as a premier role player in the mold of Keegan Murray or if the shooting comes around, maybe even Aaron Gordon. That's certainly a player the Hawks could use.

Aday Mara, C, Michigan

Michigan center Aday Mara (15) yells in triumph during a NCAA Tournament Elite 8 game against Tennessee at the United Center in Chicago on March 29, 2026. | Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Atlanta's frontcourt is already good with the duo of Jalen Johnson and Onyeka Okongwu. However, there are times at which Okongwu's lack of seven-foot size can be a hinderance. Aday Mara would be a nice complement to Onyeka while bringing some real playmaking upside for a big man.

The former UCLA big man stands at a towering 7'3 with a 7'7 wingspan. There are few players who have that size in the NBA and the Hawks saw the advantages of a true seven-footer during the brief Kristaps Porzingis stint in Atlanta. Despite his health, Porzingis was additive for the Hawks and made a clear impact during the seventeen games he suited up for Atlanta.

Mara doesn't win with his shooting like Porzingis does, but the rim protection might be as good. His 12.5 BLK% this season is an outlier and he's formed a monster defensive duo with the aforementioned Yaxel Lendeborg. He shoots well at the rim as you might expect for a man of his size - he's made 81.1% of his attempts at the rim this season. The real draw with Mara is his passing. An AST% of 19.2% is outrageously good for a center and it adds an intriguing element to Atlanta's offense. Still, there are pretty obvious holes in his game. He's not a diverse scorer and he doesn't shoot the ball well from the free-throw line, either.

By now, it's obvious the Hawks should have made Donovan Clingan their priority with the first overall selection. This is a chance to fix that mistake and give Quin Snyder the rim protector he's been looking for ever since losing Rudy Gobert.

Koa Peat, F, Arizona

Mar 26, 2026; San Jose, CA, USA; Arizona Wildcats forward Koa Peat (10) reacts after a pay against the Arkansas Razorbacks in the second half during a Sweet Sixteen game of the West Regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at SAP Center. Mandatory Credit: Eakin Howard-Imagn Images | Eakin Howard-Imagn Images

Admittedly, Peat isn't a player who will contribute very much in his rookie season. He's an awful shooter from both the FT and three-point line. In the modern NBA, that's pretty worrying. Taking Peat is a big sign of faith in the development process that a front office has in place.

That creates an interesting conondrum for the Hawks. Peat doesn't have the same analytics profile that Jalen Johnson had as a rookie, but he does bring an elite FTA (free throws attempted per 100 possessions) of 9.8 as a freshman. He's only 19 years old and there's a chance that Peat's game, coupled with the 6'8 frame with a 6'11 wingspan, eventually translates into something close to a younger version of Julius Randle. However, it's not exactly clear how that pairs with Johnson.

The best part of Peat's profile is that he's raised his game to match the stakes. He's averaging almost 18 points and seven rebounds in the tournament largely because he's focused on his strengths within the paint. Self-awareness is a very important quality for draft prospects to have and Peat's ability to find a way to impact winning through his strengths is encouraging for his chances at the NBA level.