Jazz F John Collins States His Growth Was ‘Being Stunted’ With Hawks

During this NBA offseason, the Utah Jazz opted to make the move to trade for the high-flying F John Collins from the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for veteran F Rudy Gay and a future second-round pick. The deal gives Collins the chance to re-establish his footing in the league in an ultimately low-risk move for Utah, potentially netting them a nightly 20 & 10 player for a bargain price.

It’s typically unusual to find a younger, high-potential player like Collins see the dip he saw in counting stats a season. During his most recent 2022-23 campaign, he posted 13.1 points and 6.5 rebounds a night on lacking efficiency. This drop could be due to a collection of factors, but the simple misuse of talent might be the answer.

Collins himself seemingly acknowledged this misuse in his recent goodbye to Atlanta on Instagram, where he mentions his growth as “being stunted” with the Hawks:

John Collins’ IG farewell to Atlanta. Interesting note about his growth being stunted there. I think the Jazz are getting a motivated player who is ready to return to form. pic.twitter.com/aZkOjUlwzZ
— David J. Smith (@davidjsmith1232) September 18, 2023

“To the organization: thank you for sticking with me, even at my lowest. Thank you for allowing me a place to grow. But as I see, it is this hawk’s time to fly away from the nest. As my growth here is being stunted."

During his tenure with the Hawks, the team remained decently competitive with many talented players. Atlanta even reached an Eastern Conference Finals run at the heart of his time with the franchise. However, progressively adding youthful and promising talent to the roster found Collins gradually becoming the odd man out.

Trade rumors involving the Wake Forest product persisted throughout recent years, with those talks finally coming to a close this summer. The move gives Collins the perfect opportunity to return to the level of player he was previously in a new system with many sufficient pieces surrounding him.

With Collins’s recent message to Atlanta, it is clear no love has been lost between the two. However, all signs pointed to a change being necessary for both sides.

Now, he will enter a new situation, accompanied by the talented frontcourt of All-Star F Lauri Markkanen and C Walker Kessler. Seeing how HC Will Hardy directs his usage will be a key storyline for the Jazz entering the year, but may find himself as a nightly starter if things go smoothly.

The Baptist will enter his 7th-year pro with a chip on his shoulder, ready to show his worth in this league once again.

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