Hawks to take measured approach to roster build, GM says

The season didn’t end the way the Hawks wanted, but it clarified a lot, and that may matter more than anything right now.

As Lauren Williams of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution wrote, the Hawks walk into the offseason with two first-round picks, some financial flexibility, and a clearer picture of what this roster is and what it is not. They’re not blowing it up. They’re not chasing a shortcut either.

General manager Onsi Saleh made that plain.

“We’re not a single player away from being what we want to be,” Saleh said. “When I came here, the biggest thing was, how do we become sustainable?”

So the plan is patience. Add pieces. Develop what’s already there. Keep options open with the cap.

There’s some expected continuity. CJ McCollum and Jonathan Kuminga are viewed as likely to return. After that, it gets murkier. Williams described Gabe Vincent, Keaton Wallace, Buddy Hield, and Tony Bradley as coin flips, which feels about right for a team still figuring out its middle.

And that’s really the story here. The Hawks finally know they’re not close enough to rush it, but not far enough away to tear it down.