On Monday, the Atlanta Hawks finally fulfilled a trade rumor that had been brewing for numerous seasons by trading power forward John Collins to the Utah Jazz in exchange for Rudy Gay and a second-round pick.
The rumor mill had been spinning around Collins for at least the past two seasons and in some cases even further back than that for the former Wake Forest Demon Deacon, who prior to the trade had been the longest-tenured Hawk after being drafted by the team in 2017.
The move was viewed by most as more of a salary dump than anything else, but maybe in the case of the Hawks it’s meant to be addition by subtraction–it became abundantly clear throughout the last two seasons that Collins’ play style is no longer compatible with Atlanta’s vision for its Trae Young-led offense, especially considering the power forward’s abysmal 29% three-point percentage this past season.