Free agency technically kicks off later today, but there are already reports flying around about signings, trades, and option decisions all over social media.
The Hawks have been busy in both making moves pertaining to rostered players as well as acquiring players from other teams. Yesterday, Malik Brown broke down what new addition Aaron Wiggins brings to the team, but I’ll go over all the rest of the moves and give my two cents on the important ones.
Picking up Mouhamed Gueye’s $2.4 million 2026-27 option
‘Mo’ Gueye has had a rapid rise from second rounder
to G Leaguer to rotation player for the Hawks. He can be an absolutely devastating defender — in the right situation at least — with a penchant for pinning shots off the glass.
The offensive game is still a work in progress, especially if he never develops into a corner three-point shooter, but it’s smart to hold onto as many elite defenders for use in certain lineups even if that overall leap never happens.
A no-brainer.
Grade: A
Trading two second-round picks for Aaron Wiggins
I’ll be brief since Malik covered Wiggins’ on-court potential the other day. Two seconds is a low cost to pay for a solid bench wing with some on-ball upside and shooting potential who also comes from an elite Thunder defensive scheme.
His contract over the next two years is right around $17 million combined (declining from 2026-27 to 2027-28), and he fits the timeline of the current roster. I say it’s a home run move on the margins.
Grade: A+
Guaranteeing Buddy Hield’s $9.7 million salary for 2026-27
This one is a shocker — at least in a vacuum.
Hield came over with Jonathan Kuminga in the return for sending Kristaps Porzingis to the Golden State Warriors, but it quickly became clear that the Bahamian international wasn’t in the Hawks’ plans. Hield mostly only saw garbage time the second half of last season, though he was lauded for his leadership in the locker room as the Hawks stormed into the playoffs as the 6 seed.
With the Hawks facing a deadline (pushed back to the guarantee date on the calendar already), the team had to decide whether to waive him and eat the $3 million guaranteed portion of his salary or fully guarantee the entire thing, presumably as salary filler.
They chose the latter.
Taken alone, that choice gets a D from me as Hield is realistically no more than a veteran minimum-caliber player as he enters his age 34 season in 2026-27. Maybe he can step in off the bench and space the floor a bit while not hurting you too much on defense, but clearly his best days are behind him, making his almost $10 million salary much too much for his services.
Still, I have a sneaking suspicion that this decision was made with a particular trade scenario in mind.
Grade: Incomplete
Declining Jonathan Kuminga’s $24.3 million 2026-27 team option
Within the fanbase, a decision either way would have had its two camps of supporters versus detractors.
Kuminga had some real highs and some clear lows in his short time in Atlanta, averaging 12.3 points (58% true shooting), 5.3 rebounds, and 2.1 assists in 22.1 minutes per game in the regular season after the trade deadline. Similarly, in the first round against the Knicks, his performance was mixed but ultimately needed off the bench.
Jonathan Kuminga is still fairly young (23 years old) with athletic gifts you can’t teach, but even still the $24.3 million price tag is nothing to sneeze at. Presumably, the Hawks could have either declined his option and extended him at a lower annual value so that he doesn’t hit free agency in 2027 or picked up the option as part of a trade.
Instead, they did neither. Still, similar to the Hield decision, we’ll have to wait to see if the Hawks give Kuminga a new deal or merely let him walk to a suitor willing to meet his price.
Grade: B- pending a possible re-signing, C if he walks given Porzingis’ new deal with Golden State
Trading for Devin Carter, 2033 second-round pick
While Devin Carter has disappointed as an older lottery pick from just two drafts ago, it’s such a low-risk pickup that this trade almost impossible to criticize. Based on the reporting, it sounds like the Hawks are giving up essentially nothing to pick up the 6-foot-2 point guard.
Carter was 22 when he entered the draft from Providence, and in the two years since he’s struggled with injuries — most notably a torn left labrum the offseason he was drafted leading to just 74 games in two seasons — and shooting woes (career 27% shooter from three). He’s more of a defensive-minded guard to be sure, but he’ll need to make himself more useful than he’s been on offense to have real a role in the NBA.
My read is the Hawks are mainly absorbing his $5.2 million salary for next season (with a team option in 2027-28 that they’ll need to decide on by October) for the low cost of also picking up a 2033 second-round pick which helps offset the two they sent out for Aaron Wiggins. Any upside they get from his play on the court is icing on the cake, but they can cut him out of the rotation if needed after acquiring Wiggins and Kingston Flemings this offseason.
Grade: A-
