Hawks GM Landry Fields’ immediate reaction to shocking No. 1 pick coup at NBA Draft Lottery

The 2024 NBA Draft Lottery took place on Sunday afternoon, and in an extremely surprising development, the Atlanta Hawks ended up winning the first overall pick in the upcoming draft, despite the fact that they had just a three percent chance of landing the top pick. It’s safe to say that general manager Landry Fields and the rest of the Hawks front office is fired up to have unexpectedly landed this pick.

Atlanta had a lot of work to do this offseason, but they now have a shiny new toy to play around with in the first overall pick to help them improve their team. Where they go from here is unknown, and it seems like even Fields, who was shocked just like everyone else, had no idea what would happen next. What he does know, though, is that this is something the Hawks can build off of throughout the course of this pivotal offseason.

“Atlanta’s winning immediately triggered a wave of speculation, in that drawing room and outside of it, about what the Hawks might do with the pick — and how rising to No. 1 might impact Atlanta’s offseason approach to gauging the trade market for either Trae Young or Dejounte Murray.”

“Would the Hawks think about trading the pick (plus some major salary) for veteran talent, keeping both guards and trying to win big next season? Would they keep it, select the player they want and go about the offseason the same way they would have had they kept the No. 10 pick? Could they try to have it both ways by trading down, and acquiring both a lottery pick and a veteran who might help them win next season?”

“Landry Fields, the team’s GM, told ESPN after the televised lottery it was too soon for answers. ‘I don’t know yet,’ he said amid exchanging hugs with a parade of well-wishers. There was a sense of jubilation among Hawks officials in Chicago — that this was the kind of luck the franchise never enjoys, something that might jolt it out of mediocrity. ‘This is what you need to build out teams,’ Fields told ESPN.” – Zach Lowe, ESPN

Landry Fields, Hawks have tons of options in front of them