Why The Hawks Shouldn’t Pursue Ja Morant

The Hawks shouldn’t pursue Ja Morant because the move solves the wrong problems at the wrong price. Atlanta needs balance, size, and steady availability more than another high-usage guard. A big trade would grab attention, but contenders are built with patience and fit. Protect draft capital, add two-way wings, and keep shaping a defense that holds up in May and June.

Why The Hawks Shouldn’t Pursue Ja Morant

On the floor, the fit is more awkward than thrilling. Morant forces the issue at the rim, pushes pace, and needs the ball. Atlanta plays best when touches are shared and spacing stays wide. Add another paint-touch creator and hard choices follow. Whose usage shrinks? Who spots up off the ball? How does shot quality hold when defenses duck under screens and clog lanes?

Morant’s three-point gravity comes and goes. Defenders can sag and clog driving lanes. That squeezes space for rollers and weak-side cutters. If the goal is cleaner spacing and shared creation, the Hawks shouldn’t trade for Morant. The team needs lineups that create clean shooting pockets for wings and bigs, not lineups that compress the floor and invite help.

Morant himself has said he doesn’t have his usual joy right now. Asked whether he’s found that joy again, he answered “No,” added “we’ll see” when pressed on how to get it back, and gave terse replies about his relationship with the team, all of which fuels uncertainty about a fresh start in Memphis. That context matters for Atlanta: the Hawks shouldn’t go after Morant when he is openly wrestling with motivation and fit inside his current situation.

Off the court, the risk profile is well-documented. Morant served an eight-game suspension in March 2023 and a 25-game suspension to start 2023-24 for firearm-related social media incidents, then drew league warnings and a $75,000 fine in 2025 for repeated “finger-gun” gestures. Layering that volatility onto Atlanta’s cap sheet and locker room is a bet the franchise doesn’t need—another reason Atlanta Hawks avoid Ja Morant in favor of steadier, two-way pieces.

Defense, Availability & Culture: Protect Picks, Preserve Flexibility

Defense and availability are core needs, not luxuries. Morant’s value rests on offense; he does not lift a scheme on the other end. Atlanta still must rise on the glass, in transition defense, and at the point of attack. When a team leans on constant help, elite offenses hunt the cracks. Given recent missed time and league discipline, the Atlanta Hawks avoid Ja Morant to reduce volatility.

Culture should support the roster, not carry it. The Hawks want defense, ball movement, and professionalism to be non-negotiable. Adding a franchise-level creator shifts the spotlight and pecking order. If the on-court fit is imperfect and off-court noise is possible, the room spends energy managing it. That drains focus from habits that win over 82 games.

Trae Young is the better point guard for Atlanta’s present and future. He spaces the floor with elite shooting, drives efficient pick-and-roll offense, and reliably creates for others without shrinking spacing for wings and bigs. His game scales with shooters, rollers, and switchable defenders. That’s the formula the Hawks want to double down on. Given that fit and the stability he provides, the Hawks don’t need Morant. Young, the in-house lead guard, already delivers top-tier creation without the off-court volatility.

Bottom line: the Hawks shouldn’t pursue Morant because his strengths do not fix Atlanta’s biggest needs. The price in picks, players, and cap room would be steep, the spacing and defensive tradeoffs would be real, and the availability risk lingers. Championship teams stack complementary skills, not redundant ones. Pass on the splash, win the margins, and build a versatile, connected roster that lasts.