The Hawks' free agency run was kind of crazy. They started going after Dwight Howard from the start, despite his style of play being the opposite of what the Hawks have done under Mike Budenholzer the past three seasons. Then, when things got dicey with Al Horford, they were trying to make room to offer him the max and reportedly were looking at dealing Paul Millsap. There were actual deals with structure in place, according to multiple outlets, and Atlanta was ready to pull the trigger.
Then Horford signed with Boston, the Hawks gave Dwight Howard a massive deal and kept Millsap. But there continue to be questions about whether Atlanta will trade Millsap, given the fact that he'll be a 32-year-old free agent likely commanding something close to a max deal after being a multi-time All-Star.
Hawks general manager Wes Wilcox was brief and clear when speaking about Millsap with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Q:Like it or not, true or not, there are going to be a ton of trade rumors with Paul Millsap because of his contract situation. From a management standpoint, is there something you can do to prevent it from becoming a distraction?
A: Paul is a great professional, and it's absolutely our goal for Paul to be a Hawk long-term. It's as simple as that.
Source: Atlanta Hawks GM Wes Wilcox wants to keep Paul Millsap | www.myajc.com.
If you choose to believe everything team executives say on record, then this settles it. They love Millsap and he's not going anywhere. But think about how easy this quote is to get around. Teams' goals change rapidly and plans are always altered. There's no real commitment here, nor does there need to be.
Whatever the Hawks say about the situation doesn't matter as much as what they tell Millsap, and that doesn't matter as much as what they actually do. If the team gels, if their gambles work out, then they'll keep Millsap because he helps keep them as a top team in the East. If this falls apart, they'll move Millsap and will have a lot of offers to do so.
For now, consider the Millsap situation over. It's just important to remember that Millsap isn't with the Hawks like Isaiah Thomas is with the Celtics (and even that would change if the Celtics could get a superstar in return). All-Stars have different levels of tradeability. Millsap's remains high, just not in the short-term.
