There’s certainly a lot that can be said about this year's NBA offseason. To some, it has been underwhelming and for others it’s been electric. Guys like me, well, they just miss Woj.

But to compensate for the lack of Woj bombs, the basketball Gods have blessed me and all of the Atlanta Hawks fans across the world with a fantastic offseason.

It all started on June 25 when it was announced that Latvian big man Kristaps Porzingis would be traded to the Atlanta Hawks in a three-team trade. In exchange for Porzingis, the Hawks had to send Terance Mann, Georges Niang and a first-round pick.

This was an automatic steal in my eyes. While Porzingis is injury prone, he can still produce at a high level, as he was an integral part of the 2024 Boston Celtics championship team. If not for their own salary cap problems, the Celtics probably would not have made the trade to begin with.

The biggest loss of the trade for the Hawks was the first-round pick, which was one of two they possessed going into the NBA Draft. But new General Manager Onsi Saleh made it clear that we didn’t even need the additional pick. Saleh traded the 13th pick to the New Orleans Pelicans in exchange for the 23rd pick as well as an unprotected first-round pick – whichever is the best between the Pelicans own or the Milwaukee Bucks pick – in 2026. 

That honestly in itself is a shocker. It’s not often these days you see an unprotected first being traded, especially for a team that may not be all that good next year. 

It is a real possibility that this pick – whether it’s New Orleans or Milwaukee’s – is a top-five pick next year. I feel confident that it’s at least a top-10 pick, and that would be enough automatically to win this trade.

But wait, there’s more.

The Hawks wound up selecting what many would consider the steal of the draft in Asa Newell, a 6-foot-9 forward from right down the road at the University of Georgia.

Putting my UGA hatred aside, Newell is an absolute dawg (no pun intended). As a freshman, he was the star player for the Bulldogs averaging 15.4 PPG along with 6.9 RPG. 

His shooting needs some work – as he only shot 54% on the field and 29% from three-point range – but he has the tools to become a valuable player in the Hawks rotation with some development. In fact, he may even contribute right away in some regards, as he is currently projected to backup forwards Jalen Johnson and Zaccharie Risacher.

At worst, he’s a footnote in what could be a high-quality draft pick for next year. At best, he’s a solid core member of this rising Hawks team. Win-win in my book.

Following the draft, free agency became the next priority. This part of the offseason typically never goes well for the Hawks, but I remained cautiously optimistic based on some of the rumors that were floated around.

My optimism proved to be useful as the Hawks signed guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker away from the Minnesota Timberwolves. The move immediately added another top defensive player alongside Dyson Daniels and fortified the top spot off of the bench.

Minutes later, the Hawks acquired ex-Duke standout Luke Kennard away from the Memphis Grizzlies. A knockdown perimeter shooter, Kennard provides an immediate shooting spark off of the bench, something that the Hawks have often lacked in recent years.

With the two notable additions, came some exits. The most notable was former sixth man Caris LeVert leaving to sign a deal with the Detroit Pistons. Longtime big man Clint Capela, who was benched last season, signed a deal to return to the Houston Rockets in an unsurprising move. And Larry Nance Jr. agreed to return to the Cleveland Cavaliers.

When you look at the additions compared to the subtractions, I have the Hawks at a solid A- when it comes to an overall grade. Outside of the Rockets – who acquired Kevin Durant and Dorian Finney-Smith among other players – you’d be hard-pressed to find a team that had a better offseason.

Now the question is, how will that translate to the court?

The starting five are likely Trae Young, Dyson Daniels, Jalen Johnson, Zaccharie Risacher and Kristaps Porzingis. Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Luke Kennard, Asa Newell and Onyeka Okongwu appear to be key pieces off of the bench. 

All-in-all it’s a solid group. But it will come down to the chemistry of the team that determines how far they’ll actually go. In an Eastern conference that appears to be wide open, the Hawks could make a serious run at things.

But for now, I’ll remain cautiously optimistic while celebrating a great offseason.

Evan Newton is the managing editor of The Covington News. He can be reached at enewton@covnews.com.