Hawks Rumors: ATL Under ‘Mandate’ to Get Below Luxury-Tax Line Amid Trade Rumors

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Atlanta Hawks ownership has ordered their front office to get below the league’s luxury-tax line for next season, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst reported.

“The Hawks are under a mandate, from what I’ve been told, to get out of the luxury tax,” Windhorst said on ESPN’s Hoop Collective live draft show Thursday. “They’ve spent a lot on signing guys. [De’Andre] Hunter’s contract is coming on the books now. Trae Young hit the Rose provision supermax. So they’ve gotta shed some salary.”

Windhorst believes there is a “decent chance” the Hawks will make a trade by July 3. (See the 1:42:00 mark in the video below.)

When NBA free agency opens on June 30, the Hawks are positioned to be $5.5 million into the tax, per Spotrac. Dejounte Murray, Onyeka Okongwu and Saddiq Bey are all eligible for extensions this offseason, too.

That luxury tax bill is currently set to cost the Hawks an extra $8.3 million, but that’s not the only penalty Atlanta could face for exceeding the threshold.

The new collective bargaining agreement set to go into effect July 1 adds another incentive for NBA teams to squeeze in below the current $165 million luxury tax threshold. A second apron to the luxury tax will be phased in over the next two seasons, per The Athletic’s John Hollinger.

Starting in 2023-24, franchises that exceed the luxury tax limit by over $17.5 million will not be eligible for the exception allowing to teams to sign players above the cap in free agency or to sign players who have been bought out, per HoopsHype’s Yossi Gozlan. The teams will also face a lower cap on what percentage they can take back from outgoing salaries.

The Hawks are likely to be adding new contracts this summer, and those deals could leave them in danger of accruing the extra second-apron penalties if they don’t get out of some of their current commitments.

In addition to securing Murray’s future in Atlanta, Saddiq Bey and Onyeka Okongwu, critical parts of the team’s second unit last season, are up for rookie contract extensions. The Hawks also have three rookies needing deals after the draft, with No. 15 Kobe Bufkin already set to make $4 million next season.

Atlanta has made it clear the team is ready to move some contracts. NBA insider Marc Stein reported Saturday that the Hawks’ “ongoing top priority” is to trade forward John Collins, whose production dipped to 13.1 points per game in 2022-23 and is set to cost $25.3 million next season. The Hawks have spoken with the Utah Jazz about a potential trade for Collins, Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer reported.

After an underwhelming .500 record in 2022-23, the Hawks will need some changes this summer. It looks like that will begin with the team shedding deals like Collins’.