While Lu Dort is only under contract through the 2026-27 season as of now, the Atlanta Hawks want to keep him beyond that, according to a report.
The Atlanta Hawks shook things up over the weekend, striking a three-team trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder and Dallas Mavericks to land defensive ace Lu Dort.
While Dort is only under contract through the 2026-27 season as of now, the team wants to keep him beyond that, according to a report from NBA insider Michael Scotto.
"While Dort is on an expiring $17.22 million contract, the Hawks want to keep the Canadian swingman beyond this upcoming season, league sources told HoopsHype," wrote Scotto.
The full trade involved many moving parts. Here is how it all broke down:
- To the Hawks: Lu Dort and Ryan Nembhard
- To the Mavs: Zaccharie Risacher and 2027 protected second-round pick (via Atlanta)
- To the Thunder: 2027 second-round pick (via Dallas), 2031 second-round pick (via Atlanta) and 2032 second-round pick (via Atlanta)
The big piece coming to Atlanta is Dort, who won a title during his stint with the Thunder and took home All-Defense honors in the same season.
He has also improved a lot as a 3-point shooter since coming into the NBA, even though he's coming off an iffy shooting season in which he knocked down 34.4 percent of his triples. In the 2023-24 season, he shot 39.4 percent from 3, and in the following season, he finished at 41.2 percent.
As such, he is a true 3-and-D weapon when his shots are falling. He is a valuable role player, and since he's still just 27 years old, it's no wonder why the Hawks are interested in keeping him beyond this season.
The other piece coming to Atlanta in the deal is Nembhard, a rising sophomore who had a solid rookie campaign with the Mavs. He averaged 6.6 points, 5.3 assists and 2.2 rebounds per game in his debut season and even cracked the starting lineup 27 times.
But the trade also marks the end of the Risacher era for the Hawks after they selected him with the No. 1 overall pick two years ago. Risacher was never able to truly take flight with Atlanta, and this past season, he ultimately fell out of the starting lineup and then saw very little action in the playoffs.
A change of scenery may be just what the former top pick needs. Ex-Hawks star Trae Young certainly seems to think so.
As noted earlier, the Hawks also had to give up some draft capital to complete the trade. But if they can get some value out of the pieces they acquired and keep them around long term, the deal could end up aging nicely for the team.
