Hawks Should Make Corey Kispert Their Final Roster Cut

The Atlanta Hawks have 16 players on their roster and need to cut that number to 15. The choice is clear:

Wing Corey Kispert should be the one to go.

Just because the choice is clear doesn't mean it will be easy. It's always unfortunate to have to hand a player his walking papers. Yet, that's reality in the National Basketball Association. Atlanta already handed Devin Carter his on Friday. One more player must go, and Kispert seems like the best option.

Let's break down each case individually.

Corey Kispert was the 15th overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. He was never going to be a strong NBA defender. Kispert was a shooting specialist who would have elite three-point gravity.

Unfortunately, it hasn't quite gone that way.

At 38.2%, Kispert has shot the three-ball well in his NBA career, but that number belies his inconsistency. Ultimately, he's too poor a defender, and too limited in other ways, to succeed as a shooting specialist shooting under 40% from distance.

Kispert can still have a bright NBA career, but he's on the wrong end of a roster crunch. The Hawks don't need him badly enough to keep him:

The case against Ryan Nembhard is simple: He's 5'11".

Sure, Nembhard was productive as a rookie with the Dallas Mavericks last year. The Hawks are also clearly prioritizing defense after acquiring wings Luguentz Dort and Aaron Wiggins, moves an NBA executive told Hawks Roundtable made for a "terrific offseason" in Atlanta. Nembhard will surely always be a liability on the defensive end.

The problem is that Atlanta already had this exact conversation and came out the other way. Carter and Nembhard were the two young guards competing for the same spot behind CJ McCollum and Kingston Flemings, and the Hawks kept Nembhard. Cutting him a week later would mean the front office got Friday wrong:

The only other feasible choices are Buddy Hield and Mouhamed Gueye. There are reasons why each should make the cut over Kispert.

Hield's profile is much like Kispert's — he's a shooting specialist who struggles on defense. The difference is that he's a more proven, versatile, and all-around superior shooter. Atlanta fully guaranteed his $9.66 million in June specifically to keep the salary available in a trade, months after a buyout was on the table. If the Hawks can't tolerate his defensive issues, he should fetch more from a shooting-needy contender at the deadline.

Meanwhile, Gueye was excellent on defense last year — he should be a non-starter, even with the fractured left foot that will cost him camp and likely the start of the season. He's a strong defender who fits the team's new identity, and his $2.41 million is the cheapest contract in the group.

The same cannot be said for Kispert:

Even if cutting him won't be easy.