John Collins is one of those players who have come close to the exit so many times that it seems impossible for any of those attempts to materialize. The young power forward was regarding to leave the Hawks at the end of the 2021 market. He finally ended up staying, he was an important part of a team that reached the conference finals and signed a five-year, 125 million extension. Dollars. However, this year his performance has once once more left serious doubts, placing him on the starting ramp. In fact, he was regarding to be transferred before and during the same night of the draft, but once more the negotiations were truncated. Now Landry Fields, his general manager, insists it’s no problem to keep Collins on the roster.
It is no secret that Atlanta is considering movements in which John Collins will surely part as a bargaining chip. But his hefty salary complicates things to place him in certain transfers. For this reason, the franchise has come to the idea of starting the next season with the power forward on the roster and for him to be part of its construction in the planning of offices and coaching staff. “The truth is that Collins is still a Hawks player. We continue to value you. To say that we have to get rid of it is absurd” asserts Fields in a meeting with Mark Medina for NBA.com.
The general manager did not deny that Collins had been in trade talks, but that is exactly what makes him valued as a tremendously useful player for almost any team in the league. Perhaps behind these words there is an intention to keep the bid high. But the truth is that it would be strange if in a few months John had a lower market value than he has now. Finally, Fields applauded the player’s professionalism in dealing with all the rumors without affecting his commitment to the team.
(Portrait photograph by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
