Atlanta Hawks acquire point guard Kirk Hinrich in five-player swap with Washington Wizards
On Wednesday night, the Atlanta Hawks joined the NBA's trading spree by acquiring guard Kirk Hinrich in a five-player deal with the Washington Wizards, to keep pace with earlier moves by their fellow Eastern Conference play-off contenders.
The Hawks also received forward Hilton Armstrong in the deal, in exchange for veteran guard Mike Bibby, rookie guard Jordan Crawford, swingman Maurice Evans and a first-round pick in this year's draft.
"We felt we had a good opportunity to improve our ballclub by adding Kirk and Hilton," Hawks Executive Vice President/General Manager Rick Sund told the media on Wednesday. He added, ”Kirk is a well-rounded player that gives us options at both guard positions.
His resume includes significant playoff experience as well."
The Hawks had an excellent start to the 2010-11 season, but of late they have been struggling to maintain the pace. Having lost four of their last five games, the Hawks have slipped to fifth in the Eastern Conference.
Not only do they have to catch up with the likes of Miami, Boston and Chicago, but they also have to ensure that they contain the progress of the newly rejuvenated Knicks, who are within touching distance in sixth spot.
Thirteen-year veteran Bibby used to be one of the best guards in the NBA, with career averages of 15.4 points and 5.7 rebounds per game in 938 games. He is just 567 points away from 15,000 for his career. This season however, Bibby had been struggling with
his form at both ends of the court. Putting up an average of only 9.4 points per game, he also failed to hold together the perimeter defence for the Hawks.
Like Bibby, Hinrich is a good spot-up shooter, but is a better playmaker off the dribble and should help Atlanta’s fast break. Hinrich is averaging 11.1 points per game this season, and should prove to be an improvement over Bibby, who was the team's starting
point guard.
As for Armstrong, he might be limited in his offensive creativity, but is an athletic leaper and could provide a significant boost to the struggling Hawks’ defence.
Although it was evident over the last few days that the Hawks were in pursuit of Hinrich, the deal became imminent when Hinrich was removed from the Wizards’ starting line-up in the game against the Philadelphia 76ers. Both Hinrich
and Armstrong watched the first half from the bench, but did not return for the following stanza.
The move is also a winning one for the Wizards. Going through another dreadful season, with only one away win to their name so far, they are a team that is looking to rebuild and re-structure. With John Wall and veteran Rashard Lewis
already in their ranks, the induction of Bibby and Evans will add more experience.
The addition of Jamal Crawford and a first-round pick to the haul, will also add a new dimension to their offensive setup, which is sure to be beneficial in the long-term.
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