The original team to select the former Gonzaga Bulldogs star power forward and Japanese native Rui Hachimura was the lowly Washington Wizards. It looks as if the Wizards got a lot of value out of selection Hachimura at nine, even though there was a lot of criticism that initially came their way for this selection.
Here we get to move Hachimura up draft boards a bit, landing with the Atlanta Hawks in the Southeast Division. He goes up five draft slots and lands with the Hawks at No. 4. So far this season, Hachimura is averaging 12.5 points per game, 5.2 rebounds, and 0.8 steals. He has a very high ceiling on defense, and is looking more polished than expected on offense.
Considering how much the Hawks are struggling right now without the services of former Wake Forest Demon Deacons forward John Collins (serving a 25-game suspension), adding frontcourt depth could help a lot. The Hawks aren’t going to get much at the four from the former Virginia Cavaliers shooting guard/small forward De’Andre Hunter.
There isn’t a huge margin of error for the Hawks between selecting Hunter and Hachimura. But it feels like Hachimura would be a better part of a supporting cast around star point guard Trae Young and boost the depth in the frontcourt of this team overall. A solid young core would get much better with Hachimura in the fold.