NBA Trade Rumors: Hawks Guard Informed He May Be Traded By Thursday
Things have been somewhat quiet ahead of the upcoming NBA trade deadline, but one Atlanta Hawks player could be on the move based on the latest reports. The team has recently informed one of their veteran guards that he may be traded before Thursday’s deadline arrives. Here are the latest details on the Hawks’ Marco Belinelli as he may join yet another new team in his lengthy NBA career.
On Tuesday night, Marc Stein of the New York Times reported that Atlanta told their veteran guard Marco Belinelli that he is “on course to be traded by Thursday’s 3 p.m. deadline.” The team reiterated their stance on making a trade involving Belinelli by sitting him on Tuesday night during the Hawks’ home game against the Memphis Grizzlies. Atlanta won that contest by a final of 108-84 behind 22 points from guard Dennis Schroder.
Belinelli is currently in his 11th NBA season at 31 years old. This season, he ranks fourth on the Atlanta Hawks’ roster in scoring, averaging 11.4 points in 23.3 minutes per game. He’s also fourth in assists with 2.0 per game. The Hawks sharpshooter has mostly contributed from the bench, as he’s made just one start all season. The veteran shooting guard arrived to the Hawks’ roster in the offseason when they made a trade to send center Dwight Howard to the Charlotte Hornets.
A tweet from Sam Amick of USA Today indicated that even though there’s no done deal for Belinelli just yet, the Hawks have “several options they are weighing.” Amick added that the team is confident enough in a deal happening to sit Belinelli as to prevent any injuries ahead of a trade.
While no specific teams have been mentioned, he would clearly be of value to any of the contending teams that need help from the bench. Belinelli has played for a total of eight different teams in his career including stints with the Chicago Bulls, Toronto Raptors, Golden State Warriors, and San Antonio Spurs. His participation with that San Antonio team lasted two seasons and netted him an NBA Championship ring in 2014. He also won the NBA All-Star Weekend Three-Point Contest while with the Spurs in the 2013-14 season.
As mentioned, the NBA trade deadline arrives on Thursday at 3 p.m., so based on these latest reports, Marco Belinelli looks like he’ll probably be playing for a new team this week.
