By: Drayton Hogarth

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

The Atlanta Hawks have been battling through an up and down season all year. The team started out hot, and it appeared as though the offseason signing of Dwight Howard would pay immediate dividends.

However, the team hit a rough patch to counter that great beginning and fell back into the cycle of being good enough to make the playoffs, but never good enough to take the step to achieve elite status.

The Hawks are hoping to make their tenth consecutive playoff appearance, which is second only to the San Antonio Spurs. The question is what good is that if you are never the last team standing?

Hawks head coach and team president Mike Budenholzer recently made it known that four time all-star Paul Millsap “will not be going anywhere” at the trade deadline. My question is why not?

This Hawks roster, as currently assembled, has likely peaked in the middle of the NBA’s Eastern Conference. The third seed is likely as high as they will attain, which would allow them to max out in the Eastern Conference Finals.

The Hawks shouldn’t be afraid of any other team in the east, not named Cleveland. However, what good does that do? It prevents you from winning the NBA championship, while also keeping you out of the lottery with the chance to bring in a franchise type of player in the draft.

While dozens of NBA players make Atlanta their offseason home, the franchise has either been reluctant or unable to lure the major stars of the league to sign with the hometown Hawks; that is until Atlanta brought Dwight Howard home.

Paul Millsap is a tremendous player. Millsap seems to be a great teammate, but he is also the Hawk’s best bargaining chip. While I realize Coach Budenholzer said that Millsap “isn’t going anywhere,” I believe that is more of a negotiation tactic.

It is now known that if a team wants to bring Millsap in to be their missing piece for a championship run, that team had better bring their best offer, or Atlanta won’t even entertain the notion.

Hopefully, the Hawks learned their lesson last season, allowing Al Horford to walk and not get anything in return. If Atlanta allows their best player to walk away two seasons in a row, it could lead to that rebuild mode much faster than anyone anticipated.

Here’s the thing, Atlanta will never get out of the Eastern Conference without making a huge move. There are two potential trades that work monetarily that would provide Atlanta with a legitimate bonafide NBA star.

The first would be for Phil Jackson’s punching bag, Carmelo Anthony. Anthony is the same age as Millsap and is under contract for three more seasons. Carmelo also has a no trade clause that would have to be worked out before a deal could be reached.

On the court, Carmelo is a high volume shooter, and the wonder is would he fit in Coach Bud’s offense where sharing the ball is its biggest strength. The other move would be to send Millsap to the LA Clippers for Blake Griffin.

Griffin would likely be the better fit at power forward. Griffin has good range on his shot and would bring athleticism not seen from a Hawk since Dominique Wilkins. Griffin is oft injured, and is a free agent this offseason, but the Hawks would retain right to pay him the most money in free agency. It would fill a lot of needs in Atlanta.

While there is enormous risk moving a player as stable as Paul Millsap, the possibility of taking that next step is too enticing to just sit back and mire in mediocrity.

It is time for the Atlanta franchises to follow the Falcons lead and quit playing the role of small market team. Atlanta is as desirable a place as any to live, and if a franchise will take a risk to win a championship, the fans will reward them monetarily. In the words of Dale Carnegie, “Take a chance! All life is a chance. The man who goes farthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare.”