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Editor\u2019s Note: Read more NBA coverage from The Athletic\u00a0here<\/a>. The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NBA or its teams.\u00a0<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n ATLANTA \u2014 Sitting on the trade block is no different from waiting on a slew of text messages. On the morning of June 25, Kristaps Porzi\u0146\u0123is woke up to an onslaught of them.<\/p>\n This was the tell-tale sign. Porzi\u0146\u0123is was no longer a member of the Boston Celtics, a moment he understood was inevitable. The Celtics\u2019 teardown, thanks to\u00a0injuries and untenable finances, was afoot. Porzi\u0146\u0123is\u2019 exit would be one consequence.<\/p>\n Home in his native Latvia, Porzi\u0146\u0123is reached for his phone to open a group chat with his buddies, assuming they would be discussing his new squad there. But instead of any breaking news tweet, he saw three bird emojis.<\/p>\n Things were getting weird.<\/p>\n \u201cI was like, \u2018Eagles? What is this?\u2019\u201d Porzi\u0146\u0123is recalled in a recent conversation with\u00a0The Athletic. \u201cAnd then I was like, ohhhhh, the Hawks. Interesting.\u201d<\/p>\n Interesting is one way to put it.<\/p>\n Porzi\u0146\u0123is\u2019 agent had kept him abreast of the Celtics\u2019 negotiations with other teams. Three organizations (the LA Clippers, San Antonio Spurs and Phoenix Suns) were on the radar. The Hawks were nowhere near it.<\/p>\n Atlanta had called Boston only a day earlier to make the offer. It moved around money. The deal came together quickly. Now, Porzi\u0146\u0123is begins a new stage of his career on a team that\u2019s in transition, too.<\/p>\n The Hawks, behind a renovated front office and roster, begin their most anticipated season in years when they open against the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday. Most projections place them above \u2014 some\u00a0well\u00a0above \u2014 the Play-In Tournament, a stage they\u2019ve been unable to avoid for nearly half a decade. Their flashiest addition is the 7-foot-3 Porzi\u0146\u0123is, a sweet-shooting, rim-protecting big man capable of changing the geometry of a team.<\/p>\n That is, as long as he is himself.<\/p>\n Entering the final year of his contract, Porzi\u0146\u0123is is hoping to prove his impact once again.<\/p>\n He banged in 3-pointers, deterred drivers and dominated the post during 42 regular-season games in Boston last season, but a mysterious illness zapped him of his energy in the playoffs. Come the second round, he couldn\u2019t run for long stints. At no point did he resemble the two-way star who had helped the Celtics to a title the season prior.<\/p>\n \u201cIt hit me, and it hit me like a truck,\u201d Porzi\u0146\u0123is said. \u201cThe breathing wasn\u2019t good. I did everything I could potentially to feel as good as I could, but my engine wasn\u2019t running the way I wanted.\u201d<\/p>\n He scored only 25 total points during a six-game Eastern Conference semifinals loss after averaging more than 19 during the regular season.<\/p>\n Doctors later diagnosed him with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome, he said, more commonly referred to as POTS, an autonomic condition that can dramatically increase a patient\u2019s heart rate when standing up instead of spread horizontal. Handled wrong \u2014 or not yet diagnosed \u2014 and POTS can lead to extreme exhaustion or dizziness.<\/p>\n In his worst moments, Porzi\u0146\u0123is\u2019 heart rate could stabilize while he was lying down, but the act of standing up could rev it to 130 beats per minute.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know how people say, \u2018Oh, I\u2019m so fatigued.\u2019 I\u2019ve never used those words. I don\u2019t even like to speak in those terms, but I really was like that,\u201d Porzi\u0146\u0123is said. \u201cAt that time, I could just lay on the couch and be a house cat.\u201d<\/p>\n Today, Porzi\u0146\u0123is is on a mission to prove he has the zoomies.<\/p>\n He is eligible for a contract extension, though he said\u00a0he is in no rush to sign one<\/a>. Instead, he\u2019d like to prove that his playoff performance was merely a one-off. Post-diagnosis, Porzi\u0146\u0123is and his doctors know how to manage POTS \u2014 and it\u2019s without the need for any special medication. A high-salt diet and a more regimented non-basketball resting schedule is a must.<\/p>\n He played with the Latvian national team during Eurobasket this summer without issue. He\u2019s likely to start for Atlanta, displacing the former first-string center, Onyeka Okongwu, a 24-year-old up-and-comer who played his best ball ever to close last season.<\/p>\n Porzi\u0146\u0123is is in a new place \u2014 but then again, so are the Hawks.<\/p>\n The Hawks\u2019 first call to acquire Porzi\u0146\u0123is wasn\u2019t to the Celtics. To piecemeal the salaries necessary to land the center, they wanted to move Terrence Mann, a wing with three more years remaining on his contract. They knew Boston \u2014 heading into at best a gap year and at worst a rebuild \u2014 wouldn\u2019t take back such a financial commitment.<\/p>\n This trade had to be a multi-teamer.<\/p>\n So the Hawks rang the Brooklyn Nets, one of the few teams with cap space. The cost of sending three years of Mann to Brooklyn was the No. 22 pick in the draft, one that the front office deemed acceptable since it also owned the 13th selection. The Hawks were already young and figured that too much inexperience at once could make developing talent more difficult.<\/p>\n Within a day, Atlanta had an agreement. The Hawks, coming off a 40-42 season, would send out Mann, Georges Niang, the No. 22 pick and a second-rounder for Porzi\u0146\u0123is\u2019 expiring contract, figuring if it didn\u2019t work, they could save money in the long term \u2014 and if it did, they could acquire a rare type of talent, a big man who could drain 3s and block shots.<\/p>\n The idealized version of Porzi\u0146\u0123is fits anywhere. But he is even cozier alongside the Hawks\u2019 four-time All-Star point guard, Trae Young, a ludicrous passer and high-paced scorer whose defense requires a teammate or four on the back line to clean up mistakes.<\/p>\n The Hawks are toeing a line, trying to vault into another tier of the Eastern Conference while also minding the future. New general manager Onsi Saleh, who took over as the team\u2019s lead executive in April, came up with the San Antonio Spurs, a franchise that cares less about opening couple-year windows and more about building sustainable futures. Saleh wants to carry that philosophy to Atlanta, which has executed quick-fix moves in its recent history.<\/p>\n Just after trading for Porzi\u0146\u0123is, the Hawks pulled off the swap of the draft, flipping the No. 13 pick to the New Orleans Pelicans for No. 23 and an unprotected 2026 first-rounder, which has a chance to be close to the top if New Orleans produces another disappointing season.<\/p>\n They inked sharpshooter Luke Kennard and signed-and-traded for Nickeil-Alexander Walker, a feisty guard they could pair with reigning all-defensive first teamer Dyson Daniels. With a core that already includes potential All-Star Jalen Johnson, 2024 No. 1 pick Zaccherie Risacher and Okongwu, the goal is clear: The Hawks are placing athletic, defensive-minded shooters around Young, a free-agent-to-be who is eligible for an extension but isn\u2019t yet close to signing one,\u00a0league sources\u00a0said. The Hawks want to see what they have in this group before handing out long-term commitments.<\/p>\n Their style, whether it leads to wins or losses, is built for league pass scrolling. They plan to zip up and down the court \u2014 and hope to do so more effectively than they did a season ago, when they adored fast breaks but weren\u2019t efficient while on them.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s a big point of emphasis,\u201d head coach Quin Snyder said. \u201cWe left a lot of points on the board.\u201d<\/p>\n Daniels was the league\u2019s leading kleptomaniac in 2024-25. He can start breaks. Risacher leaks out like a busted pipe. Johnson can streak down the other side of the court. Atlanta played at the league\u2019s fastest pace during the preseason, no coincidence.<\/p>\n On one hand, this is the quintessential roster for Young, the type that can accentuate his best offensive traits \u2014 the speed, passing and unpredictability \u2014 while covering for his defensive miscues. Johnson, Daniels, Alexander-Walker and Kennard may give Atlanta enough ballhandling to buck the trend of offense dissipating whenever Young exits a game. When he\u2019s in, he has shooters on the perimeter and space in the middle.<\/p>\n Porzi\u0146\u0123is provides a special type of weapon, and not just because he jacks 3s unlike any big man who\u2019s previously teamed up with Young. Where he releases them from matters, too.<\/p>\n Defenses adjusted on Young last season, pressuring him more than ever. The average Hawks possession with Young bringing up the ball included a defender picking the 27-year-old up 46 feet away from the basket, according to Second Spectrum. That was comfortably the farthest average pick-up point of Young\u2019s career.<\/p>\n In turn, he started to initiate possessions even closer to halfcourt.<\/p>\n Defenses might not be able to treat Young the same way if Porzi\u0146\u0123is is setting the screen, not only because of the Latvian\u2019s lightning release but also because he will hoist them from other area codes.<\/p>\n Get this: The average Young 3-pointer last season was from 28 feet, the farthest distance in the NBA, per Second Spectrum. Second place on that list belonged to Porzi\u0146\u0123is, who nailed 41 percent of his long balls.<\/p>\n \u201cIt starts as much as everything with spacing,\u201d Snyder said. \u201cSo if (Porzi\u0146\u0123is) is popping, there\u2019s other players as cutters that can put pressure on the rim, which gives Trae the outcome of a cutter comparable to a roller and a 7-footer that\u2019s spacing.\u201d<\/p>\n Then there\u2019s the other side of the court, where the league bullies Young like no other. Opponents put him in nearly 774 pick-and-rolls last season, the most of any perimeter player in the NBA, according to Second Spectrum. Second place was more than 200 behind him.<\/p>\n Porzi\u0146\u0123is provides back-line relief, and the 6-foot-8 Okongwu brings scheme versatility. Daniels and Alexander-Walker are key at the point of attack. The Hawks are high on Risacher\u2019s defensive promise, especially in passing lanes.<\/p>\n But, of course, this roster was not made only with Young in mind. The Hawks are prepping a team with optionality, one that could pivot if it one day does not employ its longtime point guard.<\/p>\n One week before this past summer\u2019s NBA draft, Dyson Daniels stood in an Erewhon, a posh Los Angeles grocery store, sipping his Hailey Bieber smoothie and holding a container of buffalo cauliflower, when a familiar face greeted him. Approaching was Alexander-Walker, an on-court foe he didn\u2019t know well.<\/p>\n The two have similar games, though differing styles. Both are defensive intellectuals. Daniels is a strong-wristed, quick-footed steals hound who obsesses over scouting reports. Alexander-Walker, who springs around screens, crouches into a lower defensive stance than a dog with an itchy bottom.<\/p>\n \u201cDefense was my way out,\u201d Alexander-Walker said. \u201cIt was my way into playing.\u201d<\/p>\n Daniels, the NBA\u2019s reigning Most Improved Player, who just agreed to a four-year, $100 million extension Monday, speaks with the same desperation.<\/p>\n Alexander-Walker introduced Daniels to a couple of his friends on that day in L.A. Daniels congratulated Alexander-Walker on his squad making it to the Western Conference finals. Neither knew they were less than a month away from another conversation.<\/p>\n At the beginning of July, Alexander-Walker agreed to terms on a four-year contract with the Hawks, who targeted him from the onset of free agency. Not long later, he tracked down Daniels\u2019 number.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat can I do to be disruptive on defense?\u201d Daniels said, recounting the text he received from the fellow stopper. \u201cWhat does Coach want me to do?\u201d<\/p>\n Daniels told Alexander-Walker that aggression was key. Even with his ascendence last season, the Hawks finished a mundane 18th in points allowed per possession, still their best ranking since before Young entered the league.<\/p>\n \u201cAtlanta\u2019s defense hasn\u2019t been good the last few years,\u201d Daniels said. \u201cWe\u2019re gonna change that around. We\u2019re gonna be aggressive and we\u2019re gonna flip the script on this team.\u201d<\/p>\n The Hawks go eight deep with veterans: Young, Daniels, Johnson, Risacher, Porzi\u0146\u0123is, Alexander-Walker, Okongwu and Kennard. Some of those players, including Porzi\u0146\u0123is, have injury histories. Johnson averaged 19 points, 10 rebounds and five assists last season but played only 36 games. He\u2019s topped 56 just one time in his four seasons \u2014 though when he plays, his athleticism, aggression and improved playmaking, which Atlanta relied on more than ever with Young off the court last season, could catch any layman\u2019s attention.<\/p>\n Chances are, they will lean on No. 23 pick Asa Newell, the return in the aforementioned New Orleans trade.<\/p>\n This is sneakily the NBA\u2019s third-youngest team, one that could mold itself in various ways, depending on how the season goes. If the Hawks win inside a weak East, they could retain Young and\/or Porzi\u0146\u0123is. If they don\u2019t, they can move forward with a clean cap sheet and a surplus of first-round picks. The veterans are vets more in name than in age. Five rotation players are under 25. Porzi\u0146\u0123is \u2014 on the brink of a nursing home, compared to the rest of this roster \u2014 is the elder statesman. He just turned 30 this summer.<\/p>\n It seems as if he\u2019s been around forever, that he\u2019s already gone through too many careers to count.<\/p>\n He was the future of the New York Knicks, then a co-star of Luka Don\u010di\u0107, then an injury-riddled disappointment, then a sneaky comeback player of the year candidate (if there were such a thing) for a Washington squad no one watched, then a vital member of the champion Celtics until that once-mysterious ailment ruined his 2025 playoffs.<\/p>\n It seems like this Hawks team has used up all its hype over the years, too, ever since roaring to the Eastern Conference finals in 2021 and revamping the roster in some way or another in each season since, only to drop into the Play-In Tournament each time.<\/p>\n Yet, Young and Okongwu are the only two players remaining from that 2021 magic. But Okongwu was just a rookie then. Porzi\u0146\u0123is is new. As is Alexander-Walker. And Kennard. Daniels just arrived last summer. Johnson is rounding into his prime. The roster is young, the options are flexible \u2014 and that means ambitions are on the rise.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are an aspiring team, a young team that aspires to win a championship one day, and that\u2019s the cool part,\u201d Porzi\u0146\u0123is said. \u201cEven by the betting odds, we\u2019re not too far off.\u201d<\/p>\n ***<\/p>\n Fred Katz<\/a>\u00a0is a senior NBA writer for The Athletic.\u00a0Follow Fred on Twitter\u00a0@FredKatz<\/a><\/p>\n