Now in the thick of training camp, the Atlanta Hawks’ roster has mostly calcified. They’ve already made an opportunistic gamble on Lu Dort, moved out a contract that didn’t make sense long-term in Buddy Hield, added interesting rookies that can contribute in Year 1 and brought back two veterans who performed well last season in Jock Landale and CJ McCollum.
In particular, trading Hield reveals that the Hawks aren’t afraid to cut bait with a player for practically nothing if they aren’t going to have a spot in the rotation. Hield could have theoretically contributed in the early part of the season as the Hawks eased Kingston Flemings in. However, sending him elsewhere says something interesting about the way the front office views the guard spot.
They’ve got a clear top three at the position in Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Dyson Daniels and CJ McCollum. Flemings seems poised to enter the year as the fourth guard on the roster and I’d expect that he’ll immediately be Daniels’ understudy at PG. Hield being traded affects none of that. Interestingly, it does impact the minutes available to Aaron Wiggins.
In my opinion, this says that Wiggins is the latest player to occupy the end-of-bench role that Vit Krejci and Garrison Mathews noticeably occupied during their best seasons in Atlanta. That may be a more important role than it would appear.
Krejci and Mathews both swung several regular season games by getting hot from deep and giving the Hawks an extra push on offense. In an Eastern Conference where the margins are probably going to be tight, having a legitimately interesting player in that spot like Wiggins is a huge advantage. It’s also somewhat reasonable to think that Wiggins can out-perform both of Krejci and Mathews’s best stints in Atlanta because he profiles to be a more additive player.
If he’s healthy and acclimates to head coach Quin Snyder’s system, Wiggins could be a huge swing piece for the Hawks as the fifth guard on the roster who occasionally fills in at SF, plays passable defense and gets hot from deep.
Wiggins Is Poised For Success In Atlanta
Oct 27, 2024; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) drives to the basket around Oklahoma City Thunder guard Aaron Wiggins (21) during the second quarter at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect
Wiggins isn’t the type of player who takes shots from a variety of spots on the court. Last season, his shot diet mostly consisted of looks from deep (279 threes attempted) and open looks around the rim (131 attempts). Of the 239 shots he took from the rim to 10 feet from the rim, 158 of them were layups. Therefore, about 66% of the shots he was taking inside of the paint were layups.
That works well in Snyder’s system. Jalen Johnson and Dyson Daniels are both very capable passers – they can get Wiggins the ball around the rim through backdoor cuts or possessions where Wiggins has a good look on the perimeter. His role in Atlanta doesn’t have to be very complicated for him to be a useful player.
Furthermore, Wiggins brings some track record as a shooter. Before his down season in 2025-26, Wiggins was coming off three straight seasons of shooting above 38% from deep, peaking with a 38.3% clip on 4.5 attempts per game in 2024-25. It should be noted that those percentages came on relatively low volume, but he’s upped his attempts over the past two seasons and he should continue to do that in Atlanta.
That track record doesn’t compare to someone like Mathews or Krejci at first glance. However, Wiggins profiles as a better defender than those players. Wiggins has two straight seasons where he’s recorded 20+ defensive field goal attempts per 100 possessions (86th percentile last season). That essentially means that Wiggins is often the closest defender on shot attempts, so he does a respectable job of staying with his man. He doesn’t produce steals or blocks, but it seems that Wiggins will be an upgrade over his more defensively-limited counterparts.
Championship Experience
Jun 16, 2025; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma City Thunder guard Aaron Wiggins (21) celibates making a three point basket against the Indiana Pacers during the second quarter in game five of the 2025 NBA Finals at Paycom Center. Mandatory Credit: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
During his Media Day appearance, head coach Quin Snyder made repeated references to Wiggins’ championship pedigree. Snyder had this to say about what Wiggins and Lu Dort, also acquired from the Thunder, bring to the squad:
“I think first, to add players with championship-level pedigree, that’s something in and of itself that’s an excellent addition. Fundamentally, you do understand the importance of defending….that’s something our team began to really embrace. It’s a crucial element of our team…and when we’re grounded there and with our habits, that’s when we’ll be able to run. Those guys have experienced that.”
If Snyder is truly putting a premium on postseason experience, it seems that Wiggins will get plenty of chances to prove his value to the team. The question is whether he can rebound from a dissapointing season with OKC and adjust to a different team context in Atlanta.
Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow