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The Atlanta Hawks have quite the scouting department at their disposal, making a number of impressive though unheralded moves that could work out in their favor.
After bringing in a few dozen prospects for pre-draft workouts, the Hawks wound up selecting guard Kobe Bufkin (No. 15 overall), forward Mouhamed Gueye (No. 39 overall), and guard Seth Lundy (No. 46 overall) in the 2023 NBA Draft. Immediately after the draft, they signed former UC Santa Barbara forward Miles Norris to a two-way contract. They also signed NC State guard Jarkel Joiner and UCLA guard David Singleton to Exhibit 10 contracts, standard one-year contracts that are non-guaranteed and provide incentive for those players to join an NBA team's G League affiliate.
With the Hawks recently completing their pre-Summer League mini-camp on Jul. 5 in preparation for the Las Vegas Summer League (Jul. 7 â 17), here are three must-watch prospects.
3 must-watch Hawks Summer League prospects
AJ Griffin
Although AJ Griffin (the son of Milwaukee Bucks head coach Adrian Griffin) played a substantial role for the Atlanta Hawks for a short time his rookie season, he fell out of the rotation once Quin Snyder replaced Nate McMillan as head coach. As a result, it's unsurprising that Griffin and the team would see fit for him to take this opportunity to prove what he's capable of.
After averaging a respectable 8.9 points per game (while shooting 39 percent from 3) his rookie season, Griffin will be one of the focal points of the Hawks' Summer League team. Not only will he be tasked with making plays both off-ball and on-ball offensively, but he'll get another opportunity to prove his worth as a defender.
Kobe Bufkin
As the Atlanta Hawks' top pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, all eyes will be on former Michigan guard Kobe Bufkin. Facing NBA players for the first time in his basketball journey, the 19-year-old will get his feet wet in the Las Vegas Summer League, getting a chance to show off his instincts and athleticism.
It's not certain whether or not Bufkin will make the regular season rotation in his rookie season. However, given the lack of depth that they have at point guard, Bufkin will have every chance to prove that he can hold up.
In 2022-23, Bufkin averaged 14.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.3 steals and 0.7 blocks per game, shooting 48.2 percent from the field and 35.5 percent from 3.
Jarkel Joiner
Among the undrafted players that the Atlanta Hawks have brought in, Jarkel Joiner could be the most notable.
Joiner, a 6-foot-1 and 180-pound guard, played five seasons in college with three stops along the way. What's remained true is that he's a pure scorer, averaging 10.4 points per game as a true freshman at Cal State Bakersfield and 17.0 points per game at NC State last season. Athletic, crafty, confident in his abilities and a complete basketball player, the Hawks' lack of depth at point guard bodes well for his ability to stick around longer than this summer.
Who else is playing for the Hawks?
The full list of Atlanta Hawks' Summer League players is as follows: Kobe Bufkin (Michigan), Tyson Etienne (Wichita State), AJ Griffin (Duke), Mouhamed Gueye (Washington State), Jarkel Joiner (NC State), Mfiondu Kabengele (Florida State), Vit Krejci (Casademont Zaragoza), Seth Lundy (Penn State), Brady Manek (UNC), Tyrese Martin (UConn), Miles Norris (UC Santa Barbara), Uros Plavsic (Tennessee), Yves Pons (Tennessee), Marcio Santos (Franca), and David Singleton (UCLA)
