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The Atlanta Hawks 2022-23 NBA campaign, more or less, epitomized the word mediocrity. The Hawks finished the regular season with a sub-par 41-41 record, just the seventh-best in the Eastern Conference. And after winning their first play-in game against the Miami Heat to secure the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference, the Hawks lost to Jayson Tatum and the two-seeded Boston Celtics in six games in the opening round of the 2023 NBA postseason.
While the series with Boston did go six games, it didn't feel like that close of a series. The Hawks got blown out by the Celtics in Games 1 and 2. Plus, some luck certainly factored into the Hawks forcing a Game 6, as the entire Celtics team collectively laid an egg in the final minutes of the fourth quarter of Game 5 after being in control for the lion's share of the contest.
The Atlanta Hawks' 2022-23 season was certainly disappointing, but a solid 2023 NBA Draft could have helped fans forget about the season that was. Fortunately, the Hawks did have a solid draft.
The Atlanta Hawks had three picks in the 2023 NBA Draft and one first-rounder. Specifically, the Hawks had the 15th, 39th, and 46th picks, which they used to select Michigan guard Kobe Bufkin, Washington State forward Mouhamed Gueye, and Penn State forward Seth Lundy, respectively. And the Hawks made a particularly great move by selecting one of these three players. With all of that said, let's look at the best move that the Atlanta Hawks made in the 2023 NBA Draft:
Best move by Hawks in 2023 NBA Draft
Selecting Kobe Bufkin with the 15th overall pick in the draft
A 6'4″ guard, Kobe Bufkin flashed impressive two-way potential in his sophomore season with the Michigan Wolverines and was one of the best all-around guards in the nation.
Firstly, on the offensive side of the ball, what stands out about Bufkin's game is that he's a versatile scorer. He scored the ball efficiently from all areas of the court, as he shot 54.6% on two-point field goals, 35.5% on three-point field goals on 3.7 attempts per game, and converted 84.9% of his free-throw attempts. Bufkin's impressive three-point and free-throw percentages are good indicators that his perimeter shooting chops will carry over to the NBA.
Bufkin also did a solid job playmaking for his teammates in his sophomore campaign, as he dished out 2.9 assists per contest. He might never be a team's primary playmaker in the big leagues, but he oozes secondary playmaker potential.
While Bufkin may be best known for his offensive talents, he served as a very effective perimeter defender in his sophomore year with the Michigan Wolverines. Bufkin averaged an impressive 2.0 combined stocks — steals and blocks. Specifically, he averaged 1.3 steals and 0.7 blocks per game. His block number is even more impressive than his steals numbers, as most guards aren't consistent threats to block shots, but Bufkin is certainly one of them.
Considering Atlanta already has a star-studded backcourt in Trae Young and Dejounte Murray, Bufkin won't have a chance to start for the Hawks anytime soon, but he would fit this Hawks team like a glove on both ends as the first guard off of the bench. All in all, Bufkin's two-way potential is very alluring, and the Atlanta Hawks made the right decision by selecting him with the 15th overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.
