Why Hawks’, Gordon Hayward’s Mutual Interest Would Be Celtics’ Nightmare Scenario

The Milwaukee Bucks might’ve already ruined the Boston Celtics’ offseason plans.

The Atlanta Hawks could end up twisting the knife.

The Celtics and Gordon Hayward reportedly have agreed to extend the deadline to Thursday for Hayward to make a decision on his $34.2 million player option for the upcoming season. Reading between the lines, the extension likely means the Celtics are trying to cook up trade offers and see what’s out there.

But here’s the thing: If Hayward opts out, he likely would cost too much for many teams to sign him outright. That makes it better for all parties if he does a sign-and-trade, where teams bringing him in would shed cash in the trade to make the money work while adding Hayward to the mix.

So, here’s where the Hawks come in. They’re rumored to be interested in Hayward, and they’re awash with cap space. They could sign Hayward outright if they wanted to.

That means, as Yahoo! Sports’ Keith Smith points out, if Hayward opts out and leaves for nothing then all the Celtics receive is the mid-level exception of $9.3 million. That, of course, probably isn’t enough to sign a player that would at the very least match Hayward’s production.

On the flip side, if the Celtics are able to trade Hayward, then it would give them the largest trade exception in the NBA, which opens the door for them to make moves of substance with the then-cleared Hayward money.

All this is to say the Hawks are a team to watch right now. If they get Hayward to opt out of his deal with the Celtics and sign in Atlanta outright, Boston will be in disaster mode.