John Collins is among the crop of players involved in rumors ahead of the trade deadline. There’s a strong belief that he’ll be sent away by the Atlanta Hawks, but Collins himself emphasized that wants to continue donning the jersey of the team that drafted him four years ago.
Two days before the trade deadline and with his stint in Atlanta in jeopardy, Collins made it clear: he wants to remain a member of the Hawks.
“I want to stay,” Collins said, per Sarah K. Spencer of the Atlanta Journal Constitution. “I want my flowers here in Atlanta. I want to be true to Atlanta for my entire career, as corny or cheesy as it may sound to whoever. As a basketball player, as someone who takes pride in their job, me being drafted in the organization, and me living here, becoming a man and living my life in the NBA as a Hawk, it means something to me.
A look at his career statistics so far would make one wonder why the Hawks would want to ship out the former Wake Forest stud. In his four-year career, Collins has been averaging 16.6 points, 8.6 rebounds and 1.5 assists across 28.7 minutes per game. On top of which, he seems to have developed quite a chemistry with star guard Trae Young through pick and rolls.
However, to recall, the Hawks and John Collins failed to reach an agreement on a contract extension. Simply put: Collins feels that he’s already worth a max contract, but Atlanta thinks otherwise.
It would be interesting to see if Collins’ immense desire to continue donning the Hawks jersey will make him temper his contract expectations. If not, then he’ll have to talk to his agent for other options.
