Houston Rockets Acquire Former First-Round Pick from Atlanta Hawks

The Houston Rockets and Atlanta Hawks were two of the first three teams on the clock in the 2024 NBA Draft. Both received some excellent luck during the 2024 NBA Lottery to land in those spots.

With the first overall pick, the Atlanta Hawks selected wing Zaccharie Risacher. At No. 3, the Houston Rockets came away with Kentucky guard Reed Sheppard.

Hours before Round 2 of the 2024 NBA Draft is set to get underway, the two teams came together to complete a trade. With Risacher now in the mix, the Atlanta Hawks have opted to move on from recent first-round pick, A.J. Griffin.

The No. 16 overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, Griffin is being traded to the Houston Rockets. To land him, Houston is sending the No. 44 pick to Atlanta.

As shared by Michael Scotto of HoopsHype , Griffin is someone that the Atlanta Hawks discussed in different trade scenarios ahead of the deadline in February. No deal was completed at that time, but he now gets a fresh start with an up-and-coming Houston Rockets team.

Coming out of Duke, Griffin looked the part of an ideal 3-and-D prospect. He was an elite 3-point shooter with the Blue Devils, knocking down 44.7 percent of his attempts.

During his rookie season, that skill set looked to translate. Griffin made 39 percent of his 3-point attempts as a rookie and looked to be a part of the Atlanta Hawks’ plans moving forward. But, a difficult sophomore campaign where he played in only 20 games has led to a change.

With the Houston Rockets, finding playing time could be difficult on a deep, young roster. But, the path is clearer than it would be with the Atlanta Hawks, as he was buried even before the No. 1 pick this year was used on another wing.

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