It is being reported that the Hawks GM Danny Ferry has told a number of teams that he plans to trade star forward Josh Smith before the February 21st NBA trade deadline. Smith is set to become a unrestricted free agent this summer and has already told the Hawks that he is looking for a maximum contract offer. The Hawks are not looking to offer Smith a max contract and are attempting to cut their loses and receive something in return before he walks this summer during free agency and they are left with nothing.
The Hawks have already had their experience with max contract offers after signing All-Star guard Joe Johnson to a six-year 120 million dollar contract making him the highest paid player in the NBA. Johnson, who no longer plays for the Hawks, was traded to the Brooklyn Nets in the summer of 2012 after having two less than par seasons (2010-2011, 2011-2012) with the Hawks under his new contract.
Smith has drawn interest from the Brooklyn Nets, Milwaukee Bucks, Phoenix Suns, and Boston Celtics sources say.
Smith leads the Hawks in scoring averaging 17.4 per game. He is also second in rebounding averaging 8.6 rebounds per game. It will be interesting to see where Josh Smith lands but the clock is ticking for Atlanta.
