ATLANTA - The struggling Atlanta Hawks traded forward Cam Reddish to the New York Knicks for a protected 2022 first-round draft pick on Thursday.
Atlanta confirmed the move, but team officials - including coach Nate McMillan - couldn't comment on the trade before the deal becomes official.
The Hawks also are sending forward Solomon Hill and a 2025 second-round pick to the Knicks, and small forward Kevin Knox is heading to Atlanta.
The trade comes as the Hawks are 17-23 overall, having lost three consecutive games and seven of their past nine. Wednesday night's 115-91 loss to the Miami Heat - Reddish did not play due to a right ankle sprain - was the Hawks' ninth consecutive home loss.
Atlanta advanced to the Eastern Conference title series last summer but has fallen to 12th in the conference standings and must regroup quickly to ensure consecutive postseason appearances for the first time since making 10 in a row from 2008 to 2017.
McMillan said the Hawks, who visit Miami on Friday night, are not giving up on the season.
"There's a lot of basketball left in this season," the coach said after Thursday's practice. "We're not hitting the panic button."
McMillan and the Hawks are trying to reclaim their cohesiveness, especially on defense. They have been forced to play through a series of lineup changes, in part caused by COVID-19 positive tests that most recently forced McMillan to miss four games. He returned to coach Wednesday's game.
"You can't have one guy not locked into what you're supposed to be doing out on the floor," McMillan said Thursday. "Those are the things we are trying to build, that chemistry, that connection defensively and that connection on the opposite end of the floor."
The 22-year-old Reddish, the No. 10 overall pick in the 2019 draft, has averaged 11.9 points and 2.5 rebounds in 34 games (seven starts) this season. Injuries have hurt his consistency and production, but the 6-foot-8, 217-pounder is regarded as a player with high potential thanks to his athleticism and defense.
In New York, Reddish will be reunited with former Duke teammate RJ Barrett, the No. 3 overall pick in 2019.
The first-round pick sent to Atlanta was acquired by the Knicks from the Charlotte Bobcats.
AP file photo by Nick Wass / The New York Knicks have traded forward Kevin Knox to the Atlanta Hawks.The Hawks dealt from a team strength with depth on the wing, especially with Wednesday night's return of De'Andre Hunter after wrist surgery. The 22-year-old Knox (6-7, 215) will compete for a rotation spot behind Hunter, Bogdan Bogdanovich and Kevin Huerter.
"We have to be more together now than we have really at any point," Huerter said Thursday. "We're hitting a low point. Hopefully the low point was last night. We're not going to continue to let it snowball.
Hunter scored 15 points in 24 minutes in his return to the court. His strong showing after missing two months provided encouragement he is ready to resume his role as the starting small forward.
"It was good to get him back out on the floor and get some live minutes with the team," said McMillan, who noted that Hunter had no setbacks and participated in Thursday's practice.
Knox has played in only 13 games this season, averaging 3.6 points and 1.7 rebounds. His best pro season was as a rookie in 2018-19, when he averaged 12.8 points and 4.5 rebounds.
The former Kentucky Wildcats standout was the ninth overall pick in 2018. After starting 57 games as a rookie, he has only four starts in the subsequent three seasons.
Hill (6-6, 226), 30, was a 2013 first-round pick by the Indiana Pacers. He is expected to miss the remainder of the season after tearing his right hamstring against Charlotte on Dec. 5. Hill averaged 4.5 points and 3.0 rebounds in 71 games, including 16 starts, for Atlanta last season.