Hawks Go After Big Game

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Nearly every free-agent rumor floated in the past six months has included the Hawks in some form or fashion.

With an estimated $24 million in salary-cap space and a plethora of needs up and down the roster, Hawks general manager Billy Knight expected as much.

But even he couldn't have been ready for the deluge of misinformation that has spread like brush fire since the NBA's free-agent negotiating period began at midnight on July 1.

No contracts can be signed before July 23, but recruiting pitches and conversations are ongoing. And the rumors --- from the feasible to the ridiculous --- continue to circulate.

"That's the way it goes," Knight said Tuesday. "Every team that has cap space is being mentioned with [free agents], even when they aren't talking to those guys. And guys are being mentioned with those teams, too, when they shouldn't be. It's not just us."

The Hawks have been active since 12:01 on July 1, when Knight says he made initial contact with the players the Hawks are most interested in. Knight declined to name names, choosing instead to pursue his targets without a spotlight, no matter how much agents and others want to press the issue in public.

"You sort of have to do the dance a little bit," Knight said. "So you're using your intuition and feel, trusting your relationships with agents or whoever. You're operating the best way you can.

"We've talked to the people I want to talk to, and we've stated our intentions clearly and communicated our intentions. But I don't like my conversations being made public. My philosophy is you talk to the guy you want to get, come to an agreement or you don't, and then you move on. There is really no gray area.

"We've had some good conversations with people. We won't know until the signing period begins if we'll get them signed or not, and there will still be a waiting period on some guys because they're restricted free agents. But the players we are really interested in, we made it very clear to them. We've stated our intentions very clearly."

With a quality center a top priority, the Hawks have been mentioned as an interested party for Cleveland All-Star center Zydrunas Ilgauskas, whose agent, Herb Rudoy, once represented Knight.

"There's a good number of teams we're talking to about a sign-and-trade, and there are a couple of teams under the cap that are talking to me," Rudoy told the Cleveland Plain Dealer. "We're also talking to [Cavs GM] Danny [Ferry] about Z returning. Z's thinking about [remaining with the Cavs]. He'd like to stay."

Another intriguing rumor has a trade between the Hawks and Bulls, with Hawks power forward Al Harrington and Bulls center Eddy Curry as the principals. But like most everything else being bandied about, neither Hawks nor Bulls officials have verified such a deal has even been discussed.

Seattle shooting guard Ray Allen also can be crossed off the Hawks' wish list. He agreed to terms with the Sonics on Tuesday, according to his agent, Lon Babby.

That leaves Suns rising star Joe Johnson, Bucks sharpshooter Michael Redd and versatile Wizards star Larry Hughes as the top free-agent guards available. And since Johnson is a restricted free agent and Redd is rumored to be the top priority for Cleveland as well as the Bucks, who have already offered him a maximum deal between $80-90 million for six years, the Hawks' attention in Hughes could intensify. </div>

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