San Antonio Spurs: 4 Pros and Cons of a possible John Collins addition

Apr 20, 2021; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks forward John Collins (20) warms up on the court before the game against the Orlando Magic at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

John Collins only brings shaky individual shot creation ability

There are consequences to the Atlanta Hawks being solely dependent on Trae Young’s creation to thrive as a squad. One of which is the overdependence of its featured scorers on his playmaking, especially John Collins. While his scoring totals are robust, a vast majority of his buckets are an end result of pick and rolls and lobs fresh off Young’s flashy passing ability.

In fact, only 21.5 percent of his field-goal attempts are unassisted this season. His career-high in this department is 24.5 percent which is way back in his rookie season. The reason why this is a negative is that no one in the San Antonio Spurs roster is on the level of Trae Young as a passer. As a Spur, clear-cut opportunities as a finisher off great passes will not be as abundant as before.

In stretches where the Spurs fail to generate open looks, isolation plays become important. DeRozan has been thriving as a consistent provider of bailout shots. Murray has also improved in that sense as well. So does Derrick White with his rejuvenated outside shot and creative drives to the basket. But if a bulk of the offense is predicated on John Collins’ one-on-one shot creation, the attack is not in an ideal position to brave through tough defenses.

Maybe being forced into more isolation situations would unlock a new level for John Collins’s shot creation but it’s not a sure thing. If it doesn’t, the Spurs might end up paying a lot of money for a player who can’t carry them across the finish line when they need him to.

With any player, there are going to be pros and cons of adding them to your team. In John Collins’s case, the pros far outweigh the cons. The San Antonio Spurs need to make an offer this summer.