Weekend Reflections: Anthony Davis isn’t the answer for reeling Hawks

The Hawks upgraded his status to day-to-day Sunday, but it’s not clear when or if they’ll be able to rely on Porzingis to stay in the lineup.

So, it seems Mavericks big man Anthony Davis would be the solution to their problems. ESPN’s Chris Haynes reported Friday night that the Hawks are “very intrigued with the possibility of acquiring” Davis in a trade. He surely would improve the Hawks in the short term because he’s a better version of Porzingis.

But in the long term, the Hawks would be doubling down on injury risk by trading for Davis. His inability to stay in the lineup has been an issue for almost six seasons. Davis played in only 239 of a possible 410 games over the past five seasons and has missed 16 of 33 games this season.

At least the Hawks can get Porzingis’ contract off the books after this season. Davis is set to make $58.5 million in 2026-27 and can exercise a $62.8 million player option for 2027-28.

Davis, 32, will be seeking a contract extension — but the Hawks shouldn’t be the team to give it to him.

Trading for Davis as a one-year rental also doesn’t make sense if it would cost the Hawks what Haynes is reporting. According to Haynes, acquiring Davis would cost the Hawks draft picks, “expiring deals, young assets” and probably 2024 top draft pick Zaccharie Risacher (but not Trae Young).

The Hawks could swing a deal for Davis that includes Porzingis (expiring contract), Risacher, Luke Kennard (expiring contract) and draft picks. But that kind of package is suitable for a promising player in his prime. Davis is an accomplished but injury-prone player who is past his peak.

Don’t get me wrong: Davis is still very good. He’s a more productive and efficient scorer than Porzingis, a superior rebounder and a better all-court defender. Davis doesn’t shoot as well as Porzingis, but he would be a fantastic pick-and-roll partner for Young.

But Davis isn’t the player the Hawks should build a contender around over the long term. GM Onsi Saleh did well to reset the roster by acquiring what could end up being a top-5 pick in the 2026 draft from the Pelicans while avoiding long-term commitments. Saleh shouldn’t change course by sacrificing young players and picks for Davis.

The Hawks need a top-tier, two-way big man. Saleh thought that he had one with Porzingis, but he can’t stay healthy. Davis would fit the bill, but he also can’t stay healthy. He’d also come at a much higher cost than Porzingis.

Saleh should pass on paying it.

Malik Willis makes sense for Falcons

Since quarterback Michael Penix Jr. had season-ending ACL surgery in November, I’ve thought the Falcons should acquire a solid veteran as insurance for next season. Just get a caretaker who won’t cost them games while Penix is on the mend.

My thinking started changing when I saw Packers QB Malik Willis perform well while filling in for Jordan Love against the Bears. I was sold after Willis was solid in a loss to the Ravens on Saturday night.

The Falcons could sign a stopgap veteran as the No. 2 quarterback in 2026. But why not take a shot and see if Willis, 26, can be something more than that?

The metro Atlanta native is in the final year of the rookie contract he signed with the Titans as a third-round draft pick in 2022. The Titans traded him to Green Bay for a seventh-round pick before last season. After washing out as a starter in Tennessee, Willis has become a valuable backup for the Packers.

In three starts for Green Bay, Willis has passed for 612 yards on 54 attempts (11.3 yards per attempt) with three touchdowns and no interceptions. He’s rushed for 174 yards on 21 carries (8.3 yards per attempt) with three touchdowns. The Packers won two of those games.

The sample size obviously is small. But Willis, 26, has shown enough in Green Bay to suggest that he may have figured things out. The Falcons could find out for themselves because it’s not as if Penix has been so good that they can say they are set at QB for the long term.

Willis’ running ability is what makes him more intriguing than most backups. Penix was good while running this season, but he didn’t do it often enough. The Falcons could reap the benefits of Willis’ scrambling ability and use him on designed runs, which they haven’t done with Penix.

Willis is going to have suitors if he makes it to free agency. The Falcons should be one of them.

Brent Key botched late-game management in Orlando

It’s a shame that Haynes King’s last pass for Georgia Tech was an interception. The pick ended Tech’s comeback attempt against BYU in the Pop-Tarts Bowl on Saturday in Orlando. Before that, Brent Key’s clock management made things harder on King and the Yellow Jackets during the final drive.

BYU scored a go-ahead touchdown with two minutes left. King was sacked on the second play of Tech’s final drive. More than 40 seconds ran off the clock before Tech ran another play.

I wondered why the Jackets weren’t moving faster. So did ex-Jackets running back Roddy Jones, who was the game analyst for ESPN. The leisurely pace was baffling.

The Jackets faced a fourth down with just 61 seconds left. King bailed them out by delivering a superb deep ball to Eric Rivers, who gained 66 yards to BYU’s 18-yard line.

More time ran off the clock as the Jackets couldn’t get organized for the next play. Key called a timeout with 32 seconds to go before King threw four straight errant passes to end the game.

A similar lack of urgency by Key reduced Tech’s chances of scoring at the end of the first half. That drive ended with King throwing a Hail Mary pass to the end zone from BYU’s 45-yard line with no time left. The Jackets might have been able to get in position to kick a field goal with a little more pep in their step.

We’ve seen Key manage the clock well this season. The Jackets pulled off a “toro” fire drill to set up a game-winning field goal against Clemson with no timeouts remaining. The Jackets did it again to force overtime two weeks later at Wake Forest.

Key faltered with managing the clock in the final game of an ultimately disappointing season for Tech.

My Weekend Predictions were 2-4 after Sunday’s games

I know the NFC South is awful. I still backed the Buccaneers to cover the spread as favorites at Miami and picked the Panthers as home underdogs against the Seahawks.

The Bucs lost straight up. The Panthers wasted my time by making me believe they might rally late.

Sunday’s results dropped my season record to 84-85-2. I picked the Rams (-7) against the Falcons on Monday night. I’ll have one more week to secure a winning record. I’ve just got to avoid pulling a Key by mismanaging the comeback.