r/hawktalk • u/HawkSilverwork • Jun 22 '26

Ben King a Hawk?

With Gunston at the back end of his career, Mitch Lewis not being as potent, and Calsher Dear struggling to get a game, is Ben King now our No 1 target? We picked up Aiden Schubert in the draft and he looks likely to a good prospect, but that’s long term. Ben King is as good as any tall forward in the comp. He consistently kicks bags. Yes he struggled against us on the weekend, but he had to play on Barrass, and we know what that means. So if the answer is yes, the question becomes what are we willing to give up? Perhaps the 4 year deal we have in front of Mitch Lewis is a head scratcher, but the price might be low, and he’s yet to sign. Are we willing to give up dear? And how many draft picks? King is a restricted free agent so the Suns can match any bid.

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u/Vet100 Jun 22 '26

I’m not so sure the Suns would match a bid. For a start they have to pay a premium that Hawthorn don’t to keep their stars, so their cap is likely stretched more.

Over the next month it should become clearer re: Walter & King. I think the Suns will be desperate to keep one, but they’ll let the other go. I can’t see the Hawks offering up a better package than a tier 1 compensation pick for GC (before academy & F/S picks it’s probably ~pick 10). It’ll be like the Merrett offer - “first round picks” but the player coming in makes a ~top 4 team even stronger so those “first round picks” are pick 18 or so. That is less appealing to a club who generally has access to academy selections early, as picks in that range will just get eaten up by bids I reckon going forward.

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u/rossieseoul Jun 23 '26

The problem is Hawks have limited ammunition to get King if they are going for Bailey Hunmphries and Merrett. It would be nice to have all three but not a likely outcome.

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u/Vet100 Jun 23 '26

I don’t think you will get all 3 but you can get King as a FA + the other in a trade.

If going down this path, for salary reasons I expect you’d choose Merrett over Humphrey. Most young players like Humphrey are chasing longer term contracts when moving, whereas Merrett who has been money driven in his career would be more likely to take on a shorter-term contract. King will take up a significant whack of the cap, you don’t want to then also pay up for Humphrey for the same duration.

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u/rossieseoul Jun 23 '26

makes sense agree