Hawks forward/center Mike Muscala exercised his $5 million contract option for the 2018-19 season, according to a person with knowledge of the decision.
Musacala exercised his one-year contract option days after Dewayne Dedmon did the same, ensuring the Hawks can return two veteran rotation players in front court. That group projects to include second-year pro John Collins and Omari Spellman, the No. 30 overall pick in the NBA draft on Thursday.
ESPN first reported that Muscala exercised his contract option.
Muscala, 26, signed a one-year contract with the option last summer. In 2017-18 he played in 53 games with 1,060 minutes roughly split between power forward and center. Muscala posted averages of 20 minutes, 7.6 points and 4.3 rebounds with 37.1 percent 3-point shooting on 167 attempts.
Muscala missed about two months with an ankle injury and was ineffective upon his return before recovering for a strong finish to the season. He faced a potentially tight free-agent market this summer as many teams seek to shed payroll.
Muscala has played 243 games over five seasons with Hawks after they acquired him in the second round of the 2013 NBA draft.
