The NBA is a global brand, and so are the Atlanta Hawks.

In a recent survey of fans in China, two Hawks players made it into the top five in player strength rankings.

Hawks star Trae Young has finally cracked the poll – which was shared via graphic on social media and appears to have been conducted by Weibo, the Chinese version of X. As a three-time All-Star and 2019-20 All-NBA player, Young’s appearance makes sense.

But he was fourth at that point.

Meanwhile, in a major twist in history the likes of which has never been seen before, reserve forward David Roddy sat at the helm ahead of superstars LeBron James and Stephen Curry.

While the veracity of the survey itself may be unclear at best, it did elicit a reaction from Roddy.

“I just mentioned this to David and he was shocked lol,” Jameelah Johnson of atlhawksfans reported on October 25 on X.

Roddy is best known for his stature: He is 6 feet 2 inches tall and weighs 255 pounds. But his all-rounder skills will make him a fan favorite. He showed plenty of that in the preseason.

Roddy averaged 9.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists in the preseason and shot 36.4% from distance. And everything seemed fluid, not forced.

This Hawks team still has a lot of players who can handle the ball.

Players like Roddy are indispensable as glue guys. His physical style of play has the advantage of wearing down opponents when he gets extended minutes. It may not happen often, but he expects he’ll still get a lot of love from fans when he shows off his Hawks DNA.

Whether or not that means Roddy should be chosen ahead of two living NBA legends like Curry and James is a whole other question.

Roddy was selected in the first round by the Philadelphia 76ers in 2022.

He was traded to the Memphis Grizzlies the day after his draft and spent time with the Phoenix Suns. Roddy is more broadly part of the Dejounte Murray trade, with Atlanta sending former New Orleans Pelicans forward EJ Liddell to Phoenix for him.

Again, Roddy’s role with the Hawks will depend heavily on the situation and the availability of the players in front of him.

He should still be effective on the floor, which is always a crowd favorite.