Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks are trending toward a breakup. The 27-year-old and four-time All-Star has been a shell of himself this season, dealing with injuries and averaging 19.3 points on abysmal .415/.305/.863 splits. Atlanta is 2-8 when Young plays and 14-11 when he does not. And while it’s a relatively small sample, the eye test certainly backs up the numbers in this case.
Young’s unique strengths and weaknesses have been well-documented ever since his meteoric rise up draft boards at Oklahoma, but this sudden decline in winning impact — again, after four All-Star appearances in just seven full NBA seasons to date — is a confounding development.
Why the Hawks want to trade Trae Young
Atlanta is “looking for the exit ramp” with Young, according to ESPN’s Tim MacMahon. That does not mean Young will get dealt — there is a noteworthy lack of reported interest in Trae Young — but the Hawks will explore all avenues and probably sell on the cheap side if the opportunity presents itself.
It’s the right move. The Hawks are, straight up, a better team without Trae Young right now. That’s not to say Young can’t help a good team in a different context, but he needs to boost his efficiency, find ways to stick on defense, and most importantly, Young needs to reflect inward and come to terms with the NBA’s changing landscape. Then, he needs to adjust accordingly.
There is still value in a pick-and-roll maestro as skilled and dynamic as Young, but the era of ball-dominant point guards in the Trae Young mold is fading. So much of Atlanta’s offense runs through Young, and yet the product is meaningfully better when Jalen Johnson is pushing the tempo and the offense is a bit more free-flowing.
One NBA exec told Ryen Russillo, in blunt terms, why Young’s value is so low right now:
”It's hard to think of a team that's trying to win this season that Trae would help, especially once you factor in what that team would be losing from the players they would have to send back as matching salary. He doesn't defend. He doesn't rebound. Guys hate playing with him."
Atlanta faces an uphill battle when it comes to finding a taker in the Trae Young sweepstakes, if we can even call it that. But these NBA teams might as well consider it, especially if Young is available for pennies on the dollar.
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are once again underperforming relative to the naive expectations of ownership and their front office. The De’Aaron Fox trade left the Kings without a legitimate point guard, while the Domantas Sabonis injury left an already-flawed roster without its primary engine.
Sacramento still has talent, from Zach LaVine and Russell Westbrook, to a bevy of compelling role players, such as Keon Ellis and Keegan Murray. But, at the end of the day, this team — as it’s currently built — is playing for lottery odds. And while that is the best path forward, it’s unclear if the Kings really, truly have it in them to embrace a rebuild.
Young is a compelling buy-low option, as when he’s right, Young has proven that he can lead a top-five offense almost single-handed. There’s still a lot of value in his deep pull-up shooting range, spiritely handles and visionary passing, all of which serve to compromise a defense and exploit the subsequent fissures.
Young gives Sacramento a guiding light of a kind, and if any team is foolish enough to keep full-steam ahead on the path to mediocrity, it’s the Kings. The defensive concerns would be vast, but Young and LaVine is a tantalizing offensive duo, and once Sabonis returns, the Kings would have the ability to run some fun stuff. It’s worth keeping an eye on, whether it’s the “right” move or not.
Minnesota Timberwolves
The Minnesota Timberwolves’ 24-point loss to Atlanta on New Year’s Eve saw Anthony Edwards storm to the locker room in frustration with seven minutes left in the game. This Wolves team still very much has the bones of a contender, with Ant as its superstar spine, but it’s becoming harder to trust the pieces around him.
Julius Randle and Rudy Gobert remain solid second and third fiddles, but depth has become a problem — specifically at point guard. Donte DiVincenzo has taken over PG1 duties with mixed results, but he’s not a natural table-setter. Mike Conley, once a stabilizing force, is simply too old to hold up in significant minutes. Rob Dillingham, while still an exciting talent, simply does not have the trust of head coach Chris Finch. The Wolves could use someone like Young to diversify the offense and take responsibilities off of Randle’s shoulders in particular.
All the concerns with Young in Atlanta would be concerns in Minnesota, but the Wolves have an elite defensive backbone in Rudy Gobert and Jaden McDaniels, which helps. The Wolves can also give Young his first true superstar running mate in Edwards, forcing Young into a less central role. More spot-up 3s, more off-ball gravity and calculated, streamlined attacks — that should benefit Young tremendously, assuming he buys in.
Minnesota has come awfully close in the West these last couple years. OKC stands as a potentially insurmountable hurdle, but it’s worth taking a shot and leaving no stones unturned. Young is flawed, but we know he’s capable of so much more than he’s currently showing. We also know he has a track record of incredible performances in the postseason. Let Trae and Ant cook. It might just work out.
Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks are loudly forecasting their desire to find Giannis Antetokounmpo a new co-star, rather than trading him and starting over. That’s fair enough — you don’t trade a Giannis-level superstar unless you have to. Names like Michael Porter Jr. and Zach LaVine continue to float around, but there’s a case to be made that Young is the ideal target.
It’s rare for players with Young’s track record, and on his timeline, to be made available for such a modest price. The Bucks won’t need to empty what’s left of their draft stores (not very much) to have an earnest shot at landing Young. He’s also at the tail end of his contract, meaning the Bucks can jump ship if things go south.
The failed Damian Lillard experiment probably soured Bucks fans (and possibly even the Bucks) on small, 3-point sniping point guards, but Young does have a certain appeal compared to Lillard. For one, he’s much younger, and thus a bit more spry. We’ve seen Young at least put in the effort to improve defensively. Last season was a step in the right direction before he took two steps back this season, for reasons not entirely related to effort or ability.
On paper, Young’s pull-up gravity and passing chops should mesh beautifully with Giannis, who is a downhill bulldozer who can catch and attack from anywhere on the floor. Young can put Giannis is more advantageous situations and feed him easier buckets at the rim, allowing Giannis to expend more energy on defense while keeping his physical toll a bit more muted as he ages into his mid-30s. At this point, it’s worth a shot for Milwaukee. It can’t get much worse.
Orlando Magic
The Orlando Magic continue to flash immense upside with one of the best rosters in the Eastern Conference, but a dire lack of shooting — even after the Desmond Bane trade — has kept Orlando from elevating to a higher plane of contention. That and the ongoing struggles of Paolo Banchero, who can’t quite seem to figure out the leap to superstardom that so many expected him to make this season.
Young is appealing as essentially a fourth star on Orlando’s timeline, available from a division rival for dirt cheap. The Magic’s point guard situation has gone unresolved for years. Jalen Suggs and Anthony Black are both very talented two-way contributors, but neither generates the sort of advantages and easy set-ups that Young does offensively. Moreover, Banchero desperately needs someone to ease his workload and put him in more favorable situations. Young can do the job.
Orlando’s superpower is the unique rim pressure Banchero and Franz Wagner can generate as big, slashing wings. But Banchero tends to freestyle a bit too much and settle for inefficient mid-range jumpers, rather than utilizing his supreme physical gifts to pound the paint and score inside. Young can set him up out of pick-and-rolls. He can feed Banchero in the post, or locate him on back door cuts to the rim. If the Magic can optimize Banchero as an off-ball finisher and connector, rather than asking him to lead the offense, it could unlock his potential — and send Orlando on a rocket-like accent to the top of the East.
Young doesn’t exactly fit the M.O. of this Magic front office as a small guard who doesn’t really defend, but Orlando has enough size and versatility to mitigate Young’s weaknesses while, ideally, benefitting profoundly from his strengths. This might be the best possible fit for Young, if Orlando is brave enough to pull the trigger.
Dallas Mavericks
The word on the street is that the Dallas Mavericks are interested in trading Anthony Davis to the Hawks, but do not want Trae Young in return. That makes sense. And yet, despite their lack of interest, this still might be the most realistic outcome. Atlanta has some leverage given Davis’ contract, age and current output. There’s a world in which the Hawks can shoehorn Young into a trade (along with other more positive assets, like Zaccharie Risacher) and get this across the finish line.
For Dallas, the trepidation with respect to Young is understandable. But it’s not necessarily the worst possible fit. In fact, the Mavs rather desperately need a proven point guard to aid Cooper Flagg in his development. The eventual return of Kyrie Irving ought to help, but Young is a different breed of point guard. His ability to generate open looks for teammates in something Flagg, a deadly attacker off the catch, can take full advantage of.
Like in all of these potential landing spots, Young would need to adjust his approach and accept a less all-encompassing role. He’d still be the primary ball-handler and main generator, but Flagg needs his reps as a rapidly blossoming superstar. Once Irving is back, there'd be a lot of mouths to feed, and Young needs to focus on distribution as much as (or maybe even more than) self-nourishment.
Dallas would probably view Young as a means to an end as far as offloading Davis. This season is not about winning or championship aspirations. That said, there's absolutely a world in which Young finds new life in Central Texas and does a lot of good for Flagg's development. The Mavs rather famously drafted Young fifth overall as prelude to the Luka Dončić swap on draft night. After all the nonsense that has unfolded in Dallas over the past year, there'd be something poetic about Young authoring his second chapter where it (almost) all started.