Trae Young and the Hawks are reportedly working together on a trade. Where could the four-time All-Star land? Could he be the starting point guard on a title team? And should Atlanta pursue Anthony Davis, whom it has reportedly shown interest in? Our writers weigh in.
What’s your reaction to Trae Young and the Hawks working toward a trade?
Tom Haberstroh: It’s about time. The Hawks have clearly checked out with Young on the floor, allowing 126.2 points per 100 possessions with Ice Trae on the court this season. That’s the highest rate for any starter in the league, and an embarrassing figure for an All-Star. With Jalen Johnson taking the wheel, Young’s defensive liabilities became too much to handle.
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Steve Jones: I’m not surprised. Good intentions don’t always lead to great results and it was clear the Hawks had gotten a new wardrobe, took the long road home and stopped telling their franchise player about the future. It’s time for both sides to move on and focus on the future. I’m sure Young will look to remind the world what he’s capable of contributing moving forward.
Trae Young’s time in Atlanta appears to be coming to an end. (AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack)
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Morten Stig Jensen: While I think Young does have significant upside, fact is, that upside has turned far more theoretical than practical. He just doesn’t weave himself into the fabric of a team offense, and we obviously know of his defensive limitations. As such, the Hawks can surely find better use for his forthcoming $49 million salary slot, as they build around Johnson.
Ben Rohrbach: Not surprising. I’m sure the Hawks have canvassed the trade market for Trae Young for some time. If they haven’t, they have been derelict of duty. They have long been better defensively without Young, and now they have an offense that can serve that defense without Young. Why not gauge interest from around the league, to see if they can improve that edition of this team? The question, then, is whether they can secure anything close to equal value for him.
Where would you like to see Trae Young land?
Rohrbach: The Minnesota Timberwolves? They are the only team that would have the array of defenders — Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels, Julius Randle and Rudy Gobert — to create a championship-caliber outfit around Young. Of course, they surely would have to give up one of those salaries in order to make the math work on a Young deal, and that could tip the scales against Young’s fit on a title contender. These are inherent issues around trading Young’s salary.
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Jones: I believe he is spiritually a Washington Wizard or a Sacramento King.
Jensen: Chicago Bulls? With Young insisting upon being the primary player, likely negating championship upside in the process, we need to identify a team wherein that’s not a problem. Hello, Chicago? The Bulls have the necessary expiring contracts to get it done, and Young’s presence would allow Josh Giddey to play his more natural position.
Haberstroh: On the waiver wire. That way, we can get him to fun places. His contract — $46 million this season and a $49 million player option next season — makes any trade so challenging. Minnesota would be an ideal fit with Gobert, but the Wolves really can’t make the money work unless Gobert is included. I just don’t love anywhere else.
Should the Hawks deal for Anthony Davis?
Jones: Absolutely not. If you did not feel like you could it done with Trae Young, what would make you believe you can do it with Anthony Davis? Build toward the future.
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Haberstroh: I wouldn’t. Move off of Young, but keep this thing going with the youngsters. I’d rather have Kristaps Porziņģis on a $30.7 million expiring deal and try to work out a sensible deal in free agency than go after Davis, who will be looking for a max extension in the offseason. Doubling down on AD at this point in his career reeks of desperation.
Rohrbach: To what end? I don’t think Davis transforms a Trae Young-less Hawks roster into a championship contender, especially as an oft-injured big man aging into his mid-30s. His timeline does not mesh with the new version of Atlanta, which boasts Jalen Johnson, Dyson Daniels and Zaccharie Risacher as young, exciting wings. There is already an oft-injured big on the roster. Why not spend Porziņģis’ expiring salary more wisely in free agency in the summer?
Jensen: Trading for a soon-to-be 33-year-old who is often injured, has lost a step athletically and is owed $111 million after the conclusion of this season is just never a good idea, so that would be a hard no from me.
True or false: Trae Young can be the starting point guard on a championship team
Jensen: True, if he’s able to adjust his game and conclude he’s not the best player on the team. He’d have to be better off-ball, integrate himself as more of a helper, than the heliocentric player that he is. Defensively, I’m not sure there’s anything he can do, so it would make sense for that team to have elite defenders around him, and at least a real superstar helming everything.
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Haberstroh: True, only if Wemby is his center. It’s looking more and more that the deep playoff run in 2021 was an aberration. He presents so many problems defensively that he requires an all-time center to put out all the fires behind him. Elite passer. So-so shooter. Calamitous defender.
Rohrbach: True, to a degree. I do not think a team that counts Young as the high-usage engine of its offense can win a championship. Now, if you were to build a team of talented two-way players (like the Timberwolves) around Young, and he were to accept his role as a secondary or tertiary option to a more well-rounded superstar, who is to say that version of the four-time All-Star point guard — an idealized one we’ve long anticipated — couldn’t help a team to a title.
Jones: Yes, it’s a possibility. He has scoring and playmaking, and he draws attention in pick-and-roll. On the right squad, with the right defenders and the right balance it could happen.
