The Atlanta Hawks became extremely active as the Feb. 6 trade deadline came to a close, with the franchise trading away their Sixth Man of the Year candidate and solid scoring forward De’Andre Hunter to the Cleveland Cavaliers, along with the sharpshooting Bogdan Bogdanovic heading to the Los Angeles Clippers in a separate deal.
Following the conclusion of the deadline, new reports have indicated that the team’s former three-time All-Star point guard Trae Young could be perplexed by the franchise’s decisions at the mid-season mark, especially because of his ultimate desire to bring a championship to Atlanta.
“I’m going to pivot to Trae Young, that guy is a fierce competitor,” NBA insider Chris Haynes shared during a Thursday afternoon appearance on NBA TV.
“He wants to win, I’m going to say it, he wants to win. So, the direction of the Hawks is, I would say very unique considering they know where he stands and what he wants to accomplish.”
In a later post to Haynes’ Twitter/X account on Thursday, Haynes labeled Young’s future as ‘murky.’
At 26 years old, Young has become one of the league’s best facilitators, as he currently leads the NBA with 11.5 assists paired with 23.2 points in 47 appearances for the Hawks this season.
The sharpshooting and passing guard has one season left on a five-year, $215 million rookie contract extension he signed with the team in 2022 before he can opt into a nearly $49 million player option for the 2026-27 season.
Due to Young’s contract and the organization’s evident unwillingness to provide the star with ample talent after his impressive 2021 NBA Playoff run which ended in an Eastern Conference Finals berth for the Hawks, his future remains uncertain.
Moving forward, Atlanta’s decision to trade the rising Hunter could be one of many moves that motivate Young to find new opportunities to win.
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