Atlanta Hawks given 'green light' to trade Trae Young as NBA star responds

11 April 2023 , 19:39

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The Atlanta Hawks could trade star point guard Trae Young after a disappointing season (Image: Getty)

Big changes are coming to the Atlanta Hawks and it could start with star point guard Trae Young, who could reportedly be traded away as part of a rebuild.

The 24-year-old joined the Hawks in 2018 as a fifth overall NBA Draft pick. Young is yet to win a championship but is a two-time NBA All-Star in the years 2020 and 2022.

However, this season Young’s scoring average is down two points per game. His three-point shooting has also fallen off a cliff, dropping from 38.2 percent to 33.5 percent. Atlanta have also hardly had an eye-catching campaign, sneaking into the Eastern Conference playoffs with a 41-41 record.

And according to The Ringer, the Hawks could be ruthless regarding Young, as they were with their firing of head coach Nate McMillan mid-season, and explore trade opportunities for the point guard. Kevin O'Connor explained that the Hawks front office has been given the green light to do whatever it wants with the roster this summer.

That means that if they wished, the Hawks could trade away Young and have the full support of team ownership. Should Young hit the market, he’s unlikely to be short of suitors.

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Young has publicly addressed reports of an offseason move by reaffirming his focus on Atlanta’s play-in game. “It could be false, could be true, you never know,” Young said following the Hawks’ shootaround in Miami.

Trae Young issued a coy response on the reports linking him with a trade away from the Hawks (Getty)

The Hawks will take on Miami in the opening round of the play-in tournament on Tuesday night. A win would see them go on to face the Boston Celtics. But if they lose, they’ll risk crashing out of the playoff altogether before even reaching the first-round.

When asked if these play-in games could shape his future, Young said: “It’s hard – you can’t look at it. Especially as the player in the moment, you can’t look at what’s gonna come on next year.

“After the game, if the game doesn’t go your way tonight, what’s gonna happen? Like, you can’t focus on things like that. That messes up your head and then you’re not ready to play so, me, I’m not worried about that. I’m gonna let my game play. After the season, whatever happens, happens. I mean, I’m focused on the next task at hand. I can’t worry about the outside noise or whatever fake stories come out, or what’s true, whatever.”

Joshua Mbu