Thank You Trae Young

Rumors had been circulating for days, but the news of Trae Young getting traded to the Wizards tonight still feels shocking.

I’m not sure if it was because of the swiftness of the trade happening or the lack of return the Hawks got for a star player.

(The Hawks couldn’t get ONE draft pick for this insanely stacked 2026 draft??)

All I know, is that getting Corey Kispert and the expiring contract of CJ McCollum does not feel like enough for Trae Young.

In the summer of 2024, I wrote about how I thought the Trae Young era was getting old (which you can read below).

https://paveryporter.wixsite.com/sports411/post/the-trae-young-era-in-atlanta-is-getting-old

I just thought and hoped that there was still time for Trae Young and the Hawks to prove me wrong.

Besides the magical run in the 2021 playoffs, the Hawks had simply been a middling play-in team for the last several years with Trae as the focal point of the team.

The Hawks were 2-8 when Trae was on the floor this year and genuinely were a better team without him. The defense dramatically improved when he was out.

Now the Hawks will move forward in a new direction and will save $49 million just next year alone from letting Trae go.

Even with all of the negatives of Trae Young, I will not forget the great moments he had on the Hawks. From logo threes to embarrassing the Knicks in MSG. He defined an era of Hawks basketball.

Thank you, Trae Young.