The Atlanta Hawks may be reaching into the freezer and getting rid of their Ice Trae.
A report on Monday by Michael Scotto of HoopsHype cast some doubt over Hawks star Trae Young’s future with the team. Scotto reports that league executives are wondering whether Atlanta will commit to a long-term extension for Young or possibly look to trade Young instead before having to pay him more money. Additionally, Scotto notes that the Hawks would “ideally” prefer not to go over the luxury tax threshold next season.
The 26-year-old Young is at a relative peak of his value right now. He is averaging 23.8 points and an NBA-leading 11.4 assists per game this season and just made the fourth All-Star team of his professional career.
Young is under contract for $46 million next season and holds a $49 million player option for 2026-27. But this offseason, he will become eligible for a new four-year, $229 million extension from Atlanta (which would be worth over $57 million per year).
The question of whether or not to pay Young is an interesting one for the Hawks. He is obviously the face of their franchise and led them to a conference finals berth in 2021. But Atlanta is just 27-33 this season (after going 36-46 last season), and Young seems to be getting increasingly difficult to build around.
Former backcourt partner Dejounte Murray did not work well next to Young. But now that the Hawks have Young as their sole All-Star on the roster, things have failed to improve (especially since Young is still a negative on defense and has taken a big efficiency hit this season with rough 41/33/86 shooting splits).
With Young still on his current contract for at least one more guaranteed season, the perfect time to trade him will likely be in the summer. The Hawks have considered trading Young in the past and might have to do so again this offseason, especially if the goal is to avoid crippling their cap with a huge extension for only a semi-winning player.
