Trae Young might end up with a team that is an even more confusing situation than his current one.
The Atlanta Hawks have recently had trade talks with the Sacramento Kings regarding the four-time All-Star guard Young, Grant Afseth of RG reported on Tuesday. Afseth further notes that rival teams around the league are closely monitoring the outcome of Young’s contract discussions with the Hawks.
Still only 26 years old, Young is under contract for $46 million next season with a $49 million player option for 2026-27. Young is eligible this summer for a four-year, $229 million max extension, but the Hawks may not ultimately give it to him.
As for the Kings, they have a need at point guard after trading away De’Aaron Fox at the deadline last February. Sacramento also has some trade history with Atlanta, most recently having linked up with them on the 2022 Kevin Huerter trade.
But the Kings are in a bizarre position right now after going 40-42 and losing in the play-in tournament. They still have win-now pieces around such as Domantas Sabonis, Zach LaVine, and DeMar DeRozan. But the Kings would likely have to part ways with at least one of those guys in order to make the salaries match for Young (who might not even be all that much of a ceiling-raiser himself).
Meanwhile, the Hawks were also a play-in loser this season at 40-42, marking their third consecutive non-winning season with Young at the helm. Rather than extending Young for another four years, it would probably indeed be smarter for the Hawks to explore ways to cash out on him (as has been rumored for several months now).
