Trae Young and his Atlanta Hawks were eliminated in last week’s NBA Play-In Tournament. It was a bitter end to yet another season for the underperforming Hawks.
It will also lead to renewed rumors surrounding a potential Young trade this summer. Simply put, the status quo is not working in Atlanta right now.
Sportsnaut had NBA insider Kurt Helin of NBC Sports on recently. The veteran scribe detailed just how much Young’s trade value has dipped. It’s now to the point that teams might prefer to trade for fellow Hawks guard Dejounte Murray.
“They are going to try hard to trade Trae Young. That’s going to happen,” Helin noted. “But from people I’ve talked to around the league these calls often go something like this, ‘Trae Young, yea, what would that [trade] look like? By the way, is Dejounte available?’ People in the league just like Dejounte’s game better.”
Young, 25, has been linked to the San Antonio Spurs as a potential to team up with likely 2023-24 NBA Rookie of the Year Victor Wembanyama.
That now doesn’t appear to be the case. There is a specific reason for San Antonio’s lack of interest in Young.
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San Antonio Spurs don’t see Trae Young as a fit with Victor Wembanyama
“One other note. Spurs fans have been buzzing about the team getting in the mix for a Trae Young trade this summer, as he is the most acclaimed point guard likely to be available. League sources have told NBC Sports not to bet on that happening, as San Antonio doesn’t see Young as a fit with Wembanyama going forward. The Spurs might be more interested in the Hawks’ Dejounte Murray if he is available.”
Helin on Spurs’ lack of interest in Trae Young
As we noted in another recent article, the Spurs seem to be more interested in signing future Hall of Fame point guard Chris Paul in NBA free agency. Paul, 38, is likely to hit the open market. The Golden State Warriors have a $30 million team option on the guard. They’ll decline it.
As for Young, things are complicated. He’s a specific type of fit. And in reality, a ball-dominant and volume shooter at this spot doesn’t seem to make sense with Wemby.
This past season saw Young averaged 25.7 points and 10.8 assists per game. But he shot just 43% from the field and atempted nearly 19 shots pre game.