Trae Young’s talent has never been in question. The Oklahoma product was the only player to ever lead the NCAA in points and assists in a season and was drafted to the Dallas Mavericks with the 2018 fifth overall pick before being traded to the Atlanta Hawks along with a first-round pick for Luka Doncic. Since then, Young has been an offensive force in the league in his six seasons, averaging 25.5 PPG and 9.5 APG over his career while picking up one All-NBA appearance alongside three All-Star appearances.
The questions that annually swirl around Young like whirling dervishes interrogate his size and his defense. Atlanta’s tried to plug these holes before. They paired Dejounte Murray, an exceptional perimeter defender, with Young for two seasons. The Hawks advanced past the first round in one, and missed the playoffs altogether in the other. Not that Murray’s presence took the ball away from Young’s hands. Young’s usage rate was only sub-30% once in his career: during his rookie season. There aren’t too many players who are given the type of green light Trae Young enjoys in Atlanta. And for good reason. Check out this sweet behind-the-back fake pass into the floater, freezing both Dennis Schroder and Noah Clowney:
But the Hawks are dangerous. New backcourt partner Dyson Daniels, one of the pieces from the Dejounte Murray deal, has been impressive to start this season. Daniels is averaging 2.8 steals per game while playing big minutes and hustling all over the court. Newly-ascended star forward Jalen Johnson is on the cusp of another potential breakout season on the Hawks: after three ugly games, Johnson dropped a massive 29 point, 12 rebound, and seven assist effort in a tight loss against the Wizards on October 28 and looks poised to slide into Murray’s vacant number two role on this Hawks offense.
The Hawks can go small with Onyeka Okongwu at center, or go big with Clint Capela depending on the matchup. And as an extra luxury, the number one overall pick Zaccharie Risacher almost feels like an afterthought coming off the bench at the moment for De’Andre Hunter. He’s raw and undeveloped, but he’s long with all the physical tools he needs to find success in today’s league.
Young already has an All-NBA appearance and is my pick to land another this season. Last season’s All-NBA team included players like Stephen Curry, Jalen Brunson, Kawhi Leonard, Tyrese Haliburton, and Devin Booker. None of these players are, in my eyes, a lock to make the team again this season for different reasons we can touch on another time.
And really, there are no doubts about Trae putting up big numbers this season provided he can stay healthy. He’s currently averaging 26.5 PPG with 10.8 APG along with a career-high 11.5 trips to the line per game, excursions in which he’s cashing 89%. You ask: he’s already getting to the line and shooting a ton, so how can he hit the near-30 PPG mark which would surely land him in All-NBA territory? Because he’s only shooting 39% from the field and 29% from beyond the arc. If his FG% returns to the low 40’s and his 9.3 attempts from long-distance start converting at his career average clip of 35%, then we can easily see how his points can erupt this season and carry Atlanta’s offense behind his barrage of long-range bombs, delicate floaters, and savvy in the pick-and-roll.
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