The End of the “Ice” Trae Young Era Is Finally Here?
It feels like we have been talking about trading Trae Young since the moment the confetti settled on their 2021 Eastern Conference Finals run. For years, the Atlanta Hawks have been stuck in a weird basketball purgatory, terrified to move on from the face of their franchise but painfully aware that they cannot win at a high level with him as the primary engine. It is a relationship that has gone stale.
You know the vibe. It is the couple at dinner staring at their phones because they have nothing left to say to each other. Now, with reports surfacing that Atlanta is eyeing a massive swing for Anthony Davis, it seems the front office is finally ready to pay the check and break up.
The reality is that Young is not the same player who terrorized New York a few years ago. The swagger is there, but the shots just aren’t falling, and the losses are piling up. It is getting harder to justify building a universe around a star who is shooting near career lows while playing matador defense. The writing is on the wall, and for the first time, it looks like the Hawks are actually reading it.
Why the Hawks Are Finally Moving on from Young
Let’s be honest about what we are watching this season. The numbers are ugly. We are seeing Young shoot barely over 30 percent from deep. For a guy whose entire brand is built on a range that stretches to the logo, that is a catastrophic dip. But the real indictment isn’t the shooting slump; it is the winning. Or rather, the lack of it when he is on the floor.
While Young was sidelined with that knee injury, the Hawks actually looked like a competent basketball team. They went 13-9. The ball moved. The defense wasn’t playing 4-on-5. Then Young returns, and they proceed to lose 10 of their next 12 games. That is not a coincidence. That is a pattern.
NBA insider Marc Stein reported that there is a “growing belief” the Hawks are more open to trading Young than ever before. It makes sense. You cannot look at those splits and tell your fanbase with a straight face that this is the path forward. The front office knows that keeping Young means signing up for mediocrity, and they are clearly tired of hovering around the play-in tournament.
The Anthony Davis Ripple Effect
Here is where things get spicy. The Hawks aren’t just looking to dump Young; they are trying to pivot into a contender by chasing Anthony Davis. It is a bold move. Maybe even a desperate one. But according to reports, the Dallas Mavericks have zero interest in swapping Davis for Young straight up.
That has to hurt the ego a bit, right?
Dallas is looking for expiring contracts and tangible assets, not another ball-dominant guard who doesn’t play defense. Chris Haynes reported that any deal between these two teams would likely leave Young out of the equation entirely for the Mavs. This means Atlanta has to get creative. They need a third team to take Young, while they send assets to Dallas to land AD.
It is a complicated mess, but it shows how far Young’s stock has fallen. A few years ago, he was a franchise cornerstone. Now? He is a salary filler in a three-team trade machine scenario.
The Financial Headache Facing Atlanta
Beyond the box score, this is a math problem. Young has a player option for nearly $49 million in the 2026-27 season. That is a terrifying number for a player who might not be a top-20 guy in the league anymore.
If the Hawks don’t trade him now, they risk him exercising that option and clogging their cap sheet for years. Stein posed the question perfectly in his report: Can the Hawks dare to find out what happens if they don’t trade him? The answer is no. They cannot afford to pay supermax money for play-in results.
The Hawks are essentially racing against the clock. They need to find a partner willing to take on that contract before the February deadline. If they wait, they lose leverage. If Young continues to struggle or gets hurt again, that contract becomes an albatross that no one wants to touch.
Finding a Landing Spot for the Former All-Star
So, who actually wants Young?
It is the multi-million dollar question. ESPN’s Bobby Marks threw out a chaotic five-team trade scenario involving the Kings, Warriors, and Pistons just to make the math work. That is what it takes to move Young right now. You need a team desperate for star power that thinks they can hide his defensive flaws.
Sacramento has been floated as a destination, which is intriguing. But even then, you have to wonder if they want to pair him with Zach Levine and DeMar DeRozan. The market isn’t exactly robust. Most contending teams already have their lead guard, and rebuilding teams don’t want to mess up their timeline with a veteran on a massive deal.
Atlanta is in a tough spot. They need to move him to upgrade the roster with someone like Davis, but they might have to sell low just to get the deal done.
The Risk of Blowing It All Up
There is always a risk in trading a guy who has been an All-Star multiple times. Maybe he goes elsewhere and rediscovers his stroke. Maybe the Hawks trade him and realize they don’t have anyone else who can create a shot in crunch time.
But holding onto the past is the quickest way to kill your future. The Hawks have some nice pieces. Jalen Johnson looks like a keeper. They have draft capital. But as long as the offense revolves entirely around Young, they have a ceiling. And right now, that ceiling is incredibly low.
It is time to rip the band-aid off. The Trae Young era was fun. It gave the city some incredible moments. But the magic is gone. The Hawks need a fresh start, and frankly, so does Young. Whether he lands in Sacramento or some other mystery city, it is clear that his time in Atlanta has run its course.
