The Atlanta Hawks were expected by many people to make a major jump up the standings in the Eastern Conference this NBA season. Their acquisition of All-Star point guard Dejounte Murray from the San Antonio Spurs was almost universally lauded as the perfect complement to Trae Young in the backcourt.
Murray would be able to take pressure off of Young, who was the sole creator for the Hawks offensively in recent seasons. The ball was always in his hand whether it was looking to score himself or facilitate. With Murray in the mix, it would enable him to play off the ball more, giving Nate McMillan some flexibility with his lineups.
Unfortunately for the Hawks, things have not gone according to plan. Since their hot start to the season, things have been rocky. Travis Schlenk was moved into an advisory role with the team as general manager Landry Fields took on a larger role in the front office.
Tensions have also risen between Young and McMillan, to the point that the head coach contemplated resigning from his position. A power struggle between an All-Star player and head coach never goes well for the head coach, so you can expect a change to be made sooner than later on the sidelines.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Trae Young & Atlanta Hawks Updates
Is there a chance that both McMillan and Young are gone from the Hawks this off-season? According to a source that spoke to Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report, there is certainly a possibility of that occurring.
“Bookmark this one for later. The Atlanta Hawks are looking to make changes, and while Trae Young is not asking out and the team isn’t trying to trade him, this could be a hot topic in the offseason.
“I think Trae will want out after the season,” one NBA source said. “The Hawks probably try to get out of John Collins and others by the deadline, but Trae’s a long shot. Maybe the [Lakers] in July with his ties to Klutch [Sports].”
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Trae Young & Atlanta Hawks Updates
That would be quite a turn of events in Atlanta if Young were to demand a trade out of town. Young is in the first season of a five-year, $215 million rookie supermax extension, but as we’ve seen, the length of the contract doesn’t matter to these players that want a change of scenery.
With Murray in the fold, the Hawks at least have an All-Star point guard to run the team should things get to the point that Young is traded. Given the kind of trade packages that we saw All-Stars acquired for during the 2022 offseason, the asking price for Young would assuredly be astronomical.
LATEST NBA NEWS & TRADE RUMORS: Trae Young & Atlanta Hawks Updates
Another early exit from the postseason and anything could be on the table in Atlanta. They made an all-in move acquiring Murray, but could easily do a soft reset around him this offseason using pieces acquired in a Young deal.
