Atlanta Hawks: Trae Young Flashed Superstar Potential vs. Spurs

For the first time in his young career, the Atlanta Hawks Trae Young flashed some superstar potential against the San Antonio Spurs in the preseason.

Some might say that NBA superstars have irrational confidence. For Atlanta Hawks fans, they know that Young already possesses immense belief in himself. Only someone who has strong faith in their own abilities would agree to a video like this as a rookie:

On a Thursday night in October, Trae Young flashed the first semblance of his superstar potential to the world. Despite it occurring in a preseason game, Young calmly brought the ball up the court meandered a bit very close to the jump-ball circle and politely drilled a 30-foot three-pointer to ice the game against the San Antonio Spurs.

If you follow our social media accounts (Facebook & Twitter mostly), you’ve seen the clip multiple times already, but here it is once again for good measure:

I get it. Ice Trae has yet to play a single minute of regular season basketball, so any excitement should be tempered and shelved until we see how he performs when the effort level is a bit higher from (almost) all players.

However, just look at the steely resolve on his face after he drains the shot. Completely icy. He doesn’t even offer up a mild smirk until his teammate Kent Bazemore gallops over and starts to hype him up. That is something an ultra-confident superstar would do, not a wide-eyed rookie who has yet to play a minute in the regular season.

When the Atlanta Hawks traded the rights to the #3 pick (which ended up being Luka Doncic) for the rights to the #5 pick (which ended up being Young) and a future first round pick, there were many that were not impressed with the decision.

Though Young’s ceiling was equivalently high, it seemed that Doncic’s proven production in a league far superior to the NCAA was more attractive to the Mavs than the streaky long-range shooting that Young produced in his college career.

Now, however, after watching Young drill a game-winning three from almost half-court with a nonchalance that bordered on disrespectful (in a good way if you’re an Atlanta Hawks fan), one can’t help but feel that GM Travis Schlenk might have made the right choice.

I know, I know: “it’s early,” “the game didn’t count,” “talk to me when it’s the regular season.”

I understand all those caveats. But you can’t tell me that watching this clip doesn’t give you goosebumps:

No matter what happens next season, Trae Young will be a joy to watch on the Atlanta Hawks.

Sure, there will be bumps in the road, but that’s what happens for a young player. If he can build off of that amazing, game-winning performance, the Atlanta Hawks have a bright future ahead of them. As does Trae Young.