Atlanta Hawks: Impact of Trae Young’s max extension on the roster
Atlanta Hawks point guard Trae Young has been incredible over his first few seasons. He even transformed his game on the way to leading the Hawks to the Eastern Conference Finals while averaging 28.8 points and 9.5 assists per game in his first postseason appearance.
He also went into two of the toughest venues to win and ended the home team’s seasons in New York and Philadelphia.
For his efforts, Sam Amick of The Athletic reported that Young and the Hawks were expected to come to terms on a five-year, $170 million extension once league rules allowed.
The Atlanta Hawks will have to operate a little differently as they begin to reward their own players
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ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski would later confirm the new deal’s value to be $207 million over five years if he made All-NBA and that is has an out after the fourth year.
Young’s is one of two new deals expected to be made by the Hawks this offseason that will begin the clock on the young core.
All of the hits in the draft mean raises are in order for several of them while any others will just be in the right place at the right time. You can decide who is who.
The bottom line is the Hawks financials are about to get a lot more complicated.
The supermax will be triggered if Young makes an All-NBA team. But it immediately shifts the focus to the other deal, Collins’, which we got wind was at a stalemate.
It also brings the attention back to wing players like Kevin Huerter and Cam Reddish. The former is also extension eligible and the latter has been mentioned in trade rumors all offseason.
The depth of Atlanta paid dividends during last season and the run in the postseason, as they dealt with injuries to virtually every player of consequence. Reddish and De’Andre Hunter, in particular, both missed huge chunks of the year but offer a ton of promise.
Atlanta’s vets don’t get a pass, either. Bogdan Bogdanovic has at least $18 million left on his deal (and likely $36 million with his player option). But he was a starter. Danilo Gallinari will make over $40 million over the next two seasons to come off of the bench.
However, he only has $5 million of it guaranteed after next season.
None of this is a surprise, but Young is the first domino that takes the Hawks from “up-and-comer” to “contender” having to make various roster choices to maintain their spot.
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We’ll see what ultimately happens with Collins and Reddish — as well as any other Hawks for that matter — as free agency wears. But at least Hawks fans can rest assured that their superstar, franchise point guard isn’t going anywhere.