Shams Charania of ESPN reported on Wednesday that Trae Young’s preferred trade destination is the Washington Wizards. This all but confirms Young is on his way out sooner than later.
The Atlanta Hawks’ star point guard has been in the midst of contract negotiations since the offseason, but no conclusion has been reached. Young has a $49 million player option for next season, but his preferred outcome would be to opt out and extend at a similar figure.
The Hawks, however, are skeptical that he is worth such a lofty figure. GM Onsi Saleh has exercised caution at just about every step of his brief tenure as the lead executive. He haggled Dyson Daniels down to $25 million annually, which was widely regarded as a steal of a deal. He landed Kristaps Porzingis for peanuts during the Celtics’ summer fire sale. He even moved on from Kobe Bufkin, despite the fact that he was only set to earn $4.5 million and could have been of use.
Saleh recognizes the value of cap space, and he hasn’t had the chance to assemble his ideal version of the Hawks. This is his chance to wipe the Hawks’ slate clean and rebuild for the Jalen Johnson era.
What is the path forward?
The building blocks in Atlanta, in order of importance, are Jalen Johnson, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Zaccharie Risacher, and Dyson Daniels.
Johnson will assume the role of offensive leader, a position he is well-equipped to handle. Alexander-Walker and Daniels will both play two-way combo guard roles à la Jrue Holiday and Derrick White, and Risacher will be the complementary forward who covers for Johnson’s lack of spacing and defensive effort.
This leaves a few major areas to address, first and foremost, the center position. Onyeka Okongwu is an excellent backup five who can play serious minutes at power forward, but he simply cannot hold his own against the NBA's elite centers.
Kristaps Porzingis would be the perfect starter to support Double O, but he cannot be relied upon for regular appearances at this stage in his career. The Hawks should look to swing on a star-caliber center – preferably one who can space the floor, as Daniels is a clear non-shooter.
Next, Atlanta must address the bench forward position. Outside of Johnson, Risacher, and Okongwu, the team has serious depth issues at forward (and Okongwu plays the vast majority of his minutes at center).
Finally, the Hawks must add a true halfcourt scorer. Perhaps Johnson can become this player one day, but alas, he has not proven himself to be an effective scorer when the game slows down. This will be the area where Atlanta misses Young the most.
Expect a flurry of moves as Saleh looks to build his perfect team. With the cap space freed up by Young’s departure, the Hawks can be major players during this trade season.