Hawks vindicated for selling low on Trae Young after Jalen Johnson’s breakout

The Atlanta Hawks traded Trae Young for pennies on the dollar, but without this move, Jalen Johnson would never have had the breakout season he’s currently experiencing.

Whether you love him or hate him, we all know Young’s style of play. He dominates possession of the ball, weaponizing his pick and roll and isolation ball-handling prowess to create advantages for the team. While he has plateaued as a scorer in recent years, Young is one of the greatest playmakers of his generation.

But what if Jalen Johnson is the better playmaker?

Listed are Johnson’s per-game rankings in various playmaking categories this season: 3rd in assists (8.2), 3rd in passes (65.4), 3rd in points from assists (21.3), and 2nd in potential assists (14.5).

Young posted a similarly impressive host of numbers last season, ranking 3rd in passes and 1st in assists, potential assists, and points from assists (all per-game). While Young’s first-place rankings are nominally better than Johnson’s top-three finishes, it is worth noting one critical difference: Young held the ball for 46.4% the time spent on offensive possessions, while Johnson’s on-ball rate is a mere 27.1% this year.

Johnson is reaching Trae-level impact without Trae-level consequences

While most of Young’s critics focus on his defensive deficiencies, astute observers also lament the downstream impact of his ball dominance. To put it simply, if Young isn’t a world-class scorer, do you really want him hogging the ball? 

Johnson is spearheading the 10th-best offense in the league by EFG% per Cleaning the Glass, and this is with quite a limited supporting cast. His offensive co-stars, Young and Kristaps Porzingis, played a combined 27 games this season before being traded. His next best offensive players are Onyeka Okongwu, CJ McCollum, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker. This trio is talented, but they are not equipped to be the second option on a potent offense.

Nonetheless, Johnson has dragged a team of offensive misfits to a solid season. In fact, the team’s 10th-ranked EFG% is the highest Atlanta has seen since 2021-22. Johnson is leading a better team offense despite this being his first season as the primary option.

With Young on the team – and his nearly 50% on-ball percentage – Johnson never would have had the opportunity to develop as a playmaker. 

While it hurt to trade Young, and it hurt even more to get pennies on the dollar in return, the truth is that this move was addition by subtraction. By removing Young from the team, Johnson has been able to find his footing as a lead star.