Trae Young is reportedly going to decline his player option with the Washington Wizards, making him an unrestricted free agent this summer. If the Los Angeles Lakers get sucked into offering him a contract, Luka Doncic could soon learn a lesson the Atlanta Hawks know too well: Young doesn’t work well with another ball-dominant guard.
When the Hawks traded for Dejounte Murray, they wanted to get Young some help. But in the end, it became clear that one basketball wasn’t enough to go around. The experiment failed, and Atlanta ended up trading Murray to the New Orleans Pelicans. Eventually, the Hawks got rid of Young altogether, deciding that they wanted to build around Jalen Johnson instead.
So, if the Lakers decide to sign Young in free agency, they could learn the same lesson Atlanta did.
If Lakers sign Trae Young, it would be a disaster
Young isn’t the easiest player to win with. Obviously, he led the Hawks to the Eastern Conference finals in 2021, but that took a very specific set of circumstances to accomplish.
Obviously, matchups help out, but the Hawks beat some solid players. However, they also built the team completely around Young. He was the only guy who needed the ball in his hands at all times.
The Hawks ran it back, and it failed miserably. They fell short over and over before trading for Murray, and then that experiment didn’t work. They both needed the ball.
In theory, Murray’s shooting could allow him to play off the ball, but he’s not that good of a three-point shooter. And again, in the end, the Hawks moved on from both Murray and Young.
Now, as Young gets set to enter free agency this summer, it could take a certain set of circumstances for him to find a landing spot that fits him well. And the Lakers definitely aren’t that landing spot.
Doncic is already in LA. The Lakers have a guy who is going to have the ball in his hands the majority of the time. Adding another guy who needs the ball would be a terrible idea.
Young and Doncic would just constantly be fighting over touches. At least with Reaves, the Lakers have a great three-point shooter who can play off the ball at times.
For as great as Young can be with the ball in his hands, he’s not an amazing pure three-point shooter. That, and his size, limit his ability to play off the ball.
If the Lakers sign Young, they would subject Doncic to learning a brutal lesson.
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