5 best potential landing spots for Trae Young if traded by the Hawks

Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young’s future is uncertain if the trade deadline chatter proves true, with the front office exploring their options with the three-time All-Star. 

He still has three years and $138 million on his five-year, $215.1 million contract. 

Young also has maintained that he wants to stay in Atlanta so long as the front office’s goal is to compete. But Young can opt out of the deal one year early, which pushes the Hawks’ timeline forward.

We’ve looked at the best potential packages for Young, but what about the best landing spots?

It would have to be a team that’s already contending or would get there with potential Young’s addition, meaning the trade itself can’t undo them.

1) Trae Young could help Anthony Edwards, Timberwolves get over the hump

The Minnesota Timberwolves are in the Western Conference Finals for the first time since the 2003-04 season. They also appear destined for a similar fate. 

The Timberwolves lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in six games in 2004.

This year, they find are trailing Luka Doncic, Kyrie Irving, and the Dallas Mavericks three games to one. Minnesota has been plagued by issues with their late-game offense and general execution in the series.

Young finished last season tied with the seventh-most clutch points per game among players with at least 10 such contests with 3.5 points per game.

He was among the league leaders in 2022-23 too, pointing to a potential fit in Minny.

It’s not a pairing that makes sense at first blush; pairing Young with another ball-dominant star in Dejounte Murray hasn’t played out as desired. There is reason to believe a similar pairing with Timberwolves star Anthony Edwards would suffer the same fate.

Karl-Anthony Towns had the second-highest usage rate among players with 60-plus appearances on the Timberwolves in the regular season at 27.4%, per Basketball Reference.

Edwards could come down from his career-high 32.4% mark.

Young’s usage rate has not been below 30% since his rookie season, reaching its second-lowest point this past year at 30.5%. That still represents a second consecutive drop from the previous season. 

Wherever Young lands – or even if he stays with the Hawks – he will likely have to share the ball more. But that is especially true if the team is already a contender. 

He did shoot 38.9% on catch-and-shoot threes last season, per NBA.com tracking data.