Trae Young sends 3-word message on Hawks teammate's on-court moment

The Atlanta Hawks’ loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder in the preseason finale was a family affair.

Hawks guard Keaton Wallace got the opportunity to face off against his younger brother, Thunder guard Cason Wallace, for the first time, according to the former during the game’s broadcast.

The brothers shared the court during the game and met up after to exchange pleasantries.

Hawks star Trae Young appreciated the gravity of the situation, sharing a three-word message in reaction.

“This so tough!” Young posted to his Instagram stories along with a pair of fire emojis.

Keaton Wallace finished the night with 8 points, 2 assists, 2 rebounds, and 2 steal s in 21 minutes. He shot 60% from the floor overall but was 1-for-3 from beyond the arc. He also sunk his lone attempt at the free throw line.

Cason Wallace had 5 points, 6 boards, 3 dimes, 1 block, and a steal in 22 minutes for the Thunder, whose starters got all they could handle from the Hawks backups.

The siblings have taken different routes to get where they are.

Cason Wallace was the No. 10 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft and a player the Hawks were linked to during the pre-draft process. He backed out of a pre-draft workout with the Hawks, similar to No. 2 pick Alexandre Sarr this year.

Keaton Wallace was an undrafted free agent out of Texas-San Antonio in 2021. He has also spent time with the Los Angeles Clippers.

Trae Young bought into new-look Hawks

Young’s buy-in has reached a different level. He has taken on a heightened sense of leadership and it has shown in various ways throughout the offseason.

He was open about wanting to disprove the doubts about the new-look Hawks, with those comments coming after rumors about his potential trade this offseason. Young previously rejected the idea that he would have been traded if the Hawks could have found a taker.

Young has never publicly pushed for a trade.

His only public push has been for the team to compete for deep playoff runs, leaving everything else open to interpretation.

But Young’s messaging has been matched by his actions. That has to be as encouraging as any on-court development for the Hawks in a clear season of transition. They can sort through other items knowing their high-priced star is not trying to cause waves.

More than that, though, Young is taking ownership of the group.

“I want to get back to where I've been,” Young said on the “Million Dollars Worth of Game” podcast in September. “A lot of people look at our roster and don't have a lot of high expectations, so that's sometimes good for a player like me who's been built on beating expectations his whole life. So I'm just ready to play and beat expectations and whatever that ends up being, I'm going to be ready for it and excited for it.”

Hawks head coach Quin Snyder has commended Young for his efforts, and it began before the Hawks ever reported for camp.

That as much as anything is reason to believe this team could indeed surprise some and make it to the playoffs again after missing in 2023-24. Even if they have to work their way through the Play-In Tournament, this group appears better equipped to stun a team or two en route to the playoffs.