Atlanta Hawks point guard Trae Young has been one of the NBA’s more productive players since being drafted in 2018. For me, if the NBA had an Offensive Player of the Year award similar to the NFL, he would be in the running nearly every year. Statistically, Young is right there with the Association’s best in terms of scoring and assisting. He is in his 7th-straight season of at least 19 points and 8 assists a game, and the sixth averaging over 25 points per game.
Young has been a sublime scorer and shooter even going back to college. In his one season at the University of Oklahoma, he led the nation in scoring and assists—the first player ever to do so. But to carry that level of production into the NBA as one of the league’s smaller players—he’s listed at 6’0”—is remarkable in itself. Factor in that Young is a three-time All-Star and he truly is, in a foundational sense, really good at basketball.
If there is one area that Young and the Hawks would need to improve is more postseason success. Atlanta has reached the Eastern Conference Finals once in Young’s seven seasons, and have lost three times in the first round. Of course, failure or success is not solely dependent on one player. But Young is the face of the franchise, so he does carry some measure of responsibility to lift the team to be better.
That’s one of the factors of growth in a star player. It’s very easy to forget both how young these players are and simultaneously seeing how quickly these careers matriculate. Yes, we know how long the giants like LeBron, Steph and KD have been in the league. But those other players are creeping up there as well. Even with being in the NBA for seven seasons, he’s only 26. For perspective, Michael Jordan did not win a title until he was 28, and LeBron was 27. But even with that perspective, Young’s talent can be argued should elevate the Harms to more consistent second round appearance, at least.
Even with Young being a bit of an antihero—and a downright archnemesis to Knicks fans—his maturation is evident. There is far less on-court irritation, particularly with referees. And while he remains productive on offense, he has allowed other players to blossom, like Jalen Johnson and Dyson Daniels. He’s still “Ice Trae,” doing his signature shivering celebration after a big shot and mimicking shooting dice on the Knicks logo. But his growth is in his he plays the game. And the Atlanta Hawks have benefitted from it. Hopefully it will turn into more playoff success, but it will not be because Young hasn’t matured as a player and leader.
