One of the biggest storylines in the NBA this offseason is going to be what the Hawks decide to do with their backcourt duo of Trae Young and Dejounte Murray. Since trading a lot of draft capital for Murray, the results for the Hawks have been underwhelming on the court. Atlanta has only made the playoffs once since trading for Murray and that was a first round loss to Boston last season. The Hawks were reportedly shopping Murray leading up to the trade deadline but decided not to make a move.
There have been rumblings about the Hawks possibly trading Young this offseason, something that seemed unthinkable just a couple of years ago. Among the teams that have been rumored to possibly be interested in trading for Young was the San Antonio Spurs. There has been speculation about the Spurs pairing Young with Victor Wembanyama, but it has just been speculation and according to a report from Yahoo Sports Jake Fischer, the Spurs might not be all that interested in acquiring Young, at least not right now.
“San Antonio personnel would be committing front-office malpractice by not contemplating the opportunity to pair a league assist leader and high-screen maestro like Young to pair with Wembanyama. The Spurs have so far approached building around Wembanyama as an intriguing experiment, where they will weigh all different kinds of variables around their Rookie of the Year. However, according to multiple league figures with knowledge of the situation, any Spurs plans of maneuvering to bring Young to San Antonio have been vastly overstated. The Spurs, sources said, have expressed little interest in obtaining Young to date.”
Fischer went on to mention the Lakers as a possible destination for Young, which has been rumored for quite some time.
“Where Young will fall among the pecking order of available talent this offseason has been a predominant question league personnel are discussing throughout this combine week. The Lakers, for example, are one team that holds interest in Young after Los Angeles held trade discussions with Atlanta about Dejounte Murray back in February, sources said. The Lakers are now armed with three first-round picks to pursue a premier talent to team with James and Davis, but Los Angeles will have to consider other options before committing any type of capital for Young.”For now, this is all just speculation and there is no indication from the Hawks yet that they are even shopping Young. While it is likely that one of the guards is gone this offseason, it is still up in the ar as to which one it could be,
It is interesting that the Spurs reportedly are not interested in bringing in Young. The fit seems to be a logical one, as Young is one of the top offensive creators in the NBA and he would create a great pick-and-roll team with Wembanyama. Wembanyama is one of the best defensive players in the league already and would help cover up the weakest part of Young’s game. Also, the Spurs control the Hawks’s draft picks, meaning Atlanta could try and go into a rebuild if they can get them back.
It promises to be an interesting offseason in Atlanta and getting the No. 1 pick only adds a layer of interest around what the Hawks might do this offseason.
