With Dejounte Murray and Trae Young in the backcourt, what will the Hawks decide to do?
For the next few months, that is the question that will dominate the Atlanta Hawks offseason and determine the team’s future course. Atlanta could trade one of them, both of them, or, as the least likely option, keep both of them. The Hawks have not seen the same results since matching the two guards, and this will probably result in a split.
NBA analyst Zach Buckley suggests that the Hawks could send one of the best players in franchise history, Trae Young, to the New Orleans Pelicans and receive a respectable return if they decide to trade him.
What Buckley said was as follows:
“Despite having three players who scored 20 points or more in Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram, and CJ McCollum, the New Orleans Pelicans only placed 11th in terms of offensive efficiency. One problem was the lack of three-point volume, but another was the absence of a primary shot creator. Although Williamson, Ingram, and McCollum can all create a polished appearance for someone else, none of them rely on it as their primary skill.
Does that mean the Hawks should investigate the Young sweepstakes? They would have good reason to investigate given his stats, which include 10.8 assists per game and 3.2 three-pointers (on 37.3 percent shooting) this season.
Young would provide New Orleans with more off-the-dribble energy and a significant improvement in passing if he were to replace McCollum. Perhaps defense would not be a deal-breaker for that trio, but it already is not for the Williamson-Ingram-McCollum trio.
The key factor in this trade would be cost, and since Young is both a significant offensive asset and an obvious defensive liability, it is difficult to determine what would be considered fair value. McCollum would obviously have to be involved, but would he, Dyson Daniels, and a first-round pick be enough for both sides?
That feels fair, as it would give Atlanta pieces for both the present and future.”
