After being traded to the Atlanta Hawks by the Dallas Mavericks in exchange for Luka Doncic, star guard Trae Young has been under a lot of pressure to be one of the best players in the league and keep up with the superstar he was dealt for.
Ultimately, Doncic has proven to be the real deal for the Mavericks and is coming off leading Dallas to the NBA Finals for the first time, while Young has found it difficult to make the NBA playoffs as the face of the Hawks, even though he’s shown flashes of brilliance over the years in Atlanta.
At this point, the Hawks got the wrong end of the trade with the Mavericks, with Young being on the trading block for the last year or so and no teams willing to make a deal for the score-first point guard.
Although there’s no doubting Young’s talent, as he has the potential to be one of the best scoring guards in the league today, he doesn’t seem to be able to turn things around for the Hawks and might not have a long-term future in Atlanta as a result.
Interestingly enough, Young thinks quite highly of himself, as he recently said that he would’ve been the best player to ever play the game had he been 6’8″ via NBA Central.
“If I was 6’8″, I feel like I would be the best player ever to play this game,” Young said.
“If I was 6’8″, I feel like I would be the best player ever to play this game.”
– Trae Young
(Via @mworthofgame / h/t @AhnFireDigital )
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) September 9, 2024
That’s a bold and likely unwise thing to say for a player who has yet to prove that he’s a winner in the NBA, as every season he seems to take a step back rather than a giant leap forward as the Hawks brass anticipated after acquiring him.
As a player who could be on the cusp of getting traded sooner rather than later, it would probably be an intelligent move to refrain from making these statements, as few believe he’d be the greatest of all time had he been taller.
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