My dad used to tell me stories about Dominique Wilkins throwing down dunks that made State Farm Arena shake. He would get this look in his eyes talking about Dikembe Mutombo wagging his finger after blocking shots into the third row.
Growing up in Atlanta, I learned that being a Hawks fan meant holding onto hope even when the rest of the NBA forgot we existed. And then Trae Young showed up and gave us something we had not felt in decades. Real, genuine belief that we mattered.
Now, on January 5, 2026, ESPN’s Shams Charania is reporting that Trae and his agents are working with the Hawks to find a trade. Multiple teams have emerged as potential destinations, from the Washington Wizards to the Milwaukee Bucks to the Orlando Magic. And I am sitting here trying to figure out how I am supposed to feel about watching this city’s basketball son get shipped out of town.
This hurts. But I also understand why it is happening. Let me try to make sense of all this.
The Night I Became a Trae Young Believer
I remember exactly where I was on draft night 2018. The Hawks traded the third pick to Dallas for the fifth pick and a future first rounder. We gave up Luka Doncic before he ever wore our jersey. The internet exploded. Every national media person said we were idiots. My group chat was on fire with friends telling me the franchise had blown it forever.
Then I watched Trae Young play.
That confidence. That swagger. The way he pulled up from the logo like it was nothing. The passes that made you rewind your TV because you could not believe what you just saw. I thought maybe, just maybe, we got ourselves a real one.
And in 2021, he proved it. Trae dropped 48 points on the Milwaukee Bucks in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals. He shimmied on Jrue Holiday. He bowed to hostile crowds in New York and Philadelphia after sending their fans home crying.
For one magical playoff run, the Atlanta Hawks were the most exciting team in basketball. My dad called me after that Game 1 win and said he had not felt that way about the Hawks since Nique was flying through the lane.
We lost that series in six games after Trae got hurt stepping on a referee’s foot in Game 3. The Bucks went on to win the championship. But for those few weeks, Atlanta believed we could hang a banner. Trae gave us that feeling.
The Painful Reality of Where We Are Now
So why am I not more upset about this trade? Because I have watched every game this season, and I cannot lie to myself anymore.
Trae has only played 10 games in 2025-26 because of a knee injury. In those 10 games, we went 2-8. We gave up almost 127 points per game with him on the floor. When he was out for 27 games, we went 15-12 and only allowed about 117 points per game. Read those numbers again. We were legitimately better without our franchise player.
His stats have fallen off a cliff too. He is averaging 19.3 points and 8.9 assists while shooting 41.5% from the field and 30.5% from three. Last year he led the entire NBA in assists with 11.6 per game and scored over 24 points a night. Something is wrong, and I do not know if it is the injuries or if Father Time is coming early for a player who relies so much on quickness.
ESPN’s Tim MacMahon reported that Atlanta is “looking for the exit ramp” with Young. That phrase stings, but it is accurate. The Hawks declined to offer Trae an extension last summer. They brought in Kristaps Porzingis and Nickeil Alexander-Walker trying to surround him with talent. But at 17-20 and barely hanging onto the 10th seed, nothing has worked.
One NBA executive told Ryen Russillo something that hurt to read but rang true. He said Trae does not defend, does not rebound, and that guys hate playing with him. Whether that last part is fair or not, the perception around the league is clear. Trae’s value has cratered.
Jalen Johnson Made This Decision Easier
Here is the part that softens the blow. While Trae was out, Jalen Johnson became a legitimate star right before our eyes.
The man is averaging 24.0 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 8.5 assists per game. He is shooting 52.6% from the floor and hitting 37.7% of his threes. He is getting All-Star votes. He can guard multiple positions. At 6-foot-8 with handles like a point guard, Johnson is exactly what the modern NBA wants from its best players.
I love Trae Young. But watching Jalen Johnson this season has shown me what a two-way star looks like. He can create offense and actually stop someone on the other end. That is something Trae has never been able to do, no matter how hard he tried. You cannot hide a small guard in today’s NBA. Teams will hunt him every single possession.
Johnson signed his extension. He is 24 years old. He is the future. And as much as it hurts to admit, keeping both him and Trae does not make sense financially or on the court.
The Trade Proposals on the Table
So where might Trae end up? Here are the three most realistic destinations being discussed right now.
- Washington Wizards: The frontrunner according to Marc Stein. The deal would center around CJ McCollum’s expiring $30.7 million contract. Washington would likely need to include young players like Malaki Branham and AJ Johnson to make the salaries work, plus a 2026 first-round pick.
The connection makes sense because Wizards VP Travis Schlenk is the same executive who drafted Trae back in 2018. - Milwaukee Bucks: Multiple outlets have reported a potential package of Kyle Kuzma, Bobby Portis, Andre Jackson Jr., and a 2026 first-round pick. The Bucks are desperate to add talent around Giannis Antetokounmpo after the Damian Lillard experiment failed.
Pairing Trae with Giannis in pick-and-roll situations could be devastating offensively. Kuzma is making $22.4 million this season and averaging 13.0 points per game, while Portis is contributing 13.1 points and 6.4 rebounds. - Orlando Magic: Perhaps the most intriguing fit. Orlando has been searching for a true point guard for years. Jalen Suggs and Anthony Black are talented defenders but neither creates offense the way Trae does.
Putting Trae alongside Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner gives Orlando the playmaker it desperately needs. The Magic have enough defensive versatility to potentially cover for Trae’s weaknesses on that end.
The Luka Question That Will Never Go Away
I know what you are thinking. You are thinking about Luka Doncic and that trade. Trust me, I think about it too. Probably more than I should.
Luka became a global superstar. He has been to the NBA Finals. He puts up video game numbers every single night. Meanwhile, Trae made one conference finals run and has missed the playoffs two straight years. The internet loves to remind Atlanta fans that we “got fleeced” in that trade.
But here is what I will say. Trae Young gave this city moments that nobody can take away. That playoff run in 2021 meant everything to Hawks fans who had been starving for relevance. He became our all-time leader in assists and three pointers. He made four All-Star teams. He put Atlanta basketball back on the map after years of being an afterthought.
Would I trade places with Dallas? Honestly, probably yes. But I refuse to act like Trae Young did nothing for us. That is disrespectful to someone who gave everything he had to this franchise.
What Hurts Most About All of This
The part that really stings is how far Trae’s value has fallen. Multiple league executives told Michael Scotto of HoopsHype that Young might have to pick up his $49 million player option for next season because his free agent market could be barren. Think about that. A four-time All-Star might not have teams lining up to sign him.
The Hawks might have to include draft picks just to get someone to take Trae’s contract. A player who was untouchable three years ago is now being treated like a salary dump. One rival scout told Sam Amick that Trae is “an extremely difficult player to win at the highest level with.” Fair or not, that is the reputation he carries now.
The trade deadline is February 5, 2026. Both sides seem motivated to get something done before then.
Saying Goodbye to an Era
My dad never got to see Dominique win a championship. He never got to see Mutombo bring a title to Atlanta. He passed that tradition of heartbreak down to me, and I have accepted it as part of being a Hawks fan.
But Trae Young gave us hope. Real hope. The kind where you buy playoff tickets in advance because you actually believe your team can win. The kind where you argue with your coworkers about your point guard being better than their point guard. The kind where you feel proud to rep your city’s team.
Whatever happens next, I will always be grateful for those moments. The shimmy. The bow. The ice cold daggers from 30 feet. The way he made Madison Square Garden go silent.
Thank you, Trae. Atlanta will never forget what you gave us. Even if it is time to move on, you will always be part of this city’s basketball story. Right there next to Nique and Mutombo and everyone else who made us believe.
Now if you will excuse me, I need to go buy a Jalen Johnson jersey. The rebuild starts now.
