NBA intel: League reaction to the Trae Young trade and what’s next

The NBA trade season ended on Wednesday night, with one former franchise player making a fresh start.

trey youngface of atlanta hawks The franchise’s most productive player for most of the last decade and arguably the Hall of Famer since Dominic Wilkinswas sent to washington wizards for the guard CJ McCallum And corey kispert,

Why did Atlanta and Washington make this deal now? What’s next in the development of both franchises? This is a lucrative deal with ripple effects for both teams and the entire NBA. Let’s take a look at them all, as well as examine how the Young trade could impact other looming potential deals in the league.

Go to a section:
Trade impact on Hawks , magicians
League insiders examine the deal
More deadline extensions for Atlanta?
Why couldn’t Wizards pass the try?
Are more star trades on the horizon?

Why did Atlanta make this trade?

When Atlanta decided not to extend Young last offseason, it started the countdown to the end of his tenure with the team that drafted him at No. 5 overall in 2018.

Hawks, Joe Did sign guard dyson daniels And Nichelle Alexander-Walker The four-year, $162 million contract made it clear that the 27-year-old Young was not necessarily in the future of the franchise.

That’s when Young and his agents began looking for an off-ramp – and a team that would pay him during his prime years. Young had some leverage; He could decline his player option for 2026-27 and go via unrestricted free agency this July.

Atlanta decided not to wait, a decision made easy by Atlanta’s 2-8 record in the 10 games Young played in this season – the guard was sidelined for nearly two months due to a quad injury – and he slumped to 14 points per 100 possessions when he was on the court.

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Why Stephen A. doesn’t think much about the Wizards’ trade for Trae Young

Stephen A. Smith reacts to the Hawks trading Trae Young to the Wizards.

Now that means the Hawks can fully lean into a young core featuring an All-Star for the first time jalen johnsonLast year’s number 1 pick zachery rischarDaniels, last year’s most improved player, and Alexander-Walker, who has proven to be an excellent free agent signing.

That grouping, with any one Onyeka Okongwu Or kristaps porzingis Playing centre, has been very successful this season. Add potential top-6 selection in 2026 NBA Draft through New Orleans Pelicans Or milwaukee bucks And nearly $30 million in cap space, and Atlanta now has a chance to become a consistent contender in the Eastern Conference.

“Aside from a few details, this trade was essentially a three-way deal where the Pelicans got Jordan PooleThe Hawks got CJ McCollum and the Wizards got Trae Young,” an East executive told ESPN, referring to the Poole-McCallum swap from last June.

“If it had all happened at once over the summer, there might have been a few more questions for Atlanta. But the way this season has played out and how great Jalen has been [Johnson] Having taken on the role as a producer, it makes more sense now.”

Why did Washington make this trade?

This was an important move that Wizards could not afford to skip. Young is a four-time All-Star and multiple-time league assists leader who is in a position of great need.

He can facilitate the offense for recent draft selections at shooting guard trey johnson (No. 6 in 2025), big man Alex Sarr (No. 2 in 2024) and beyond kishawn george (No. 20 in 2024). And the cost of picking up Young’s $49 million player option for the 2026-27 season wasn’t an issue for a team that was projected to hit the offseason with $80 million in cap space. (Washington also paid $14 million by sending Kispert to the Hawks.)

“It’s pre-agency,” said a second East executive. “The Wizards are using the cap space in this deal that they would have had this summer.”

The Wizards are hoping to copy one of two recent moves. In 2019, Oklahoma City was entering a roster restructuring period after being traded. paul george And Russell WestbrookBringing in veteran point guard Chris Paul helped develop young teammates on the roster, including future MVP Shai Gilgeous-AlexanderThe second one was in 2023 when Houston RocketsIn the situation where the Wizards are now, many were hoping to turn their situation around after drafting prospects and acquiring an experienced point guard offensively. Fred VanVleet In free agency.

What did the league think of the deal?

The prevailing opinion from sources around the league was that Atlanta did well to move away from Young in Young on a player who is extremely expensive and plays a position, point guard, that may be the NBA’s deepest.

One East scout said, “I know from a value proposition why you look at it.” “But if I’m the wizard, just keep being evil, and things will make sense on their own. I’m not sure why they felt the need to do that.”

A Western Conference executive pointed to Young’s defensive shortcomings, along with the increase in offensive production around the league, making it difficult to bet on Young’s future value.

“It’s much easier to commit crimes now,” the executive said. “One of the worst teams in the league can still easily put up 115 points a game. … It’s hard for these smaller point guards to understand the true value of how the game is played now.”

Meanwhile, the strong expectation around the league is that Young will sign an extension with the Wizards. The league’s evaluation of the deal, multiple executives said, depends on what contract Young agrees to with the Wizards and his production over the next few seasons.

What’s next for the Hawks?

Ahead of the 2024–25 season, the Hawks were limited in the future and were out of draft picks due to the heavy price paid for the acquisition. Dejounte Murray From San Antonio Spurs,

The Hawks’ front office has made four major moves since then. He sold Murray to New Orleans and acquired Daniels; Have been taken deandre hunter Cleveland signs Alexander-Walker to create cap flexibility; Completed a draft-night deal with the Pelicans that gave him a potential high lottery pick in the 2026 draft; And now they’ve traded Young in a cap-clearing move. Rival executives viewed the contracts awarded to Johnson, Alexander-Walker and Daniels as sensible.

It’s not yet clear what their move will be this summer to acquire Porzingis, who has battled illness throughout the season and is on his own expiring contract. But the Hawks’ roster becomes younger and more balanced after Wednesday’s trade.

There have been discussions between the Hawks and Mavericks about this anthony davisBut talks are not active at the moment, sources said, though it is something to monitor over the next month. But with a young core and future salary flexibility, as well as the potential for a high lottery selection in Atlanta, the Hawks appear to be in no rush.

What’s next for Wizards?

Wizards’ 2026 first-round draft pick goes to new York Knicks If it falls out of the top eight. This cannot and will not happen.

They wouldn’t say it in public – just like that utah jazzThose in similar positions in the Western Conference likely won’t do the same — but maintaining that protected pick would appear to be Washington’s top priority.

The Wizards have won five of their last seven games thanks to McCollum’s recent strong play, and it’s unclear when or how much Young will be on the court for Washington this season.

“They may say it’s a coincidence,” said another scout, “but they’re making this deal when McCullum was leading them to wins he probably didn’t need to play a role in.”

Young is recovering from a knee sprain and four concussions. Expect the Wizards to take as much time as they need – and maybe even more – to fix it.

This situation calls for attention Toronto Raptors They are doing what they can to protect their choices by making deals last season brandon ingram At the trade deadline. Like Young, Ingram was ready for a new contract.

Ingram, who was dealing with a serious ankle sprain at the time, did not play a minute after the Raptors acquired him last season, even after agreeing to a three-year, $120 million extension at the time of the trade.

“Such is life under us [draft] Lottery system, with partially protected draft selections,” said one executive. “You have a team [the Hawks] There is no option to trade with a player because they were losing too much while he was playing.

“And you have another team [the Wizards] Who desperately needs to keep his choices, who can find a reason not to play the same player because if he plays they can win a lot more.”

What does this mean for the rest of the trading session?

With Young off the board, the question is will he be the biggest name traded this deadline season or will another star deal be struck – whatever it may be giannis antetokounmpoDavis or some surprise entry (a la luka doncic Previous Season) – Comes into effect between now and February 5.

Antetokounmpo again dismissed the idea of ​​a trade in an interview with The Athletic on Wednesday, declaring he would never ask out of Milwaukee. Sources have reiterated for weeks that the Bucks have no intention of moving him, and will instead scour the trade market for a move on the two-time MVP.

Davis’s position is more fluid. The Mavericks are still looking for a long-term replacement at general manager amid the dynamics of their desire to build long-term around the No. 1 pick. cooper flagThe fact that Davis — who will turn 33 in March, has a long injury history and is owed $58 million next year and has a $62 million player option for the 2027-28 season — is a sluggish market makes it difficult to see how and where a deal would come from.

A third East executive said, “I don’t understand why they wouldn’t keep him.” “Just let things play out, get to the summer time when it’s easier to make a move like this, and see where things stand.”

A third Eastern Scout said: “[Dallas] Ownership wants to see those guys playing together before they do anything, and until they do, I don’t think they’ll rush into doing anything. …I’m not optimistic that it’s anywhere close to the value they expect it to be.”

There’s a real possibility that Young is actually the biggest name in the business between now and February 5th. Between the lack of options available in the league and many teams stuck in difficult and move-limited financial situations, many scouts and executives predict a slow trade deadline.

Then again, that’s what people thought last year – certainly the most surprising trade in league history happened less than a week before the deadline.

One of the teams involved in the Doncic trade – the Lakers – is a prime example of why this deadline could be cool. Despite the team’s obvious flaws, particularly on defense, the Lakers have limited draft assets and are just a million dollars short of their first-apron hard cap for the season, giving them little flexibility to make the roster improvements needed to truly become a threat in the West.

Another West executive said, “They need to move fast for the offseason.” “They can’t realistically add anything to the roster. They don’t have any solutions.

“They’re focused on maintaining cap space and trying to make moves on the margins, and it’s hard to find a lot that makes sense.”