Trae Young Rumors | Hoops Rumors

Trae Young In Health And Safety Protocols

December 19th, 2021 at 9:53am CST by Arthur Hill

Hawks star Trae Young has been placed in the NBA’s health and safety protocols, tweets Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN.

Young will definitely miss tonight’s game against the Cavaliers, Wojanarowski adds, and his status for a marquee Christmas Day contest with the Knicks is uncertain (Twitter link). If Young tested positive for COVID-19, he will stay in the protocols for 10 days unless he returns two consecutive negative tests more than 24 hours apart.

He’s putting together All-Star numbers again this season, averaging 27.3 points, 4.0 rebounds and 9.3 assists through 29 games. Counting tonight’s game, the Hawks are scheduled to play five times over the next 10 days.

Young is the first Atlanta player to enter the protocols. Keep up to date with all the cases around the league in our daily tracker.

Devin Booker, Trae Young Named Players Of The Week

November 29th, 2021 at 2:36pm CST by Luke Adams

Suns guard Devin Booker and Hawks guard Trae Young have been named the NBA’s Players of The Week for the Western Conference and Eastern Conference respectively, the league announced today (via Twitter).

Booker’s Suns went 4-0 during the week of November 22-28 to extend their winning streak to 16 games, while Young’s Hawks were 3-1.

Booker averaged 30.0 PPG and 3.5 APG on .530/.560/.900 shooting in victories over San Antonio, Cleveland, New York, and Brooklyn. Young put up 31.3 PPG and 8.5 APG with a .563/.517/.833 shooting line, scoring at least 30 points in all four of his games.

The other nominees for the awards this week were Stephen Curry, D’Angelo Russell, and Karl-Anthony Towns in the West, along with Jarrett Allen, Darius Garland, Kevin Durant, and Terry Rozier in the East (Twitter link).

Southeast Notes: Hawks, Hornets, Riley, Butler

October 31st, 2021 at 2:58pm CST by Alex Kirschenbaum

The 3-3 Hawks have yet to recapture the momentum that propelled them to the Eastern Conference Finals last season, writes Chris Kirschner of The Athletic. With an intimidating schedule coming up in which Atlanta will play several 2021 playoff teams, Kirschner offers his thoughts on how the club can adjust.

While forwards Cam Reddish and John Collins have exhibited plenty of growth, other key Hawks players have struggled a bit. Point guard Trae Young is struggling to adjust to the league’s new free throw rules, while shooting guard Kevin Huerter is struggling to connect from deep.

There’s more out of the Southeast Division:

The Hornets have already enjoyed a promising start to the 2021/22 season, writes Roderick Boone of the Charlotte Observer. New additions Ish Smith and Kelly Oubre have fit in well thus far, with Oubre connecting on a solid 35.7% of his three-point looks. 2022 restricted free agent forward Miles Bridges has taken his scoring to borderline All-Star heights, and Boone is pegging his future contract in the $100MM vicinity. When it comes to perimeter depth, Boone observes that Cody Martin, Jalen McDaniels, and Nick Richards are also improving.
The hot start of the Heat has Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel wondering if team president Pat Riley has finally nailed the club’s supporting lineup around All-Stars Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo. The club has wholly recalibrated its frontcourt depth around Adebayo, and the early results have paid dividends thus far. The addition of former Raptors All-Star point guard Kyle Lowry has made a huge defensive impact on Miami, though his offense is struggling so far. Sixth man Tyler Herro also appears to have taken a leap in his third season.
Heat All-Star swingman Jimmy Butler has thrived alongside new addition Kyle Lowry. Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald wonders if Butler has been newly maximized as a player alongside the former six-time All-Star point guard.

Trae Young Fined $15K For Contact With Referee

October 29th, 2021 at 7:41pm CST by Rory Maher

The NBA has fined Hawks point guard Trae Young $15K for making contact with a referee, the league announced (via Twitter).

The league also provided a video link of the incident, which occurred during the second quarter of Atlanta’s game Thursday night, a 122-111 loss to the Wizards.

Young appeared frustrated after not receiving a foul call after a slight bump from Raul Neto and a missed shot attempt, which was tipped in by John Collins immediately afterwards. Young then made contact with the referee closest to the play and received a technical foul.

Young made comments after the game that showed his frustration with the incident and the new rule changes to limit “non-basketball moves.”

Community Shootaround: Officiating Adjustments

October 29th, 2021 at 5:41pm CST by Rory Maher

A notable new change to officiating this season has been the emphasis on “non-basketball moves” from offensive players designed to draw contact from defenders. In the past, these plays were frequently called defensive fouls. This season, they’re supposed to be no-calls; in some instances, they’ve been called offensive fouls.

Hawks star Trae Young is on board with some of the new changes, but feels like the referees have swung too far in the opposite direction and haven’t been calling some legitimate fouls, per ESPN News Services.

“There’s a lot of missed calls,” Young said. “It’s basketball. It’s just, it feels that they’re learning, and they’re just — I don’t know. It’s frustrating.

“Veering back and jumping into guys — that’s different,” Young said. “There are certain things that, I agree with the rule changes, but then there’s things that are still fouls, and guys are going to get hurt. Especially a smaller guy like me who’s going up against bigger and stronger defenders, they’re using their body and they’re using their legs and their hands to stop me.”

Young made the comments following Atlanta’s 122-111 loss to the Wizards. He was subsequently fined $15K for making contact with a referee during the game.

Through five games this season, Young is averaging 4.4 free throw attempts per game. Last season, he averaged 8.7.

Another player known for drawing fouls is Nets star James Harden. Harden averaged 7.3 free throw attempts per game last season (8.7 career). Through five games this season, he’s averaging 3.0, a career low.

However, some players love the changes. Wizards forward Kyle Kuzma recently tweeted his support.

“The new rules changes to the sport are the best thing the league has done in recent history. Watching the game Is muuuuuch different,” Kuzma wrote.

Here’s some early foul call data that compares the start of this season to the start of last season, courtesy of Bobby Marks of ESPN (Twitter link).

This season, through 10 days: 13 teams are averaging less than 20 free throw attempts per game, and none are averaging more than 25 attempts per game.

Last season, through 10 days: Six teams averaged less than 20 free throw attempts per game, and eight teams averaged more than 25 attempts per game.

We want to know what you think. Have the changes resulted in a better viewing experience? Will the referees continue swallowing the whistle on “non-basketball moves”? Will free throw attempts stay down? Or is it too early to draw conclusions from the small sample size?

Head to the comment section to let us know your thoughts.

Eastern Notes: Harrell, Thybulle, Irving, Reddish, Toppin, Young

October 7th, 2021 at 9:45pm CST by Dana Gauruder

Former Sixth Man of the Year Montrezl Harrell feels like the Lakers didn’t play him enough last season, according to Chase Hughes of NBC Sports Washington. The Wizards big man is happy to get a fresh start. He averaged 4.2 fewer shot attempts per game with the Lakers than his final year with the Clippers.

“I’m trying to just get back to playing basketball freely and just get back to enjoying the game and just being able to help my team on both ends of the floor. I didn’t really get to be utilized how I wanted to be last year,” he said. “I damn near felt like I had a season off. So, I’m using this preseason to really ramp back up and knock off a lot of the rust on my own game, really.”

Playing more would help to boost his value. Harrell, who is making $9.72MM this season, will be an unrestricted free agent next summer.

We have more from the Eastern Conference:

Sixers swingman Matisse Thybulle has a sore right shoulder and will be out at least a week, Derek Bodner of The Athletic tweets. He’ll undergo rehab for the injury and be reevaluated sometime next week. Thybulle was named to the All-Defensive Second Team last season.
Kyrie Irving is listed as ineligible to play for the Nets’ preseason home opener on Friday, according to The Associated Press. It’s an indication that Irving remains unvaccinated. He practiced with the Nets last week when they held training camp in San Diego, but he hasn’t been able to practice with the team under New York City restrictions.
Cam Reddish heard his name pop up in trade rumors this offseason but the Hawks forward puts a positive spin on it, Chris Kirchner of The Athletic writes. “It didn’t affect me at all,” Reddish said. “It’s really a compliment when you think about it. It’s all good. I just have to control what I can control. Clearly, I have some decent value, so that’s a compliment.”
Knicks second-year Obi Toppin is determined to establish himself after a spotty rookie campaign, Steve Popper of Newsday writes. He’s gotten in better shape and feels “a lot more comfortable” going into his sophomore campaign. “I feel like I’ve put in a lot of work this summer, not only me but everyone here,” he said. “We put in a lot of work and there is just the start. … I feel like I just have a little bit more knowledge of being here now. I feel like I’ve kind of put my foot in the water already, so I kind of have a feel of what it’s like playing out there.”
Hawks star guard Trae Young feels all the pieces are in place for a championship run, according to Michael Pina of Sports Illustrated. “We have everything,” Young said. Pina takes an in-depth look at Young’s development and his supporting cast.

GM Believes Hawks Have Become Free Agent Destination

August 11th, 2021 at 8:12pm CST by Dana Gauruder

President of basketball operations Travis Schlenk believes the Hawks are now a destination for top free agents and All-Star level players seeking a trade, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic writes.

“I think last year kind of put us back on the NBA map as far as a destination,” he said. “Those who want to get traded, they want to go somewhere they think they can win. And I think now that perception of us is out there, because we do have a young core that did show success in the playoffs. So the hope would be when a star player does ask to be traded, we’ll be one of the destinations he’ll be open to coming to.”

Acquiring a second star to pair with Trae Young could be somewhat difficult, though Schlenk sees it as a possibility.

“I still think when you look at the depth of our roster and the young talent that we have, we don’t have draft assets like we have in the past anymore, but we now have guys under contract that you could match some of the bigger salaries,” he said.

The Hawks have one spot open on the 15-man roster, but Schlenk doesn’t plan to fill it right away. The team is close to the luxury tax, so when a 15th player is added, it will likely be on a non-guaranteed deal.

However, if Atlanta is in title contention again, owner Tony Ressler won’t mind paying the tax, according to Schlenk.

“Certainly, Tony is willing to pay the tax if we are going to be a contender,” Schlenk said. “I’m probably more conscious of it than Tony is, to be honest with you. It’s my job to manage his money. He’s got a lot more of it than I do, so I worry about it more than he does.”

Another order of business that the Hawks would like to take care of before the start of next season is reaching an extension agreement with Kevin Huerter, according to Sarah Spencer of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He’s one of the NBA players eligible for a rookie scale extension.

The talks should heat up next week, Spencer adds.

Eastern Contract Details: Lowry, Birch, Heat, Dinwiddie, Niang, More

August 8th, 2021 at 4:30pm CST by Luke Adams

Kyle Lowry‘s new three-year, $85MM contract with the Heat is a standard increasing deal, starting at about $26.98MM and rising annually by 5%, tweets Keith Smith of Spotrac.

Based on Lowry’s 2021/22 salary, we now know the value of the traded player exception the Raptors created in their sign-and-trade deal with the Heat, tweets Blake Murphy of The Athletic. That TPE will be worth $4,832,848, which is the difference between Lowry’s new salary and the combined cap hits of Goran Dragic and Precious Achiuwa.

Murphy also confirms that Khem Birch‘s three-year, $20MM deal with the Raptors is a standard increasing contract with no options or partial guarantees — it eats up about $6.35MM of Toronto’s mid-level exception, leaving $3.187MM on that MLE.

Here are more contract details from around the East, courtesy of Smith:

As expected, the new deals for Max Strus, Omer Yurtseven, and Gabe Vincent with the Heat are each two-year, minimum-salary contracts with one year guaranteed and the second year non-guaranteed (Twitter link). P.J. Tucker, meanwhile, got a two-year, $14.35MM contract that uses $7MM of Miami’s mid-level exception in year one. Tucker’s second year is a player option (Twitter link).
Spencer Dinwiddie‘s three-year contract with the Wizards only has a base value of $54MM, rather than the previously-reported total of $60MM+ (Twitter link). The deal, which features unlikely incentives that could push its value higher, has a partial guarantee worth $10MM (of $18.86MM) in year three.
Georges Niang‘s deal with the Sixers came in at $6.765MM over two years, both of which are fully guaranteed (Twitter link).
Trae Young‘s five-year, maximum-salary extension with the Hawks includes a 15% trade kicker (Twitter link).
The numbers are also in for the finalized deals between Jarrett Allen and the Cavaliers (Twitter link), Bobby Portis and the Bucks (Twitter link), George Hill and the Bucks (Twitter link), and Danny Green and the Sixers (Twitter link), with no surprises among that group. As expected, Green’s second year is non-guaranteed and Portis has a second-year player option, while Allen and Hill have fully guaranteed salaries.

Hawks Officially Announce Trae Young’s Five-Year Extension

August 6th, 2021 at 3:56pm CST by Luke Adams

The Hawks have officially signed Trae Young to a contract extension, the team announced today in a press release. While the club didn’t disclose the terms of the deal, we know based on previous reports that it’s a five-year, maximum-salary contract that begins in 2022/23. The two sides agreed to terms earlier in the week.

Young’s deal includes Rose Rule language and will start at 30% of the ’22/23 cap and will be worth a projected $207MM if he earns an All-NBA spot next season. If he doesn’t make the All-NBA team, the extension will start at 25% of the cap and will be worth nearly $173MM.

“This is a great day for the Hawks franchise and the city of Atlanta,” Hawks president of basketball operations Travis Schlenk said in a statement. “Trae is a special player and person who from Day One, embraced being a leader on the court and in our community. We are excited to have him as the cornerstone of our program long-term as we work toward our goal of bringing a championship to Atlanta.”

The move had been widely expected this offseason, as Young has emerged as the cornerstone of a Hawks team that made a surprising Eastern Conference Finals run this season.

He averaged 25.3 PPG, 9.4 APG, and 3.9 RPG in 63 regular season games (33.7 MPG) in 2020/21, then helped lead Atlanta past the Knicks and Sixers in the first two rounds of the playoffs before suffering a foot injury in the Eastern Finals vs. Milwaukee.

Young remains under his rookie contract for one more season and will earn $8.33MM in 2021/22 before his extension begins.

Young’s extension will include an early termination option after the fourth year, according to RealGM (Twitter link). An ETO is similar to a player option, so Young will have the ability to opt out and sign a new deal in 2026.

Hawks, Trae Young Agree To Five-Year Max Extension

August 3rd, 2021 at 7:37am CST by Luke Adams

AUGUST 3, 7:37am: Young’s extension will include an early termination option after the fourth year, according to RealGM (Twitter link). An ETO is similar to a player option, so Young will have the ability to opt out and sign a new deal in 2026.

AUGUST 2, 11:02pm: The Hawks and Young are in agreement on a five-year, maximum-salary extension, agent Omar Wilkes tells Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN (Twitter link).

Wojnarowski pegs the projected value of Young’s deal at $207MM, which would mean a starting salary worth 30% of a $119MM cap in 2022/23. That suggests that Atlanta has indeed put Rose Rule language in the deal, but Young will still need to meet the criteria to earn that amount. If he fails to earn All-NBA honors next season, the extension would be worth a projected $172.55MM.

AUGUST 2, 3:59pm: The Hawks and star guard Trae Young are expected to finalize an agreement on a maximum-salary contract extension shortly after he becomes extension-eligible on Monday night, reports Jeff Schultz of The Athletic (Twitter link).

The move had been widely expected, as Young has emerged as the cornerstone of a Hawks team that made a surprising Eastern Conference Finals run this season.

He averaged 25.3 PPG, 9.4 APG, and 3.9 RPG in 63 regular season games (33.7 MPG) in 2020/21, then helped lead Atlanta past the Knicks and Sixers in the first two rounds of the playoffs before suffering a foot injury in the Eastern Finals vs. Milwaukee.

Young remains under his rookie contract for one more season and will earn $8.33MM in 2021/22. His extension would go into effect in ’22/23.

The exact value of that deal would depend on where the cap lands for the 2022/23 season. However, a conservative estimate would result in a five-year deal of approximately $168MM.

That number could increase to about $201.5MM if the Hawks include Rose Rule language that would bump Young’s starting salary to 30% of the cap instead of 25%. However, he’d have to earn an All-NBA spot this coming season to trigger that increase.

Young is one of a number of young stars entering the final year of their respective rookie contracts who could receive a maximum-salary extension shortly after the NBA’s new league year begins.

Luka Doncic, who has already qualified for the 30% max, is in line to get a five-year extension, though it likely won’t be finalized until after the Olympics. Multiple reports have indicated the Thunder will likely lock up Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to a max-salary extension, and Marc Stein identified Deandre Ayton (Suns) and Michael Porter Jr. (Nuggets) as other strong candidates for max extensions.