Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks are in the midst of an important offseason for the future of the franchise following a disastrous 2023-24 campaign. While Young continued to put up brilliant stats prior to an injury that sidelined him for over a month, the Hawks floundered in the standings during the second year under head coach Quin Snyder, and Atlanta was sent home by the Chicago Bulls in the Play-In game.
Perhaps the direct antithesis to the Hawks' struggles in recent years has been the emergence of the Minnesota Timberwolves, who are led by superstar shooting guard Anthony Edwards. On Monday evening, the Timberwolves went up 2-0 in their Western Conference semifinals series vs the Denver Nuggets (on the road, no less), and Edwards has generated legitimate comparisons to Dwyane Wade, Kobe Bryant, and yes, even Michael Jordan, during his rapid rise to stardom over the last couple of years, and particularly during this playoff run.
Edwards hails from the Atlanta area and attended the University of Georgia for his one season of college basketball, and now, Young is getting one hundred percent real on how he once dreamed of having Edwards as his teammate.
“(Edwards) Should’ve been a Hawk to start, but that’s for another day..” wrote Young on his account on X, the social media platform formerly referred to as Twitter. Young's post was in response to a post from Everything Georgia highlighting how Edwards has his home state's support as his incredible playoff run continues.
Indeed, the Hawks did have a high lottery selection during the 2020 Draft in which Edwards was selected number one overall. Instead, Atlanta ended up with big man Onyeka Okongwu out of USC, who is a solid player but nowhere near Edwards' stratosphere.
Throughout Edwards' season at Georgia, Young could be seen supporting the young emerging star, including attending the Georgia vs Kentucky game that season alongside fellow Atlanta legend Quavo.
What could have been for the Hawks
Hawks fans have probably spent the last few years asking themselves what could have been while trying to deny what actually is. Three years ago, the Hawks looked to be on the cusp of being one of the NBA's elite teams of the future, as Young led a youthful Atlanta squad all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021, and would have had a legitimate chance at a championship had he not rolled his ankle in Game 3 vs the Milwaukee Bucks.
However, in retrospect, that postseason wasn't nearly as impressive as it may seem, as the Hawks took down a Knicks team led by the most notorious playoff dropper of his generation in Julius Randle and then a 76ers squad that saw Ben Simmons completely forgot how to play the game of basketball.
In the years since, the Hawks have been on a steady downhill trajectory, and although Young continues to rack up All-Star appearances, it's officially fair to at least wonder whether Atlanta might entertain the idea of moving on from him this offseason.
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