Luka Doncic's historic statement on Friday night surely wasn't about the Atlanta Hawks. The Dallas Mavericks superstar controversially had a fan ejected from a 132-109 loss to the Phoenix Suns the last time he took the floor, then offered up a mea culpa for his actions during a Thursday segment on TNT's Inside the NBA. His epic performance against Atlanta no doubt had more to do with continued atonement for his admitted mistake than Doncic remembering what happened in the 2018 draft.

Not that Hawks fans seem to care either way, of course. After Doncic dropped a remarkable 73 points—setting a new franchise record and tying for the fourth-most points ever scored in an NBA game—on just 33 shots in Dallas' win at State Farm arena, the NBA world just couldn't stop lamenting the draft-night trade that landed their team Trae Young instead of Doncic.

https://twitter.com/_6ixHoops/status/1751058585721917776

Luka Doncic's epic night rubs more salt in Hawks' wound of draft-night trade

Trae Young, Luka Doncic, Hawks, Mavericks

A quick refresher for the uninitiated: The Hawks selected Doncic third overall in the 2018 draft with the Mavs taking Young two picks later. The teams quickly competed a trade that sent Doncic to Dallas in exchange for Young and a top-five protected 2019 first-round pick.

At the time, many fans and analysts—especially those who doubted Donicic's unprecedented resumé in Europe—lauded Atlanta for nabbing its franchise point guard while also getting another lottery ticket the following year. Who did the Hawks select with that extra first-round pick in 2019? Cam Reddish, who flamed out with the Hawks before re-emerging as a limited, defense-first role player with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2023-24.

Young is a great player—one of the best in Hawks history. But he's no Doncic, and that's been abundantly clear to anyone paying attention ever since the two first took the floor as rookies five and-a-half seasons. In that vein, Doncic's unbelievable performance just rubs more salt in an ever-gaping wound from which Atlanta won't ever fully recover until both he and Young are both retired.