When Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young first entered the NBA last season, there were a lot of questions about his ability to adjust to the pro game, as his lack of size and athleticism had some wondering if his game would translate.
The early returns were not good, as Young struggled mightily over the first month of the season, but then, something clicked, and Young went on to enjoy a spectacular rookie campaign in which he averaged 19.1 points, 8.1 assists and 3.7 rebounds over 30.9 minutes per game while shooting 41.8 percent from the floor, 32.4 percent from three-point range and 82.9 percent from the free-throw line.
Young was so impressive over the second half of the year that he actually challenged Dallas Mavericks young star Luka Doncic for Rookie of the Year honors, but Doncic ultimately took home the award.
Regardless, Hall of Fame point guard Steve Nash sees a lot of himself in the Hawks young floor general:
“We’re as similar as players from different eras can be,” Nash said, according to Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated. “He has wonderful vision and passing ability. But he is also a great scorer, shooter. He is growing up in an era where point guards have more of the liberty to attack first. If he had grown up in my era, he might have been a pass-first point guard because he has an incredible eye for it.”
Compared by many to Stephen Curry when he first came out of Oklahoma, perhaps Young has more Nash in him than people realized:
“We’re similar in our skill set,” added Nash. “We both shoot. We both like to score from all three levels: deep, mid range, floaters that finish at the rim. We’re creative around the rim because we’re not as explosive as some of our contemporaries.”
It will certainly be interesting to see what Young does for an encore this season.
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