Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young has been avidly compared to draftmate Luka Doncic throughout their brief NBA careers, a trend that's unlikely to stop anytime soon. The Dallas Mavericks guard, drafted No. 3 overall in 2018, has his team riding high to the sixth spot in the West, only a year after the organization decided to orchestrate the passing of the baton from one European great to another.
Young, though posting career-high numbers, hasn't been able to lift the Hawks to equal aspirations, though he knows better than to draw the comparison himself:
“[Doncic's] on a team, and they've got more veterans and is a team that's more looking to win now,” the Hawks star told Michael Scotto of Bleacher Report. “We're more of a team that wants to win now, but we're focusing more on developing, and we're one of the youngest teams in the league. It's just two totally different situations, so it's just hard to really judge who won or lost [the trade] right now. I don't really pay too much attention to it. I just try and focus on my team and how I can help my team. Maybe down the road at the end of our careers, I think that can be a topic of discussion, but right now, I don't pay too much attention to it.”
One key difference between the Hawks and Mavs is that Dallas accelerated its rebuild by bringing in Kristaps Porzingis. Dallas traded every starter not named Luka Doncic before last year's deadline to surround him with other capable pieces. The Mavs netted a capable shooter in Tim Hardaway Jr., who has benefited from less isolations and more catch-and-shoot opportunities.
Meanwhile, the Hawks remained focused on developing their young players, but that often comes at the cost of losses, which Trae Young has experienced a bunch during his first two seasons in the league. The star point guard is hoping that young talent will help attract free agents in the future so the franchise can turn things around.
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