In the aftermath of Thursday's NBA trade deadline, franchises across the league are finally taking a breather to assess all that has transpired in one of the most memorable and active deadlines in history. The Atlanta Hawks, who currently sit ninth in the Western Conference with a 23-28 record, made surprising decisions to tweak their roster for the second half of the 2024-25 season.

It was expected that trades would happen for the Hawks after a rough start this year, but judging by some of the recent moves, their future with Trae Young looks a tad murky.

NBA insider Chris Haynes shockingly threw the Hawks' franchise player into the mix, as the NBA TV crew discussed everything that has gone down this week. The spotlight quickly turned to the San Antonio Spurs.

“I'm going to pivot to Trae Young,” Haynes said. “That guy is a fierce competitor. He wants to win. He WANTS TO WIN. So the direction of the Hawks is very, I would say unique considering they know where he stands and what he wants to accomplish.”

The  Hawks parted ways with De'Andre Hunter and Bogdan Bogdanovic on Thursday.

Hawks' Trae Young was a Spurs trade target

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While Young stays with the Hawks (for now), it appears that the 26-year-old point guard was high on the Spurs' list, leading up to 3 PM ET on Thursday.

“I will say this,” Haynes continued. “Before the San Antonio Spurs made the move for De'Aaron Fox, they were considering De'Aaron, and they were considering Trae Young. But the way that the Spurs are set up right now.. They're not set up to start trying win games and contend now. So there was never really a hurry to bring in an established point guard to move on to the next phase. But De'Aaron Fox kind of fell in their lap, and he picked them as the sole team that he wanted to play with. So they chose him. It was much easier route to get De'Aaron. But Trae Young was on the San Antonio Spurs' radar.”

Young has a player option in the 2026-27 offseason, and is also set to hit free agency in summer 2027-28. The Hawks have major decisions to make as their current campaign moves along.