Atlanta Hawks First Half Thoughts on Trae Young
By Kit Anderson
Trae Young is a big part of the Atlanta Hawk’s future. With his first half in the books it is time to take a look at what we have learned from the young point man so far.
Trae Young has had an inconsistent season, one where he has struggled and shown how little talent the Atlanta Hawks have put around him. While he has had his struggles he has also shown flashes of brilliance, always opening up shots for his team.
Young has average 7.1 assists so far this season, scoring 15.8 points per game. While he has deep range he is yet to shoot consistently from deep. At times he can press a bit too much taking the scoring on himself due to the lack of scorers around him.
His three point game will find consistency in the coming seasons. Attacking the basket he has shown a great ability to lay the ball in through contact. As he gains more respect around the League his ability to draw fouls will become one of his greatest weapons.
The biggest area Trae has stood out this season is his ability to create for his team. He will drive the ball opening up a dunk for whomever the Hawks trot out at the center position. Trae’s passing ability isn’t just good, it is elite and rivals any point guard in the NBA.
Defensively there are some concerns for the undersized point guard, he isn’t going to be able to stop drives from scorers. Trae does hustle and attempt to present an obstacle on the other end of the floor. Using his quickness to steal the ball or draw charges will be big advantages to Trae if he can learn to utilize his speed on both ends of the floor.
Long term there should be no question left, Young is a building block and should be with this franchise for many seasons to come. For the Hawks they will need to surround Young with scorers for him to be at his best.
Even as a rookie he is constantly double teamed as one of the few scoring threats on the floor. For Young to truly become one of the best point guards in the League Atlanta must invest in perimeter players who are capable of spreading the floor and giving Young room to work.
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Overall the first half has been encouraging for Young and the Hawks. Both the franchise and the young point guard have plenty of reason to be optimistic for the seasons to come.