Trae Young trades for the Hawks after landing CJ McCollum and Corey Kispert

It’s a whole new era for Atlanta Hawks. In a move that seemed inevitable over the past few days, they shipped their franchise star of eight seasons, Trae Young, Washington Wizards for CJ McCollum and Corey Kispert. It was a trade that had a chance to happen during the season, but all signs pointed to the Hawks waiting to make a decision about his future with the team in the upcoming offseason.

With a true MCL sprain and a right quad injury, Young’s time on the floor with the Hawks was limited. They had to weather the storm without him, and they did a pretty good job of it. When he returned from an MCL sprainthere were signs after a run of games that it might be time to part ways. The Hawks went 2-8 this season when Young played, and while those losses weren’t entirely his fault, he was still a part of them.

At that point, it was obvious that the Hawks clearly weren’t need Young for what he brings to the floor, and the new style of attack they played was not intended for a player who needs to control the ball. Jaylen Johnson has turned into an All-Star caliber player in the process, Nikhil Alexander-Walker is having the best year of his career, and other players have stepped up in their roles and produced.

That left Yang on the outside looking in, which meant it was time for a new home. There weren’t many teams that seemed to be really interested in him, as today’s NBA started looking at small guards differently. Yes, Young is one of the better offensive players in the league, but his defensive tackles and size are plenty to cover in this day and age. This is where the Wizards come into play.

The Wizards appeared to have interest in Young, fueling trade rumors, and he appeared to have the same level of interest. The only thing that may have confused Hawks fans was the actual reported trade package.

The only way a deal would have been reached with the Wizards was if McCollum was in it, due to the salary match. For the Hawks, they get a veteran guard who can still create his own shot while setting up others. He’s also not the best defender, but at this point in his career, he understands what he needs to do when it comes to schemes. Aside from the actual player they’re getting, McCollum has an expiring contract that will keep the Hawks out of the offseason, giving them flexibility in free agency.

There were no picks attached to this deal, as the Hawks were probably adamant about not doing it. That means they had to take on a longer contract, which Kispert was. The Hawks needed more bodies at the forward position, and Kispert can fill that void. He’s also shooting 40% from the three-point line this season, and the Hawks are making those shots at a high rate this season. He has his own defense on defense, but hopefully the Hawks won’t put him in tough situations.

This was the kind of trade the Hawks are likely to get for Young at this point in the season, given his contract, plus what he wants for an extension. Teams knew the Hawks weren’t willing to give him the extension he wanted, and the Wizards were one of the few teams that could absorb his current contract without losing key, young players to their roster.

In the end, the Hawks lost their franchise player, an offensive genius and the best playmaker in the league, but with the direction they’re going, they didn’t really need him, especially because of his current and future price. The Hawks will be able to have cap space during the offseason to possibly land another star that fits the team, while having the opportunity to draft a top prospect, depending on what happens with the New Orleans Pelicans’ pick.

It would be nice to be able to get a young rising star or a draft pick in exchange for Young, but the Hawks would also have to give up more, and they didn’t want to.