Trae Young’s future with the Atlanta Hawks may be murky, according to Tim MacMahon of ESPN, and if that’s the case, the Minnesota Timberwolves should be very interested. Adding him to the mix would solidify them as a title contender for years, and he could be a perfect backcourt partner for Anthony Edwards.
“The long-term outlook for Trae Young in Atlanta is murky at the minimum at this point,” MacMahon said on The Hoop Collective podcast. “This is a guy who has been the face of the Atlanta Hawks for seven years. He's averaged 25 and 10. You know, just led the league in assists. His offensive production has been elite. But there are question marks about whether this is going to, you know, be a long-term marriage.”
Young and Edwards could dominate atop the West for years to come.
Why would Trae Young work with Anthony Edwards?
The Timberwolves have made the Western Conference finals with Mike Conley as their starting point guard. He’s the perfect organizer for their offense, though Minnesota has led by its defense.
Young is one of the best offensive players in the NBA. Adding his playmaking and three-point shooting to the mix would be perfect for the Wolves, and it would fit beautifully next to Edwards.
The Hawks have found success placing a defensive-minded guard next to young in Dyson Daniels, and Edwards is a great point-of-attack defender. Add in the fact that Rudy Gobert would be protecting the rim behind Young, and Minnesota might have one of the best defensive infrastructures in the league to house Young in their lineup.
Young would help create space for Edwards and vice versa, all the while, the rest of the Timberwolves’ lineup would be covering for the superstar point guard on the defensive end.
The biggest question to ask is, what would the Timberwolves have to give up in order to land Young in a trade?
If the Hawks were to trade Young, they would almost certainly ask for a haul in return. And since the Timberwolves don’t have many picks to trade, Minnesota would have to give up some serious talent.
Atlanta may even go as far as to require Jaden McDaniels to be included in any deal, and at that point, the Timberwolves would have a very difficult decision to make.
But regardless of what the package would be, if Young ever does become available, the Wolves should definitely be interested in bringing him to Minnesota to play alongside Edwards.