Four-time NBA All-Star guard Trae Young has penned a farewell message to the Atlanta Hawks after eight seasons and says he’s “ecstatic” over being traded to the Washington Wizards.
Young, who was unveiled by the Wizards in an introductory press conference on Saturday (all times AEDT), spoke publicly for the first time via a social media post earlier in the day.
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“I’m walking into this next chapter ecstatic, with my head high and my eyes forward,” Young wrote.
“It’s time to see what’s possible when the support is real and the vision is clear. We move.”
Young averaged 25.3 points, 9.8 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 1.0 steals a game in his prior seven seasons with the Hawks but has missed most of this season with a right knee sprain and right quadriceps contusion.
The Hawks missed the playoffs four times since Young was taken fifth overall in the 2018 NBA Draft and fell in the first round two other seasons.
Atlanta’s best run with Young came in 2020-21 when the Hawks lost to Milwaukee in the Eastern Conference finals.
“The last few years weren’t how I wanted them to be,” Young wrote.
“Bringing a championship to Atlanta was always my goal.
“However, between the injuries, the setbacks and situations that didn’t make sense, we never truly got to see our full potential.”
Young wrote: “The city that raised me and taught me so much will always be a chapter in this story.
“However, the pain of staying the same eventually outweighed the uncertainty of change. Change is often met with fear but I see it as another opportunity.”
So when will Young make his Wizards debut?
Young said during Saturday’s press conference he’ll return “hopefully soon” but is leaving it up to Washington, according to NBA writer Marc Spears.
He’s unavailable for the team’s home meeting with New Orleans on Saturday due to a right quad contusion and right knee MCL sprain but in attendance on the Wizards bench.
It comes after ESPN’s Bran Windhorst said on the Hoop Collective Podcast he doesn’t expect Young to play much for the Wizards for the remainder of this season, as they want to protect their 2026 first-round pick, which conveys to Phoenix if it falls outside the top eight.
The Athletic’s Josh Robbins, who covers the Wizards, also suggested Young would be used sparingly, if at all, by his new team.
Young, 27, departs the Hawks, 18-21 and ninth in the Eastern Conference, after 493 games all as a starter for a Wizards’ squad that ranks 10-26, next-to-last in the East.
The Wizards confirmed details on Friday of the swap, which sends swingman Corey Kispert and guard CJ McCollum to Atlanta.
“It’s a rare opportunity to acquire a player of Trae’s skill, accomplishments and age,” Wizards general manager Will Dawkins said.
“Trae plays an exciting brand of basketball and brings a level of confidence and competitiveness that has set him apart in this league.”
Young averaged more than 25 points and 10 assists in the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons, a back-to-back NBA feat also managed only by Nikola Jokic, Russell Westbrook and Oscar Robertson.
In the 2021-22 season, Young led the NBA in points and assists, joining Nate Archibald in 1972-73 as the only players to achieve such a double.
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