“I came to shootaround today not knowing most of my teammates”: Trae Young slams the NBA for not postponing Atlanta Hawks’ games despite being severely short-handed due to Covid protocols

Trae Young is tired of the league’s hypocrisy as Atlanta Hawks continue to play despite having three-fourths of their team out.  

The Atlanta Hawks are nowhere close to the kind of team they were last season. They surprised everyone by defeating the #1 seeded Philadelphia 76ers in the conference semis. Trae Young was one of the most entertaining players to watch in the postseason.

In his very first playoffs series, he averaged 28.8 points and 9.5 assists. His numbers are up this season as well but the Hawks are struggling. And it’s not all on Covid and safety protocols. They weren’t doing too well prior to that. Trae Young and co. started the season with several losing streaks.

The Covid outbreak has further strained their playoff chances as they sit at the very bottom of the table in the eastern conference.

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Atlanta Hawks currently have a record – 8 players in health and safety protocols. The only four recognizable players on their roster are Trae Young, Clint Capela, Cam Reddish, and Skylar Mays. Trae himself was sidelined for over a week and Hawks went 1-2 in those games.

Trae Young did not know more than half of his team in the game against the Chicago Bulls

If their playoff chances were faint earlier, the recent outbreak has decreased their chances of making it to the play-in tournament as well. They suffered a blowout loss to Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night.

Trae Young expected the game to be canceled like Miami-San Antonio but since they met the 8 players requirement Hawks had to face the top-seeded Chicago Bulls. Their roster was filled with 10-day hardship exemptions that even Trae Young didn’t recognize.

“I was just confused. We had like four guys fly in last night just to make the roster and play today. We were able to find a way. I don’t know if it’s on the league or on our part to complain and be forceful with what’s going on”

Young adds, “Other teams have gotten games postponed and are waiting on guys to get back. We have, really, three guys who play big minutes for our team, when you include (Skylar Mays), we have four guys. It’s kind of crazy.”

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Atlanta Hawks will face Cleveland Cavaliers with their depleted roster Friday night. Their bench is not close to a return yet and it will hamper their chances of climbing up the ladder in the east.