The Minnesota Timberwolves fans inside the Target Arena and those watching at home weren’t the only fans incensed by Luka Doncic‘s incredible 33-point outing in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals. Some in the Atlanta Hawks fanbase, including radio host Steak Shapiro, were also frustrated wondering what could’ve been had their team not traded the Slovenian superstar for Trae Young and a first-round pick in the 2019 NBA draft. That didn’t sit with the Hawk star who responded passively aggressively with an emoji.
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— Trae Young (@TheTraeYoung) May 23, 2024
On 92.9 The Game, Shapiro and co-host Sandra Golden marveled at Doncic’s performance in the Mavericks Game 1 win while also expressing their dismay about the Hawks not having him on their roster. He said,
“Trae Young’s a very nice player, probably the second-best Hawk of all time. Luka Doncic last night [in Game 1] was dealing. He’s back in the Western Conference, that’s his second. They’ll go to the NBA Finals. I believe they’ll beat Minnesota in this series and he’s a seminal talent that we had. It’s hard for me to watch Luka Dončić & think what might have been.”
Golden claimed it was ‘weird’ if Hawks fans weren’t bothered that they had to settle for Young when they could’ve had Doncic, while Shapiro added that the 2019 first-round pick, which wound up being Cam Reddish, was a terrible trade even back when it happened.
It is easy to see why Young responded in a passive-aggressive manner to the clip, considering all that he’s achieved in a Hawks uniform with little to no help from the front office.
Trae Young will forever be compared to Luka Doncic
Luka Doncic has been on a tear since his sophomore season, earning five straight first-team All-NBA nods. He is a perennial MVP candidate and the Mavericks have done a good job surrounding him with enough talent to compete for an NBA title.
While Doncic and the Mavericks’ trajectory dwarfs Trae Young and the Hawks, it’s easy to forget that the diminutive guard and Atlanta reached the Conference Finals before the Slovenian superstar and his squad.
Young and the Hawks made it to the East Finals in the guard’s third season, where they were beaten by eventual champions Milwaukee Bucks. However, Atlanta’s front office failed to build off that shock run and the franchise has steadily stagnated back to the mediocrity that saw them land the third pick in the 2018 NBA draft.
The Hawks’ downward spiral and the Mavericks’ upward trajectory led by Doncic have led to suggestions that Atlanta regrets giving up the Slovenian guard for Young. However, he isn’t responsible for the franchise hitting the skids.
He’s been their only bright spark over the past three seasons. The 25-year-old guard has averaged 26.9 points, 10.2 assists, and 3.2 rebounds and earned two All-Star nods since the 2021-22 campaign. The Hawks have failed to build a competitive roster and are suffering the consequences.
Despite Young’s stellar performances, he’ll forever be linked to Doncic, who’s building a Hall of Fame resume. The Hawks star’s achievements will always be tallied against the Mavericks superstar’s, and if he falls short, the narrative will be that Atlanta made a mistake trading the Slovenian for him and a first-round pick.
It’s an unfortunate reality that Young will have to live with for the rest of his career.
