The perfect Trae Young replacement is about to fall right in the Hawks’ laps
The Atlanta Hawks are hovering with out Trae Young this season, however sooner or later they may want to discover a replacement at level guard to attain their ceiling on offense. Lucky for them, the 2026 NBA Draft is establishing to ship the precise play that they want.
There is no query that the Hawks are enjoying their greatest basketball of the season down the stretch of the season, with the league’s greatest web ranking and one in every of its greatest information since the NBA Trade Deadline. With Jalen Johnson as the centerpiece star and a group of shooters and defenders round him, the Hawks are bowling opponents over.
The Hawks nonetheless have a necessity
What the Hawks lack, nonetheless, is an on-ball shot creator and playmaker in the backcourt — ie the type of affect that Trae Young offered. They have as a substitute leaned in the wrong way, placing size and protection in the backcourt with Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Dyson Daniels. That elevates their protection however places a ceiling on their offense.
CJ McCollum has stepped into that function off the bench and performed extraordinarily effectively; he may even flip 35 years outdated earlier than the begin of subsequent season. The Hawks want a long-term replacement for Young, whether or not that participant in the end begins or comes off the bench as a brilliant sub.
Such gamers are sometimes troublesome to safe in free company, and searching to the commerce market can be an costly method. Both paths may work. Their best choice, nonetheless, to add a long-term piece to their core, can be to draft such a participant.
Can the Hawks draft Trae Young’s replacement?
It works out nice for Atlanta that they’re holding onto a Top 10 decide in this June’s draft, then, courtesy of Joe Dumars and the New Orleans Pelicans. While the sheer amount of tanking groups this season means the lottery standings should not but set with per week left in the common season, the Pelicans are going to end someplace between sixth and eighth in the reverse standings.
That means the Hawks have a shot to leap up into the Top 4 (particularly since they get to add the Milwaukee Bucks’ odds as effectively) and are nearly actually assured a Top 10 decide. In most years, it would not make a lot sense for the Hawks to set any expectations for which prospects they are going to be ready to draft.
This yr, nonetheless, there is one thing distinctive about the high prospects in the draft. First, they’re all completely freshmen. Second, the overwhelming majority are on-ball guards.
The draft is loaded with guards
AJ Dybantsa, Cam Boozer and Caleb Wilson will all go in the Top 5 and improve to group’s frontcourt. The back-half of the Top 10, nonetheless, is loaded with guards. Darius Acuff from Arkansas. Keaton Wagler from Illinois. Kingston Fleming from Houston. Mikel Brown Jr. from Louisville. Labaron Philon from Alabama. Brayden Burries from Arizona.
Need a guard? This is your yr. All of them seem like unbelievable prospects, worthy of a Top-5 decide in a median draft. That Pelicans decide may find yourself in the eighth slot, get jumped by two groups, and nonetheless be in place to hand the Hawks a long-term starter at level guard.
The versatility of the choices may imply a superb match with what the Hawks have constructed. They do not want to go all-in on a particular kind of participant; they’re adequate, and deep sufficient, and younger sufficient, to construct the right group and go in a wide range of completely different instructions. Yet their want for a dynamic on-ball playmaking guard is about to be met in the draft.
Trae Young is gone. And his replacement may be on his method.
