The Atlanta Hawks could reportedly explore trades involving star point guard Trae Young this offseason.
In other news, Washington Wizards star shooting guard Bradley Beal recently hinted that he could soon request a trade out of Washington.
On that note, here are the latest rumors from around the NBA as of February 24, 2023.
Trae Young could be made available this offseason
Explore the NBA Draft 2024 with our free NBA Mock Draft Simulator & be the GM of your favorite NBA team.
Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks (29-30, eighth in the East) have had a disappointing season by most accounts. The team went all-in on trying to win now with their blockbuster offseason trade for star guard Dejounte Murray. However, the Hawks are barely in the playoff picture entering a pivotal stretch of the season.
This has led to rumors that Atlanta could eventually look to trade Young. According to The Athletic’s Jared Weiss, the Hawks could even start exploratory trade talks involving Young as early as this offseason.
"I expect that Atlanta is going to start exploring it, and it’s going to start getting out this summer," Weiss reported.
Trae Young is averaging 26.7 points, 2.9 rebounds, 10.3 assists, 1.0 steals and 2.2 3-pointers per game while shooting 42.8% and 32.4% from deep.
Young is owed a guaranteed $215.2 million until the end of 2027. It remains to be seen how much teams would be willing to give up to acquire Young. However, Atlanta will likely be looking for a massive haul if it makes him available.
Bradley Beal hints at offseason trade request
Similar to Atlanta, the Washington Wizards (28-30, 10th in the East) are in a tough spot. Washington is currently in a play-in position, however, most agree that the team has a small chance of making any noise if they make the playoffs.
Meanwhile, the Wizards are paying Bradley Beal like a superstar. Beal is owed a guaranteed $193.9 million until the end of 2026 with a $57.1 million player option for the 2026-27 NBA season. This has led to speculation that Washington could eventually move on from him, and Beal’s recent comments only added more fuel to that speculation.
During an interview with Andscape's Marc J. Spears, Beal hinted that he could request a trade this offseason as his patience is running out.
“I’m patient, but there comes a time where you have to be a little selfish and draw a line in the sand, for sure,” Beal said.
Beal is averaging 23.1 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 5.2 apg, 0.9 spg and 1.8 3pg while shooting 52.0% and 37.5% from deep.
Beal has spent his entire 11-year career with the Wizards since being drafted No. 3 in 2012. This has earned him a reputation for being one of the most loyal players in the league. So it remains to be seen if Beal will ultimately follow through and request a trade out of Washington.
Hawks want to swiftly hire Quin Snyder as coach
The Atlanta Hawks (29-30, eighth in the East) fired coach Nate McMillan on Tuesday amid their disappointing season. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported shortly afterwards that the team was planning to conduct a wide-ranging coaching search. However, according to The Athletic’s Shams Charania, the Hawks are now hoping to swiftly hire former Utah Jazz coach Quin Snyder.
"The Atlanta Hawks have started formal discussions with former Utah Jazz coach Quin Snyder and are attempting to hire Snyder swiftly during the season, league sources tell The Athletic," Charania reported.
Snyder led Utah to a 372-264 record over his eight seasons with the franchise. The Jazz made the playoffs in each of his final six seasons. However, Utah only made it past the first round three times under Snyder and never made it past the second round. This, combined with the Jazz planning to retool, led Snyder and Utah to part ways this past offseason.
According to Charania, Atlanta had a virtual meeting with Snyder on Wednesday and is hoping to meet with him in person soon. So it looks like the two sides could agree to a deal sometime over the next couple of weeks.
Hawks Fan? Check out the latest Hawks depth chart, schedule, and roster updates all in one place.