Browsing: Trae

• Ohm Youngmisuk

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  Ohm Youngmisuk

  ESPN Staff Writer

  Ohm Youngmisuk has covered the Giants, Jets and the NFL since 2006. Prior to that, he covered the Nets, Knicks and the NBA for nearly a decade. He joined ESPNNewYork.com after working at the New York Daily News for almost 12 years and is a graduate of Michigan State University.
  
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Nov 1, 2025, 07:33 PM ET

Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young sustained a sprained MCL in his right knee and will be reevaluated in four weeks, sources told ESPN on Saturday.

Young underwent an MRI on Friday and multiple doctor reviews that showed he dodged major structural damage in the knee.

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Young suffered the injury during the first quarter of Wednesday’s win over the Brooklyn Nets when he was standing underneath the basket when teammate Mouhamed Gueye was shoved by Nets forward Noah Clowney and fell backward into Young’s leg

Young left the team, which finishes a four-game road trip on Sunday in Cleveland, to go back to Atlanta to undergo the MRI and see doctors.

The reigning assists champ, Young is averaging 17.8 points and 7.8 assists this season.

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• Steve Alexander

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  Steve Alexander is a contributing writer for men’s fantasy basketball at ESPN. Steve is a member of the FSWA Hall of Fame.

Oct 31, 2025, 06:49 AM ET

We’re only a couple of weeks into the new NBA season, but there are already plenty of players rising and falling in the fantasy basketball box score to talk about. Some of them are rostered in many leagues, while others continue to fly under the radar. Here are this week’s players to know about.

Risers

Austin Reaves, PG/SG/SF, Los Angeles Lakers (61% rostered)

LeBron James (sciatica) has yet to make an appearance this season and Luka Doncic has been on the shelf for three games with finger and leg issues, leading to a Reaves explosion as the last man standing for the Lakers. After two solid outings alongside a healthy Doncic, Reaves has been amazing over his past three, with 51 points and a near triple-double in one, a 41-point explosion against the Portland Trail Blazers and then going for 28 points and a career-high tying 16 assists in Wednesday’s win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. Reaves is going to produce with or without his superstar teammates on the court, but if there was ever a time to trade him, it’s now.

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Stephen A.: ‘I like Austin Reaves a lot. He can play’

Stephen A. Smith heaps praise on Austin Reaves for stepping up for the Lakers after his game-winning shot vs. the Timberwolves.

Matas Buzelis, SF/PF, Chicago Bulls, (53% rostered)

The Bulls are 4-0 and Buzelis is emerging as a fantasy favorite thanks to a well-rounded stat line that includes points, rebounds, steals, blocks and 3-pointers. He’s had three nice games and one dud through four outings and is coming off his best one, racking up a season-high 27 points, two steals, a block and a season-high four 3-pointers in Wednesday’s win over the Sacramento Kings. The Bulls are attempting to make Buzelis the face of their franchise, and I expect his rostership to continue to rise. I predict he’ll end the season as one of fantasy’s most pleasant surprises, and I’d recommend picking him up in every league you can.

Ajay Mitchell, PG, Oklahoma City Thunder, (37% rostered)

Despite coming off the bench for one of the best teams in the NBA, Mitchell has been incredibly steady and consistent. Through five games, he has scored between 14 and 26 in each of them and boasts an average stat line of 18.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.6 3-pointers. The eventual return of Jalen Williams (wrist) might negatively impact Mitchell, but there’s also a chance it doesn’t impact him much at all. Mitchell is a great pick up for managers looking for efficiency and across-the-board production.

Ryan Rollins, SG, Milwaukee Bucks, (29% rostered)

Kevin Porter Jr. is out with an ankle injury, and there is currently no timeline for his return, but Doc Rivers doesn’t appear to love the thought of starting Cole Anthony in his place. Enter Rollins, who has taken the starting point guard job and ran with it for Milwaukee. He has averaged 19.5 points and 6.0 assists over his last two games and is at 30 minutes, 15.3 points, 3.0 steals and 1.8 3-pointers with a very efficient 47.6% field-goal percentage on the season. And with the recent news that Porter’s return date is a mystery, it’s time to get Rollins on more fantasy rosters. He should be one of the hottest pickups in fantasy this weekend.

Collin Gillespie, PG, Phoenix Suns, (7% rostered)

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Gillespie is in his fourth year out of Villanova, and while he’s far from a household name, he’s playing at a high level for the Suns. He had 14 points, six boards, five dimes, two steals, a block and three triples in a loss to the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday and had a 15-point, 13-assist double-double in his previous game. His shooting percentages (42% FG and 67% FT) have been a bit of a problem, but the rest of his game has been a fun ride for those of us who picked him up off the waiver wire this season. Also, he’s a career 78% shooter from the free throw line, so that number should start to rise sooner than later. He’s playing 25 minutes off the bench and is heating up, so it makes sense for managers in need of a solid guard to give him a look off the waiver wire in their leagues.

Jaime Jaquez Jr., SG/SF, Miami Heat, (7% rostered)

I was high on Jaquez coming into the season and he’s starting to cook for the Heat, increasing his scoring in each game this season (13, 17, 17, 28). He’s currently boosted by the absence of Norman Powell (groin), who missed his second game on Thursday night, but even when he’s healthy, Jaquez should continue to perform as the team’s sixth man. Through four games, he’s racking up nearly 19 points, 6.3 boards, 4.3 assists and 1.3 steals in 28 minutes. He’s not much of a shot blocker or 3-point shooter, but the rest of his stat line is solid. He should be rostered in a lot more leagues.

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Jaime Jaquez Jr. throws down the hammer

Jaime Jaquez Jr. throws down the hammer

Jarace Walker, PF, Indiana Pacers, (2.2% rostered)

The Pacers are reeling from injuries, and Bennedict Mathurin (toe) is the latest casualty, while Obi Toppin is expected to also miss time with a foot injury. Walker stepped up with his best game of the season in Wednesday’s loss to Dallas when he had a season-high 20 points to go along with six rebounds, five assists, three steals, a block and four 3-pointers, but his field-goal percentage has been a bit of a disaster thus far. He has hit just 15-of-51 shots (29.4%) on the season and was just 5-for-19 shooting in his big game on Wednesday. Still, he’s an excellent free throw shooter and he shot 40% from the field in his first two seasons. While he’s not likely to ever become a high-percentage shooter, he should be better than he has been going forward. He’s worth a look in all leagues right now and will get 30 minutes per game this season, regardless of whether his teammates are healthy.

Fallers

Trae Young, PG, Atlanta Hawks (100% rostered rostered)

“Ice Trae” was having a rough season even before suffering a right knee sprain Wednesday night, and we’ll now have to await MRI results to find out how much time he’ll miss. The good news is that he appears to have avoided a serious injury, and poor shooting has made him a solid buy-low target in fantasy. Young’s points and assists have been fine this season, but he is just 5-of-26 shooting from beyond the arc and is a woeful 37.1% from the field. He also hasn’t had a steal in three straight games, but Young will bounce back once he’s healthy. HIs fantasy value won’t be lower than it is right now, so making a low-ball offer to his manager could end up paying off before the season is over.

Jaylen Brown, SG/SF, Boston Celtics (100% rostered)

Brown figures to carry a heavy load this season with Jayson Tatum (Achilles) out indefinitely, although Tatum does expect to return some time after the All-Star break. Brown’s core stats have been fine, as he’s at 26.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 3.0 3-pointers per game. Still, a lack of steals (0.4), blocks (0.4) and assists (3.8) have hurt his value, along with his 76% free throw shooting. He’s currently returning 15th-round fantasy value due to his struggles and can only go up from here. Now is a good time to target Brown in a trade, especially if your team is lacking in points and triples. But don’t expect him to produce much in the other categories, and keep in mind that his career free throw percentage is just 72.6%.

Josh Hart, New York Knicks, SG/SF, 89% rostered

Hart clearly misses coach Tom Thibodeau and has been a rough fantasy ride thus far, scoring a grand total of 11 points through three games while knocking down just 4-of-18 shots and 1-of-9 3-pointers. He’s coming off the bench and could bounce back if one of his teammates suffers an injury, but the reserve role is not working for him at all. Hart’s averages of 24.7 minutes, 3.7 points, 7.7 rebounds and 4.0 assists are incredibly disappointing, and his shooting percentages have been detrimental to his fantasy value. If Hart doesn’t get it going in the next week — and I doubt he will — he’s going to start showing up on fantasy waiver wires everywhere.

Dyson Daniels, PG/SG, Hawks (88% rostered)

Much like Hart, Daniels has been a disappointment this season after being consistently drafted in Round 3 of most fantasy drafts. Through five games, his season high in scoring is just eight points, and he’s not doing much to help his managers outside of racking up 2.2 steals per game. He’s getting 30 minutes a night but is having trouble making shots, resulting in paltry averages of 5.4 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.0 assists. However, unlike Hart, I expect Daniels to eventually start playing better and trying to match last season’s stellar production of 14.1 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.4 assists, 3.0 steals and 0.7 blocks on 49% shooting. He’s the ultimate trade-for candidate in fantasy right now.

Trey Murphy III, SG/SF, New Orleans Pelicans (87.2% rostered)

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I was as high on Murphy as anyone coming into the season, but it has been a rough start, thanks mostly to poor shooting for a team that has yet to win its first game. Murphy had a nice game against the Spurs on Oct. 24, with 24 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, three steals and three 3-pointers, but his other three games have been a hot mess. He hit just 5-of-15 shots for 13 points in the season opener and then bottomed out in his past two games, hitting just 4-of-19 shots for 14 points. He’s another player I’d target in a trade right now, as he simply can’t shoot it this poorly and play this way for much longer. Expect a scoring explosion from Murphy any day now and look for the Pelicans to finally get into the win column when it happens.

Rudy Gobert, C, Timberwolves (80% rostered)

Gobert is still a serviceable option at center, but I’m afraid his name is bigger than his game these days. Despite getting nearly 32 minutes per game, Gobert sits at just 8.6 points, 8.4 rebounds and 1.4 blocks on the season. He’s also struggling at the line, hitting 9-of-17 shots (53%). Gobert’s field-goal percentage is still elite (68%) and there’s a chance he’ll start doing more scoring, rebounding and shot blocking, but he’s 33 years old and off to one of the slowest starts of his career. Wait for him to have a big game and then try to trade him if you have other options at center.

Brook Lopez, C, LA Clippers (19% rostered)

Lopez is backing up Ivica Zubac in Los Angeles, and while he’s not doing much to help fantasy managers, he’s playing enough minutes to negatively impact Zubac’s playing time. Zubac played a career-high 32.8 minutes per game last season but is down to 27.8 minutes this year, thanks to Lopez. As for Lopez, he’s at just 7.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.3 blocks and 2.0 3-pointers per game, playing just 17 minutes per contest. He scored 15 points in the opener, but he hasn’t scored more than six points since and has actually seen his scoring drop in every game this season. Unless you’re in a two-center league, Lopez probably belongs on waivers.

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  Tim BontempsOct 29, 2025, 08:46 PM ET

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  Tim Bontemps is a senior NBA writer for ESPN.com who covers the league and what’s impacting it on and off the court, including trade deadline intel, expansion and his MVP Straw Polls. You can find Tim alongside Brian Windhorst and Tim MacMahon on The Hoop Collective podcast.

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young has no issues with his ACL after leaving Wednesday night’s 117-112 win over the Brooklyn Nets with a right knee sprain, according to coach Quin Snyder.

“The most important thing is it is not his ACL,” Snyder said after the game. “He’s going to get an MRI tonight or tomorrow, and make a determination from there. Not sure how long or what respect, but something he’s hopefully going to be back from whenever possible.”

Young, who entered the night averaging 20.8 points and 9.5 assists, was standing under the basket when teammate Mouhamed Gueye — after being pushed in the chest by Nets forward Noah Clowney — fell backward and into Young’s leg, sending him crashing to the ground.

Young was down for a while in pain before he eventually got to his feet and jogged to the bench during the ensuing timeout. He remained in the game once play resumed, but after seeing Young on the court for a few moments, Snyder took him out 17 seconds later. Young immediately went to the locker room.

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”He didn’t want to come out of the game,” Snyder said. “He’s such a competitor. He takes a lot of pride in being available … You saw it tonight, too. He tried to stay in there. He told me, ‘Just give me a couple minutes,’ and I told him, ‘If I don’t like what I see, I’m taking you out.'”

Although it appears Young has escaped the most serious injury outcome, it also seems likely that the Hawks, who are now 2-3 after avoiding a late collapse to beat the winless Nets (0-5), will be without their floor general for the foreseeable future.

Atlanta came into the season with high expectations following a summer that saw the team trade for Kristaps Porzingis and sign Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Luke Kennard in free agency, but the one thing the Hawks do not have is someone to replace Young’s orchestration at the point.

Atlanta started the second half with Alexander-Walker in Young’s place, which could give the Hawks a dominant defensive group while he is sidelined. But last season Young led the NBA with a career-high 11.6 assists per game, and no one on the roster is capable of single-handedly taking on that creation load in his absence.

As a result, Snyder said the group will have to work together if Atlanta is going to survive without him.

“Anytime a player of Trae’s caliber, particularly someone that has the ball and is orchestrating situations on the offensive end, that’s an adjustment we had to make on the fly,” Snyder said. “Whether it was Luke [Kennard] or Nickeil or Dyson [Daniels] or [Jalen Johnson], the key thing when we are playing that way is everybody has got to be willing to play with the pass, and try to get advantages that way.

“It’s something we’ll keep working on, depending where Trae is with his health.”

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  Ohm YoungmisukOct 27, 2025, 07:00 AM ET

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  Ohm Youngmisuk has covered the Giants, Jets and the NFL since 2006. Prior to that, he covered the Nets, Knicks and the NBA for nearly a decade. He joined ESPNNewYork.com after working at the New York Daily News for almost 12 years and is a graduate of Michigan State University.
  
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THE EMORY SPORTS Medicine Complex practice courts are quiet after just about all the Atlanta Hawks players have left for the day.

But Trae Young, sitting near the baseline of the two practice courts, can always hear the noise and chatter that surrounds him.

Entering his eighth season, Young is beloved in Atlanta. But his critics, from Patrick Beverley to anonymous online trolls, constantly chirp.

Young can practically recite the gripes against him: “I can’t adjust my game. I can’t play with this guy or this guy.

“I mean, it’s very comical to me,” Young says. “It’s very funny. There’s so many things, man.”

After coming within two wins of reaching the NBA Finals in 2020-21, Young and the Hawks have been in four straight play-in tournaments, losing in the first round twice before failing to make it to the postseason the past two years.

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Young said he goes into every season thinking it is his most important one, but he admits this one feels “special” and is “definitely the biggest season for me.” He is in his prime, and the reigning assists champ has his best roster yet. Young, who has a $49 million player option for next season, wants to show Atlanta he is a superstar talent worth the four-year, $229 million max extension he is eligible for.

But in this restrictive second-apron era, Atlanta will wait on an extension. By waiting, the Hawks can see how things go with this retooled roster and still maintain flexibility in case things don’t go well, giving them the option to take a new route and build around a promising young core of developing talent. The Hawks and Kristaps Porzingis are also going to wait on a potential extension and see how this season goes.

For Young, the All-Star can explore his options next summer if he does not get an extension later this season. That means he’ll have to get used to not having control of his immediate future.

“I think it’s going to be great. I’m not worried about it,” Young told ESPN when asked about entering the season without an extension. “As much as I wish it was, it’s not all in my hands and I can’t control everything. I just can only control the present. And I know if we win, everybody eats … I understand what winning can do.

“If certain things don’t go my way as far as injuries, health and stuff that I can’t control, that may be the man above telling me there’s another plan for me. I’m focused on making sure all my guys, Quin [Snyder] included, get taken care of and succeed.”

This summer, new general manager Onsi Saleh directed one of the most impressive offseasons in the NBA, adding Porzingis, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Luke Kennard while also acquiring the New Orleans Pelicans’ unprotected 2026 first-rounder, a potential high lottery pick in a deep class.

Young’s task is to blend those vets with rising Hawks like Jalen Johnson, Dyson Daniels, Zaccharie Risacher and Onyeka Okongwu and lead Atlanta to contention. Injuries have left the East open for the taking with stars like the Boston Celtics’ Jayson Tatum and Indiana Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton sidelined.

That and an enhanced roster has given Young a prime chance to return to the playoff stage, prove he’s still the franchise player worth building around and silence the doubters. He believes the talent around him will allow him to show he is more than what people think.

“There’s a lot of misconceptions of me,” Young said. “They’ll get changed over time, and I truly believe that.

“And I feel like a lot of it will get changed this year.”

Trae Young admits this season feels “special” and is “definitely the biggest season for me.” Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images

BEFORE THE START of the Hawks’ second day of training camp, the team’s weight room is livelier than normal. Young, now one of the older vets on the team at 27, is jumping around, high-fiving teammates and getting them pumped up before hitting the weights.

“I will say there definitely is a new sense of energy with Trae this year,” Okongwu, who is entering his sixth season, told ESPN. “He’s always had that, but it’s different this year. He’s really taking that leap forward in terms of leadership. He’s really trying to galvanize the show. We have a really young team, so he’s trying to be the guy to lead the youngins and to be a voice for the guys in the locker room.

“Just in terms of communication, I’ve heard him more this year than I have in previous years, and I commend him for that.”

During training camp, Johnson took note of how much Young “has just been smiling.” Nothing can dampen Young’s excitement about his teammates this season — not even Beverley.

Two weeks earlier, Patrick Beverley was questioning Young’s ability to lead and win. In a brief online beef, the former Clipper said he talked to some of Young’s former teammates who questioned his leadership and didn’t like playing with the point guard.

Young responded on his podcast by telling Beverley to “state your source” and that he was never intimidated when facing “Patty Bev” — a standout defender during his 12 seasons.

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Current Hawks players describe Young as a leader who cares, a guy who organized their group text chain to promote camaraderie on one of the league’s youngest rosters. In a 111-107 win over the Orlando Magic on Friday, a smiling Young celebrated with rookie Asa Newell during a timeout after finding him for a 3 and an alley-oop dunk in a tight fourth quarter. It was as if the point guard was the one who just scored his first two professional baskets.

“Last year, he made tremendous [strides] with the leadership component,” Saleh told reporters before camp started. “I thought he was great playing off the ball, just his energy towards the game. His teammates, I thought he was great last year [with them].

“We’re super confident in him just helping lead our guys and playing with a guy like Onyeka, Kristaps, Luke and Nickeil, having more weapons around him, too. I think it’s super exciting, but just the natural development of a star player. He’s getting better every year, and we expect that to happen this season as well.”

Young and the Hawks will need patience, though. As seen on opening night when the Hawks were stunned 138-118 by the Toronto Raptors, there will be an adjustment period with all their new pieces and moments of adversity with the Hawks playing nine of their first 14 games on the road.

That stretch includes two key games against Orlando, another team that had an impressive offseason and is looking to rise in the East. Already, the Hawks have had to play two consecutive games without Porzingis (flu-like symptoms) and Risacher (right ankle sprain). Johnson (right ankle sprain) joined them on the sideline during Saturday’s loss to the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder.

But their offseason moves gave them much-needed depth that the Hawks are hoping will be the difference between contending in the East and being a middling play-in team yet again.

Those moves came with an assist from the franchise point guard. When Young knew the Hawks were going after Alexander-Walker and Kennard in free agency, he called both to recruit them and sell them on the city of Atlanta.

Alexander-Walker was told stars from teams courting him during free agency would reach out. But it was only Young who called him multiple times.

Alexander-Walker, who is coming off two straight Western Conference Finals appearances in Minnesota with Anthony Edwards, sees some similarities between Young and Edwards in how their confidence and competitiveness can rub some the wrong way.

“Ant has a very strong personality,” Alexander-Walker told ESPN. “Trae has a strong personality. It just comes out different. And so when guys are very self-confident and aware of who they are, to the untrained eye that could be arrogance. It could be cockiness.

“Trae has confidence. Ant, Shai [Gilgeous-Alexander], Luka [Doncic] has confidence. … But [Young] still wears a heavy burden of pressure. And he’s had success through his pressure.”

“Last year, [Young] made tremendous [strides] with the leadership component,” general manager Onsi Saleh told reporters before camp started. Alex Slitz/Getty Images

The Hawks designed their offseason to get Porzingis, Alexander-Walker and Kennard to take some pressure off Young, who has had to reshape the way he plays. Snyder has been emphasizing pushing tempo and having Young pass the ball up the floor to create early offense for wings like Johnson, Risacher and Daniels, who recently signed a four-year, $100-million extension.

He also will have Young play more off ball, passing to eventually get the ball back for an easier shot — similar to Stephen Curry with the Golden State Warriors — instead of having to expend a ton of energy creating his own shot against defenders.

For the 7-2 Porzingis, he says his “main mission” is to make life easier for his new point guard — and it’s not his first time working with a dynamic playmaking point guard. He played alongside Luka Doncic in Dallas for two and a half seasons, but the two were not the fit Dallas had hoped for.

Now Porzingis will try to use that experience to make things work better with Young.

“The playmaking, they both have it at the highest of levels,” Porzingis told ESPN of Doncic and Young. “They do some similar stuff, honestly. Their builds are different. But they’re both masterminds at reading the basket, anticipating what’s going to happen, reading the game, anticipating what’s going to happen.

“That experience [with Doncic in Dallas] is definitely going to help me. Playing with Luka and having those open conversations and open dialogue with Trae about what he likes, where he wants to get the ball, and how I can make his life easier.”

Porzingis and Doncic ran 405 pick-and-pop plays together with Doncic as the ballhandler in 2019-20 and 2020-21, second-most among all combinations and trailing just Young and John Collins, according to ESPN Research. But Young has not had a center like the man dubbed “The Unicorn.”

Already a master of the floater with 752 in his career — the most in the NBA since tracking began in 2013-14 per GeniusIQ — Young is looking forward to unveiling new wrinkles in his game alongside Porzingis.

“I haven’t had a guy like him in the NBA,” Young said. “So I think you’ll be able to really see what different things that I can do with a guy that can pick and pop and spread the defense, spread the five man out to 30 feet. I think you’ll be able to see a lot of different things that I haven’t been able to show in the past, too.

“Hopefully this year I get a lot more catch-and-shoot shots, something that a lot people don’t think I can do.”

Young is used to having the ball in his hands, having dribbled 226,906 times, the most of any player since he entered the league in 2018. But he is willing to sacrifice scoring as he focuses on getting his teammates more involved. His scoring average dipped from a career-high 29.6 points per game in 2019-20 to 24.2 last season.

Johnson — who opened the season with 22 points, eight assists and seven rebounds — is emerging as a playmaker Young can rely on. Young mentioned how he and Johnson were building chemistry together before the forward suffered a season-ending shoulder injury on Jan. 23.

“I want a lot of people to write us off,” Johnson, now fully recovered from surgery, told ESPN. “What we’re building behind the scenes, it’s something special.”

Young is bullish about what the Hawks can do with the most talented roster he’s had.

“If we are healthy,” Young said, “I mean the world better be ready for what’s coming.”

Young and Johnson were building chemistry together before the forward suffered a season-ending shoulder injury on Jan. 23. Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

WITH PORZINGIS AND Risacher sidelined in Orlando, Young still found himself having enough help to erase a 14-point deficit and stun the Magic.

“I thought he managed the game as well as I’ve seen him manage a game late,” Snyder said of Young. “Just directing people where to go. And our guys were listening, too.”

Four teammates scored in double figures, but it was Young who closed the door. He scored 11 of his 25 points in the final 5:59, including sinking a patented 15-foot floater to quiet the Orlando crowd with 46.3 seconds left.

Trae Young clutch floater oh yes that’s the good stuff â„ï¸ pic.twitter.com/9ART10rYCt

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) October 25, 2025

“He brought us home,” Johnson said.

When it comes to silencing the naysayers, perhaps it is not surprising that the Hawks star — wearing an OU hoodie at the Hawks practice facility — looks to another famous former Oklahoma Sooner signal-caller as an example.

“You see it playing right now with another OU guy with Baker Mayfield and what winning does for somebody,” Young said of the quarterback who has changed the public’s perception of himself by guiding the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to consecutive playoff appearances since 2024 and a 6-2 record this season. “I get chills talking about it. I know what I can do or what the image of me looks like once I just win.

“Win again.”

It’s been more than four years since Young became a New York villain and took a bow at Madison Square Garden, waving goodbye to Knicks fans after eliminating New York in five games in the first round in 2021. That was the start of a surprising run to the Eastern Conference Finals in just his third season.

Perhaps Young thought there would be many more deep playoff runs with clutch shotmaking after that. He isn’t taking this chance — with the best cast he’s had around him — for granted.

“I’m willing to give up the ball,” Young said. “It’s just you have to have the guys that are out there that want the ball first to make a play, and two, that can draw certain attention when they do get the ball.

“I feel like we got that now.”

The week before camp started, Snyder and Young met to discuss their approach for this season. Both men mentioned the word “efficiency” during their talk. Young averaged 11.6 assists but shot a career-low 41.1% from the field and led the league with 4.7 turnovers last season.

“The keyword for Trae is efficiency,” Snyder said. “I think what you are going to see is Trae having to feel the game in a way. … There’s games that’s going to mean scoring more. There’s games where he will be passing more. The constants will be him forcing pace, not just pushing the ball off the dribble but passing ahead. He was one of the best at passing ahead, if not the best.

“The other thing he has to do every night is be efficient defensively … One of the things we did talk about was me challenging him … He wants to get better every year.”

While teams like Cleveland and New York have had more time together and are expected to be the top two teams in the East, the Hawks hope that they’ll eventually soar at the right time to make some noise in the postseason.

If that happens, Young might finally hush the haters like his fellow formerly maligned Sooner quarterback.

“People may get the wrong perception of us because of what you see on social media or what somebody may say about you,” Young said. “I understand Baker, when they say, he’s a hothead [or] he’s crazy. But then when you’re winning, now he’s a dawg. He’s competitive. The whole perspective changes just because you win. That’s my main focus. I just want to win.

“That’ll change all the narratives.”

Contributions from ESPN Research’s Matt Williams.

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This news is not a surprise. In fact, Trae Young was resigned to this outcome months ago.

Young and the Atlanta Hawks will not reach terms on a contract extension before the start of the season, something confirmed by Joe Varden and Fred Katz at The Athletic. Young will make $46 million this season and has a player option for $48.9 million next season — he could, in theory, leave the team for nothing as a free agent next summer.

Youngâ€s extension can be agreed to and signed at any point during this season, and Young has hinted on social media that he wants to sign one. However, Hawks management has built the best team around Young he has ever had, and new GM Onsi Saleh wants to see how all of this looks before extending anyone. On paper, the Hawks appear to be a top-four team in the East, with the potential to be a playoff threat to the Cavaliers and Knicks at the top of the conference. But what will they look like on the court?

Atlanta was aggressive in building out this roster. The Hawks traded for Kristaps Porzingis, who brings much-needed shot blocking on defense as well as a pick-and-pop partner for Young. Atlanta sign-and-traded for Nickeil Alexander-Walker to add shooting and defense on the wing. Speaking of shooting, the Hawks went out and got Luke Kennard.

Then there are the players in house expected to take a step forward. Jalen Johnson is healthy again after what looked to be a breakout season a year ago. Zaccharie Risacher seems poised to make a leap in his second season. Dyson Daniels was the leagueâ€s Most Improved Player a season ago, while this is a big year for big man Onyeka Okongwu.

Thatâ€s a lot of talent, but it puts pressure on Young to show he can be the leader of this team, not just a scorer or offensive force but a floor general when the team needs it. If Young can put all the puzzle pieces together, he will get his extension (his max would be four years, $229 million, but the number likely comes in a little below that).

Itâ€s just not happening before the season.

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• Tim Bontemps

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  Tim Bontemps

  ESPN Senior Writer

  Tim Bontemps is a senior NBA writer for ESPN.com who covers the league and what’s impacting it on and off the court, including trade deadline intel, expansion and his MVP Straw Polls. You can find Tim alongside Brian Windhorst and Tim MacMahon on The Hoop Collective podcast.

• Brian Windhorst

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  Brian Windhorst

  ESPN Senior Writer

  • ESPN.com NBA writer since 2010
  • Covered Cleveland Cavs for seven years
  • Author of two books

Oct 17, 2025, 07:00 AM ET

This is peak extension season in the NBA.

Or, as one agent told ESPN this week: “The torture chamber.”

The deadline for extensions for most eligible players is Monday at 6 p.m. ET. At this point, it’s commonplace for there to be pessimism about deals getting done. But compromises — and deals, along with them — do happen regularly.

That said, even by normal standards, there is a lot of pessimism right now.

Here’s why: There’s the continued adaptation to the apron system, which has caused teams to be even more careful about long-term spending. And then there’s also a star-studded free agent class in the summer of 2027, when Nikola Jokic, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Donovan Mitchell, Anthony Davis and others could all be available to sign with any team.

The deals that do — and don’t — happen over the next few days set the stage for future negotiations, and they’ll signal what free agency could look like next summer.

So here’s a look at several of those situations, including an extension that, surprisingly, still isn’t done involving a future inner-circle Hall of Famer who changed teams this summer.

Will Kevin Durant extension talks have liftoff in Houston?

Tim Bontemps: The Rockets, under general manager Rafael Stone, have done an excellent job of managing their salary structure — and that will no doubt play a role in how Durant’s contract situation plays out, but also rookie scale extension candidate Tari Eason’s.

With Fred VanVleet now likely to opt into his $25 million deal for next season after tearing his ACL last month, the Rockets have roughly $70 million to get both Durant and Eason signed and remain under the dreaded second luxury tax apron — which will allow Houston to continue adding to a roster it hopes is good enough to compete with the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference.

If these negotiations were as simple as, “Give Kevin all the possible money” — like the Jimmy Butler III extension with the Golden State Warriors was after his acquisition via trade in February — the deal probably would have been done already. As a result, the expectation from rival teams is that Houston is trying to get deals done with both players and stay below the second apron next summer.

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Brian Windhorst: First off, the Butler extension with Golden State happened before the trade. It wasn’t until the Warriors raised their monetary offer that Butler acquiesced on his position that he didn’t want to go to the Warriors. An improved offer at the 11th hour, though it came without a player option, got the trade done.

As for Durant, who himself blocked a trade to the Warriors last winter, he and business partner/agent Rich Kleiman have been optimistic there will be a deal done eventually with the Rockets. As Tim implied, it is clear the Rockets are not offering Durant the two-year, $120 million max he is eligible for, otherwise the deal would be done. Durant has said on the record he sees himself staying in Houston.

There is clearly some haggling going on beneath the max, and the number could very well be predicated on what happens with Eason as the Rockets manage the apron. There probably isn’t drama here, but it is worth pointing out Durant probably doesn’t fear unrestricted free agency either.

The present and future balancing act for the Miami Heat

Windhorst: Tyler Herro is coming off an All-Star season and is definitely interested in extending with the Heat, but there haven’t been substantive talks to his point and a deal is doubtful, sources say.

In a vacuum, Herro is the player the Heat probably should be most interested in extending, and Herro saw former All-Star Bam Adebayo get a large extension last year. But it doesn’t appear to be in the offing.

As for two other extension candidates, recently acquired Norman Powell and Andrew Wiggins, long-term deals are also unlikely. Powell, whom the LA Clippers traded to Miami in part because they were dodging their own extension issue with him, could get a short deal, if anything. Wiggins, for his part, has a player option for $30 million in 2026-27, and while it’s possible the Heat might hope to negotiate a different number, they also might not.

And Tim about to tell you why …

Bontemps:The answer to what will happen with Miami’s top extension candidates can be found in the extension that Miami did sign at the start of training camp with forward Nikola Jovic, the No. 27 pick in the 2022 NBA draft. That four-year pact worth a little over $60 million starts out at $16.2 million in 2026-27, before dipping to $14.9 million in 2027-28 and then going back up again.

And why did Miami do that? Because, sources say, the Heat — like many other teams around the league — are planning for that aforementioned 2027 free agent class.

Will Jokic, Antetokounmpo, Jokic, Mitchell and Davis all hit unrestricted free agency that summer? It’s unlikely. Whether they do or not, several other star names could join them, including Stephen Curry, Karl-Anthony Towns, Kawhi Leonard, Trae Young, Zach LaVine, James Harden and Kyrie Irving.

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The fact that Paul George is the only All-Star to change teams via free agency in recent years is a sign this path is far less fruitful than it has been in the past (and look at how things have gone for Philadelphia since landing George last summer). And with the new extension rules that have made it more lucrative to re-sign with current teams, plenty of those players could be off the board by the time free agency arrives that summer.

But Miami will always be a destination for players. And, by maintaining flexibility for the 2027 offseason, the Heat are giving themselves the ability to retool their roster around Adebayo, and attempt to return to title contention. So while that doesn’t necessarily preclude a deal getting done with Herro or Powell, it’s hard to see Miami passing on its cap space until it knows it has a good reason to.

When a team signing a good contract makes it hard to get an extension done …

Windhorst: There is a 0.0% chance Austin Reaves signs a contract extension — and a 99.9% chance he opts out of his $14.8 million player option for next season. We could say “sources say” here because we did check on it, but it’s also a no-brainer.

Reaves has one of the best value contracts in the NBA because of contract extension rules. Players can get only 140% of their current salary in an extension, which means Reaves is up for a deal worth roughly $89 million over four years, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks. His market will be much higher. The Lakers have his full rights and are favorites to re-sign him, but everyone understands why he’s not signing now.

While we’re here, let’s also address Bulls’ guard Coby White, who will not be extending now either. White will earn $12.8 million this season and has outperformed his deal. Like Reaves, he is limited to how much he can sign for now. His extension number is capped at around $18 million if he were to re-sign in Chicago now. His market is also certain to be higher.

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Bontemps: There obviously has been an inordinate amount of attention paid to the upcoming free agency of LeBron James. But it might be even more interesting to see what happens with Reaves when he hits free agency next summer. If Reaves waits, he could get an annual salary starting at more than $40 million next season, after making less than that much combined over the first three seasons of his current deal.

The 6-foot-5 guard has been a huge success story since joining the Lakers as an undrafted free agent in 2021. He has steadily improved, averaging career-bests of 20.2 points and 5.8 assists last season while shooting 37.7% from 3-point range on more than seven attempts per game.

There were 10 players who qualified for the scoring title who averaged at least 20, 5 and shot 37% from the field: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Brunson, Darius Garland, Damian Lillard, Jamal Murray, Jokic, Curry, James and Herro.

Not bad company for a guy who will be an unrestricted free agent at 28, and therefore will have plenty of suitors.

Ditto for White, for all the reasons Brian said. Even after the Bulls got Josh Giddey’s four-year, $100 million deal done earlier this summer, they still have roughly $75 million in cap space available next summer, per Bobby Marks, to both keep White and retool the roster around him, Giddey and the team’s past two lottery picks, forwards Matas Buzelis and Noa Essengue.

A busy offseason could lead to a busy in-season in Atlanta

Windhorst:There is mutual interest between the Hawks and Kristaps Porzingis in extending his deal, sources said. But with Porzingis’ injury history and a radical change in circumstance following the offseason trade that brought him from Boston — and after Porzingis spent much of the summer in Europe playing for the Latvian national team — and both sides are comfortable seeing how the season progresses.

Unlike some others, Porzingis isn’t facing a Monday deadline to extend. With one season at $30.7 million left on his deal, he can extend any time between now and June 30.

The same timeline goes for franchise player Trae Young, whose situation is more intriguing. Unlike Porzingis, whose contract is up after the season, Young has a $49 million player option for next season that he’d prefer not to pick up and instead replace with a lucrative new deal.

In a different era, a multitime All-Star coming off his first max contract could expect to have his contract extended again at the max. But in the apron era and with the Hawks having to invest in younger players, Young is a bit of a tweener.

He’s a star but he’s not a superstar, and a new max contract at 30% of the salary cap would be superstar money. We probably will see this situation more often over the next few years with this class of sub-superstar players looking for their second max deal.

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Bontemps: The Hawks are also negotiating with reigning Most Improved Player Dyson Daniels, who does face the Monday extension deadline to extend his rookie contract.

Last fall, the Hawks got such a deal done at the buzzer with Jalen Johnson, a five-year, $150 million deal that, moving forward, looks like a very good piece of business for Atlanta.

For the much discussed, failed “two timelines” approach in Golden State, a similar situation is developing in Atlanta. The Hawks are excited about their young core of Johnson, Daniels, last year’s No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher, rookie Asa Newell and potentially a very high pick coming in next year’s draft via the New Orleans Pelicans.

But Young and Porzingis are the two best players on the current roster, and fit extremely well with the young players the Hawks have around them. Because of how the Hawks have managed their books over the past year, there’s a world in which the Hawks could get a Daniels deal done, figure out deals for Young and Porzingis next summer, and stay below the aprons.

That could give the Hawks the opportunity to do the thing every team in the league is trying to do and what few teams other than the Oklahoma City Thunder have successfully done under the new CBA: develop, and keep, depth on the roster.

An update on the expensive balancing act in New York

Windhorst: The Knicks have had some discussions about extending center Mitchell Robinson, sources say, but there hasn’t yet been traction toward a deal. Robinson is in the last year of a contract that pays him $13 million this season.

Towns has three years left on his deal, including this season, though 2027-28 is a $61 million player option. He has expressed a desire to stay in New York long term, but there’s no urgency from either side to get a new deal done.

Bontemps: One of a few reasons why the Knicks would be unlikely to do an extension with either Towns or Robinson is because they’re already playing a complicated game of limbo with the second apron.

Does that mean some sort of blockbuster trade is inevitable? Not at all. But the Knicks have repeatedly shown under team president Leon Rose that they are going to maintain as much roster flexibility as possible. Even the extension they did sign this summer, with Mikal Bridges, allows him to be traded before the trade deadline on Feb. 5, if the Knicks choose to.

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Charles Barkley: If the 76ers are healthy, they can win the East

Charles Barkley joins “The Rich Eisen Show” and explains why the 76ers can win the Eastern Conference this season.

And then there’s the guy who extended last year …

Bontemps: Yes, Joel Embiid participated in Sunday’s open-to-the-public scrimmage and could make his preseason debut in the Philadelphia 76ers’ final exhibition game against the Minnesota Timberwolves. But we learned long ago it is foolish to plan much in 76ers’ land beyond the next 24 hours.

That being said, Embiid playing in the scrimmage Sunday was a pleasant surprise, and falls in line with the general contours of how this preseason has played out for him and the 76ers: with Embiid regularly participating in practice, and seemingly building toward playing in next week’s season opener in Boston.

That’s a far cry from how his season began last fall, when Embiid signed a four-year, $240 million extension with Philadelphia only to then go through a disastrous campaign that ended with knee surgery in February.

Windhorst: The 76ers operate in a different world than much of the rest of the league. They’re so scarred from injury setbacks and so cognizant of the venom from fans that, as a defense mechanism, they’ve learned to make no promises and lower expectations.

That being said, Embiid is doing far more now than he was a year ago at this time. And while he hasn’t begun to practice fully yet, George’s participation level has also taken meaningful steps forward since training camp began.

More immediately, though, they are over-the-moon excited about the potential of rookie VJ Edgecombe.

Bontemps: To Brian’s point, it’s remarkable how different expectations are surrounding Embiid, George and the 76ers now compared to just a year ago. Then, the talk was about it being a “championship-or-bust” season, and how it was finally going to be the breakthrough season Embiid, the 76ers and Philadelphia had been waiting over a decade to witness.

But after the calamitous way last season played out, there are virtually no expectations this season. The league’s GMs, by a wide margin, voted Philadelphia as the league’s hardest team to project. Embiid being relatively healthy, and the 76ers returning to the playoffs, would be seen as at least somewhat of a success in the wake of how poorly the past 12 months have gone.

All of that is why rival scouts and executives are eager for Embiid in live action, to see whether he looks anything like the player he was before last season, or the one who struggled through those 19 games a year ago.

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After previously teasing something from the music studio during the summer, Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young dropped a new song on Saturday.

Young’s single, titled “Where I Stay,” features guest appearances from Georgia-based rappers Quavo and 2 Chainz and was released on YouTube.

There had been hints that Young was working on something recently. The Players’ Tribune released a new video series calledSwitching Stages in which athletes and musicians got together to explore their shared connections.

The first episode featured Young and Quavo, with the former Migos frontman being shown teaching the four-time NBA All-Star how to rap.

Between the song title and some of the lyrics—particularly, the line “A-T-L-A-N-T-A-G-A is where I stay”—might be a pointed message toward Hawks management.

Much has been made about the state of Young’s contract as he enters the final guaranteed season of his current deal and his future with the Hawks. The 27-year-old recently said he’s not necessarily disappointed about the state of his talks with the organization because he’s “happy about the team that we got going into this season.”

The Hawks had one of the best offseasons of any team in the NBA, adding Kristaps Porziņģis, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Luke Kennard. They have all the makings of a team capable of being one of the best teams in the Eastern Conference.

Young, in addition to moonlighting as a rapper now, will be leading the charge in Atlanta. The Hawks will open the regular season at home against the Toronto Raptors on Oct. 22.

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The 2025-26 NBA season is here! We’re rolling out our previews — examining the biggest questions, best- and worst-case scenarios, and win projections for all 30 franchises — from the still-rebuilding teams to the true title contenders.

2024-25 finish

• Record: 40-42 (eliminated in play-in tournament)

Offseason moves

• Additions: Kristaps Porziņģis, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Luke Kennard, Asa Newell

• Subtractions: Clint Capela, Larry Nance Jr., Georges Niang, Terance Mann

(Henry Russell/Yahoo Sports Illustration)

The Big Question: Is Trae Young prepared to lead a contender?

Trae Young is a four-time All-Star. He has averaged as many as 29.6 points and 11.6 assists per game. He has led his team as far as an Eastern Conference finals. And he is 27 years old — squarely in his prime.

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If ever there were a season for Young to take a step forward in his career — to move past the criticisms of his contributions as a winning player, especially on the defensive end — it would be this one. And if ever there were a team built to accentuate his game and mask his deficiencies, it would be this one.

The Hawks added one-time All-Star center Kristaps Porziņģis and Nickeil Alexander-Walker (among last year’s Sixth Man of the Year candidates) to a roster that already boasted a talented rim protector and a cache of versatile wings.

[Yahoo Sports TV is here! Watch live shows and highlights 24/7]

Porziņģis will join Onyeka Okongwu in the frontcourt. Who will start is anyone’s guess, but given Porziņģis’ performance at EuroBasket over the summer, the guess here is that he will get the nod. Either way, Atlanta can field 48 minutes of quality rim protection behind Young, while Porziņģis also adds a layer of versatility on the offensive end. Young has never had a pick-and-pop option quite like Porziņģis.

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Nor has Young had this many versatile two-way wings to assist him on defense. In addition to Alexander-Walker, Atlanta features rising star Jalen Johnson, Most Improved Player Dyson Daniels and 2024 No. 1 overall draft pick Zaccharie Risacher. Luke Kennard and Asa Newell also joined the fray this season.

The Hawks are deep and talented and built to support a ball-dominant superstar on his quest for a championship. The big question, then: Can Young be the best player on a serious title contender?

We have our doubts, recognizing that doubts are what drive Young. He should also be driven by criticisms of his value as a teammate — levied by former NBA player Patrick Beverley over the summer. Young does have a tendency to make a game about himself, but he has also never had this much help.

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Do not forget about the matter of Young’s contract, either. He owns a $49 million player option for the 2026-27 season. He is eligible for a four-year, $229 million extension, which has not yet been offered. Is there a figure that satisfies both parties? It feels weird to go into a season in which the team has title aspirations (however long its shot might be) while the roster’s best player is on a lame-duck contract.

[Get more Hawks news: Atlanta team feed]

Do the Hawks believe in Young as a driver of winning? That they must answer this season. And early. Because other teams will be asking themselves the same question, as they consider trading for Young.

There are no good options if Young cannot lead this team into contention. What do the Hawks do, then? They can trade him, though they would have to find a team willing to give up real assets and pay Young. They could let him walk for nothing, freeing up cap space, though they have had no luck in big-name free agency. Or they could sign him to a fair extension, perpetuating a team with a sub-championship ceiling.

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It is so much better if Young is just awesome and embraces the brand of basketball that can coalesce a roster. Everything flows from there, because the Hawks would have their man, their team and real hope.

Best-case scenario

Young is everything the Hawks imagined him to be, getting off the ball a little more on offense and digging deep on defense, and his effort on both ends sets a tone: The Hawks are here to compete. Johnson is an absolute star, maybe even an All-Star. They get a healthy season from Porziņģis. Risacher takes a step forward. Daniels is a menace. Everyone else is rock solid, and Atlanta has a real shot at winning the East. That’s right. They could win this Eastern Conference. Whether or not they can beat whoever emerges from the West is another matter, but who cares, for Atlanta hasn’t seen a Finals … ever.

If everything falls apart

Young is nothing the Hawks imagined him to be, prioritizing his own success over the team’s. His business as usual on both ends stagnates the development of the young wings at his side — Johnson, Daniels and Risacher — and no amount of rim protection can guard against Young’s carelessness on defense. Bad vibes permeate the locker room, and a trade is necessary, only Atlanta cannot find much more than nickels on the dollar. The Hawks take another step back in order to move forward behind a young core, which is not the worst of options, except that they’ll need another point guard. And who is that guy? This is the catch-22: The Hawks may be damned to never win if they do keep Young and damned if they don’t.

2025-26 schedule

• Season opener: Oct. 22 vs. Toronto

Trae Young is good. His supporting cast could be great. And what’s the fun of rooting against a could-be contender? Take the over and hope Young is great, too. And he better be, because the team is built for it.

More season previews

East: Atlanta Hawks • Boston Celtics • Brooklyn Nets • Charlotte Hornets • Chicago Bulls • Cleveland Cavaliers • Detroit Pistons • Indiana Pacers • Miami Heat • Milwaukee Bucks • New York Knicks • Orlando Magic • Philadelphia 76ers • Toronto Raptors • Washington Wizards

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West: Dallas Mavericks • Denver Nuggets • Golden State Warriors • Houston Rockets • Los Angeles Clippers • Los Angeles Lakers • Memphis Grizzlies • Minnesota Timberwolves • New Orleans Pelicans • Oklahoma City Thunder • Phoenix Suns • Portland Trail Blazers • Sacramento Kings • San Antonio Spurs • Utah Jazz

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Trae Young isnâ€t quite at “disappointment†yet when it comes to his lack of a contract extension with the Atlanta Hawks, but heâ€s close.

Young, speaking at the teamâ€s media day on Monday, was asked about not having a new deal entering training camp this fall. Young is eligible for a four-year, $229 million extension with the franchise. Though he tried to downplay it a bit and insisted that his focus was elsewhere, itâ€s on the back of his mind.

“I don’t know [about] the word disappointment. I mean, maybe, for sure,” Young said, via ESPNâ€s Ohm Youngmisuk. “For me, I’m so focused. I’m more happy about the team that we got going into this season. I’m blessed, bro. I wasn’t stressing about anything. If something happened, it happened. If it didn’t, I still got time.”

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Young averaged 24.2 points and a league-high 11.6 assists per game last season while picking up the fourth All-Star nod of his career. The Hawks went just 40-42 last season, however, and missed the playoffs for the second straight campaign under head coach Quin Snyder.

The former No. 5 overall pick out of Oklahoma is entering the eighth season in the league. He has two years left on a five-year, $215 million deal he signed with the franchise ahead of the 2022-23 campaign, and heâ€s got a player option on that contract for next season before he hits free agency in 2027.

Though Young can still get his extension done, itâ€s unclear where the two sides are at on that front.

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Regardless, Young is trying to focus on getting the Hawks back into the postseason. The team made several major moves this past offseason, including bringing in Kristaps Porzingis from the Boston Celtics and Nickeil Alexander-Walker from the Minnesota Timberwolves. They also struck a one-year, $11 million deal with Luke Kennard in free agency.

“I’m focused on this team. I’m focused on right now,” Young said. “I got a great team going into the season that you can’t say I’ve had [before]. So I’m even more excited about that. Who knows what the future is for me. But right now I’m here and I’m present like me and Coach [Snyder] have been talking about. I’m ready to go.”

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Patrick Beverley has never shied away from a beef. With anyone.Enter Trae Young. Beverley and the Atlanta Hawks’ All-Star guard…