Trae Young could be ready to return to the floor as soon as Wednesday for the Hawks.
Atlanta Hawks All-Star point guard Trae Young is on the verge of returning to the court and could be ready to play as soon as Wednesday night against the Charlotte Hornets, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.
Young, who has missed 23 straight games after suffering a finger injury that he had surgery on to repair a torn ligament at the end of February, is set to return at the perfect time for the Hawks. Although they lost 117-110 to the Miami Heat in double-overtime on Tuesday night, Atlanta still finds themselves one game behind the Chicago Bulls for the 9-seed in the Eastern Conference.
The Hawks will be a play-in tournament team and have to earn their spot in the playoffs by winning two straight games. However, they could possibly host the 9-seed vs. 10-seed play-in game against the Bulls if they can win two of their final three games while also seeing Chicago lose two of their final three games. The Bulls own the season tiebreaker over the Hawks in the standings.
In Young’s absence, the Hawks have posted a 12-11 record. Dejounte Murray has been the one player to step up, as he has averaged 24.8 points, 9.2 assists, and 5.7 rebounds per game since Young’s finger surgery. He recently recorded his first triple-double of the season with 29 points, 13 rebounds, and 13 assists against the Heat on Tuesday night.
With Young on the verge of returning from finger surgery, the Hawks may have a new outlook entering the play-in tournament, likely as the 10-seed.
Trae Young’s imminent return
Young returning to the floor, possibly as early as Wednesday night against the Hornets, is a significant development for the Hawks. This season has not gone as Atlanta imagined, and there has been a lot of talk throughout the season surrounding the future of the organization.
The Hawks gave up a lot to acquire former All-Star guard Dejounte Murray in 2022, yet he has been a hot name associated with trade discussions. Young has also heard his name come up as part of these discussions, which is why there is a belief around the league that one of these two guards could be moved in the offseason as Atlanta takes a step back to reset.
Young has spent all six seasons in the NBA with the Hawks, recently making his third All-Star Game in February. In a total of 51 games this season, Young has averaged 26.4 points, 10.8 assists, and 1.4 steals per game while shooting 37.1 percent from three-point range.
As a result of missing more than 17 games this season, Young will be ineligible for end-of-season awards and honors, such as making one of the All-NBA teams.
Atlanta enters Wednesday night’s game against the Hornets on a three-game losing streak. To make matters worse, starting forward Jalen Johnson suffered a sprained right ankle in Tuesday night’s loss to Miami, leaving his status for the remainder of the season in jeopardy.
In order for the Hawks to have any chance of advancing in this year’s play-in tournament, they are going to need their stars to step up. With Young and Murray on the court together, anything can happen for this franchise.
Source link