Several reports from Monday afternoon confirmed something that some NBA fans felt had been building up for months. The Atlanta Hawks are going to work with their star point guard Trae Young on potential trades that would find the 27-year-old a new team. The Washington Wizards have been brought up as one team interested in trading for the guard. If they do, it could land a first-round draft pick squarely in the lap of the New York Knicks, a team amid a championship window that traded draft control into next decade to assemble its current roster. How does that math work out?
Multiple reports point to Hawks, Young flying their separate ways
Young is in the midst of his eighth season as a member of the Hawks, the team that dealt the opportunity to draft Luka Doncic for him in 2018. He's been selected to four All-Star teams, most recently making the cut just last season.
It was first reported on Monday afternoon that the guard was "open-minded" to a trade by ESPN's Marc J. Spears. By Monday night, Shams Charania reported for the same outlet that Young and his representation are working with the team on a trade out of Atlanta.
According to Marc Stein of The Stein Line, the Wizards are interested in potentially trading for Young and want to build a deal around CJ McCollum. They acquired the veteran guard in the offseason deal that landed Jordan Poole on the New Orleans Pelicans; swapping him for Young months later would be a great value proposition if Washington doesn't have to add in many of their talented young players.
Knicks could benefit from a Wizards move for Young
New York is owed Washington's first round pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. The pick, however, is protected. If it lands in any of the draft's top eight slots, it remains in the control of the Wizards and conveys instead in the form of two second round picks.
While still of some value, particularly in the era of the second apron, a top-eight selection in a potentially-loaded draft class is far more appealing than a pair of second-round dart throws. The 9-25 Wizards have the league's fourth-worst record going into the week of January 5, 2026. If they add Young, though, is finishing outside of the top eight that unrealistic?
If the Knicks could snag that pick, it would be huge for their championship pursuits whether they end up selecting a player with it or not. Center Mitchell Robinson is a pending free agent; would a team in need of talent trade a promising center on a team-friendly contract in exchange for a fresh start with a new player?
New York would certainly have some recalculation to do with regard to their cap sheet. There's no chance the team, currently just about $148,000 underneath the league's scary new second apron, has the room for a top-eight draft pick in their plans. However, given how many picks the team has traded in recent years, getting a top pick from the offseason cap manuever that helped them land Jalen Brunson and Isaiah Hartenstein would be a major development.