Trae Young is the superstar the Hawks are building around. However, the recent news and turmoil behind the Hawk’s organization arose, and people were conflicted about the information. Many people on social media and the general sports media characterize Young as a problem and the source of the Hawk’s recent turmoil. But is that true, or is it all smoke? I believe it is all smoke, and here are a few reasons why Trae Young is NOT the problem.

Trae Young’s ‘Villain’ Origin

First, the media often ridicules and puts down Trae Young.  Young’s ‘villain’ persona emerged from the playoff series against the Knicks in 2019. The Hawks made an excellent run in the playoffs, falling short at the Eastern Conference Finals. Since then, the Hawks have failed to string together another deep run in the postseason, being first-round exits, with Young struggling. From there, the media has generally disliked Young because he is a ‘foul-baiter’ and a ‘free-throw merchant.’ The media paints Young negatively, with the added drama adding more fuel to the fire.

‘Irritating’ Playstyle

Young’s ability to get to the line irked most people, and his recent poor play made his complaining more irritable, as he would seek easy fouls that would grant him free throws. Players like James Harden and Kobe Bryant had a similar ability, where they seemingly got to the free throw line whenever they wanted. The combination of Young’s irritating playstyle and the fact that the Hawks have not had any recent post-season success has led the media to believe that Trae young is an empty stats guy. The Hawks usually get no national media coverage unless there is the drama surrounding the team, which has been breached over the past week. 

Constant Comparisons

Trae Young and Luka Doncic will always be intertwined, as the Atlanta Hawks and Dallas Mavericks swapped superstars in the 2018 NBA Draft. Doncic is a better player than Young, but the media makes the trade out to be one-sided, and many don’t consider it a win-win. While the Hawks’ extra pick, Cam Reddish, did not pan out to any notable achievements within the organization, the Hawks still have an All-NBA player on their roster. Media narratives claim Doncic is the better player and has won more, whereas in reality, they have only reached their respective conference finals. While the trade was a blunder for the Hawks, it is not nearly as bad as the media makes it out to be.

The combination of Young’s unfavorable playstyle and the news regarding the dysfunction of the Hawks organization has led the media to turn on him. Media bias will never go away until Young has earned their respect. As for the other problems, the Hawk’s organizations will not let any more leaks go through and will settle them internally. As fans, we can only speculate so much about the situation as we rely only on unreliable rumors, and we hope the Hawks continue to improve as they push for the Playoffs in the second half of the season.