The Atlanta Hawks Trae Young is a star in his own right, and his dad Ray wants the comparisons to the Golden State Warriors two-time MVP Steph Curry to end.
Young was compared to Curry back in his college days at Oklahoma because of his deep shooting range and slight frame. But the two are very different players, and Curry’s coach Steve Kerr sees more of a similarity between Young and fellow 2018 NBA draft class member Luka Doncic.
“Thank you coach Kerr. Although its an honor to be mentioned in the same breathe with the greatest shooter ever, their games ARE NOT the same. Not even close My video edits 4 Trae as a kid consisted of 6-8 pg’s & of course Steph was one of them. But not only 1”
Thank you coach Kerr. Although its an honor to be mentioned in the same breathe with the greatest shooter ever, their games ARE NOT the same. Not even close My video edits 4 Trae as a kid consisted of 6-8 pg’s & of course Steph was one of them. But not only 1 https://t.co/qASzzWivvW
— Ray Young (@rayfordyoung) March 27, 2022
Trae Young is second in the NBA in offensive EPM behind Nikola Jokic at +6.2. He’s shooting it at an efficient clip, 53 eFG% and 60 TS%. His raw counting stats are 28 points and nine and a half assists per game.
During last season’s playoffs Young made his presence on the national stage for casual NBA fans. He led the Hawks to the conference finals in grand fashion, dropping deep bombs and floaters from all over the court.
While the Hawks are having a down season, Young made his second All-Star team and has an outside shot at making his first All-NBA team.
Young is an Adidas athlete and has his own signature shoe. He’s had a national State Farm commercial and recently signed an endorsement deal with Sprite.
Comparisons are part of the game and that’s what we as humans do. We need other reference points in order to make sense of what we’re seeing. But comparison is the thief of joy.
The more you compare players you tend to look at what they’re not, instead of what they are.
Young is his own player and will walk his own path. This is his fourth year in the league and he is carving his own lane. Going forward, he needs to continue to elevate his team and the players around him.
He is 23 years old and with young teammates like John Collins, De’Andre Hunter, Onyeka Okongwu, Jalen Johnson, and Kevin Huerter this team should be good for years to come.
The next step for Young is getting to 40% on his threes. He got up to 38% this season, a career high. He’s tightened up his shot selection and taken a lot of the unnecessary deep threes out of his shot profile.
He’s not as bad as he was on defense his first two years in the league, but he’s still a net negative. He doesn’t need to be an All-NBA level defender. Just provide more resistance at the point of attack, be in the right place on team schemes, and give the requisite effort.
In 2018 the Hawks drafted Doncic and traded him to the Dallas Mavericks for Young. The deal has worked out well for both teams. Going forward, how their teams perform in the postseason will be the new comparison point.
