Trae Young did not leave Atlanta looking to burn a bridge. Even after the Hawks moved on from their longtime point guard, Young made it clear that he wanted to keep his relationship with the city and its fans intact. Now, months into his new life in Washington, that decision has taken on a little more meaning.
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During an appearance on The Baller Alert Show with Bryan Turner, Young was asked directly if he could ever see himself wearing a Hawks jersey again. His answer kept the possibility alive, even as he made it clear where his focus is today.
“Man, you never know. I plan on playing for a long time. That’s why I wanted to leave the right way and for me to not have any bad blood with anybody in the city or any of the fans,” Young said.
Young’s answer was not a hint that he wants out of Washington. In fact, he followed it by making his current priorities very clear.
“Sometimes breakups are meant to happen, just how they go down is most important. But for me right now, obviously my 10 toes are here in DC,” Young said.
That distinction matters because Young’s Atlanta exit was more business decision than public fallout. Atlanta did not offer him a maximum extension in the 2025 offseason, while Young was dealing with a right knee injury and the Hawks were reshaping their offense around Jalen Johnson. The two sides eventually agreed to move on, with the trade being finalized on January 9, 2026. Washington received Young, while Atlanta acquired CJ McCollum and Corey Kispert, with no draft picks involved.
Young spent 7.5 seasons with the Hawks and left behind one of the most productive individual runs in franchise history. He made four All-Star teams, earned All-NBA Third Team honors in 2021-22 and led the NBA in assists during the 2024-25 season. His biggest Atlanta moment came in 2021, when he led the fifth-seeded Hawks to the Eastern Conference Finals after playoff wins over the New York Knicks and Philadelphia 76ers.
He also left Atlanta as the franchise’s all-time leader in assists with 4,837 and 3-pointers with 1,295. Young ranks sixth in Hawks history in points with 12,413, while he is the only player in franchise history to record at least 25 points and 20 assists in the same game.
But a reunion does not appear to be something Atlanta is building toward anytime soon. The Hawks have moved toward a system centered on Jalen Johnson and added Houston point guard Kingston Flemings with the No. 8 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. Their current roster is built around more size and perimeter defense, with Dyson Daniels, Lu Dort, Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Dorian Finney-Smith among the team’s wings.
Young, meanwhile, has made an equally significant commitment to Washington. After declining his $48.97 million player option for 2026-27, he signed a four-year, $212 million extension with the Wizards on June 22, 2026. The deal includes a player option for 2029-30, tying Young to Washington for the foreseeable future.
That makes his Atlanta comments less about the present and more about the kind of relationship he wants to preserve. Young has continued to speak warmly about Atlanta, including previously calling the city his “second home,” while his January farewell also expressed gratitude toward the Hawks, the city and its fans.
So, no, Young is not pointing toward an immediate return to Atlanta. The Hawks have moved in a different direction, and Young has committed his future to Washington. But if his latest answer is any indication, he made sure one thing remained intact when the Atlanta chapter ended: the door was never completely closed.