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Ranking NBA's Top 15 Point Guards This Season

8. Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks



Trae Young's detractors needn't reach deep into the bag to find their rebuke: If he's this good, if he's already a top-25 player, why aren't the Atlanta Hawks better? It's a fair question. And Young's defense alone might provide the answer.

Catch-all metrics portray him as a certifiable nonfactor at the less glamorous end. He is dead-last in ESPN's defensive real plus-minus and NBA Shot Charts' luck-adjusted defensive regularized adjusted plus-minus. And he ranks third-to-last, ahead of just Bradley Beal and Darius Garland, in NBA Math's defensive points saved.

Non-defenders can be tricky cornerstones. They complicate attempts to build contenders. The breadth of Young's offense does not excuse his transgressions at the other end. But it comes pretty damn close.

Young's ultra-deep pull-up threes warp entire defenses. Planning for someone who's willing to fire away just inside the timeline is a migraine-and-a-half. Young exacerbates the defense's dilemma by actually making those shots. He's converting 35.8 percent of his looks from 29 feet and out.

A lack of size (6'1") has not hindered his capacity to make plays inside the arc. He has perfected the arc and timing of his floaters and ranks in the 92nd percentile of finishing around the rim. His 9.3 assists per game are not the byproduct of how much time he spends on the ball but an accurate reflection of his vision. He beams one-handed dimes on the move before it's even clear he's picked up his dribble, confuses defenders by telegraphing one pass but throwing another and threads the needle against double-teams he's not supposed to see over.

Atlanta's offense is not elite with Young on the floor (54th percentile), but it's subject to a monster drop-off when he sits—an 11.8-point-per-100-possessions plunge that ranks as the third-largest in the league among every player who has cleared 500 minutes.

Put a more established supporting cast around Young and the wins and losses should take care of themselves. He's averaging 29.6 points and 9.3 assists with a 59.5 true shooting percentage as the all-everything of an offense light on polished talent. Adding another ball-handler alone would go a long way, granting him an actual chance to work as a spot-up and motion shooter.

In the meantime, he cannot be too harshly penalized for the constraints under which he plays. He has outperformed the degree of difficulty attached to his role. So few players have ever balanced his volume with this efficiency—10 in league history, to be more exact: Adrian Dantley (four times); James Harden (four times); Michael Jordan (three times); Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (two times); Kevin Durant (two times); Larry Bird, Stephen Curry, LeBron James, Karl Malone and Bob McAdoo.

Seth Partnow wrote:...there is little doubt that [Trae Young’s] an engine who can drive an offense. I have had and continue to have questions about the relative degree of difficulty of Young’s statistical accumulation. That said, on some level the raw production speaks for itself:



That’s solid company in terms of efficient, high-volume scoring.

jayu70 wrote:This is hot.

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myrak433 wrote:

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this video seems to be saying that Trae needs better teammates. that is what I have been saying.

jayu70 wrote:

myrak433 wrote:

jayu70 wrote:This is hot.

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this video seems to be saying that Trae needs better teammates. that is what I have been saying.

Show me someone who has said he doesn't need better teammates.
Better than: Chandler Parsons, Evan Turner, Allen Crabbe, Damian Jones, DeAndre Bembry, Alex Len, Jabari Parker.
We've already upgraded Jone and Len to Capela and Dedmon.
Evan Turner to Teague (remains to be seen if he'll be back).

myrak433 wrote:

jayu70 wrote:

myrak433 wrote:
this video seems to be saying that Trae needs better teammates. that is what I have been saying.

Show me someone who has said he doesn't need better teammates.
Better than: Chandler Parsons, Evan Turner, Allen Crabbe, Damian Jones, DeAndre Bembry, Alex Len, Jabari Parker.
We've already upgraded Jone and Len to Capela and Dedmon.
Evan Turner to Teague (remains to be seen if he'll be back).

I like the Capela move and Dedmon as a backup. and Teague is nice. But that still doesn't move the needle enough for me to say we should stand pat. I get it, it seems most do not want to part with Hunter (because he was drafted 4th) maybe Heurter (because he showed some flashes his rookie season) though he regressed his 2nd year and at 21 years old he is hurt to much for my liking. I am only high on Cam. I am high on Collins, I just feel if we upgrade the team offense and have another guy that is a elite play maker we could replace Collins with a less talented player and would be a better team. I get it you all don't feel the same way. Different mindsets. But what I do not understand is when I suggested Derozan who we would not have to trade anyone for..... you all did not like that either. Help me understand that logic. And please don't talk fit and/or defense, because the truth of the matter is you don't really know if they would fit to add Derozan could come off the bench as the sixth man and have free rain to just score.