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The Trae Young era is officially over in Atlanta.
The Hawks traded the four-time All-Star to the Wizards for CJ McCollum and Corey Kispert, ESPN reported Wednesday. A deal to send Young to Washington had been rumored over the last week as the Hawks appeared ready to move on from the 27-year-old guard, who has played in just 10 games this season due to separate knee and quad injuries.
Young reportedly identified the Wizards as his preferred landing spot earlier Wednesday, even though the franchise has not finished above .500 in seven seasons.
Young led the Hawks to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021, but they’ve failed to make it past the first round since. Atlanta (17–21) has had a relatively disappointing 2025–26 season, holding the last Play-In slot at 10th in the East. But they’re 2–8 in games with Young in the lineup and 15–13 when he’s been sidelined.
The Hawks signed Young to a five-year, $215.2 million max extension in 2021. The deal has two years remaining, including a $49 million player option next season. Young is immediately eligible to sign a three-year extension with the Wizards, who were projected to have $80 million in cap space this offseason before the trade.
Washington should still have significant cap space, but whether the final number will be enough to sign another player to a max deal will depend on what Young does with his player option. An extension for Young would start next season, effectively removing the player option on his deal. It could start at under $49 million, per ESPN’s Bobby Marks.
Young played his first seven full seasons in Atlanta after the team traded for him on draft night in 2018. The Hawks selected Luka Dončić with the No. 3 pick, and dealt him for Young and a 2019 first-round pick which turned into Cam Reddish.
Wizards vice president of player personnel Travis Schlenk was the GM of the Hawks when the team acquired Young.
McCollum, 34, is on an expiring contract worth $30.7 million. Kispert is in the first year of a four-year, $54 million deal with a team option in the final year.
The Hawks are poised to move forward with a team anchored around 24-year-old forward Jalen Johnson. ESPN reported Wednesday that they are interested in trading for Mavericks star Anthony Davis.
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