Chris Paul’s deal with San Antonio should put to rest any Trae Young trade rumors this offseason

After the Golden State Warriors released him earlier this evening, veteran point guard Chris Paul was now free to sign wherever he wanted. It didn’t take him long to make his choice, signing a one-year deal with the San Antonio Spurs.

This seemed like a logical fit for both parties. The Spurs needed a point guard to facilitate the offense and pair with Victor Wembanyama, who provides leadership at a lower cost. The other thing this signing should signal is the end of all Trae Young trade rumors this offseason.

Of course, anything can happen, but it’s almost certain that Young will continue to lead the franchise he’s led since 2018. Last week, Yahoo Sports’ Jake Fischer reported that the Lakers, Spurs and Pelicans were three teams that Young liked. The Hawks traded Dejounte Murray to New Orleans for Dyson Daniels, Larry Nance and two first-round picks, with the unprotected 2025 pick coming from the Los Angeles Lakers.

With this trade, the Pelicans and Lakers were no longer destinations. The Lakers’ package for Young was never very appealing from the Hawks’ perspective and with the 2025 pick coming from Los Angeles, why would the Hawks help them improve?

The Spurs were seemingly the last destination and honestly, the only one that ever made sense in the first place. I never thought the Hawks were going to trade Young this offseason, but the only situation that made sense was to send him to the Spurs for their own picks in 2025, 2026, and 2027 and start a complete rebuild. With the Spurs drafting Stephon Castle with the No. 4 pick and signing Paul, Young no longer makes sense for the Spurs this offseason.

It looked like the Hawks were going to keep Young after dealing Murray to the Pelicans on Friday. The Hawks picked up Dyson Daniels in the deal, a seemingly perfect backcourt complement to Young from a defensive standpoint. With Murray gone, the Hawks had no chance of beginning a complete rebuild without their own picks, leaving the Spurs as the only viable destination. Now that the Spurs have two new guards, Young should continue to lead the Atlanta Hawks.

The good news for Young is that the Hawks appear to have a plan for this offseason and are executing it.

I’ve said it before, but the Hawks have failed to build a capable roster around Young. Young’s biggest weakness is obviously his defense and size, which can make it difficult to build a winning team around him, but it’s not impossible.

In the summer of 2022, Atlanta acquired Spurs All-Star point guard Dejounte Murray, sending him a ton of draft capital. Murray was supposed to work alongside Young and improve the Hawks’ perimeter defense, as well as give Atlanta another playmaker and ballhandler.

It’s safe to say that hasn’t been the case since Murray was in Atlanta. Murray hasn’t been a bad player at all for the Hawks, but he hasn’t been the defensive stalwart they were hoping for when they traded him. He’s been a good player in the locker room and a good leader for the franchise, but the Hawks are going in a different direction, as this trade shows.

It was becoming more and more obvious that the Hawks roster was not built to win around Trae Young and that they were going to have to make adjustments. Atlanta had a goal this offseason to improve on defense, have more size and have better defenders up front and so far they are succeeding.

While this trade may not have a big name return to Atalnta, I think there are a few useful items that help them get closer to their goal. In my opinion, the best part of New Orleans’ comeback was Daniels, who is a young player, but has the kind of size and athleticism that Atlanta was looking for to help their defense.

Our own Rohan Raman explained Daniel’s potential fit with the Hawks:

“I’m very excited to see what Dyson Daniels can bring to this team. He is a 2.00m fullback with a 2.08m wingspan, which he uses exceptionally well in defense. He was 13th among all NBA defenders in steals, with 1.4 steals per game, and can defend on the perimeter. I’m particularly pleased with his form next to Young, as Young’s improvements in defensive effort often go unnoticed due to his physical limitations. Now Young has a fullback partner who can cover some of those defensive breakdowns. He also processes the play quickly and makes great passes. Daniels needs to improve his shooting (he’s shooting just 31 percent from three-point range with limited volume), but he’s young and can easily become a better shooter. I bet he’ll have an easier time accomplishing this in Atlanta, as Young will demand a lot of defensive attention, forcing shooters to sag against Daniels. »

Daniels isn’t the only player the Hawks have added so far this offseason that’s helping them achieve those goals. The Hawks spent the No. 1 overall pick on Zaccharie Risacher in the NBA draft, and on draft night, Hawks general manager Landry Fields talked about his defense and shooting as the main reasons the Hawks selected him:

“Well, you start with what you see is he’s 6’2” and he’s got the ability to play both sides of the ball, he’s got the ability to defend, he’s a versatile defender, a very good shooter and a high IQ player. You know, the level of development he’s had so far is fantastic, he’s only 19, he’s going to be 19 all next year and I’ve always said all the qualities that are important to us in the past, about those types of players and the ones that we want in the building ultimately and he’s got a lot of them.”

Risacher is a 6’8, 204 LBS winger who fills a big need for Atlanta. He has two-way versatility and has performed well in his league playoffs since the lottery. He is a plug-and-play type forward who would suit the Hawks as a starting 2 or 3.

Does this mean the Hawks are done recruiting players? No, this is not the case. No one would be surprised if they got rid of Clint Capela and De’Andre Hunter. If they got rid of Capela, that would open the door for Onyeka Okongwu to start at center and Nance could back him up. Daniels could either start next to Young or come off the bench. We will have to wait and see if Risacher enters the starting lineup immediately.

Atlanta needs to reshuffle its roster around Young and do a better job of placing the right talent around him to maximize the team. I think they’re going in the right direction so far, but there’s still more work to do.