The Atlanta Hawks traded Trae Young to the Washington Wizards last Friday, accepting the Washington Wizards’ offer of C.J. McCollum and Corey Kispert for the four-time All-Star point guard.
Many were stunned that the Hawks agreed to ship Trae to DC without getting any draft assets in return. However, Boston Celtics Hall of Famer Paul Pierce said that he wasn’t shocked that Atlanta sold low on their franchise superstar.
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“As a mid franchise, a franchise that’s not respected as an organization because of ownership, they never do anything that surprises me. So for them to give up a 4x All-Star, a guy who’s an elite PG in the league who’s got them to the Eastern Conference Finals, and not get a draft pick out of it? That tells me you wanted him out of your city, out of your state,” said Pierce on the “No Fouls Given” podcast.
Never went all-in to chase a title
The Hawks have been owned by Apollo Global Management founder Tony Ressler since 2015. During Ressler’s tenure as Hawks owner, the team has made the playoffs five times in 10 years. However, making the postseason in half of the years Ressler has owned the team isn’t why Paul says they are a mid-franchise, although that adds to the argument.
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In 2021, Young led the Hawks to a run to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they lost to the eventual champions, the Milwaukee Bucks. But instead of going all-in and chasing a title after that breakthrough year, the Hawks did little to upgrade, opting to run it back.
They paid their supporting cast, limiting financial flexibility while avoiding luxury tax spending. But while they kept everyone, the other teams improved and without a second star alongside Young, they were left behind.
Perhaps realizing their mistake, the Hawks traded for Dejounte Murray in 2022, giving up three first-round picks in exchange for him. Not only are both small guards, but they were also both ball-dominant.
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Atlanta ultimately traded Murray to the Pelicans in 2024. Luckily, they got Dyson Daniels in the trade and he has been a gem for them. But by then, Young’s career had run its course. Trading him was the only way to move forward. Not getting any draft picks in return was a terrible mistake.
“Organizations like this will never be elite. Organization like this will never win a championship in my lifetime. I guarantee that. If they do, I will crawl from L.A. to New York on my knees. They’ll be a middling franchise for eternity,” Pierce added.
Memphis got four first-rounders for Bane
Former L.A. Clippers guard Austin Rivers agrees with Pierce that the Hawks should have gotten a draft pick from Trae. He said that McCollum and Kispert are a decent return. However, given Young’s stature, they should have gotten at least one draft pick
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“If I have Trae Young, I gotta get picks with that, okay? He’s a perennial All-Star. Desmond Bane got four picks.” said Rivers. “So I understand, you got C.J. McCollum, but C.J. McCollum has like two, three years of good basketball.
“Kispet’s an average player. How are we getting just these two for a four-time All-Star? I just don’t understand. But this just tells me that A, this is a bad trade, or B, his value is not as high as what me and you think,” he added.
It’s unclear why the Hawks accepted this package for Young. Maybe, as Rivers said, his value had dipped lower than what many think. Or maybe, as Paul said, they just wanted to get rid of him as soon as possible.
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This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Jan 10, 2026, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.