Trae Young eyes 'opportunity' with Wizards, following Hawks exit

Trae Young has released a statement on his trade by the Atlanta Hawks to the Washington Wizards.

The four-time All-Star guard posted on X two hours before the trade became official, as the Hawks had acquired veteran guard CJ McCollum and forward Corey Kispert for him.

"The last few years weren't how I wanted them to be," Young wrote.

"Expectations that we created for ourselves, reaching heights that Atlanta has never reached before.

"Bringing a championship to Atlanta was always my goal. However, between the injuries, the setbacks, and situations that didn't make sense, we never truly got to see our full potential."

Young, 27, admitted that he was willing to move away from the Hawks, who in the 2018 NBA Draft acquired him in a draft-and-trade deal with Dallas as the fifth overall pick. He is leading the assists (4,837) and 3-pointers (1,295) lists for the franchise.

He also has the third-highest career average of 9.8 assists per game in NBA history, with only Hall of Famers Earvin "Magic" Johnson and John Stockton being ahead of him.

"The pain of staying the same eventually outweighed the uncertainty of change. Change is often met with fear, but I see it as another opportunity," Young wrote.

"I'm walking into this next chapter ecstatic, with my head high and my eyes forward. It's time to see what's possible when the support is real and vision is clear. We move."

Young, a third-team All-NBA player for the 2021-22 season, helped the Hawks reach the Eastern Conference finals in the 2020-21 season.

Atlanta could not make it out of the first round in the next two campaigns and also failed to escape the play-in tournament in the last two seasons.

"On behalf of the Hawks franchise, I'd like to thank Trae for how he embraced the city of Atlanta and represented the Hawks during his time here, on the court and in the community," Hawks general manager Onsi Saleh said.

"Over more than seven seasons, including four All-Star appearances, he cemented himself as a fan favorite and one of the great players in our franchise's history. We wish Trae and his family all the best."