The Atlanta Hawks were one of the NBA’s biggest surprises in 2020-21, not because they made the leap to a playoff team in the East but for what they did once they made the postseason, going on a sensational run to the Eastern Conference Finals, losing to the eventual champs in six games.
Leading the way for Atlanta was Trae Young, as the third year star cemented his status as one of the league’s best offensive weapons in the playoffs, averaging 28.8 points and 9.5 assists per game across his first playoff run. Young is the franchise cornerstone of the Hawks and when the clock flipped over to August 3 and extensions were allowed to be discussed, Atlanta paid him as such, inking him to the expected 5-year rookie max extension.
Atlanta Hawks All-Star G Trae Young has agreed to a five-year, $207 million designated rookie maximum extension, his agent Omar Wilkes of @KlutchSports tells ESPN.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 3, 2021
For now, that means $172 million is for sure coming Young’s way, but an All-NBA campaign next season would vault him to $207 million for the life of that contract. That is certainly within reach for Young, particularly coming off a season where he was considered an All-Star snub and carries a lot of positive momentum and narrative into next season off of his sensational playoff performance. For the Hawks, they lock up the best young star the franchise has seen in a long time and tie their wagon to Young with high hopes of another long run of playoff appearances, hopefully seeing greater heights than ever before.
Source: https://uproxx.com/dimemag/trae-young-max-extension-hawks-sign-5-year-172-207-million-all-nba/