By: Mac Brown, @SSN_ATL
It was a clear, mild night in the bustling borough of Brooklyn, NY in mid-June of 2018. Like any night in this city, it's one of commotion, amusement, and of new beginnings. However, the new beginnings happening at the Barclays Center weren't exactly your typical journeys of self-discovery Brooklynites so oft experience. But rather new beginnings of something a little grander. The Barclays Center is the host of the 2018 NBA Draft, one that is now considered one of the deeper drafts in league history. Sixty people could have their lives potentially changed forever in this arena tonight. And if that happens, millions more could have their lives changed around the country. The energy is palpable and the draftees are ready to see where they end up. Especially a 6-foot point guard from Lubbock, Texas.
Trae Young was a Top-20 recruit across the board coming out of high school and is the only player in NCAA history to lead the nation in both points and assists in a single season. He could shoot the lights out of the gym and had elite ball-handling skills. These types of accolades make for a bona fide Top-5 pick in any NBA Draft. And that's exactly what happened. Trae Young was selected fifth overall by the Dallas Mavericks. He was then traded to the Atlanta Hawks for the draft rights to Luka Dončić, who Atlanta selected third overall, in a now famous and ill-talked draft night transaction. It wasn't necessarily considered this at the time. But this truly has resulted in one of the biggest trades on draft night in league history. Young and Dončić have 8 NBA All-Star and 6 All-NBA selections between them and have both solidified themselves as transcendent superstars at their positions. It's beyond safe to say that both players have given the franchises who drafted them moments and memories that will last lifetimes and would undoubtedly be absent without their presences. Atlanta and Dallas were both winners on that midsummer night.
That wasn't the initial takeaway though.
After the trade, analysts and fans alike were left wondering why this move was made. Dončić was one of the better European prospects the NBA had ever seen and was borderline certain to be a star. The Hawks went to the playoffs ten straight seasons from 2008 to 2017. That was the second longest streak in the NBA at the time, behind only the Spurs. In the 2017-18 season, the Hawks won 24 games. They now found themselves in an unquestionable position to rebuild entering the 2018 offseason. So why not go with the certainty in Luka? Let's just say the Hawks, and Quavo, knew what they had on their hands.
Let's do a little blind player comparison:
Player A:
-Year 1: 19.1 ppg, 8.1 apg, No Playoffs
-Year 2: 29.6 ppg, 9.3 apg, No Playoffs
-Year 3: 25.3 ppg, 9.4 apg, Lost in Conference Finals
-Year 4: 28.4 ppg, 9.7 apg, Lost in 1st Round
-Year 5: 26.2 ppg, 10.2 apg, Lost in 1st Round
-Year 6: 25.7 ppg, 10,8 apg, No Playoffs
Player B:
-Year 1: 21.2 ppg, 6.0 apg, No Playoffs
-Year 2: 28.8 ppg, 8.8 apg, Lost in 1st Round
-Year 3: 27.7 ppg, 8.6 apg, Lost in 1st Round
-Year 4: 28.4 ppg, 8.7 apg, Lost in Conference Finals
-Year 5: 32.4 ppg, 8.0 apg, No Playoffs
-Year 6: 33.9 ppg, 9,8 apg, Lost in Finals
Based on the above comparisons, it would be hard to make the argument that one player has had a significantly better career than the other, right? It seems the main argument that is always made for Player B is that they score more points than Player A. Even though Player A has consistently had more assists per game and points created than Player B. If Player B is the be-all, end-all because of the points they score, why does Player A's assists that lead to points being scored never come into account? With near identical postseason records, again the argument is that since Player B has led his team to the Finals (and lost), that he has had the significantly better career. In a sport that has legacies so rooted in winning championships, it's hard to believe there's that much weight on losing one. People don't remember the NBA in the 90s because of Charles Barkley. Frankly, until either Player A or Player B win a ring or multiple MVPs, the idea that one career has been noticeably "better" than the other is a moot point. Most basketball fans probably know who Player A and Player B are at this point, but just in case. Player A resides in the A and Player B just hit Tinseltown.
Now that that's been established, Trae has had a significantly different career than Luka in one area. And that area is the same area that's loomed over him since June of 2018. That area is the reception each have had amongst the fans, and most notably, the media. Trae has become a perennial snub on the All-Star team and postseason accolades. So much so that it even has a term coined by the man himself, "Trae'd". To be "Trae'd" is to be excluded from a list or company that you whole-heartedly deserve to be a part of. Starting back in 2020 when he should've made his second All-Star Game. To this year when he's second in the league in points generated per game, with 51.6, only behind Nikola Jokic. The following 18 players on the list all made the ASG this year. Trae Young did not. It very much, unfortunately, seems to be with the media that they don't want to be told they're wrong. They made up their minds about Trae on draft night seven years ago and won't accept that perhaps they could've been wrong. In most cases like this in the world of sports media, there does tend to be one side of the equation that doesn't pan out. The whole "I think Carson Wentz is better than Jared Goff" stance we saw years ago. Making their arguments in the past have some sort of grounds to go off of. That's what's so perplexing about this scenario. Both guys panned out, and for whatever reason, they seem to not be okay with that. If this was all just opinion, doubts are high that someone like Trae would care. But this could very well end up keeping him out of something like the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. Because those "accolades", that seem to just be the thoughts of fragile egos, hold very real weight. And those very real consequences are what make this situation with Trae Young so egregious.
It doesn't just end with the media though. Fans are to blame just as much. Chances are, if you're an NBA fan outside of the state of Georgia, you wouldn't consider Trae a top-tier player. Most seem to not even consider him a top-tier point guard. This is unequivocally false. Having personal opinions, and seemingly vendettas, of/for someone doesn't negate their accomplishments. Everyone under the sun lies, but numbers simply do not. And never will. And the numbers say that these two guys are about as similar in terms of production as it can get. But yet only one of them gets the shine.
Fast forward to the current day and another incredibly impactful trade has been made. This time only included one of our two guys. The "trade that shook the world" happened this last Saturday, February 2nd, 2025. This trade has sent shockwaves through, not only the league, but the entire planet. It's like trading Lamar Jackson for Joe Burrow. It's like trading Bryce Harper for Ronald Acuna Jr. It's like trading Kyle Richards for Heather Gay. It's like, a really big deal. With the trade only happening a couple of days ago, it's near impossible to tell the actual ramifications of a move this big. But there is one ramification that came into play instantly when the transaction was made. That ramification is that the Hawks have officially won the trade of draft night in 2018.
The argument, the debate, this disagreement is now over. It will be impossible to make the dispute simply because the Hawks still have their guy. Luka could very well go on to win multiple championships and MVPs and yada yada in LA. And there's certainly a high chance of that happening. And unless Trae is able to do the same or more in his career, the argument will easily sway in Doncic's favor, and should. But if Luka doesn't do that for the Mavericks, then there is no argument to be made for who won the trade. Trae winning one championship for the Hawks and Luka winning six for the Lakers does, in fact, do nothing for the Mavericks. It's settled. Finito.
Now, one could try and make a bad faith argument and say that "if Anthony Davis wins Dallas a ring, they still won the trade." One might, and probably will, if this is to happen. But we all know that's not how the Mavericks planned on this 2018 NBA Draft trade working. Thus why if this point is made, it shouldn't be taken seriously.
The real winner on that fateful night in 2018? The NBA. Both of these guys are bona fide superstars that have undoubtedly brought more eyes to the game. Trae Young may be snubbed on a yearly basis at this rate, but at least he IS mentioned. Stars and All-Stars alike have received little national attention while playing in the Peach City. Albeit for reasons they may not like, the Hawks and Trae at least being mentioned is certainly an improvement. Now the improvement needs to reach the point of the media recognizing just exactly what type of player and career they have with Trae. Both guys are here (the NBA) to stay and hopefully the day they are viewed on the same level will come when both are still on the court. Until then, it's a cold world for Mr. Young. But we all know he relishes in the ice.
It started in 2018 with a trade. Then years of being "Trae'd". And now, a trade closes out this historic storyline. Because of their beginnings, these two will always be linked. But now that Luka is in LA and Trae is still in Atlanta, the grip on the idea of the Mavericks winning that trade in a landslide can loosen. And we can all just go back to marveling at how amazing these guys are at the sport of basketball.