Latest Rumors on Trae Young's Injury Return Timeline Ahead of Hawks vs. Hornets

The Atlanta Hawks are reportedly getting a significant piece of their rotation back for Thursday's game against the Charlotte Hornets.

ESPN's Shams Charania reported Trae Young is returning from the sprained MCL that has sidelined him since an Oct. 29 game against the Brooklyn Nets.

While Young is the face of the franchise as currently constructed, Atlanta has played well in his absence. In fact, it went 13-9 during the 22 games he was out during a span that included a five-game winning streak against Western Conference foes last month.

It defeated the Los Angeles Lakers, LA Clippers, Sacramento Kings, Utah Jazz and Phoenix Suns during that run and enters Thursday's contest having won two of the last three.

Guards such as Nickeil Alexander-Walker and Dyson Daniels have kept the team afloat, while Jalen Johnson has been a double-double machine as the go-to option.

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Still, Young has been the primary offensive option for the team throughout his career as a four-time All-Star who led the league with 11.6 assists per game last season. His presence will dramatically alter the offense as he has averaged more than 18 field-goal attempts per game in each of the last four seasons.

Young is a willing facilitator, but everyone else will shift into a different role with a player who has such a gravitational pull with the ball in his hands. Given that reality and Atlanta's relative success when he was out, the team's immediate performance upon his return will be under the spotlight.

But Young is also a dynamic playmaker and elevates Atlanta's overall ceiling in the Eastern Conference.

It is currently 15-12 and sits in seventh place in the conference standings but is just one game behind the third-seeded Toronto Raptors in a crowded early playoff picture.