Trae Young Leaves Door Open for Future Hawks Reunion After Wizards Trade, 'You Never Know'

Even though Trae Young is still in the early stages of a new chapter with the Washington Wizards, he won't close the door on one day potentially returning to his original team.

Appearing on The Baller Alert Show (starts at 12:40 mark), Young said "you never know" when asked if he would at some point consider playing for the Atlanta Hawks again.

"Man, you never know," Young said. "Like that's why the NBA is just such a… For me, I plan on playing for a long time. So, like I that's why I wanted to leave the right way, you know what I'm saying? And for me to not have any like bad blood with anybody in the city or any of the fans. (...) That's that's why I wanted to leave on the right terms. And sometimes breakups are meant to happen, but just how they go down is what's most important. But for me right now, obviously my 10 toes are here in DC."

Young spent the first eight seasons of his career in Atlanta. He made the All-Star team four times and helped the franchise make three consecutive playoff appearances from 2021 to '23, including a trip to the Eastern Conference Finals in 2021.

After the Hawks didn't sign Young to a contract extension last offseason, it seemed to signal the possibility a split could be coming. The two sides eventually worked together on a trade to find a destination that would benefit him.

Young landed in Washington on Jan. 9 in exchange for CJ McCollum and Corey Kispert. His farewell message to Atlanta fans written on social media did not suggest there were any hard feelings toward the Hawks organization.

Injuries limited Young to just 15 games last season, including five with the Wizards after the deal. Despite his lack of playing time in 2025-26, he secured a four-year, $212 million contract from Washington in free agency.

The Wizards have a fascinating roster going into this season. Young, Anthony Davis, AJ Dybantsa, Alex Sarr and Bub Carrington is an interesting group of five.

Dybantsa's development is the most important thing for Washington, but keeping Young and Davis healthy will go a long way toward determining if this is a playoff team in the East.

Given how popular and important Young was for Atlanta basketball during his time there, it's not a surprise he isn't ruling out a reunion down the line.

For now, though, the Wizards will be hoping to get the best version of Young as they try to take a step forward coming off three consecutive seasons with fewer than 20 wins.