Report: Hawks Swayed to Draft Trae Young over Luka Doncic by Mavericks Pick Swap

The Atlanta Hawks front office had "near-equal support" for Trae Young and Luka Doncic heading into the 2018 NBA draft, which led it to accept an offer from the Dallas Mavericks to swap the standout prospects in exchange for a 2019 first-round pick from the Mavs.

Tim Cato and Sam Amick of The Athletic reported the new details Wednesday. The Hawks used the additional selection to take Cam Reddish at 10th overall in last year's draft.

Young has quickly developed into one of the league's most dynamic offensive talents. He's averaging 29.4 points (fourth in the NBA), 9.3 assists (second) and 3.4 threes (seventh) through 59 appearances during the 2019-20 campaign.

The 21-year-old Texas native's lackluster defense offsets some of that offensive brilliance, though. He ranks last among all 502 qualified players in ESPN's Defensive Real Plus-Minus (-3.03).

He understands his career will forever be linked to Doncic because of the trade.

"It's going to be something talked about until we both retire," Young told reporters in February. "I try to focus on myself and my team ... That's how I look at it. I know that's going to be talked about until we're both done [playing]."

Doncic has emerged as a MVP contender in his second season. He's averaged 28.7 points, 9.4 rebounds, 8.7 assists, 2.9 threes and 1.1 steals in 53 games.

The 21-year-old Slovenian superstar is tied with the Houston Rockets' James Harden for the third-best MVP odds (+2,000) behind only the award's reigning winner, Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks (-2,000), and the Los Angeles Lakers' LeBron James (+700), per Caesars Palace.

Young isn't among the individual players listed by the oddsmakers.

That said, Reddish is starting to shown signs he could become a high-impact player for the Hawks too. After a sluggish start to his rookie campaign, he's averaged 17.0 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.2 threes while shooting 51.4 percent from the field in nine appearances since the All-Star break.

It's going to take several more years before either team can be declared a clear winner in the deal, and it could ultimately become a win-win situation for both sides.