Hawks' Trae Young's Ankle Injury Diagnosed as Grade 2 Sprain

Atlanta Hawks point guard Trae Young's ankle injury suffered Wednesday in New York has been diagnosed as a Grade 2 sprain, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski:

The 2019-20 All-Star selection has been mostly durable during the early stages of his career and only missed eight of a possible 149 games over his first two seasons. He'd been sidelined a few times during the current campaign with various ailments prior to landing awkwardly on his left foot on a floater in the lane against the Knicks.

Lou Williams figures to see the biggest uptick in minutes as he runs the Hawks offense with Young unavailable. It'll also create more opportunities for reserves Brandon Goodwin and Skylar Mays as part of the backcourt rotation.

Young has emerged as one of the NBA's most dynamic offensive playmakers since being selected with the fifth overall pick in the 2018 draft. He's averaging 25.3 points (15th in the league) and 9.6 assists (third) across 54 appearances during the 2020-21 season.

Atlanta has turned a corner following a three-year playoff drought, and Young's work leading the offense is a major part of that success. Having him healthy down the stretch and for a potential playoff run is key.