NBA Halloween: Playing trick-or-treat with each team’s early season trend

Atlanta Hawks

Trae Young will be a star: Treat

Trae Young is undersized, he’s a defensive liability and he’s been a -11.7 on the court for the Atlanta Hawks, but despite a few major flaws, he’s also stunningly gifted on the offensive end.

Aside from averaging 19.1 points and 6.6 assists per game, Young is a lightning rod when he gets hot. He’s only shooting 42.9 percent from the floor and 34 percent from 3-point range, but rookie point guards typically take the longest to adapt to the NBA. Based on what we’ve seen thus far, Young’s ceiling is still exceptionally high.

His court vision and anticipation is far more advanced than most optimists thought it’d be at this stage. He’s a terrific passer and ball-handler, and although he needs to cut down on those 3.0 turnovers per game, he has all the makings of a star if Atlanta can build around him correctly.