The Atlanta Hawks have failed to qualify for the 2024 NBA after losing to the Chicago Bulls during the play-in tournament, which is a huge letdown for a team that was expected to compete for at least a top-six seed in the Eastern Conference.
Trae Young, who has been hampered by a serious finger injury this season, put up 22 points and 10 assists while going 11-of-13 from the free throw line, but he only shot 4-of-12 from the field and had six turnovers in the 131-116 blowout loss.
During the team’s exit interviews, Trae Young expressed his disappointment for not meeting the high standards that they set for themselves before the start of the 2023-24 campaign.
“Obviously I want to be here. I want to be here, but I want to win too. I want to win championships here. That’s been me from the beginning,” Young said via Brad Rowland on X (formerly known as Twitter).
“Nobody’s expectations are higher than me. Nobody in the city of Atlanta’s expectations of our team are higher than mine,” he emphasized.
Atlanta Hawks faced with a Trae Young dilemma
When the Atlanta Hawks acquired Murray during the 2022 offseason from the San Antonio Spurs, they were expected to cement themselves as contenders in the Eastern Conference.
However, Trae Young-Dejounte Murray experiment in Atlanta has failed so far because it only yielded two playoff appearances (both first-round exits) in the past three seasons.
Both Trae Young and Dejounte Murray were linked to a possible transfer to the Los Angeles Lakers earlier this season, but a deal never materialized. However, expect those trade rumors involving the two to heat up again this summer.
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