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Trae Young fires back at ESPN analyst’s comments about him

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports
By Darryn Albert | Last updated Jul 20, 2025 10:38 PM ET

Trae Young had the receipts ready for an ESPN commentator this week.

Former NBA champion guard Iman Shumpert, who now serves as an analyst for ESPN, spoke this week on Young’s current contract situation with the Atlanta Hawks. Young is owed $46 million next year (with a $49 million player option for 2026-27) but is eligible for a new four-year max extension this summer worth up to $229 million.

While analyzing Young’s situation, Shumpert asked what Young could do other than score the basketball. Shumpert opined that Young was unable to switch onto centers defensively at the end of games and would also be unable to turn his backcourt partner into a scoring champion (a knock on Young’s playmaking skills).

"Trae Young statistically what he brings to a game of basketball I get it. At 6'3, it's tough to say can he switch onto a 5 at the end of the game, can he guard a bigger guard…can he make a 2-guard a scoring champion?" – @imanshumpert https://t.co/WXV49PuYPG pic.twitter.com/lQInvvdlGi
— Oh No He Didn't (@ohnohedidnt24) July 18, 2025

On Sunday, Young returned fire by commenting on a reply by an X user who called Shumpert’s take a “bad breakdown of basketball.”

“That’s why I let them live,” Young wrote. “what I did to him on the court when we played you’d think he’d have more respect when my name gets brought up! I could keep going… no hate this way tho.”

That’s why I let them live… what I did to him on the court when we played you’d think he’d have more respect when my name gets brought up! I could keep going…
no hate this way tho
— Trae Young (@TheTraeYoung) July 20, 2025

Shumpert, still only 35 years old, played in the NBA for 10 total seasons from 2011-21. Part of the time was spent in the Eastern Conference against Young, who entered the league in 2018.

As for Shumpert’s take, it is tremendously unfair to expect guards to be able to switch onto big men, especially in today’s perimeter-oriented game. Additionally to Shumpert’s point about playmaking, Young just led the NBA in assists last season with 11.6 per game (marking his third consecutive season with double-digit assists per game).

Still, the four-time All-Star Young does have obvious limitations to his game (e.g. size, defense, and inefficiency with the ball in his hands), which may have been Shumpert’s greater point there. That may be why there are rumors the Hawks could trade Young instead of giving him a new extension (though that might be less likely at this point after some of Atlanta’s recent win-now moves).

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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