Trae Young knew the moment he flipped his phone over. In a Baller Alert exclusive, the Washington Wizards guard told BT of The Baller Alert Show that he saw his agent calling during the game the night the Atlanta Hawks traded him, and he chose not to pick up.
Young said he had gone to the back during the game to check his phone because he knew a deal could come at any moment. “As soon as I turned my phone over, I saw my agent was calling and I didn’t even answer it because I kind of figured what it was,” he said. “So I just ran out on the court.”
He went back out on purpose. “I didn’t want to get traded before the game and I wanted to go out there having one more warm up and be around the guys one more game,” Young said. He explained that he thinks about the young fans in the building, too. If a kid got to say bye and that became his last memory of Trae in a Hawks uniform, “that could go a long way.”
He also wanted one more moment with the teammates he grew with in Atlanta. He talked about watching Dyson Daniels make his big jump and watching Jalen Johnson go from battling injuries and fighting for minutes to becoming a star. “I just wanted to be around those guys,” he said. “Just one more time if I could.”
When BT joked that he would not show up to work if somebody told him he did not have to, Young saw it differently. “We playing in a league that a lot of people dream of playing in,” he said. “I don’t never take a game or a day for granted.”
Trae Young was also honest about how trades happen. “When you’re not winning things, people are going to be looked at and people are going to be looking to make changes,” he said. “That’s part of the business.”
Atlanta’s fans have their own theory about the deal, and Young addressed it directly. “A lot of people in Atlanta probably thought me getting traded was the opportunity for them to get the number one pick,” he said. Instead, it was the Wizards who landed the top pick. Young said he knew Washington wasn’t making the playoffs last season and was looking forward to the lottery, and getting “a future star in this league” was “a blessing for sure.
With the Wizards opening the preseason against the Knicks in New York, BT asked whether Young still sees himself as a villain there. “I let other people debate that,” Young said. “Obviously, if you still chanting my name and saying F you before it, you probably consider me a villain, but I don’t consider myself a villain.” He called New York fans passionate, pointing out that the Knicks finally got a ring after more than 50 years. Boston, though, is on another level. “They’ll boo their home team,” he said.
Jalen Brunson’s championship came up, too. Asked if it changed the narrative that small guards can’t win in today’s NBA, Young said, “I don’t think it’s going away, but it definitely helped.” Seeing Brunson win, he said, “helps a smaller guard and the perception of a smaller guard being able to win.”
On Anthony Davis, Young came to his new teammate’s defense. AD has said he plans to play a lot of games this season, and Young said he believes him. “I’ve been around him all summer,” he said. “He’s healthy. I know he’s motivated to go out there and play.” He added that “there’s a lot of things that are said that aren’t necessarily true out in the public,” calling Davis a top 75 player of all time for a reason who knows how to block out the noise. “When the time is right, he’ll speak on it.”
As for a return to Atlanta, Trae Young didn’t shut the door. “Man, you never know,” he said. “I plan on playing for a long time, so that’s why I wanted to leave the right way.” He said he has no bad blood with the city or the fans. “Sometimes breakups are meant to happen, but just how they go down is what’s most important.” For now, he made it clear where he stands. “Right now, I’m where I’m at.”
He has been in DC for about six months, and the biggest adjustment has been the traffic. “I thought it couldn’t get worse traffic than Atlanta,” he said, laughing about streets getting blocked off for no clear reason. “It could be like the president too.”
The interview took place during Young’s birthday weekend event in DC, the third year he has hosted it after the first two were held back home in Oklahoma. He said he wanted the city “to get to know me a little bit more” and to “celebrate a new chapter together.” He also credited John Wall, who he said has been a mentor since he came into the league and is still showing love now that Trae plays in Washington.
When BT asked about the other teams that were calling, Young didn’t take the bait. “I’m where I need to be and this is where I wanted to be,” he said.
The goal for this season is simple. “We haven’t won in a while or even been to the playoffs,” Young said. “I think we have the team to do it.” With health and some luck on their side, he wants to give DC fans a taste of playoff basketball again.
