Trae Young ‘knew it was time’ to leave Atlanta after Hawks hired new GM

Washington Wizards star Trae Young has publicly addressed his departure from the Atlanta Hawks eight months after he was traded to Washington in January. Young played his first seven-plus seasons with the Hawks and earned four All-Star selections. However, he said once the Hawks named Onsi Saleh as the team’s new general manager in April 2025, he knew his days in Atlanta were numbered. “When we brought in our third [general manager], I figured … it’s either we’re going to be around here for a long haul and we win, or it may be time for everybody to part their ways,” Young said during an interview with Brooklyn Nets forward Michael Porter Jr. “I knew it was time. I wanted to leave the right way.

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