Michael Wilbon speculates surging differences between Trae Young and Atlanta Hawks coach: “This league gets rid of the coach”
Trae Young is the Atlanta Hawks' young star player. He has apparently had an issue with the team’s head coach, Nate McMillan. The two men had a disagreement surrounding Young not attending the Hawks' home game last Friday when he was out with a sore shoulder. Injured players normally attend home games unless there is some other issue preventing them from attending.
The issue arose between the player and the coach in the home game against the Denver Nuggets when Young and McMillan had an exchange during the shoot-around.
Trae Young chose to not play Friday’s game vs. Nuggets due to an exchange with HC Nate McMillan during shootaround, per @shamscharania
McMillan reportedly disagreed with Young's shoulder rehab approach and gave him the options to "play off the bench—or don't show up at all." https://t.co/V4DnyoUqKW
Trae Young and coach McMillan say that they have moved past the issue, but questions remain about their relationship. This isn't the first time Young has not seen eye-to-eye with a coach. It is speculated that Young’s relationship with Lloyd Pierce was what led to his (Pierce's) departure during the 2020-21 season. McMillan took over for Pierce and led the Hawks to the Eastern Conference finals.
On ESPN’s “Pardon the Interruption” hosts Tony Kornheiser and Michael Wilbon discussed the issue and what tends to happen when coaches and players do not get along.
“This league gets rid of the coach” - Michael Wilbon
Wilbon is correct. The organization tends to get rid of coaches in situations where star players and coaches do not get along. The NBA favours star players because it's easier to find a coach than a top talent on the court.
When the Hawks fired Lloyd Pierce, the team was 14-20 at the time. McMillan took over and went 27-11 with a run to the conference finals. Last year, the team made a first-round exit and is 13-11 to start the season. Despite being above .500, the team is still performing below expectations.
Can Trae Young lead the Hawks to a Championship?
The Hawks are led by Trae Young, who is their leading scorer with 27.6 PPG and 9.6 APG. The team acquired Dejounte Murray in the offseason to have a top scorer and playmaker to go along with Trae Young. Teams led by smaller point guards tend not to win championships, but the Hawks are hoping to be the exception.
One of the issues for Trae Young is that he is shooting a career low 29.6% from three-point range. For all of his gifts offensively, he is a liability on the defensive end of the floor. If Young is going to take that next step, he will have to guide the team to more wins.