Trae Young believes he is in the same class as Luka Doncic -"It's not that far off"
Since they were drafted in 2018, Trae Young and Luka Doncic have been compared to each other, as they were traded for one another on the evening of the draft. Since then, their careers have been linked and they've both shown mutual respect whenever their paths have crossed.
Recently, Draymond Green invited Young to his podcast where they had a casual conversation in front of their fans. The Golden State Warriors forward brought up the topic of the Atlanta Hawks guard being compared to the Slovenian superstar.
According to Young, he doesn't see it as a bad thing, as he views the two of them as equals:
"I don't even stress over it no more," Young said. "I know the real ones get it. For me, once I win a championship, it'll even open up more eyes to what I've really done. Especially to some of my peers that I'm compared with.
"To be honest, I have no hate towards nobody, especially Luka. We talk all the time, we got a lot of love for each other, a lot of respect for each other. There's different agendas... eventually, people are gonna understand what it is and realize that it's not that far off.
"We kinda do the same things. We're different in size, but he can play, I can play. We can both hoop."
"It's not that far off... We kinda do the same things."
@thetraeyoung talks being compared to Luka 👀
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Both Doncic and Young have often told the media about their respect for each other. Not just on the court as they've had interactions outside of the basketball court as well.
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Trae Young didn't think much of him being compared to Luka Doncic even when their careers started
Trae Young has transformed himself into one of the best point guards in the NBA right now. He was able to lead the Atlanta Hawks to the Eastern Conference finals back in 2021, while Doncic led the Dallas Mavericks to the Western Conference finals the following year.
However, even with all the noise about Young and Doncic being compared to each other, the Hawks guard isn't bothered. He told JJ Redick last year when he was a guest on Redick's podcast, that he isn't focused on the comparisons being made:
"Early on, I didn't know how big the comparison would be.
"That's my mentality and I know winning's gonna take care of everything. So, I just focus on my team and winning, let everybody do all the comparing."
Young's mindset has allowed him to focus on leading the Hawks to significant success in the East, while also giving the Dallas Mavericks star his flowers in the process.
Also read: "Carrying them" - Hawks fans applaud Trae Young as his first-half performance keeps their playoff hopes alive against the Celtics