If Spurs Won the NBA Draft Lottery, Would They Trade the No. 1 Pick in A Package For Trae Young?

Jackson Caudell | May 8, 2024

Nov 30, 2023; San Antonio, Texas, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) dribbles the ball in the / Daniel Dunn-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA Draft Lottery is this Sunday and it will be one of the key dates of the offseason. The teams that were not fortunate enough to make the playoffs are going to be watching to see where they are selecting in this year's draft. After the lottery, it will be full speed ahead for the teams that are not in the playoffs in terms of trying to plan their offseason and how they want to improve.

Two of the most interesting teams this offseason will be the San Antonio Spurs and the Atlanta Hawks, two teams that have been linked in trade talks and have made big deals in the past. Atlanta seems to be heading towards an offseason where they split up the backcourt duo of Trae Young and Dejounte Murray, though which one they trade is still debatable. The Spurs on the other hand could be trying to make big moves already given the rookie season that Victor Wembanyama just put together. The Spurs have been rumored as a team that could be interested in trading for Trae Young, but would they trade the No. 1 pick if they won the Draft Lottery?

Bleacher Report's Zach Buckley pondered that question in an interesting trade package for the Hawks's star point guard:

The trade: Keldon Johnson, Malaki Branham, Devonte' Graham, and two first-round picks (including No. 1) to the Atlanta Hawks for Trae Young

"If the Spurs land the No. 1 pick for the second consecutive year, there will be some temptation to expand their young core around Victor Wembanyama. Yet, the 20-year-old face of the franchise may not want to wait around for that prospect to develop.

"I don't want next season to stop so early," he told reporters in April. "I want to keep going, go to the playoffs."

If San Antonio wants to gain entry into the West's crowded playoff race, it needs to find some top-tier talent. Trae Young certainly fits the bill (and he's on the radar, too).

The 25-year-old has already booked three All-Star trips and is one of only two players to post career averages of 25 points and nine assists. For context, the other is Hall of Famer Oscar Robertson.

The challenge with a Young-led team is fielding a competent defense around him, but Wembanyama's cheat-code abilities on that end might make it happen. And Young, in turn, would simplify things greatly on the offensive end for the Frenchman with his scoring punch, passing vision and gravitational pull on opposing defenses."

Would that be enough value for the Hawks to consider trading Young? I think it depends on what the other draft picks turn out to be and that is not specified in this trade proposal. If the Hawks do indeed try to trade Young, the Spurs make the most sense, as they control the Hawks draft picks for the next few years due to the Dejounte Murray trade.

It should be noted that the Hawks have not made Young available for trade and Young has not asked to be traded. This is all just speculation and I still think Young will remain in Atlanta when all is said and done this summer. It seems that Atlanta is heading towards breaking up their backcourt of Young and Dejounte Murray, but that could mean that Murray is the one who is traded. Atlanta was shopping Murray this season.

I am still of the belief that Atlanta will keep Young unless he asks out and demands to be traded, but the Spurs are the team that makes the most sense for both sides, much more than a trade with theLos Angeles Lakers. If the Spurs are truly interested in Young and would give Atlanta their full allotment of picks back, it might make the Hawks think about a full rebuild instead of trying to continue to build around Dejounte Murray

This summer has the potential to be one of the craziest NBA offseasons in recent memory. There are a lot of teams that could be remaking their rosters and Atlanta could be one of them.