NBA Insiders Reveal Tough Truth About Upcoming Hawks Contract Extensions

Will the Hawks come to terms with Trae Young, Kristaps Porzingis, and Dyson Daniels?

Oct 11, 2025; Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) reacts during the third quarter against the Memphis Grizzlies at FedExForum. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Hawks wrapped up their preseason last night with a loss to the Houston Rockets, and they are five days away from their regular-season opener against the Toronto Raptors. Before last night's game, however, there was an update regarding the potential contract extension for Trae Young.

According to Fred Katz at The Athletic, Young and the Hawks are not going to agree to an extension before the start of the NBA season.

NEWS: The Atlanta Hawks and Trae Young will not agree to a contract extension before the start of the regular season, sources tell @FredKatz. pic.twitter.com/0mFXDakrpZ

— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) October 16, 2025

Young is not the only one that is up for a contract extension. Kristaps Porzingis and Dyson Daniels are also extension eligible and it is going to be a fascinating thing to watch to see how everything comes together.

Will they get them all done?

Oct 16, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks center Kristaps Porzingis (8) goes to the basket between Houston Rockets forward Jeff Green (32) and guard Reed Sheppard (15) during the first half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

In an article today, NBA insiders Brian Windhorst and Tim Bontemps shared some insights into the Hawks extension talks:

"There is mutual interest between the Hawks and Kristaps Porzingis in extending his deal, sources said. But with Porzingis' injury history and a radical change in circumstance following the offseason trade that brought him from Boston -- and after Porzingis spent much of the summer in Europe playing for the Latvian national team -- and both sides are comfortable seeing how the season progresses.

The same timeline goes for franchise player Trae Young, whose situation is more intriguing. Unlike Porzingis, whose contract is up after the season, Young has a $49 million player option for next season that he'd prefer not to pick up and instead replace with a lucrative new deal.

In a different era, a multitime All-Star coming off his first max contract could expect to have his contract extended again at the max. But in the apron era and with the Hawks having to invest in younger players, Young is a bit of a tweener.

He's a star but he's not a superstar, and a new max contract at 30% of the salary cap would be superstar money. We probably will see this situation more often over the next few years with this class of sub-superstar players looking for their second max deal.

The Hawks are also negotiating with reigning Most Improved Player Dyson Daniels, who does face the Monday extension deadline to extend his rookie contract.

Last fall, the Hawks got such a deal done at the buzzer with Jalen Johnson, a five-year, $150 million deal that, moving forward, looks like a very good piece of business for Atlanta.

For the much discussed, failed "two timelines" approach in Golden State, a similar situation is developing in Atlanta. The Hawks are excited about their young core of Johnson, Daniels, last year's No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher, rookie Asa Newell and potentially a very high pick coming in next year's draft via the New Orleans Pelicans.

But Young and Porzingis are the two best players on the current roster, and fit extremely well with the young players the Hawks have around them. Because of how the Hawks have managed their books over the past year, there's a world in which the Hawks could get a Daniels deal done, figure out deals for Young and Porzingis next summer, and stay below the aprons.

That could give the Hawks the opportunity to do the thing every team in the league is trying to do and what few teams other than the Oklahoma City Thunder have successfully done under the new CBA: develop, and keep, depth on the roster."

Reason to worry?

Oct 16, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks guard Trae Young (11) dribbles against Houston Rockets forward Jeff Green (32) during the first half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

While the non-extensions are big news, this outcome is not unexpected.

If you have not been following this in the summer, this might seem like a surprise. However, this is the way things have been trending for some time. Earlier this summer, NBA insider Marc Stein wrote that the Hawks wanted to see how Young played alongside this new look team, particularly Jalen Johnson.

"Jake recently wrote at length about Trae Young's future with the Hawks and how the parties appear poised to play out the season ahead before Young either decides to become a free next summer or the sides choose down the road to engage on contract extension talks that were tabled this summer.

Addendum from me: I'm told that the Hawks are eager to see more of Young alongside versatile swingman Jalen Johnson — who was limited to 36 games last season before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury — as they make determinations about their big-picture future. Atlanta will have both Johnson and Porziņģis flanking Young next season and expect further development from the promising duo of Most Improved Player award winner Dyson Daniels and 2024's No. 1 overall pick Zaccharie Risacher."

The Hawks have seemingly built a perfect team to maximize Young's skillset, but they want to see it come to fruition. If he performs well and the Hawks meet expectations, Young may see the extension he wants.