Norman’s Trae Young is looking to leave his mark in Atlanta
Trae Young walked to the stage at the Barclays Center, wearing a deep maroon suit with shorts.
He slid on the Dallas Mavericks hat — though he already knew he’d been traded to the Atlanta Hawks — then he quickly opened his jacket, briefly flashing the lining of his jacket.
“They will know your name,” the panel on the right side of the interior of the jacket said.
Plenty more people know his name now, after he was picked No. 5 overall in the Thursday’s NBA Draft.
Young’s destination became widely known a few minutes before the pick, when the Hawks selected Luka Doncic with the third pick and ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the picks would be swapped with the Mavericks taking Young to ship to the Hawks. Atlanta also received a top-five protected 2019 first-round pick.
Young said his pick by the Hawks, who finished an Eastern Conference-worst 24-58 last season, mirrored his selection of the Sooners coming out of high school. Oklahoma was in the midst of an 11-20 season when Young committed.
“It feels a lot like going to, picking Oklahoma — a team who’s looking to rebuild, who’s really talented, a really talented team, but who I feel is one or two pieces away from being special,” Young said.
“Hopefully I’m that player.”
Young said his time working under Lon Kruger this season had prepared him to his jump to the NBA.
Kruger coached the Hawks from 2000-2002 before being fired early in his third season.
Young was joined at the draft by his family, introduced with father Rayford and mother Candice.
One of the first hugs he gave out after being picked was to his younger brother, Timothy, who was wearing a suit that matched Young’s — right down to the shoes with no socks.
A year ago, Young walking across the stage in this draft seemed improbable.
Young was highly thought-of coming out of Norman North High School but he was looked at as a project player who likely needed two years of development at Oklahoma before making the move to the NBA.
But by the time the calendar turned, 12 games through his freshman season, that thought was blown out of the water.
In his fifth collegiate game, a win over Oregon in the PK80 event in Portland, Young scored 43 points.
Five games later, Young tied an NCAA record with 22 assists in a home win over Northwestern State.
By the time his freshman season ended with a loss to Rhode Island in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Young became the first player to lead the country in both scoring (27.4 points per game) and assists (8.7).
Young’s numbers dipped a bit late in the season as defenses adjusted to his game and regularly threw multiple defenders his way.
During the lead-up to the draft, Young became one of the draft’s most polarizing players — the comparisons to Stephen Curry tantalizing teams yet the questions about his size and defensive acumen leaving some wary about his pro future.
But Young. While acknowledging the reasons some doubt him, doesn’t lack in confidence.
“This pre-draft process, I was able to look in the mirror and see how much of a hard worker I am,” Young said. “I worked extremely hard last summer to prepare for the college season and to do what I did. I can honestly say I worked twice as hard to prepare for the next level.”