Hawks Star Likely To Improve Scoring and Efficiency Next Season

The discourse around Trae Young has been controversial ever since the Atlanta Hawks 2021 Eastern Conference Finals run.

Critics mention the star point guard can put up stats, but they do not translate to winning basketball.

Last season, he led the NBA in assists per game at 11.6 without Atlanta having other established half-court scoring options.

However, the Hawks added stronger talent around their franchise centerpiece this summer through the trade market and free agency .

Additions and internal improvement from young players make a great recipe for Young to increase his scoring and efficiency next season.

Hawks Star Likely To Improve Scoring and Efficiency Next Season Young Could Not Find the Floater in 2024-25 Young put up 24.2 points and 1.2 steals per game, shooting a career-low 41.1% from the field.

He scored the lowest since his rookie campaign at 19.1 points per game.

Strangely, he struggled with his signature shot: the downhill floater.

Young only shot 46.5% on driving, floating jump shots last season.

In fact, he started 24-59 on paint floaters outside the restricted area for the season.

The floater is one of Youngs most lethal weapons when he is at his best, punishing drop-coverage defenses out of pick-and-roll action.

In fact, Atlantas star runs away with creating the most open looks for him and his teammates off screens as the ballhandler.

Trae Young is by far the best creator out of the pick and roll Link to tool: https://t.co/2RcQ2qxLNU pic.twitter.com/H3U4FBnkXr BBall Index (@The_BBall_Index) August 29, 2025 While the quality was there, Young did not make defenses pay with the floater last season.

The Hawks lack of spacing and three-point shooting around him certainly did not help.

However, the additions of Kristaps Porzingis , Nickeil Alexander-Walker , and Luke Kennard drastically improve the team in both these areas.

Porzingis especially gives Young a great screener and pick-and-pop partner to create the space he needs for a great look.

Expect the Hawks star to rediscover the range and touch on the floater next season.

Young Looks to Rebound After Shaky Season From Deep Atlantas four-time All-Star may never be a hyper-efficient scorer, but he struggled mightily with his outside shot last season.

Young hit 34% of his triples on 8.4 attempts per gamethe lowest mark since his rookie 2018-19 campaign (32.4%).

He only knocked down 30% and 33.9% of his triples in October and November, respectively.

Young typically starts slow from beyond the arc, but both of these numbers fall below his career average of 35.2%.

In fact, Young only reached this number in March and April last season.

So why could he not cash in from deep? Several factors emerge.

The Hawks listed him on the injury report with Achilles tendinitis every game after the NBA fined the organization $100,000 for violating the player participation policy in early November.

Despite the designation, Young played 36 minutes per game in 76 contests.

This could have affected his ability to shoot jump shots effectively and prevented him from creating space on step-back jumpers, for example.

Defenses could also pressure Young high on screens because he did not have many shooters around him.

The Hawks star was the only established shooter in the starting five throughout the campaign.

The front office addressed this issue for the 2025-26 campaign.

Dyson Daniels and a healthy Jalen Johnson will take a lot of playmaking pressure off the four-time All-Star, giving him easier catch-and-shoot looks.

Next season, expect Youngs three-point efficiency to climb.

With Hawks media day just weeks away, it will be interesting to hear if he received treatment on his Achilles and how this roster is better equipped for a return to the playoffs.

High expectations surround Young after Atlantas successful offseason, and he cherishes these high-pressure moments ..

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