The tension between Hawks point guard Trae Young and head coach Nate McMillan is heating up.
On Saturday’s [AEDT] shootaround, McMillan and Young reportedly had an exchange that resulted in Young not playing and not showing up to State Farm Arena for the Hawks’ 117-109 win over the Denver Nuggets. The Athletic reported Young won’t be disciplined over the incident.
McMillan asked Young if he could participate in the team’s shootaround while Young was receiving treatment for his right shoulder. McMillan wanted Young to participate in the shootaround, get treatment for his injury during the game’s warmups and then play.
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The Hawks superstar, though, wanted to focus on getting treatment before deciding whether or not he would play, The Athletic reported.
That, however, was not approved by McMillan. The coach then presented Young with a decision: Play off the bench or don’t show up. Young chose the latter.
The team ruled him out due to right shoulder soreness while McMillan told reporters that Young did not play due to miscommunication.
Young addressed the situation after the shootaround on Tuesday, clashing with one reporter as he insisted it was a “private situation” that he did not want to divulge any details on.
“It’s hard for people who don’t know the full situation to understand it,” Young said.
“Like I said, it’s a private matter made public, which was unfortunate. If it stayed private it probably wouldn’t have been as big of a deal. Like I said it’s unfortunate. My job and my goal is to win a championship, and that’s all I’m focused on.”
As Young was continuously pressed to explain his absence, the 24-year-old once again maintained that the most disappointing aspect of the drama was that he did not stay in-house.
“When you’re an outside guy like you are and you don’t understand a private matter and private situation, you should probably stay on the outside,” Young said.
“It’s unfortunate that everyone has to understand and know a little bit of the details that went on inside. I mean, inside here we’re all good. If you’ve got any more questions about that you can talk to somebody else about it. That’s all I’ve got to say about it.”
League executives who have heard about the Hawks’ issues have wondered what this means for McMillan’s future. After leading the Hawks to an Eastern Conference finals appearance as interim head coach in 2021, McMillan signed a four-year contract to become the franchise’s full-time head coach.
The Athletic reported that sources said McMillan’s job is safe. Atlanta currently sitting in fourth place in the Eastern Conference is likely a factor in his job security.
Meanwhile, former teammate Chandler Parsons said that while he understood Young was put in a tough situation, he needed to be the bigger man.
“He can’t do this,” Parson said FanDuel TV’s ‘Run It Back’.
“They’ve invested way too much in him. They’ve given him the keys, this is his fifth season. You can’t do this. You can’t let your teammates down. You’ve got to be bigger than this in the moment.
“I also don’t like the idea of McMillan saying you can come off the bench or don’t show up to the arena. Giving your stay player these days an ultimatum is probably not the best idea either. But Trae has got to mature a little bit.”
Former Hawks coach Lloyd Pierce reportedly lost the support of Young among others during the latter stages of his time in Atlanta, eventually fired last year in March.
“He’s already been through issues and pretty much got Lloyd Pierce fired, this is now the next coach who is way cooler than Lloyd Pierce and a good guy and a good coach,” Parson added.
“I think he’s got to be bigger in this situation. Shootarounds suck, they’re annoying but you’re the star player. I see where he’s coming from though. You’re not going to give your star player an ultimatum like that. The fact that he did not show up to the arena, not the best idea.”
— with the New York Post
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