For the first seven years of his career, Trae Young has helped turn the Atlanta Hawks into a relevant team in the Eastern Conference. Young’s efforts have resulted in multiple playoff runs, though no success has come out of them.
Despite being a four-time All-Star while suiting up for the Hawks, nothing significant has materialized for his team. This has led to a plethora of trade rumors surfacing over the years. Fast forward to the present day, and it appears Young is giving Atlanta more reasons to commence a rebuild in the near future.
Trae Young’s Return From Injury Puts the Hawks in a Losing Slump
On Oct. 29, just eight days after the 2025-26 season commenced, Young suffered a Grade 2 sprained MCL in his right knee, forcing him to sit out for approximately seven weeks.
Young missed a total of 22 games before making his return to the hardwood on Dec. 18, when the Hawks took on the Charlotte Hornets. In Young’s highly anticipated return, the four-time All-Star delivered an underwhelming performance, totaling eight points and 10 assists.
His return resulted in a 133-126 loss to the Hornets, marking the beginning of the Hawks’ losing streak. Six games after his return, Atlanta has dropped all six contests, sliding down the Eastern Conference standings. The Hawks are currently ninth.
To make matters worse, Atlanta has surrendered at least 125 points in each of those six losses.
The Hawks are now 0-6 since Trae Young returned from injury.
Atlanta has given up 125+ points in each of those games… pic.twitter.com/AUnt4OePOr
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) December 28, 2025
Across the six games the Hawks have lost since Young’s return, the star point guard has been inconsistent throughout. In three of those games, he scored 20+ points. However, in two others, he finished with single-digit point totals.
One thing is becoming clear: Jalen Johnson is slowly transitioning into the Hawks’ next cornerstone star. In Young’s absence, Johnson has carried Atlanta.
Johnson is currently averaging 23.7 points, 10.4 rebounds, 8.4 assists, and 1.4 steals, playing at an All-Star level this season. In Young’s return against the Hornets, Johnson outshined the star point guard by scoring 43 points.
Without the four-time All-Star in the lineup, the Hawks were 15-12 and sat seventh in the East. The team has now fallen to 10th place and is on the verge of dropping to 11th if the losing streak continues.
They face a challenging schedule to close 2025, beginning with a road contest against the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday and concluding the year with a matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday. The start of 2026 offers little relief, as they open with a three-game road trip that is part of an eight-game stretch, seven of which will be played away from home.
