Hawks Chase Anthony Davis Will Trae Young Stay?

Merlin sees the Hawks circling Mavericks star Anthony Davis while league insiders doubt Trae Young would remain if Atlanta pushes for him. Marc Stein called it "hard to imagine" the Hawks keeping Young, and Chris Haynes said Atlanta "remained very intrigued" but any deal "would not involve Trae Young." Huge cap hits and player options for both men mean a trade would likely require multi team maneuvering before the Feb 5 deadline. Merlin calls this a contract puzzle wrapped in health concerns. Both stars have missed time this season, which will tweak their trade value as the deadline nears. Talk of five team packages and moves around Kristaps Porzingis shows how messy the path to Davis could be. If Atlanta truly wants Davis, Merlin thinks Trae will likely be the coin they spend or the chase will end.