LAS VEGAS — Trae Young knows the narrative that surrounds him now that he has signed a four-year, $213 million contract to remain with the Washington Wizards.
That he’s lost a step.
That he’s so ball-dominant that he will take needed developmental reps away from Wizards prospects such as AJ Dybantsa, Kyshawn George and Tre Johnson.
And, above all else, that the Wizards are going to pay him way too much money.
In an interview Friday with The Athletic, Young acknowledged that all the skepticism about him does hurt — but not so much that it will change his mood or prevent him from doing what he needs to do next.
“I know if we win, winning takes care of everything,” Young said after a news conference related to his new deal.
“I can’t really get caught up in what people are thinking or what people are saying right now. What’s done is done. So I’m going to make sure the people that believe in me are proved right.”
He can prove Wizards front-office officials Michael Winger and Will Dawkins right by creating open shots for early-career players such as Dybantsa, George, Johnson and Alex Sarr as well as for veteran big man Anthony Davis. Young can also pitch in by using his point guard skills to organize the offense, especially late in close games.
Winger, the president of Monumental Basketball, and Dawkins, the Wizards’ general manager, believe Young will command enough attention from opposing defenses to make life easier for Wizards players who are still growing.
Watch This: AJ Dybantsa with the strong Summer League slam in his debut
On Friday, Dawkins cited statistics from the five games Young played for Washington last season, asserting he not only can be less ball-dominant than he was during his tenure with the Atlanta Hawks but also can be more effective. In that admittedly small sample size of just under 21 minutes per game, Young posted the lowest usage rate of his career while he compiled the highest assist percentage of his career, according to advanced analytics database Cleaning the Glass.
The Wizards’ professed vision for Young in the season ahead includes him playing off the ball and allowing youngsters such as Dybantsa and George to handle the basketball. But when Washington finds itself in close games, it can count on Young to bring the ball upcourt, make certain everyone is in their correct place and orchestrate quality shots.
Young’s first-year salary in his new contract will be approximately $49.5 million; at 30 percent of the league’s salary cap figure for the 2026-27 season, it is the maximum first-year salary he can receive under league rules.
Because the Wizards held Young’s Bird rights, the Wizards were the only team that could have paid him up to an 8 percent annual raise (an increase of approximately $4.0 million year over year), which would have ballooned his total salary over four seasons to $221.7 million.
Instead, the contract calls for Young to receive 5 percent annual raises (an increase of approximately $2.74 million year over year), which would have been a maximum-salary contract for any other team that signed Young in free agency.
Wizards decision-makers became convinced that, with the NBA’s new anti-tanking measures compelling more teams to compete, Young would have commanded maximum-salary contract offers from other franchises through either a straight free-agent signing or a sign-and-trade proposal.
Dawkins disputes the notion that Young’s contract will prevent the Wizards from building their roster in coming years.
“I think we continue to keep our optionality and flexibility,” Dawkins told The Athletic. “It actually helps us so that we’re bringing someone in that’s going to allow us to raise the level of the group sooner, and we can make more answers on all of our players.”
The Wizards are counting on Trae Young, left, to be a veteran leader for youngsters such as Tre Johnson, right. (Matthew Hinton / Imagn Images)
Aside from the 2026-27 salaries for Davis and Young, however, the rest of the roster is relatively inexpensive for now, with Sarr due to earn the third-largest salary, at $12.3 million. The earliest Washington could approach the punitive first apron would be the 2028-29 season, when any potential rookie-scale contract extensions for Sarr and George would go into effect.
Young will turn 28 in September, and team officials believe he will remain in his prime through the end of the contract, which includes a $58.4 million player option for the 2029-30 season.
“I’m not old, I’m not young,” he said. “I’m in the middle. So I’m really able to relate with these young guys, but I also have experience. I’ve also (experienced) things that they haven’t been through and that they want to (experience).”
The Wizards’ entire roster, all of the coaches, all of the traveling staff members and many members of the front office attended Young’s news conference Friday at the team hotel. Young said everyone’s presence made the day more meaningful.
For the stretch that bridges the final days of July and first days of August, Young expects to host Wizards players in Southern California for on-court workouts and off-court bonding. It’s the kind of thing a team’s veteran leaders sometimes do, and now that responsibility falls largely on Davis and Young.
“That’s who he is,” Dawkins said of Young. “He pours into the people around him. He’s always been that way, and we look forward to him and A.D. hosting everybody in L.A. and letting them have their guy time. But I think the guys will be back (in Washington) early in September, because they really want to be ready for the start of the season.”
If Young fulfills the Wizards’ expectations, the criticisms of his new contract will begin to fade.
“I’m super confident in my team,” Young said. “If we win, the way people will look at me and my contract, the whole narrative will change.
“… But for me, I can’t ever get caught up in what people are thinking in the now. The reason why I got what I got is because people know what I can do. That’s what it is. So, for me, I don’t really care what people think. I’m going to go out there and make sure I’m ready and have my best season yet.”
