The reason why Trae Young didn't make Team USA

Team USA features nothing but the brightest young players in the NBA. However, as good as Jalen Brunson and Tyrese Haliburton are, some believe Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young is even better.

Young’s numbers speak for themselves. He’s been one of the best scorers and playmakers in the game since he entered the league. He also fits this team’s current timeline.

Just like Isiah Thomas back in the day, Young met the criteria but wasn’t selected. And according to NBA insiders Tim McMahon and Brian Windhorst, that had to do because of his hesitance to get physical.

Trae Young Didn’t Make A Good Impression At Former Team USA Camp

“I heard Trae Young did not make a great case for himself during his previous time in the Team USA program,” McMahon said. “I also heard, at one point, a question was presented to Trae Young, something along the lines of ‘Are you ever going to go over a bleeping screen?’”

“I will tell you that in 2019 before China, Trae was on the Select team,” Windhorst added. “The US needed a point guard and Gregg Popovich promoted Derrick White. That obviously was his point guard at the time, and Trae Young and De’Aaron Fox, both, I believe, I know Trae Young, I feel like Fox, I had to check myself, but I thought Fox looked pretty good in that. We were able to see parts of the practices on the scrimmages.”

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Draymond Green"s heartfelt message for Trae Young

Fit matters, and the team felt like there were certain aspects of Young’s game that didn’t suit their needs at the time. Controversial as it may seem, only time will prove them right or wrong.