Source: Google Trends
During the 2018 NBA draft, the Dallas Mavericks traded their 2018 first round pick (Trae Young) and 2019 first round pick (Cameron Reddish) to the Atlanta Hawks in return for the 3rd pick in the 18’ draft with the intention to select the basketball prodigy from Slovenia, Luka Doncic. Doncic was arguably the greatest European player to ever be drafted into the NBA. With all the impressive accolades and skills attained at such a young age, Doncic was set to become the next big thing, and the Mavericks betted high on that.
Trae Young was one of the most polarizing prospects coming into the 2018 NBA draft. At Oklahoma, Young would put on a show for the audience. His shooting evoked memories of Stephen Curry while his passing gave flashes of Chris Paul. As fun as he was to watch, scouts couldn’t tell if his skills would translate to the NBA, especially for how small his build was.
With both the Mavericks and Hawks needing point guards to lead their team, these players were already expected to be drafted by any of the two. Before heading into the draft, there were rumors that the Hawks had their eyes set on Trae Young. Projected to be drafted in the middle of the lottery, the Hawks played their cards right by trading down to a position where they knew he would still be available.
The trade seemed like a match in heaven since both teams got the players they wanted at an exceptional price. With both players starting the all-star game this year, it can be argued that both teams won the trade, even with Cameron Reddish’s underwhelming rookie season.
The graphic above shows the interest of each player over time on Google during the past 90 days. I decided to focus on the past 90 days because of all-star weekend and the other events that had recently transpired.
On Dec. 15, 2019, it was reported that Luka Doncic suffered an ankle injury that would sideline him for multiple weeks. This led to his name trending significantly more than Trae Young. Somehow during his recovery, Doncic continued to trend more than Young throughout the next few weeks. It’s remarkable how much attention Doncic gets, even during his absence.
After the tragic death of Kobe Bryant, Young decided to pay homage to Kobe by wearing no. 8 on his jersey during the Hawks-Wizards game on January, 26. The following day he started trending significantly more than usual once people started taking notice of what he did.
From February 14-16, the 2020 NBA all-star weekend was held in Chicago. Doncic and Young both started for their respected teams during the Rising Stars and All-Star game. Young participated in the three-point contest as well. Though one of the most popular sporting events in America, both players only saw a slight increase in trend throughout the weekend.
As to where each player gets the most interest, it is obvious that they garner the most interest from the states they play in. Doncic has the most Google searches from Texas while Young has the most from Georgia. Overall, the graphics show Doncic averaging more interest than Young over the last 90 days.
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