Ahead of the upcoming deadlines to finalize decisions on contract options, the Washington Wizards’ guard, Trae Young, has reportedly decided to decline his $48.97 million player option and enter free agency. Young had to decide before Tuesday, June 23, and will apparently decline the option on Monday.
“Wizards star Trae Young plans to decline his $48.97 million player option for the 2026–27 season to become a FA on Monday, sources. Washington remains the frontrunner for the four-time NBA All-Star as he loves the team and DC, but he still expects multiple team max interest,” reported ESPN’s NBA insider Marc J. Spears.
This season, Young averaged 17.9 points, 8.0 assists, and 2.0 rebounds while going 45.8% from the field and 33.8% from behind the three-point line.
The former Hawks guard played only 15 games last season as he was sidelined for most of 2025-26 due to an MCL Sprain. He has played only five games in the Wizards’ uniform. So just looking at 2025-26 is not enough to understand his impact.
Throughout his career, Young has averaged 25.1 points, 9.8 assists, and 3.4 rebounds while shooting 43.3% from the field and 35.2% from beyond the arc. He has been selected as an All-Star four times, and at age 27, he could be a foundational star for any team he joins.
While Spears has reported the expectation of interest from multiple teams, NBA insider Brett Siegel has, however, later claimed that sources have told him that any rumors of Trae Young heading elsewhere are “nonsense.”
So even if rumors claim that teams like the Heat could be interested in Young if they don’t land Giannis Antetokounmpo, it is unlikely that the 27-year-old would leave Washington.
This likely seems like a move to potentially take a pay cut presently and structure a contract where his maximum salary is deferred for a few seasons so as to give the Wizards the salary cap space to build a solid roster around him.
Young is reportedly eligible to sign a four-year, $212.9 million contract in free agency. So he could, on average, earn a lot more ($53.2 million) than what his player option was getting him in 2026-27.
However, if they structure the contract in such a manner that he receives significantly less than $48.97 million in 2026-27, then they could even consider making more short-term moves in free agency to build a potential championship contender around Young and Anthony Davis.
The Wizards already have the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming draft and very limited space on the young roster. But they have promising pieces like Alex Sarr and Tre Johnson from their young core around the veterans. So one or two key roster additions could make them a team worthy of looking out for in 2025-26.
But all of this depends on how much Young is willing to sacrifice currently. The Wizards currently have $11.09 million in luxury tax room. If Young takes a pay cut of $8 million or more, then they would have significant room to potentially make a compelling offer to a player like LeBron James in free agency.
Therefore, it will be interesting to see what Young does in his contract negotiations because, apparently, he loves it in Washington and sees a long-term future there while building a championship-contending team. So he could be urged to sacrifice money now to make it happen. Let’s see if Jalen Brunson has started a new trend of small guards making sacrifices for the greater good of the team.
