The Hawks named Trae Young the Jason Collier Memorial Trophy winner for the 2021-22 season, recognizing him for community service throughout the year.
The award is given annually to the “Hawks player who most closely exemplifies the characteristics of a community ambassador displayed by Collier, the late Atlanta center who passed away in 2005,” per the team. Young received the trophy in a short ceremony before the Hawks’ game vs. the Cavaliers Thursday at State Farm Arena, becoming the 15th player to receive the award.
The past year, Young has been involved in raising mental health awareness, participating in a campaign with the Hawks and ‘Silence the Shame’, a nonprofit for education and awareness around mental health.
Around the city, he donated 500 Thanksgiving meals for underserved men to Atlanta Mission in November, and in December, he donated $10,000 to the Atlanta Downtown Improvement District’s holiday coat drive. Back home in Norman, Oklahoma, through the Trae Young Family Foundation (which aims to continue education for mental health problems, with a focus on cyber and social media bullying), Young opened The Young Family Athletic Center in July of 2021. The foundation also provides scholarship opportunities to make sure local kids receive equipment to participate in sports, regardless of financial background.
Here are some of the past recipients of the Jason Collier Memorial Trophy: Josh Childress (2005-06 and 2006-07), Marvin Williams (2007-08 and 2010-11), Al Horford (2008-09), Josh Smith (2009-10), Zaza Pachulia (2011-12), Devin Harris (2012-13), Kyle Korver (2013-14), DeMarre Carroll (2014-15), Mike Muscala (2015-16), Paul Millsap (2016-17), Malcolm Delaney (2017-18), Kent Bazemore (2018-19), John Collins (2019-2020), Cam Reddish (2020-21).
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