NEW YORK - The last time the Hawks beat the Knicks in a big game, guard Trae Young took a bow. On Wednesday night, after the Hawks downed the Knicks 108-100 to advance to the semifinals of the NBA Cup in Las Vegas, Young took a knee at half-court and pretended to roll the dice.
"I mean, we going to Vegas, so I shoot dice," Young said after the game.
Here are five observations:
1. With 9:39 to play in the third quarter, Young stepped to the free-throw line and fans in attendance at Madison Square Garden began a familiar refrain. Despite derogatory Trae Young chants, he hit the first free throw. Then the chants got louder and he hit the second.
It sparked the Hawks' erasure of the Knicks' seven-point first-half lead.
Young put up a vintage performance in the third quarter, accounting for 12 points, five assists and 11 points created from his assists. With his seventh assist of the game, Young dished his 300th assist of the season to lead the league.
2. The 26-year-old guard has trusted his teammates this season, with his shots not falling quite as efficiently as he would like. He attempted 22 shots from the floor and he turned to his floater early in the game as the Hawks tried to overcome the Knicks' early lead.
But when Young heard Knicks fans increase the volume on their chants, the switch flipped and he scored 12 of the Hawks' 34 points in the third quarter. He finished with 22 points, five rebounds, 11 assists and the game-sealing steal.
"I'm more worried about him defending, pushing the ball in transition, and those are the things that he did," Hawks coach Quin Snyder said. "There's a point in the game where he could feel the game, for him to get us good shots."
3. The Hawks' resurgence in the second half could not have been possible without the continued elite defense of Dyson Daniels on Knicks guard Jalen Brunson. Like in the matchup against the Knicks last month, Daniels frustrated Brunson.
With 6:55 left in the third quarter, Daniels stuck with Brunson when the Knicks guard went iso. Daniels forced Brunson to chuck up a 3. But Daniels blocked it and Brunson got the rebound and he tried to throw up another shot as he fell out of bounds while the shot-clock buzzer went off for the second Knicks turnover of the third.
"I think there's times when it looks like he's beat, but he's able to recover so well," Snyder said of Daniels.
4. Hawks forward Jalen Johnson once again provided the team with his Swiss Army knife of skills, especially when the Knicks blitzed Young and tried to take him out of the play. Johnson has continued to string together his case for the NBA's most improved player award at the end of the season.
He's putting up career numbers, in points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks and 3-point shooting percentage, making an argument for his first serious All-Star bid.
Johnson had a near triple-double, with 21 points, 15 rebounds and seven assists.
5. Both teams played physically on Wednesday night. In past years, the Hawks would struggle to adjust to it, allowing for teams like the Knicks to get the better of them.
This year, the Hawks have been the aggressors and it's trickled down the lineup with Young chipping away at Brunson's dribble, Bogdan Bogdanovic tripping up players like Josh Hart and Mikal Bridges and clapping after defensive plays.
It's also helped players like De'Andre Hunter thrive coming off the bench and for the eighth consecutive game, he's given the Hawks big scoring off the bench. In seven of his last eight games, Hunter has scored 20 or more points and has gone on a career-best streak of putting up 18-or-more points.
He scored 24 Wednesday night.
In years past, Hunter often drew the whistles of officials for his physical play and it disrupted his play.
But with the Hawks setting the tone, he's been able to thrive and has helped the second unit become one of the best in the NBA.
"Whether it toughness or being tough or whatever is, we're having fun and all that stuff goes out the window," Hunter said.
Stat to know
4 - Trae Young became just the fourth player in NBA history with 500-plus points and 300-plus assists in his first 25 games of a season.
Quotable
"I rolled an eight, and I picked it up, and now I rolled it again, so I picked up the money after that and then we left." - Trae Young.
Up next
The Hawks head to Las Vegas for the semifinal game against the Bucks on Saturday.
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This story was originally published December 11, 2024, 11:49 PM.