Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks have plenty to sort out this season, but the four-time All-Star’s love for the game has him tuned into the happenings around the league and in the 2025 playoffs even with his team at home.
On Sunday during Game 7 of the Western Conference Semifinals between the Denver Nuggets and Oklahoma City Thunder, Young offered a “hot take” that may or may not be.
It will certainly ruffle a few feathers on the Eastern Seaboard.
“Hot take but not.. OKC fans are louder than Knick fans,” Young posted on X on May 18. “Happy Sunday!”
It is an otherwise innocuous comment, but coming from Young to the Knicks faithful adds another layer to a rivalry that has been going on since the 2021 playoffs. Young and the Hawks eliminated those Knicks in the second round in five games.
That series featured several iconic moments for Young, including is famous bow at centercourt.
Young has had other run-ins with the Knicks, shooting phantom dice on their centercourt logo and even telling fans to “take ya’ll a** home” after another in Atlanta.
It is not a one-sided beef by any stretch. Knicks fans are prone to “F*** Trae Young” chants, and at the most random moments. And Knicks fans in the social media sphere have latched onto debates about who is better between the Hawks’ star PG and their own, Jalen Brunson.
The Knicks got the last laugh this season.
They are in the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time since the 1999-2000 season, set to take on the Indiana Pacers.
The Hawks were last in the ECF in that 2021 season, but they have trended in the wrong direction in the years since. They have missed the playoffs in back-to-back seasons and are searching for a new president of basketball operations, leading to even more uncertainty.
They also have several polarizing roster decisions to make, including on Young.
He has two more years left on a five-year, $215.1 million contract. But he also has a player option for the final season in 2026-27.
Young has not pushed publicly for a trade, but his name has come up in speculation over the years. Who the Hawks hire for their next president of basketball operations figures to play a tremendously significant role in which direction they go with Young.
For now, the reigning assists leader is left to dish out (veiled?) digs at his East nemesis.