The Atlanta Hawks climbed their way up in the Play-In to clinch a playoff berth. Trae Young put up a spectacular performance versus the Cavs, as they best them 6, 107-101. The Hawks will now face the 1st seeded Heat in the first round of the playoffs. This will be a series worth watching, mainly because of Young’s entertaining deep threes.
Young has shifted the Hawks’ course in the last 2 years. Before 2020, Atlanta was struggling to make the playoffs, as their record wasn’t good enough for 3 straight seasons. Last year, the Hawks made it to the East finals, but couldn’t get past the Bucks.
Trae Young has proven himself ever since he was drafted
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In the 2018 NBA Draft, the Mavs traded their pick to the Hawks to select pick number 3, Luka Doncic. This trade has done well for both teams so far. Incidentally, Trae Young has averaged 28 points and 9 assists this season while shooting 38% from deep. Trae also surpassed Michael Jordan for most games with 30 plus points and 10 plus assists. This is an insane record touched by the 23-year-old guard. Unsurprisingly, Hawks fans on Twitter reminded the NBA fans all around of the 2018 trade made on the draft night.
Still think Hawks should have drafted Luka? Trae is the Man!
— TA Wolfhound @TA Wolfhound (@ToddAnglin4) January 1, 2022
Tuff!🥶😳😤🥶❄️
— Wanda Loudermill – Edmundson, MHR, CPO ( EdLoud) (@Loud_Mrs) January 1, 2022
"Surpasses Michael Jordan…" 👀
— Calde my Calde 🏴☠️🎮🏀🚛** (@stu4calde) January 1, 2022
That's our point guard. 😏#TrueToAtlanta
— ARMills (@armills122) January 1, 2022
They picked the right guy to build a franchise around
— Cueselite (@cueselite) January 1, 2022
This record is his to loose , he just getting started
— 100Pc Entertainment #CEO (@MasterBigg00) January 1, 2022
All I saw was “Trae Young has surpassed Michael Jordan”
— Doug 🧛🏼♂️🦅 (@WaterJugDoug) January 1, 2022
Trae’s previous performance versus the Cavs was insane. Young scored 38 points while dishing out 9 dimes and shooting 52% from the field. His matchup against Jimmy Butler and the Heat will be interesting to watch. Young had led his team to the Conference Finals last year, but this time he will face one of the best teams in the first round itself.
Getting past the Heat will be tough, but if guys like Huerter and Bogdanovic can step up every game, they might edge out. Obviously, Young will be a dominant scoring threat from the outside with Gallinari, as Bam Adebayo will protect the rim for the Heat.
Can Young lead his team past the Heat?
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This is going to be a tough job for the Hawks. Players like Gallinari and Bogdanovic are threats from the outside, but against the Heat, it may not be the same. Heat’s perimeter defense is great, and to beat it, the Hawks might look to rotations more.
The series will start soon, and game 1 will be pivotal for the Hawks. If the Heat can keep up with their perimeter defense, they might close out the series early.
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Who is your pick in this series? Do let us know in the comments.