Trae Young’s 48 points in Game One against the defending Eastern Conference Champion Milwaukee Bucks have his Atlanta Hawks continuing to shock and awe the rest of the league.
Now I hear you saying “Jim, Deandre Ayton is in the West Finals with the Phoenix Suns, and they’re up 2-0 on the (Los Angeles) Clippers.” The difference is that Ayton has not made an All-Star game yet, and Young is about ready to make 10 in a row at his current pace.
Young, dealt on Draft Night from Dallas to the Hawks for Luca Doncic is one of those rare deals where both teams not only benefit, but excel. How’s that trade looking now?
Phoenix finished with the second-best record in the NBA, while Atlanta was a meager fifth in a weak Eastern Conference. Ayton has Devin Booker, Young has...John Collins?!
The Hawks have not been to the conference finals since being swept by Cleveland in 2015. This is their first trip to the playoffs since 2017, which was followed by three consecutive sub-30 win seasons.
Keep in mind the Hawks dealt Rajon Rondo late in the season for Lou Williams, draft picks and cash, hoping to bolster their scoring going into the playoffs. Atlanta also fired Lloyd Pierce in favor of Nate McMillan midway through the regular season.
Remember when Cleveland fired David Blatt and replaced him with Tyron Lue midway through a playoff-bound 2016 season, then won a championship? Atlanta was 14-20 at the time of the coaching change, but we all know being 10 games under .500 is still good enough to put you into playoff contention in the Eastern Conference.
You look at the final four teams left in the NBA playoffs, and Milwaukee jumps out as the favorite, having gone to the Finals last year, with still having the best player in the world in Giannis Antetokounmpo. Then you get the upstart Suns and Hawks who are way ahead of the rebuilding curve. Lastly you have the Clippers who have always underachieved, but hope the cards fall right for them to finally reach their potential.
You would think that Phoenix and Atlanta would take a few years to improve, maybe knock on the door to the playoffs, then put it together. Neither would be expected to go from a bottom-five to being in the conference finals a season later. In fact, Atlanta had nine players average double-figures this season.
Young (25.3) is nearly eight points ahead of Collins (17.6) atop that group.
Every game for about the last two weeks you have seen Young seeming to take over much like LeBron, Steph or Giannis. The difference here is that Young has done it against the top seed in the East (Philadelphia) and now against the defending league MVP.
It truly would be a sight to see the Suns and Hawks in the Finals. You would have two of the top five picks from the 2018 Draft going for their first title, two once-proud franchises also going for their first-ever championship (The Hawks won their only one in 1958 while the franchise was in St. Louis), and validation that rebuilds do work if you land the right player and have the proper front office in place.
Young put up 32 in his playoff debut against the Knicks. He dropped 39 against Philadelphia in Game Five of their second-round series, only to put up 21 in the deciding Game Seven. Still, did any of us think he could drop 48 and a near triple-double in Game One last night?
-JC24