Trae Young - The Man, The Viper, and The Prosecution aka The MVP aka Ice Trae

[kg01]

.... it's still real ta me!

[Spud2nique]

39 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

 

 

Oh god ROFLMAO 

[Spud2nique]

1 hour ago, sturt said:

hehe...

Sooooo…

[ATLHawks3]

I love it. 

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

 

 

[JayBirdHawk]

Top 10 under 25......

1. Luka Doncic

2. Trae Young

Only a player as great as Young can make you at least question whether the Atlanta Hawks actually won a trade in which they gave up the aforementioned Doncic. Remember, the Hawks also got Cam Reddish out of that deal. If he blossoms, this will be a difficult trade to evaluate down the road, the rare win-win in such a high-profile swap, as Young has already established himself as a point guard not too far from Doncic's equal. 

Start with the traditional numbers: Young was the only player in the league last season to average at least 25 points and nine assists. In the playoffs, he was one of only three players to average at least 28 points and nine assists, and the other two, Damian Lillard and Doncic, were eliminated in the first round. 

 

Young, on the other hand, captained the Hawks to within two wins of the NBA Finals. He was magical against the Knicks, Sixers and Bucks, completely dominating games and series with a level of comfort and confidence that belied his postseason inexperience. 

With more talent around him, Young curbed some of his impulsive 3-point shooting last season (he's still just a 34 percent 3-point shooter for his career, the same mark he logged in last year's postseason), trimming his triple attempts by over three per game. 

Instead, Young dialed in on his sublime ability to get into the paint, where he's an equal threat to hit his floater, find a lob partner or shooter vs. collapsing defenses or get to the free-throw line, which he did 546 times last season, third-most in the league behind only Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo. 

Young's 3-point attempts went back up in the playoffs, where, as mentioned, he still shot just 34 percent, but he proved that his shooting, like Doncic, impacts the game far beyond the raw numbers, and there is no denying the knack he has for making huge shots in huge moments, whether it be in clutch minutes or just at particularly crucial junctures of a run or game. The Game 7 dagger against Philly was a monster shot. 

Bottom line, Young is a winner. His defense, at least with Atlanta's current parts supporting him, isn't nearly as detrimental as many presumed it would be in a playoff setting (there is still some question as to how much he might be targeted defensively in a playoff series that doesn't involve the Knicks, who were woefully short on playmaking, or the Sixers, who fell into the same category last season). But even if Young can be exploited more than he was in last year's playoffs depending on the matchup, his offense is so great that I'm still putting him No. 2 on this list. 

3. Jayson Tatum

 

https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/nba-top-10-under-25-trae-young-zion-williamson-looking-up-at-luka-doncic-deaaron-fox-barely-misses-cut/

[Spud2nique]

Trae day baaayyyyybbbeee. Shoes dropping next week! 

[Spud2nique]

Trae is #17. To me he’s top 5.

No. 17: Trae Young

 

Seth Wenig/Pool Photo/USA TODAY Sports

Atlanta Hawks | PG
2020 NBArank: No. 29

One big question: What's next? Young is one of the most ascendant young stars in the league, but the big questions here are does he have another gear and can he click into it this season? The keys are shooting efficiency and turnovers. Last season, Young made just 34.3% of his 3s (and just 31.3% in the postseason) and was among the league's leaders in giveaways. If he can improve in those areas, he immediately becomes an MVP candidate for Atlanta. -- Goldsberry

Why he rose 12 spots: You might be old enough to remember when people (guilty!) wondered whether Young's size would limit his playoff value. Instead, Young delivered one of the best postseason debuts in recent memory, leading the Hawks to the conference finals with 28.8 PPG and 9.5 APG and firmly establishing himself as a star. -- Kevin Pelton

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[Spud2nique]

On 9/22/2021 at 4:24 PM, Spud2nique said:

Trae day baaayyyyybbbeee. Shoes dropping next week! 

They dropped about 8 hours ago. I got a pair and an icee shirt. 
 

 

[Spud2nique]

 

[RedDawg#8]

Good stuff

[Dnice]

 

[marco102]

2 hours ago, Dnice said:

 

My favorite quote

Quote

So far, that mentorship has translated to winning. “He knows how to control the game,” Capela says. “People like to compare him to Luka [Dončić], but at the end of their careers, all we’re gonna remember is who won the most. Like Kobe [Bryant] and [Allen] Iverson. Kobe won, so that’s the difference right there. That’s what will make [Trae] extremely special. One of the greats.”

Yup!

[RedDawg#8]

2 hours ago, Dnice said:

 

Damn that statement jersey is SWEET. They really hit that out one of the park. It's becoming one of our most recognized and iconic jerseys.

[RedDawg#8]

2 minutes ago, marco102 said:

My favorite quote

Yup!

I was today years old when I realized that Kobe and AI came out of the same draft

[marco102]

3 minutes ago, RedDawg#8 said:

I was today years old when I realized that Kobe and AI came out of the same draft

Me too! 

Edit:  Wait- I did know.  Both were 1996 right? I think ESPN did like a special on that class.

Edited October 6, 2021 by marco102

[marco102]

I like this mindset from Cam and the confidence.  I hope it starts to show in game.

https://www.si.com/nba/2021/10/06/trae-young-hawks-leader-daily-cover

Quote

“I know I’m nice,” Reddish says. “So when my opportunity comes—and it came in the playoffs a little bit, y’all saw a little sneak peek—then when it’s time to play my role, I’ll play my role. When you start getting good at your role, then your role gets bigger. It’s a process. Sometimes it’s gonna be hell. But you work through that.”

[AHF]

21 minutes ago, marco102 said:

Me too! 

Edit:  Wait- I did know.  Both were 1996 right? I think ESPN did like a special on that class.

Amazing that Kobe slid as far as he did that year.  The top of that draft is pretty stacked so I get not wanting to pass on AI, Camby, Ray Allen, etc. for a high school player at a time when HS guys were disfavored but look who was picked before Kobe in the 9-12 slots:

Samaki Walker

Erick Dampier

Todd Fuller

Vitaly Potapenko

Wow.