In Thursday’s Hot Clicks: Trae Young’s message for Knicks fans, a despicable hit in the NHL playoffs and more.
The following written content by Dan Gartland
He’s already a Hall of Fame NBA troll
It’s a shame the Knicks–Hawks series finished so quickly, because Trae Young was clearly enjoying his role as the most hated man in New York.
Shushing the crowd after his game-winner in the first game of the series instantly turned Young into a New York villain. The Knicks denied Young an opportunity to immediately stunt on them again by winning Game 2, but after the Hawks won both games in Atlanta, Young was back in the Garden on Wednesday night with a chance to send the Knicks packing.
Young was his typical self in the Hawks’ blowout win, scoring a game-high 36 points, and he was cocky as hell all night long.
After Nerlens Noel purposely bumped into Young as they headed off the court at halftime, Young confidently shrugged, adjusted his jersey and kept it moving.
He also mixed it up with the fans. When one started talking trash, Young said, “Are you gonna spit on me next?” and flashed a wry smile.
While shooting free throws late in the fourth, Young winked at somebody in the stands, and the TV cameras caught a guy with his arms outstretched asking, “You want a piece of me?”
Young’s ultimate troll move came in the closing seconds, when Knicks fans rose to their feet to give their team a standing ovation in recognition of an unexpectedly successful season. Young drained a three from the logo during the ovation and bowed to the crowd as if the cheers were for him.
His line when asked about the bow after the game was equally brilliant trolling.
“I know where we are,” Young said. “I know it’s a bunch of shows around this city. And I know what they do when the show is over.” Read more from Sports Illustrated.
