Hawks’ bizarre Trae Young strategy pays off for Knicks
NY Post
The Knicks did not exactly stop Trae Young as they staged a comeback and evened their best-of-seven playoff series. They have Hawks coach Nate McMillan to thank for keeping the speedster point guard under wraps Wednesday night far more effectively than any defense thrown at him.
Young was doing his thing, killing the Knicks with 20 points in the first half, quieting another raucous Garden crowd slinging verbal epithets his way. Young was a one-man wrecking crew, hitting 7 of 11 shots from the floor — four of five from 3-point range — to steer his team to a 57-44 lead on the listless Knicks. So, what did the Knicks do differently in the second half, as Young scored just 10 points to finish with 30 and was not much of a factor in the closing minutes, as the Knicks took control in their 101-92 victory? Young could not score from the bench, as McMillan kept his star out of the game late in the third quarter and on into the fourth quarter, a crucial stretch when the Knicks took the lead and never let it go.
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