Madison Square Garden needed a new playoff villain, a 21st century enemy. And much to New York Knicks fans' delight -- or perhaps dismay -- it only took one game for them to choose Trae Young.
The Atlanta Hawks' phenom owned the spotlight in the world's most famous arena this week, scoring a combined 62 points in the first two games of their first-round series against the Knicks. In Game 1 last Sunday, Young drained a go-ahead, last-second runner to clinch a 107-105 win, and while the boos rained down upon him, he gestured to the crowd to shush. Young's heroics and signal didn't sit well with Knicks fans, as in Game 2 on Wednesday, the 22-year-old was relentlessly taunted. One courtside fan even spat on Young -- the Knicks indefinitely banned the unidentified fan on Thursday afternoon.
Suffice to say, the Garden's electric crowds weren't on their best behavior. But Young's father, Rayford Young, mostly enjoyed the New York atmosphere, and approved of his son's handling of the chaos.
"The New York fans, for the most part, have been great," the eldest Young told The Zach Gelb Show on Thursday night. "My wife and I are walking through the arena, and there's some hardheads screaming some profanities. But for the most part, I felt like a celebrity, taking a lot of pictures with fans, and they're congratulating me on how well my son's playing. So, I really like the way most of the New York fans follow the game of basketball, and they've been really gracious. But you're always going to have a few bad apples...
"It's not the first time that he's had to deal with [profanity-laced chanting]. When you do that to him, you're just getting him fired up. Trae gets fired up. Not that he needs any more motivation, but you're talking about a kid who, his whole basketball career from childhood, has always had to prove himself. Trae never walked in a gym and the guys picking the teams said, 'Hey, I want that kid.' So for him, he's always had to prove he belongs, prove he can play...
"Anytime that happens, we know it's a sign of respect. It's just unfortunate, because once again, as a father, I would hate to take my younger kid to a game and have to hear [F-bombs] the whole game. But it's New York. It's rowdy. They have some great fans, and they try their best to get in your head."
Game 3 of the best-of-seven series -- which is knotted at one game apiece -- will take place on Friday night in Atlanta, with tipoff scheduled for 7 p.m. ET. According to FiveThirtyEight's projections, the Hawks have a 76-percent chance to advance to the East's semifinal round.
The entire conversation between Young and Gelb can be accessed in the audio player above.
You can follow The Zach Gelb Show on Twitter @ZachGelb and Tom Hanslin @TomHanslin.