It took all but one game for Atlanta Hawks point guard Trae Young to become Madison Square Garden’s new No. 1 villain. Heck, NYC mayor Bill de Blasio was even getting his shots in at a press conference on Wednesday.
Young, who hit the game-winning shot in Game 1, was subject to taunts and expletive-laden chants all night but “shushed” the Garden faithful after his game-winner and egged them on as the Hawks took the first game in the best-of-seven series.
“He loves it,” Young’s father, Rayford Young, said in an interview with the New York Daily News. “There’s no sensitive bone in his body when it comes to that.”
Rayford’s comments echo what Young told reporters after the game, explaining how he views the taunting as a “compliment.”
Trae’s embrace as the villain harkened memories of Reggie Miller, who had his own clutch playoff moments in the Garden and would trash-talk with Spike Lee, making a couple of infamous gestures toward the director and celebrity Knicks fan.
But Rayford warns Knicks fans that his son is just scratching the Reggie Miller-like surface.
“When they did it to Reggie Miller, Reggie Miller was in his prime,” Rayford said. “He was 28, 29 years old, near the back end of his career. They’re going to have to see Trae for the next 10 or 15 years.
“He hasn’t hit his grown man weight yet. He hasn’t got his grown man strength yet. This is only the beginning. He should be a senior in college right now.”
Young finished Game 1 with 32 points, 10 assist and seven rebounds — joining only LeBron James to have at least a 30-10-5 line in his playoff debut. He was also the first player to score 30 points with 10 assists in a playoff game at Madison Square Garden since Michael Jordan in 1989, per ESPN Stats & Info.
“Growing up, he’s always been one of the smallest,” his dad added. “He never walked into a gym and people were like, ‘I want to pick that guy.’ So when you grow up always having to prove yourself, once you get to this level it’s just second nature. …. I just tell him you don’t have to prove anything to anybody but he’s not built that way. He was the same way in high school. He’s always breaking barriers himself because he just doesn’t pass the eye test.”
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