Trae Young gets wish, sends thanks to Hawks rival after beating Cavs

The Atlanta Hawks are 2-0 against the Cleveland Cavaliers this season. The rest of the NBA is 1-17 against those same Cavs. Atlanta stunned the Cavaliers for the second time in three days with back-to-back wins by double-digit margins, moving them to 3-1 in NBA Cup group play. 

However, they still needed help to advance to the knockout round. Trae Young asked for it, and the Hawks got it when the Boston Celtics beat the Chicago Bulls.

“Thank You Boston,” Young posted on X on November 29.

“I’m gonna watch,” Young told reporters after the win No. 2 over Cleveland. “This is the one and only night I’ll be cheering for Boston.”

With Boston’s win, Atlanta became the first team to advance to the NBA Cup knockout round.

The Hawks’ win (both, actually) also officially knocked the Cavs out of the Cup. Cleveland still has one more pre-scheduled cup game to play. It will be against the Washington Wizards in what will be their final Cup game as well.

Boston still has a shot at making the knockout round as a wild card, though they will need plenty of help to do so.

The Hawks await the date and opponent for their first knockout round game.

Trae Young downplays Hawks’ wins over Cavaliers

The Cavaliers still boast the NBA’s best record, though Boston is now just one game behind them in the win column and 0.5 games back in the standings for the No. 1 spot in the Eastern Conference.

Young was asked whether or not this win was a “statement” for the Hawks, but pointed to their victory over Boston instead.

The Hawks did what the Cavs could not, avenging their loss at home with a win in Boston.

“This is, obviously, really, two big wins for us,” Young said. “They've been playing really well; at the top of the league. But I think a statement win for us was when we went to Boston without me and we won on the road, and in a Cup game. Obviously, every team is trying to win every game. But especially these Cup games. They give you playoff intensity type of environment. 

“For us to go into Boston, us to win there – regardless if they had me or not – I think that showed a lot about our team and what we have around us. So I think that was the bigger statement win than these last two.”

Young followed up his career-high, 22-assist performance in the first win over Cleveland with 21 points and 11 assists.

That is his fifth straight double-double, giving him 14 on the season.

Young is tied for the second-most double-doubles in the NBA. All six of the other players with as many or more than him are bigs. The next closest guard is James Harden of the Los Angeles Clippers, who has 11 double-doubles this season.