Trae Young delivered exactly how you want your star player to: by nailing the game-winning shot against the Detroit Pistons. The shot snapped the Hawks’ eight-game losing streak and came after Young, the NBA’s assist leader, was snubbed from his fourth All-Star appearance.
As he is wont to do, Young stamped his moment with some flair.
He harkened back to an iconic moment – Allen Iverson’s step-over on Tyronn Lue during the 2001 NBA Finals between the Philadelphia 76ers and Los Angeles Lakers – on Malik Beasley.
“Trae young … tough [ice emoji],” Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey posted on X.
TRAE YOUNG FOR THE WIN pic.twitter.com/qUAf2L3s0V
— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) February 4, 2025
Granted, Iverson’s move came in with much higher stakes. Iverson was the league MVP that season. Both teams had the same record during the regular season. Iverson scored seven straight points when his shot to make the score 103-99 in Game 1 took place.
That is when Lue – while getting up – stepped over Lue, who is now the head coach of the Los Angeles Clippers.
The 76ers went on to win that contest 107-101.
The Lakers would go on to win the next four games and close out the series. But Iverson’s stepover remains one of the most iconic moments in NBA history.
Again, given the circumstances, it is difficult to say that Young’s will be viewed the same way.
Still, the three-time All-Star offered yet another reminder of why his continued disrespect in the voting and selection processes is rooted in faulty logic and narratives that Young disproved long ago.
“I’m tired a tweeting and talking about it man. My son is having a HELLUVA CAREER in the @NBA & the people in power wanna downplay it,” Young’s father – Rayford Young – posted on X on February 3. “I’m gonna enjoy this journey & try to ignore all the hate! What he’s doing AIN’T EASY…#AllStar #ALLNBA.”
That boy 11 an ALL STAR , bottom line ❄️!!! GREAT WIN fellas 💪🏽😤 @ATLHawks
— Jalen Johnson (@Jalen_J23) February 4, 2025
Young has one All-NBA selection to his credit, earning Third Team after the 2021-22 season.
That season notably followed an even better one – statistically speaking – in 2020-21 in which Young was not an All-Star nor was he an All-NBA pick.
Young’s plight has revolved around winning despite many of the selections touted ahead of him not being tasked with carrying the type of offensive workload that he is as both a facilitator and scorer.
He finished with 34 points and 9 assists against the Pistons.
He had 34 points in the five-point loss to the Indiana Pacers on Saturday, too. This comes after Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal questioned Young’s passiveness after his snub was official.
Young – previously criticized by others for taking too many shots – was chided for not taking enough of them. That is an impossible situation to overcome and underscores how faulty the logic around Young can be.