Trae Young sends messages about teammates after Hawks beat Pacers

Trae Young enjoyed the Atlanta Hawks’ win over the Indiana Pacers, even if it was just the preseason opener.

Perhaps just as much, he enjoyed the way the victory came about.

The Hawks and Pacers battled in what was a back-and-forth affair. Trailing by two points with 6.9 seconds on the clock, the Hawks had David Roddy set to shoot the second of two free throws. Roddy missed and the ball found its way to Lundy who cashed the game-winning triple.

“@sethlundy1 BEEN THAT GUY!” Young captioned an image shared to his Instagram story on October 8.

Young had also shared a post captioned “GAME, LUNDY” on X immediately following the game.

The shot was Lundy’s lone make on a 1-for-3 night. The second-year swingman dealt with injuries in 2023-24 but still flashed his three-point shotmaking with the College Park Skyhawks in the G League, knocking down 41.9% of his deep looks.

That is a useful skill set on a Hawks team that is not shy about getting up threes under head coach Quin Snyder.

It was also a stellar debut for rookie No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher.

Risacher had 18 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists, shooting 77.8% from the floor and sinking three of his four looks from downtown. More than stats – which mean nothing in the preseason – Risacher looked comfortable in several aspects that could portend to early success.

“1st of many rook!” Young posted. “Too EZ .”

Trae Young jokes about lob to Jalen Johnson

Young connected with fourth-year forward Jalen Johnson – who had 19 points, 10 boards, and 3 steals – for a couple of lobs, including one that even he had to poke fun at. 

Johnson started the play, stealing the ball from Pacers forward Obi Toppin.

He found Daniels before falling out of bounds, sprinting to get back into the play. Daniels found Young who put the ball in a place that, depending on the angle, looks like it could have been intended for either Johnson or De’Andre Hunter who was also in the vicinity.

“F it!” Young posted in another story with a still image of what was their second lob connection of the game. “Jalen somewhere up there.”

The duo’s first connection came in the first quarter and was a sign of things to come in the contest. 

It was an encouraging first showing for the Hawks’ top duo of Johnson and Young, who finished with 17 points, 6 assists, and 1 turnover. Both Johnson and Young expressed their delight about teammate Vit Krejci’s near full-court dime to Kobe Bufkin for a dunk in the fourth quarter.

“This was crazy,” Johnson said in a post on X. “omg”

“A dime I ain’t seen in a minute bro!” Young posted with a saluting emoji. “1 of 1.”

It was an exciting victory, if only for one night in the preseason. It was clearly a big moment for the chemistry of the team.