Trae Young still living rent free in Knicks Nation's heads after Hawks' loss

Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks lost to the New York Knicks on Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday, an outcome underscored by their road team status.

However, even in defeat, Young remains a central talking point among Knicks Nation, especially after his dice roll at center court after the Hawks beat the Knicks in New York in their last matchup.

That moment was brought up to Knicks star Jalen Brunson after the game.

“Whenever we play in front of this crowd, there's no extra motivation [needed],” Brunson told MSG’s Alan Hahn during his walkoff interview after the win on January 20. “This is just the best place to play. Regardless of what happens, we don't need extra motivation whenever we play for this crowd.”

Brunson previously said that the Knicks should beat the Hawks if they wanted to prevent Young from celebrating as he did.

Knicks utility man Josh Hart was also asked about the previous incident and how it fueled them.

“I don’t even remember [Young rolling the dice],” Hart told reporters on January 20, needing to be reminded. “Biggest thing for us is it’s another game, we gotta go out there and win. We been struggling a little bit. But this is just another way for us to get back on track. I’ll let Knicks Twitter have fun with all that other stuff.

“For us it was just, ‘We gotta go out there, and we gotta protect home court, and we gotta find a way to win.’”

Young has done his part to fuel the rivalry, so it is not exactly surprising to see the vitriol aimed at him.

Knicks Twitter has field day with Trae Young after Hawks' loss

“MIKAL BRIDGES GOT TRAE YOUNG IN JAIL,” one Knicks fansite posted on X with a clip of the two battling.

Young finished the game with a team-high 27 points. He also went 6-for-12 from beyond the arc. He was otherwise inefficient, shooting 36.4% from the floor. That includes a 2-for-9 mark (2-for-5 3P) when Bridges guarded him.

He also took heat for a 24-second violation when guarded by Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns.

“Towns embarrasses Trae Young lmaoooo,” a fan posted.

“TRAE YOUNG JUST GOT CALLED FOR A TRAVEL WHILE TRYING TO FOUL-BAIT THE KNICKS LMAOOOOOOOOOOO,” Knicks Memes posted in reaction to the call, along with an old video denying Young’s validity.

Young was 3-for-8 when Towns defended him.

“Trae Young is now 7-15 vs the Knicks in his career,” Knicks Muse posted with an image of a much younger Young. “He had 10 turnovers and shot 36% FG in today’s loss.”

Young and the Hawks are 2-1 versus the Knicks this season. Many of the fan posts regarding the Hawks’ star referred to his struggles, overlooking the fact that he surpassed another historic milestone in the game.

“Yesterday Trae Young recorded his 200th game in a row with 5+ Assists,” the Hawks posted on January 20. “He is 1 of only 3 players in NBA history to accomplish that.”

Young would surely trade that for the win, especially since he was a topic of the day.

Young’s misfortune overshadowed a rough defensive outing by Dyson Daniels, who was charged with allowing Brunson – who finished with a game-high 33 points – to score 20 points on 7-for-10 shooting. 

Daniels also fouled out, much to Brunson’s delight, with the Knicks star celebrating as the Hawks guard left the court.

The Hawks and Knicks will meet again in New York on February 12 for their next matchup.