Tim McMahon, ESPN staff writer
Las Vegas—— Milwaukee Bucks Coach Doc Rivers sees a huge difference atlanta hawks Star Trae Young this season.
“He’s earned the trust of the guys,” Rivers said after the Bucks’ practice Friday at T-Mobile Arena. Getting ready to face the Eagles in the NBA Cup semifinals. “This team loves playing with him. That’s obvious. I couldn’t say that in the past, but now they love playing with him.”
Young, 26, is a three-time All-Star who led the Hawks to the 2021 Eastern Conference Finals, but he’s often criticized as a poor defender and often painted as a detriment to his teammates.
Young, who is averaging 21.0 points and a league-leading 12.2 assists per game, said Friday he believes the negative impact on his reputation is unfair.
“The idea that I can’t do certain things or that I’m too angry or frustrated about certain things – I mean, that’s not true,” Young said. “I think you’re just now starting to see it with our young group, just some of the different things we’re doing this year, I think you’re just starting to see it now because as a result we’re performing and we’re now in the final four of the Cup , this is a big deal.
“I think that’s why you see it and understand it, but for me, I’ve always been like that.”
The Hawks have a young core, a strong All-Star contender Jaren Johnsonthe first overall pick in the rookie draft Zachary Lisacher and guards Dyson Danielsarriving as part of the trade returns Dejounte MurrayThe former All-Star’s two-year run with Young didn’t result in any playoff series wins.
After a slow start, Atlanta has won seven of eight games, starting with back-to-back wins over its opponents. cleveland cavaliershas the best record in the NBA.
“When you win, everything else falls into place,” Young said. “That’s what’s happening now.”
Rivers said it was clear from Young’s performance that the guard “really studies the game on both ends of the floor.” He especially praised Young for finding ways to incapacitate himself when teams targeted him through communication and switches, thus masking his defensive limitations.
“When we talk to Trae, the word I like to use when we talk about Trae is evolution,” Eagles coach Quin Snyder said. “Every player is improving. They’re just improving in different ways. He’s a big part of the development of our young men and being able to elevate them… We know what a talented offensive player is, but I think In his mind, success is success as a team, not just Trae, but we all have to do our part defensively, and he’s doing that.”
