MIAMI—The best part about watching Trae Young’s career up close is getting to see him work. He’s a great entertainer. The next best part is seeing Young’s game evolve. Young quickly proved he’s a good NBA player, opponents adjusted accordingly, and Young countered. Now he’s among the best young stars in the league.
Young has passed every test with the Hawks. I’m looking forward to seeing how he handles the latest one. Young is coming off the worst playoff performance of his short career. The Heat blew out the Hawks in Game 1 of the best-of-seven Eastern Conference first round series. Young has never been down 1-0 in a series.
There is no way Young will play as poorly in Game 2. The question is whether Young can be good enough to win a series against an opponent that is well-constructed to slow him. The odds are against it. But overcoming long odds is how Young has reached the point of being the primary focus of the Heat’s defensive plan.
