"I Hope These New York Fans Find Their Way To The Exit Real Real Quick…Take Y’all Ass Home." - Nobody Loves And Embraces Being The Villain More Than Trae Young
How many true "villains" would you say there are in the NBA right now? You might not even be able to get to all your fingers on one hand. Speaking from experience, Steph Curry in Boston is a great example of what I mean. Just a guy who continues to bury you time and time again by ripping your heart directly out of your chest while he also kicks you in the dick for good measure. Just a real motherfucker of a problem.
Another great example of this and perhaps one of the only true "villains" in the league is Trae Young and the Knicks. He has that team and their fanbase in hell pretty much every time they play, and the best part is he fully accepts being a villain. Their fans do nothing but chant "Fuck Trae Young" regardless of the context, and he does nothing but stuff like this while beating the Knicks (again) to send them to under .500 on the year
Outside of Knicks fans, you have to respect this move. This is what the league needs more of. Villains are good for the league and the sport when they aren't manufactured or fake, and make no mistake this is not an act. This is what Trae has been doing for years now
I love that he fully embraces this role, I love that Knicks fans hate this guy like poison and then have to sit back and watch him continue to come out on top, it's all fantastic as a neutral observer. This is a beef that I hope never dies, and there's a world where this could end up being a Play In/Playoff series down the line which would certainly be fun given the previous battles we've seen.
What makes this special is the fact that it's unique between Young and the Knicks/Knicks fans. It's not like he's playing the Hornets and saying this shit so every time you hear it you just roll your eyes. This is something unique between that player and that team and the league is better for it. If you don't like it, then stop Young from beating you. That's sports. Until then, he's going to give you hell and then troll you afterward like a villain should.
Meanwhile, aside from Trae Young trolling, we should also take a minute to shoutout the Hawks #1 pick Zaccharie Risacher. Is it possible this maybe wasn't a total disaster of a pick? Given what we saw in this game, there's certainly reason for optimism if you're a Hawks fan
That has to be tough to watch for Knicks fans and a defense that was supposed to be elite, but on the flip side if the Hawks did hit on this pick and Jalen Johnson continues his leap, maybe they could be feisty? They'll have to figure out how to play defense, but at least this gives them reason to be excited about their future,