Hawks guard Trae Young returned to Madison Square Garden on Friday night, and he made sure it was entertaining.
Standing ringside for "WWE SmackDown," Young grabbed the head of Rey Mysterio, shaking him on the ropes, while Mysterio wrestled Sami Zayn. The referee hit Young with two "technical fouls" and threw him out of the event, which gave the crowd a lot of pleasure.
Trae Young got thrown out for attacking Rey Mysterio 👋 @BRWrestling
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 11, 2021
(via @WWE)pic.twitter.com/yicMNwXtIT
Young, whose Hawks defeated the Knicks in the first round of the 2021 NBA playoffs en route to an appearance in the Eastern Conference finals, received a negative reaction from those in attendance for Friday's event when he entered the arena. He was introduced by Zayn, who was wearing a Kevin Knox Knicks jersey.
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Young appeared unfazed by the downpour of boos as he pointed to the Hawks sweatshirt he was wearing.
It seems @TheGarden is not a fan of @TheTraeYoung 😂😂😂 @TheAssociation #SmackDown pic.twitter.com/Hg2w7AeZfU
— WWE on FOX (@WWEonFOX) September 11, 2021
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After his ejection, Young posted multiple photos on Twitter, where he again welcomed the response from the New York City crowd.
NYC I’m Back😏 #SmackDown @WWE pic.twitter.com/azKsWjFHqF
— Trae Young (@TheTraeYoung) September 11, 2021
In the Hawks' five-game series win over the Knicks, Young averaged 29.2 points, 9.8 assists and 2.2 rebounds and shot 44.1 percent from the field (34.1 percent from 3-point range). Atlanta then beat the 76ers in seven in the East semifinals before falling in six games to the Bucks in the conference finals.
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Young missed Games 4 and 5 vs. Milwaukee because of an ankle injury he suffered in Game 3. He returned for Game 6 in Atlanta but was clearly not his normal self, scoring just 14 points on 4-of-17 shooting with nine assists.