Trae Young Scores 31. Hawks Defeat Spurs 124-106
"Cancun on 3" is what the San Antonio Spurs would have said if this game were in early April. But since it's the day before Thanksgiving, I'm not sure what they say. Perhaps "Cranberry sauce on 3"? Either way, the sentiment is the same. On the heels of a players-only meeting, the Spurs laid an egg against the Atlanta Hawks.
The Hawks have now won six straight. They have successfully dug themselves out of the hole they created on the west coast road trip. Eight Hawks scored in double figures. The team shot a scorching 45-88 (51.1%) from the field and 12-26 (46.2%) from three. Not to mention, John Collins did his usual extraterrestrial things on the court.
But the game-ball has to go either Trae Young or Clint Capela. Let's start with the big man. Capela has been returning to form over the past few weeks, and tonight was a vintage Capela performance - 11 points, 13 rebounds, and 5 steals. His defense, rebounding, and I.Q. are why both Coach McMillan and Young have called him the team's anchor.
Speaking of the floor general, Young tallied 31 points, 11 assists, and 7 rebounds. One of the more impressive components of his stat sheet was that he only shot two free throws. Twenty-four of his points came from inside the three-point line, so it's pretty amazing that he didn't get fouled but one time...
After the game, Hawks coach Nate McMillan complimented the Spurs offense. "They do a good job of moving the ball. Almost like a passing-game offense that reverses that ball side-to-side. Our closeouts needed to be a little better, and I thought we did that in the second half."
McMillan pointed out areas where his team could do better, namely offensive rebounding. However, he did praise the chemistry of his young roster. "I just like the mindset that our guys have had really the past couple of days. I felt like our practices, we've been focused on what we need to do, what we need to clean up. We had a shootaround that was businesslike this morning."
Young took to the podium wearing a white Balenciaga hoodie and iced-out chain. His monster performance was overshadowed by an incredible act of kindness after the game. Young signed his game-worn shoes and gave them to a young fan decked out in Hawks gear.
When asked about it, Young said, "I saw that in warmups he had a big poster, a big sign saying that all he wanted for Christmas was my shoes. I knew if we won, I was going to do that for him and give him my shoes. It's an honor having fans in the building with my jersey on and people wearing my shoes and holding them up and little things like that. It's an honor, and I try to go out there and represent the best way I can."
The entire NBA has tomorrow off. The Hawks will be back on the road Friday against the Memphis Grizzlies. Thank you for your continued support of AllHawks.com. We hope you have a great Thanksgiving!
Hawks Stats Leaders
Trae Young - 31 PTS, 11 AST, 7 REB
Bogdan Bogdanovic - 18 PTS, 5 REB
John Collins- 11 PTS, 5 REB
Spurs Stats Leaders
Bryn Forbes - 23 PTS, 3 REB
Dejounte Murray - 22PTS, 11 AST, 8 REB
Jakob Poetl - 15 PTS, 10 REB
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