Trae Young Erupts for 35, Collin Sexton Struggles as Hawks Blow Out Cavaliers

The Cleveland Cavaliers still haven't won a game since LeBron James left.

Cleveland fell to the Atlanta Hawks, 133-111, in Sunday's game at Quicken Loans Arena. Atlanta is now 1-2, while the Cavaliers fell to 0-3.

The game was advertised as a showdown between rookie point guards Trae Young (No. 5 pick) and Collin Sexton (No. 8 pick), and Young had the clear upper hand with 35 points and 11 assists behind six three-pointers and 13-of-23 shooting from the field. Sexton countered with four points on 2-of-11 shooting.

Young's Status as Hawks' Best Player Makes Him ROY Front-Runner

Young is going to be under the spotlight all season after leading the nation in points (27.4) and assists (8.7) per game during his one collegiate campaign at Oklahoma.

And he's going to deliver with monster numbers.

Young's full arsenal was on display against the Cavs, as he showed off his range extending to the parking lot, playmaking ability off the dribble and vision when dishing out assists in half-court sets. He caught fire in the second quarter and gave the Hawks a four-point halftime lead after they fell behind by double digits in the early going.

Atlanta is not going to contend in the Eastern Conference, so the 2018-19 campaign is all about Young developing as a franchise building block. He has freedom with the ball and green lights for shots most rookies only dream of, and he built on the 20 points and nine assists he put up against the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday.

A direct comparison to his rookie counterpart in Sunday's contest underscores why Young will be a significant factor in the Rookie of the Year race all season.

Sexton didn't start and has to default to a number of veterans in Kevin Love, JR Smith, Tristan Thompson, Rodney Hood and Jordan Clarkson. He doesn't get anywhere near the opportunities to take the game over on an individual basis that Young does on a poor Hawks roster, and many rookies will be in similar situations across the league (such as Deandre Ayton with Devin Booker or Luka Doncic with Dirk Nowitzki and DeAndre Jordan).

That will clear the way for Young to put up numbers they can't match.

Sexton Predictably Failing to Impress Early On

There are going to be growing pains for Sexton, especially on a team that leaves him lower on the pecking order without as many chances to develop his individual skills as Young.

He flashed his quickness in transition at times, but he also forced the issue and found himself trapped or putting up bad shots and struggled to keep up with Young as evidenced by his four fouls in 28 minutes.

Sexton's primary concern is his lackluster shooting, as he is yet to hit a three-pointer through three games after shooting just 33.6 percent from deep at Alabama. That allows defenses to sag off him and cut off driving lanes, which leads to the contested shots that helped spur breaks for the Hawks.

It also creates situations in which defenses can jump into passing lanes if they aren't as concerned with his outside shooting, which helps explain his three assists to six turnovers through three contests.

There will be plenty of time for Sexton to work on his jumper and expand his game, but his first three contests highlighted the fact that it takes more than just pure speed to beat NBA defenses.

Cavs Can't Let Slow Start Impact Love's High Usage

James' departure opened the door for the Boston Celtics, Toronto Raptors, Philadelphia 76ers, Indiana Pacers and Milwaukee Bucks to compete for the Eastern Conference crown and left the bottom few seeds as the Cavaliers' most realistic playoff outlook.

The only way they are going to reach the playoffs after reaching the NBA Finals the last four seasons is consistently forcing the issue to Love, their clear-cut top option.

He finished with 16 points and 17 rebounds in Sunday's loss but was a mere 6-of-19 from the field. It was the second straight game he went 6-of-19 from the field after he was an ugly 5-of-18 in the opener.

That shouldn't dissuade Cleveland from establishing him in the post. It ran the early offense through him inside the lane against the Hawks and quickly built a 22-7 lead. He showed off a quick first step and threw down a dunk and finished the first quarter with 10 points and five boards.

However, Cleveland stopped working it to him in the lane during the middle portion as the Hawks stole momentum, and he drifted outside where he didn't have the same open looks he used to when James attracted so much defensive attention. The result was 1-of-8 from deep and a blowout loss.

Love shouldn't abandon his outside shooting seeing how it is one of the skills that makes him so dangerous as a matchup problem, but the early evidence of success inside mirrored some of his days on the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Cleveland needs to keep going to him early and often, otherwise this is going to be a long season for the defending Eastern Conference champions.

What's Next?

Both teams have home games Wednesday, with the Hawks hosting the Dallas Mavericks and the Cavaliers hosting the Brooklyn Nets.