Trae Young Outduels Deandre Ayton, Devin Booker as Hawks Beat Suns
In a battle of two Rookie of the Year candidates, Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks beat Deandre Ayton and the Phoenix Suns 120-112 at State Farm Arena in Atlanta on Saturday night.
Phoenix's franchise-record losing streak increased to 17 games and the Suns dropped to 11-50, while the Hawks moved to 20-40 on the season.
Young played well in the win and was especially strong in the fourth quarter, as he finished with 23 points on 5-of-14 shooting and eight assists. Meanwhile, Ayton put up solid numbers as well with 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting and 12 rebounds in a losing effort.
Although both Ayton and Young showed flashes of brilliance, the true star of the game despite the loss was Suns point guard Tyler Johnson, who lit up the Hawks for 29 points, five rebounds and four assists. After spending all season searching for an answer at point guard, Johnson is giving the Suns some competent play at the position after coming over from the Miami Heat in a trade.
Shooting guard Devin Booker also had a strong game for Phoenix with 26 points, eight assists and seven rebounds, while Kent Bazemore (23 points), Taurean Prince (21 points) and John Collins (19 points and 14 rebounds) all supported Young's effort for Atlanta.
Both teams received production throughout their respective lineups, but most eyes were on Young and Ayton given their success as rookies this season.
Ayton wasn't a huge part of the Suns' offensive game plan, but he was efficient with his touches in the paint. In the first quarter, Booker found him for a monster jam:
Even though his production dropped off a bit in the second half, Ayton was still a handful for the Hawks with moves such as this up-and-under:
While Young was somewhat quiet for the first three quarters, he still busted out some flashy plays that had the home crowd in awe. Among them was a pull-up three from way downtown in the first quarter:
Young even wowed the fans after the whistle with a circus shot that went down in the second quarter even though it didn't count:
In a more substantial play, Young knocked down a key three to tie the game at 105-105 with around four minutes remaining in the fourth:
Atlanta carried a four-point lead into halftime, but Phoenix managed to erase it in the third largely because of the play of Johnson, who scored 17 points in the frame. The Suns led by one entering the fourth as they looked to end their franchise-record losing streak.
Phoenix led by as much as eight early in the fourth, but Atlanta battled back and tied it on the Young trifecta before taking the lead on a pair of free throws by Collins. The Hawks never looked back from there and managed to put the Suns away in the closing minutes.
Despite Struggles, Hawks and Suns Have Strong Future Building Blocks
The Hawks and Suns are two of the NBA's worst teams, but Saturday's game offered a glimpse of what could be for both franchises in the near future.
There were plenty of offensive fireworks with each team getting production throughout the lineup and from the bench as well.
All five of the Hawks' starters scored in double figures in a lineup that featured a good mix of youngsters and veterans. Young and Collins provided some exciting moments, while Prince, Bazemore and Dewayne Dedmon scored proficiently and did many of the little things well too.
Rookie Kevin Huerter was out injured, but he figures to be a key part of the Hawks' success moving forward as well. With a trio of Young, Collins and Huerter, Atlanta has a solid nucleus that could get it back in Eastern Conference playoff contention soon provided the Hawks continue to draft well and make some smart free-agent signings.
While little was expected of the Suns this season, they figured to at least have some growth with the drafting of Ayton and continued development of Booker and Josh Jackson. That hasn't been the case, though, as they are by far the worst team in the NBA.
Phoenix has some obvious needs at point guard and power forward, but there is undoubtedly a ton of talent on the roster with Ayton, Booker, Jackson, Kelly Oubre Jr. and Mikal Bridges leading the way. There is also still a chance that Dragan Bender could develop into a useful player given his potential.
It remains to be seen where Johnson fits into future plans since he isn't a true point guard, but he went off on Saturday, and Kellan Olson of 98.7 Arizona Sports was among those who felt it was his coming-out party:
The Suns are set to have another high draft pick this season, and they could come away with someone like Zion Williamson or RJ Barrett of Duke, or perhaps Murray State guard Ja Morant. Adding a player of that caliber to the group that is already in place would seemingly set the stage for a big turnaround next season.
Phoenix may have more of an uphill climb than Atlanta since the Western Conference is much tougher than the East, but the Suns arguably have a greater collection of young talent than the Hawks.
It is taking longer than anticipated for everything to mesh for the Suns, but they played well Saturday and may only be one star player away from taking the next step, and they have a good chance to land one during the offseason.
Trae Young Deserves Rookie Of The Year Look Along With Doncic
While Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic has been viewed as the NBA Rookie of the Year front-runner for most of the season, Young is making a late run that could soon see him pass the player he was traded for on draft night.
With 23 points and eight assists, Young enjoyed another strong game Saturday, and he has now scored 20 or more points in 10 of his past 14 games. That marked a continuation of what he was doing regularly prior to the All-Star break.
As pointed out by Ben Stinar of Amico Hoops, Young was on an absolute tear in the 18 games leading up to the break:
Young is averaging 17.1 points, 7.7 assists and 3.3 rebounds per game this season while shooting 40.7 percent from the field and 31.7 percent from long range. Although there is plenty of room for improvement, he is showing that he was deserving of a high pick despite some skepticism.
He is also rounding into form at a time when most rookies are wearing down because of their unfamiliarity with the long NBA season.
Young still has work to do when it comes to chasing down Doncic, though, since Doncic was clearly the best rookie over the first few months of the season. Overall, Doncic is averaging 20.7 points, 7.2 rebounds and 5.6 assists per contest while shooting 43.0 percent from the field and 34.8 percent from beyond the arc.
Doncic has better numbers than Young in most areas, and Doncic would likely win the Rookie of the Year award if the season ended today because of that.
Young is undoubtedly closing the gap, though, and if he maintains his current pace throughout the remainder of the season, voters will likely have a difficult choice on their hands.
What's Next?
The Suns will travel to Miami to take on the Heat on Monday in what will be Johnson's first game against his former team.
Meanwhile, the Hawks will have a tough road game against the Houston Rockets on Monday in a contest Houston needs in order to improve its playoff positioning.
