Charlotte Hornets at Atlanta Hawks | 2022 NBA Play-In Tournament (FULL GAME HIGHLIGHTS) #NBAPlayIn [VIDEO]

Trae Young ended LaMelo Ball’s season in the 2022 Play-In

Both Trae Young and LaMelo Ball are two of the NBA’s most promising players. Last year, Trae Young shocked the entire league. Trae Young leading the Hawks back to the playoffs wasn’t surprising, it was expected. Even when the five seed Hawks beat the four seed Knicks, it wasn’t a shock. Upsetting the Sixers, who held the East’s top record is what shocked the world.

Trae Young led the Atlanta Hawks to the Eastern Conference Finals. At one point, the Hawks looked like they would beat Giannis and the Milwaukee Bucks. Had Trae Young’s Hawks done so, the East would have had two straight years of five seeds making the Finals. Instead, the Bucks beat the Hawks in six, and would win the 2021 championship over the Suns in six games.

Because the Hawks got within two wins of the NBA Finals, some expected them to contend in the East. It never happened. Eventually, the East rounded out with the Heat, Celtics, Bucks, Sixers, Raptors, Cavaliers, and Nets locking in the eight playoff spots. The Nets beat the Cavs for the seventh spot and, tonight, the Atlanta Hawks beat the Charlotte Hornets to move on and face the Cavs to compete for the eighth spot.

Trae Young ended LaMelo Ball’s season in the 2022 Play-In