Trae Young's streaky shooting can make or break the Atlanta Hawks
Star guard has poor shooting night as Hawks drop to 6-20
Saturday 14 December 2019 11:46, UK
Trae Young had a cold night of shooting from the field on Friday against the Indiana Pacers - but was stellar from the bench.
Before taking the court, Young launched an improbable trick shot that swished through the net as he was sitting on the Atlanta Hawks bench.
But once the game tipped off, Young was harassed into a poor shooting night by Malcolm Brogdon, as the Pacers beat the Hawks 110-100 in Atlanta.
Young had 23 points, but missed 21 of 30 shots from the field, as Atlanta lost for the 14th time in 16 games.
Atlanta, which dropped to 6-20, began the game ranked last in three-point accuracy and missed its first 14 attempts beyond the arc. The Hawks finished six for 28 on treys with Young missing 10 of 13.
"For me, trying to be one of the closers, I have to be better," Young said. "I was getting wide-open looks and missing. I felt like I let my team down tonight."
The star point guard notched a career night two weeks ago against the same Pacers team.
Young finished with 49 points in Indiana's one-point overtime win over Atlanta on November 29, but this time Brogdon helped limit Young in the first half and teamed with reserve point guard Aaron Holiday to stymie him in the second.
"It's a good parallel, me and Aaron," Brogdon said. "I'm a big guard. I can provide the length and bother him with my size. He's a smaller guard who get into him and stay in front of him. He can really harass him."
"He's a great shooter, a great player," Brogdon added of Young. "He has the ball in hands the whole game, so you have to be alert the whole time you're out there."
Brogdon had 19 points and 12 assists, while Domantas Sabonis had 12 points and 14 rebounds in the win.
T.J. Warren scored 18 points as all five Indiana starters finished in double figures. Sabonis, who began the game second in the NBA in double-doubles, has reached the marks in 11 straight games and 21 overall.
The Pacers improved to 5-2 this month and 17-9 overall. They are eight games over .500 for the first time this season.
DeÁndre Hunter scored 21 and Jabari Parker 20 for the Hawks.
