Schultz: Trae Young, Dejounte Murray give the Hawks life and something to think about

ATLANTA – One game doesn’t change a series, or a season, or certainly foretell the future. So let’s not go all prisoner-of-the-moment here.

But for one game, and at the most crucial time of this season, the Hawks’ expensive offseason experiment worked. As Trae Young himself acknowledged late Friday night of the combined performances of he and Dejounte Murray, “It came at the right time, and we needed it.”

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The Hawks won an NBA Playoff game over the Celtics, 130-122. It wasn’t officially an elimination game, but it might as well have been. Had the Hawks lost, it would’ve buried them in a 3-0 series hole, and no NBA team has ever dug out of that grave. Boston remains a heavy favorite to move on to the second round, and that’s fine. But the Hawks showed something with their effort.

Just as crucially, they left everybody with a snapshot to spend some time studying in the offseason. Young and Murray. Murray and Young. It worked.

The Hawks’ two guards took over this Game 3. Young scored 22 of his 32 points in the second half, including 15 in the fourth quarter. Murray scored 16 of his 25 in the second half. They communicated with each other and with teammates. They figured out how to best attack Boston’s defense. Most important of all, they led. Together.

“At one point, I was just like, I should just keep quiet and let them do it,” Hawks coach Quin Snyder said. “They had some isolation situations where they created for themselves and for other guys, and a lot of that was them just figuring it out. People feed off that.”

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Young, who enjoyed success after a string of seven straight miserable postseason performances, said he didn’t “want to live in the moment too much.” But he acknowledged this “was definitely one of the best” games he and Murray had this season.

Murray seconded that: “Absolutely. I don’t want to talk about Boston a lot but I look at Jayson (Tatum) and Jaylen (Brown) a lot, two guys who were going through it a lot, just to get to the level they’re at. Great things don’t happen overnight. Great things take time.”

Big shot, DJ! pic.twitter.com/V90EBuX3oJ

— Bally Sports: Hawks (@HawksOnBally) April 22, 2023

The Hawks traded significant assets to the Spurs to get Murray, including three first-round draft picks. It was the kind of all-in trade teams make when they think they’re going to be championship contenders. Former general manager and team president Travis Schlenk balked at the proposed trade, and many outside the organization questioned if Young and Murray, who both like to have the ball in their hands, could effectively blend their games. With the Hawks going 41-41 in the regular season, owner Tony Ressler firing head coach Nate McMillan and blowing out the front office in the process, there has been little to suggest they made the right move.

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Then came Friday. Young and Murray have had a few other good games together, but not on this stage, and not against a great defensive team like the Celtics, who allowed the second-fewest points per 100 possessions in the NBA this season.

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Murray texted Young some words of encouragement the other night. Snyder worked with Young on some new sets in hopes of to get him some open looks. But mostly, Young just had to be better with the ball and make more shots after going a combined 14 of 40 from the field with 10 turnovers over the first two games of the series. In Game 3, he was and he did – and when it counted most.

With eight minutes left and the Hawks clinging to a 105-103 lead, Young hit a pull-up 13-footer, a 15-foot runner, set up De’Andre Hunter for a layup then drove the lane for another basket – six points and an assist in a minute-and-a-half span to increase the lead to 113-106. With fewer than two and a half minutes left and the Hawks again leading by only two, 118-116, Young and Murray hit consecutive three-point shots. Young later sealed the game with free throws when he rebounded a Tatum missed and drew a foul.

Floating in icy waters 🛟🥶 pic.twitter.com/c6WsA2PEPw

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) April 22, 2023

Was this backcourt performance a preview of what’s coming, or an aberration? At the very least, Young and Murray gave Snyder and the front office something to think about, especially given their breakout came in a playoff game. 

“Guards are supposed to be able to control the game, and we consider ourselves two pretty good guards,” Young said. “We have to be able to control the games when we have leads.”

It has been a difficult few days for Young. He played poorly in Boston. His grandfather passed away. There has been increased media speculation that the team might even consider trading him this offseason.

He affirmed after the morning shootaround that he needed to play better and “be better at taking care of the ball.” He said repeatedly that it has been a challenge learning Snyder’s offensive system late in the season, with Snyder, adding, “We’re trying to go a little faster.”

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Murray sent him a text when the Hawks returned from Boston, telling him to ignore the noise and play his game. Snyder watched tape with him and told him to keep shooting, keep playing and stay confident.

Dejounte Murray on the struggling Trae Young: "He has to be confident, be Trae Young, be who he is. Keep the outside noise outside. I texted him when we got home. I just told him, 'Be yourself, play the game you want to play, and play it at a high level like you’re used to doing"

— Jeff Schultz (@JeffSchultzATL) April 20, 2023

“The message, as much as anything for him and the whole group, is just to stay aggressive and trying to make the right play,” the coach said. “He got a little down when he turned it over one time and he was shaking his head, and I just said, ‘Let’s get to the next play.’ I don’t want him thinking about what just happened. Every mistake can make you better if you just process it the right way. You can tell he found his rhythm tonight.”

The Hawks needed this one good night. Young most of all.

(Photo of Dejounte Murray and Trae Young: Kevin C. Cox / Getty Images) 

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