Getty Trae Young surrounded by Knicks.
The New York Knicks fizzled out last year in the playoffs after getting beat 4-1 by the Atlanta Hawks in the first round.
During the series, Hawks star Trae Young ruffled a lot of feathers with Knicks fans due to his strong play, and after they dispatched the Knicks they made it all the way to the Conference Finals before falling to the eventual champs Milwaukee Bucks.
Ever since that series, Knicks fans have had a grudge against Young, and while some of it might be playful, some of them do take it a bit more serious than that.
There’s at least one person in New York City that’s a fan of Young, and that person might’ve written him in as their vote for mayor.
New York City elected a new mayor a month ago, but news just came out that Young received a single vote. Obviously, there was no shot he could ever truly get elected, but that didn’t stop someone from trying.
Young Responds
Trae Young caught wind of this vote and responded to a Sports Illustrated story revealing the information.
“That’s love NY for real…,” he said. “Never got a mayor vote!”
Well, the old saying goes “there’s a first time for everything,” so it appears that Young can check this one off the bucket list. Strangely enough, Young isn’t the only athlete to get votes here.
Kyrie Irving, James Harden, Kevin Durant, Julius Randle, Kemba Walker and RJ Barrett all received votes which means somebody waited in line to vote just to write down athletes. In the end, Eric Adams came away as the mayor-elect.
The SI article also notes that “Bing Bong” received two votes, which means that this phrase doubled Trae Young’s, so New York Knicks fans have that going for them at least.
If you’re out the loop, the “Bing Bong” phrase was coined after the season-opening win over the Celtics where an excited fan shouted into a mic and the rest is history.
A Brewing Rivalry
GettyA rivalry is brewing.
On paper, it doesn’t seem like the Knicks or Hawks should really be rivals considering they don’t even play in the same division, but that hasn’t stopped them from having a bit of bad blood.
The teams last met on November 27 when the Knicks defeated the Hawks 99-90. The two will be having a Christmas day rematch that will be aired on ESPN, so there will be a lot of eyeballs on that game.
The Hawks struggled out of the gate this season, but a winning streak got them back on the right track. Of course, this streak did get snapped by the Knicks, but if things keep trending the way they are, the two could potentially meet in the playoffs yet again.
Rivalries are always fun to follow in the NBA, especially if you’re a fan, so it’ll be interesting to see where this one goes. The Knicks and Hawks both have young teams, so this could end up being something that lasts for a while. It’ll get even bigger if the two keep meeting in the playoffs.
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