INDIANAPOLIS — Hawks guard Trae Young has etched his name in the team’s history books a number of times this season. He might do so one more time, should he suit up for the Hawks’ regular-season finale against the Pacers in Indianapolis on Sunday.
Heading into that matchup, Young sits 10 assists from tying Doc Rivers, who played for the Hawks from 1983-90, for first place on the Hawks ‘ all-time assists list, at 3,866, needing 11 to eclipse Rivers to take sole possession of first.
Hawks fans know of Young’s ability to make ridiculous passes that thread the needle through defenders to find his teammates for some seemingly impossible looks. He remembers some of those passes vividly.
“My first off-the-backboard pass to John (Collins), I don’t remember if it was a preseason game,” Young said. “I think it was a preseason game at Georgia Tech. Yeah, that’s one I vividly remember just that being one of my earliest ones. I got a lot of lobs to John that I remember, but not just one. I can’t pick just one.”
This season’s favorite was the pass to Bogdan Bogdanovic that allowed him to pass Young in 3-pointers made in a single season.
But there are plenty of others that might jump out. As in the Hawks’ Nov. 28 matchup at the Cavaliers, when Young shoveled a pass to a cutting Onyeka Okongwu through the defense of Jarrett Allen and Georges Niang.
Young also hasn’t been shy about rewarding teammates for their stops, such as when he found Bogdanovic for a running dunk in their season opener at the Hornets on Oct. 25. Young had just forced LaMelo Ball to kick to the corner to shake free from him. When Ball went to cut to the basket, Bogdanovic came to help and knocked the ball out of the passing lane as it came back to the Hornets guard.
Bogdanovic pushed ahead to Young, who initially looked to shoot a wide-open 3, but the Hornets closed in, and Young instead found Bogdanovic for a running dunk.
Of course, Young has made some ridiculous passes on 3-pointers. He hit De’Andre Hunter with an one-arm, over-the-head no-look pass on the wing during the third quarter of their season opener at the Hornets on Oct. 25.
Then there’s the game-winning pass he delivered to Dejounte Murray in Mexico City that gave the Hawks a victory over the Magic. Young drove past Paolo Banchero before wrapping the ball around Jonathan Isaac and sending across the baseline to Murray in the corner for the 3.
Young, who long has said that assists are his favorite stat, has averaged 9.5 assists per game over the course of his six-year career. He’s the led the NBA in total assists in the previous two seasons, dishing out 737 during the 2021-22 season and a career-best 741 the following season.
This season, he has averaged a career-high 10.8 per game in 53 games and sits behind only Tyrese Haliburton in the NBA.
A three-time NBA All-Star, Young has had a strong season, including a seven-game streak in which he scored 30 or more points and dished out 10-plus assists.
This wouldn’t be the first time Young has surpassed Rivers for a franchise record. On Nov. 29, 2022, he passed Rivers for the most 10-plus assist games when he recorded his 139th.
“I mean, it’s definitely something that I wouldn’t take for granted,” Young said Saturday. “I’d be happy if I passed it. I mean, Doc joked about it with me at (All-Star Weekend). So that was funny. So that would be cool.”
