Hoops Habit
Fansided

NBA Playoffs must-follow storylines: Knicks vs Hawks

By Luke Duffy

ATLANTA, GEORGIA - JANUARY 04: Julius Randle #30 of the New York Knicks grabs a loose ball against Trae Young #11 and Clint Capela #15 of the Atlanta Hawks during the second half at State Farm Arena on January 04, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - JANUARY 04: Julius Randle #30 of the New York Knicks grabs a loose ball against Trae Young #11 and Clint Capela #15 of the Atlanta Hawks during the second half at State Farm Arena on January 04, 2021 in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 6
Next
NBA
NBA playoffs, Knicks, Hawks (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /

NBA Playoffs Key Matchup: Julius Randle vs Trae Young

There is only one answer here, and the winner of this matchup will likely dictate the outcome of this series. Not that Randle and Young will match up against each other too often on the court. Randle will certainly be tasked with stopping Young from time to time, such as his stock risen in every area of the court.

When the Knicks have the ball though, they will be hunting out Young on switches, while the Hawks do their best to hide Young away from Randle who could easily overpower him. It is a lazy take to say that Young is a bad defender simply because he is small. The truth is he is not as bad as he is made out to be, but he’s not a whole lot better either.

This is fascinating because it is a tale of offensive firepower versus defensive sturdiness. On the one hand, Randle finished the regular season second in the league in defensive win shares with 4.3. RJ Barrett also cracked the top 20 (13th, 3.1). His defensive play helped fuel the Knicks to a fantastic fourth-place finish in defensive rating (107.8), making them elite on this end of the court.

On the other side and after a slow start, Young ended up putting up 25.3 points and 9.4 assists for a Hawks team that finished ninth (114.3) in offensive rating. To add to the interest here, the Knicks were below average offensively (110.2), and the Hawks below average defensively (112.1). The Knicks may have an ace up their sleeve to help their offensive output in this series, but we will return to that.

Randle is the better two-way player and was a deserving first-time All-Star this year. Young, at only 22, was not named to the midseason exhibition, despite getting there himself the previous season. If ever there was a time for Young to show that he feels slighted by this, and he should, it is in a series against the Knicks with everybody watching.

You can be certain that Young is going to go off in a big way a couple of times in this series at least. For as good as the Knicks have been defensively, Young is the kind of scorer who is going to get his regardless. Randle on the other hand seems able to dictate the game, even when the ball is not in his hands. Advantage Randle and the Knicks, but recency bias may be playing a factor in that call.