Trae Young Is Coming Back to MSG to Ruin New York's Christmas

After Trae Young stuck a dagger in the heart of New York City and dispatched the Knicks from the NBA Playoffs in just five games, the Hawks will return to Madison Square Garden this Christmas — Atlanta's first game on December 25 in more than 30 years.

While it was the least competitive of the Hawks' three series in the playoffs, Young made no shortage of headlines with his performances and antics in the three games at MSG. He was the game-high scorer in four of the five contests, averaged 29.2 points and 9.8 assists for the series, hit the game-winner in Game 1 and gave it right back to the New York crowd every chance he got.

I'm all for the NBA leaning in as much as possible to this newfound rivalry. The Hawks had a little bit of a thing with the Celtics for a while after a few hard-fought series several years ago, but there was never anywhere near the vitriol that Young elicited from New York. This is awesome for the sport and both teams, honestly.

The NBA is at its best when it has social media buzzing over storylines and if this season's series did anything, it was exactly that.

I may have to stay in New York for Christmas and go to this game. The atmosphere is going to be unbelievable. I don't know what other tricks Trae has up his sleeve for his next trip to The Garden, but I'm sure we'll see him pull out all the stops for this game — and the crowd will give it right back in full-force.

Should be a great time.