ESPN pundit showers Hawks’ up-and-coming star with praise

The Hawks topped the Lakers last night in exhilarating fashion, notching their sixth consecutive win as the club begins to garner national attention.

They’re doing it in a different way than most in Atlanta have been accustomed to during the Trae Young era. Instead of their star point guard being the offensive engine, scoring and facilitating, Young has taken a back seat as a scorer, with a career-low usage rate, but it was the Trae Young show last night in State Farm Arena.

Young led the Hawks with 31 points and 20 assists, followed by 26 points from De’Andre Hunter, who shot 5-of-7 from three. Most impressively, the Hawks got 65 points off the bench, including 20 from Bogdan Bogdanovic and 15 from Onyeka Okongwu, while Dyson Daniels added 11 points and four steals.

For most of the season, Trae Young hasn’t been scoring anywhere close to the rate he has over his career. It’s made way for others to handle the ball more, with many notching career-high usage rates, including Dyson Daniels, De’Andre Hunter off the bench, and Jalen Johnson, who is budding into a star next to Trae Young.

In the Hawks previous win over the Bucks, which ended Miluwakee’s seven-game winning streak, the club got contributions from all parties. Hunter chipped in 20 points, and Young finished with 17 points and seven assists, while the up-and-coming star led the way with 23 points on 10-of-19 shooting from the field to go along with 13 rebounds, five assists, one block and two steals.

Jalen Johnson appears to be on his way to his first All-Star appearance and will also receive Most Improved Player recognition if trends continue. He gives the Hawks a little bit of everything, and the national media is beginning to take notice, showering him with praise.

“An athletic wing that was drafted by the Hawks four years ago with the 20th pick. He’s looking like the second, third option to me. His ceiling may be a first option. This young man does it all,” Kendrick Perkins said. “He defends at a high level, gets out in transition, and he’s defintely snatching the screws out the rim.”

Jalen Johnson is among the few players that are averaging 20 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists. The only other players to post those numbers are Giannis Antetokounmpo, Nikola Jokic, and Domantas Sabonis.

Amid a breakout season, Johnson recorded his fifth double-double across his last nine games, scoring at least 20 points in six of those contests, averaging 20.4 points, 9.9 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.0 blocks per game.

This recognition from Kendrick Perkins is only the beginning. Jalen Johnson will soon be a player everybody is talking about as one of the league’s best forwards.

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Photographer: Jevone Moore/Icon Sportswire

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