Trae Young

Knocking on the doorstep of a double-double — and NBA history’s fifth-most 30-point, 10-assist games, to boot — Trae Young, ironically with Halloween just a week away, arrived to the Atlanta Hawks’ season opener bearing both tricks and treats. Eager to unchain Atlanta from its third quarter deadlock, and himself from Dennis Schröder’s defensive stance, Young kickstarts a marquee sequence by passing to a teammate before quickly requesting it back upon catapulting himself into a head of steam. Sprung free on his sideline drive, and with his creativity now at his highest notch, Young mutates into “Ice Trae” mode, freezing three different Brooklyn Nets defenders with a swinging behind-the-back fake before balancing into a high-arcing floater. Opening Year Seven in style, Young concluded October 23, 2024’s clash with 30 points, five rebounds, 12 assists, one steal, one block, two 3-pointers, and noteworthy marks from the field (7-of-16) and charity stripe (14-of-16). As a whole, Atlanta wasn’t far behind in its brilliance, carving out a four-point season-opening home win.