Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young had to be helped off the court during Wednesday’s game against the New York Knicks after suffering a left ankle sprain.
The Atlanta Hawks, the fourth seed in the Eastern Conference, had a pivotal game on Wednesday night against the surging New York Knicks. In the second half, the team appears to have lost star player Trae Young to an injury.
In the third quarter, Young went for a jump shot just outside of the paint, but landed awkwardly on his left ankle. Young was seen pounding his fist on the court in pain, and had to be helped to the locker room.
The Hawks announced shortly afterwards that Young was ruled out for the remainder of the game with a left ankle sprain.
Hawks: Trae Young leaves Wednesday’s game with a left ankle sprain
Now, the Hawks and the rest of the basketball world wait to find out the severity of Young’s injury. Regardless of the official grade of the sprain, Young could be out for weeks. That is not good news for the Hawks, who are looking to clinch a playoff berth for the first time since 2017.
Prior to his injury, Young notched a double-double with 20 points (6-for-17 from field, seven-for-seven from the free throw line) and 14 assists in 30 minutes of playing time.
Entering this game, Young was averaging 25.4 points, 9.5 assists and 4.0 rebounds while accumulating a 43.1 field goal percentage and 35.8 three-point percentage.
The Hawks are separated by less than a handful of games from a playoff berth to a spot in the play-in round. The last thing they needed was Young suffering a potentially serious injury. Now, they have to play the waiting game to determine just how much time the point guard will miss.