(Translator's note: The author of this article is Melissa Rohlin, NBA columnist of Fox Sports, the content of the article does not represent the views of the translator, and the data in the article is as of January 17, 2022 Beijing time)
First, the origin of the name "villain"
Whenever asked about his son's reaction to being portrayed as a villain, Trey Young's father, Rayford Young (hereinafter referred to as "Rayford"), laughs. To him, the son was still the shy and taciturn child.
Earlier this month, after Trae Young scored a career-high 56 points against the Trail Blazers, he dialed his father's phone as usual, and the father and son talked about his performance in his fourth year in the NBA. Refford has always proudly said that his son would call him every day to say hello. Before leaving each post-match, Trae Young would hug Mom, younger siblings, and Dad in turn (in the same order each time).
But when the Atlanta Hawks superstar held the ball in his hand, he immediately changed into a completely different personality.
Trae Young is a player who is easily hated by opposing fans. In the first round of the playoffs against the Knicks in New York, madison Gardens was filled with "Blowing up Trae Young" and "Trae Young this bald donkey", so loud that even viewers in front of the TV could hear it. In the second game of the series, there was even a fan spitting at him. Then-New York Mayor Bill de Blasio shouted at Trae Young at one of his press conferences to let him play the right way, warning him: "Young, stop cheating, the Knicks will teach you a lesson." ”
Everyone knows the ending, and Trae Young laughs to the end. After hitting a 30-foot jumper in the final moments of the G5 match-point battle, Trae Young stood in midfield, bowed sarcastically to the court, and waved goodbye to Knicks fans, triggering a tidal wave of protests and shouting to banish him.
Countless op-eds and YouTube videos have called him the "most annoying" and "blackest" NBA player.
For these villains, Trae Young, who is 6 feet 1 inch tall and weighs 164 pounds (Note: 1.85 meters, 74 kilograms), enjoys it. The trash talk excites him. The more scathing and mean the outside world, the more motivated he became, and the harder he fought. He has become accustomed to being the target of public criticism and has gradually learned to turn these into momentum for progress.
"Trey Young didn't like me to say that, but I felt like he was suffering from dwarfism and everyone around him was crazy and doing something crazy." In an interview with Fox Sports, Reford said, "He really, really worked very hard to get to where he is today, not because the other players didn't work hard enough, but that Trae Young didn't have those innate advantages of other players, such as athleticism, height, speed, almost everything." So when he hears boos, or hears people say he can't do it, he's just trying to prove he can do it. ”
Second, the teenager Trae Young
Trae Young's basketball path was heavily influenced by his father, Rayford. When Reford played for Texas Tech, he was already a Big 12 League All-Star (Note: Big 12 League is a first-tier sub-league of the University Athletic Association (NCAA) and currently has 10 schools in several states in the central and southern United States), and was named one of the top players in the United States under 6 feet by Athlon Sports magazine in the 1998-99 season.
Later, Refford always hoped that his son would surpass his achievements. At 5 a.m., he took Trae Young to YMCA school and completed 500 shooting exercises before class. After finishing the nine-to-five medical device sales, he picked up his son and took him to the gym for training. (Note: Trey Young's father lost the NBA draft after graduating from college, went to Europe briefly to play, and chose to go home to work in medical device sales after having a family.) ）
During training, Reyford often carries a broomstick and imitates a tall defender in front of Trae Young to let him practice shooting. Teach him how to pass crotch-piercing balls from between the legs of a big player. It also teaches him how to make a quick stop in a small space to win a foul, which is also a point that is often hated by opposing fans now.
Since seventh grade, Rayford said, Trae Young has been scolded by older adults on the sidelines, and people have always provoked him. But he was extremely confident, winning fouls on the field and ridiculing the audience when playing highlights. The small body contains a powerful aura that is extremely inconsistent with the shape of the body.
His defiant style of playing also provoked antagonism among the spectators on the sidelines, who teased his small stature and mocked his thinning hair. On rare occasions, he went home with a sense of loss. But he soon realized that these humiliations could also be his advantage, turning negative energy into extra motivation.
Subsequently, Trae Young entered Norman North High School (Russia) under coach Bryan Merritt (currently Coach Tuttle High School). Off the scene, he was a stunned teenager, no different from other classmates. But on the field, his special features began to show.
Coach Merritt said: "In my 25 years of high school basketball coaching, I have never seen a child with such confidence and conviction as he has. From the first day he entered school at the age of 14, when he was a 110-pound (about 50 kilograms) child, to the time he graduated and left school to enter the University of Russia, it was consistent. In his ninth grade, you often hear him say he would one day beat James or Durant, and he really believed it. ”
At the age of 16, in a duel with his alma mater's nemesis Norman High School, Trae Young dribbled through the crotch of his opponent, hit a three-pointer, and then bowed to the court. He's been a show-off maniac ever since.
Away from home, Coach Merritt likes to see Trae Young being taunted from the other side, and he knows what happens next. Trey Young will be like a caged beast, making the intruder pay the price.
In Coach Merritt's view, the best way to stop Trae Young is to keep quiet. He said: "If I were the coach of the opposite team, I would make my players concentrate on playing, don't say a word, whether it's good or bad, don't say anything. That way it won't irritate him. As soon as you open your mouth to talk to him, the emotions on the scene begin to ignite, then you can't do anything with him. ”
As Trae Young grew into a point guard with both skill and range, his fame began to soar. He compares himself to the top supernovae, like the Kings' Fox and the Celtics' Tatum. Invitations from the University of Kentucky, Duke University, UCLA and other prestigious schools flew like snowflakes.
But Trae-Young ultimately chose the University of Oklahoma, a decision that surprised everyone, including his father. Father was worried that there wouldn't be enough exposure there. But Trae Young decided to follow his trusted Oklahoma Sooners coach Lon Kruger.
He bet his bet on himself.
"I think one thing that changed my son's life, the week before he made that decision, he talked to me on his knees, 'Dad, I think I'm still a little closer to home,'" Reford recalled. I'm going to stay here and go to The Russian University. He said so firmly that I knew he wasn't going to another school. ”
Under Coach Kruger, Trae Young, the core of the team, began to bloom. In his freshman year of 2017-18, he averaged 27.4 points and 8.8 assists per game, becoming the first player in division history to lead both statistics at the same time since assist statistics were available.
Coach Kruger commented: "He has incredible ball handling skills, imagination, fearlessness and is aggressive in attack. He also has a field view and the ability to hammer out. ”
Mainstream TV broadcasters began to adjust the broadcast schedule to make Trae Young's game appear more in the national live broadcast, which also surprised his father, Rayford.
Third, the first time to enter the NBA
In the 2018 NBA Draft, the Hawks, who held the No. 3 pick, traded down with the Mavericks with the No. 5 pick, and finally the Hawks took Trae Young and the Mavericks selected Luka Doncic. Since then, the two rising stars have been compared to each other, which has given Trae Young another impetus.
After entering the NBA, Trae Young surprised everyone, including his father. Rayford always thought his son would succeed, but he didn't think it would come so quickly. "When I see someone on Twitter or Sports Center saying 'Trae Young just tied Jordan's record' or 'He just broke Curry's record,' I was so speechless and it was so unreal," Reford said. ”
Trae Young was named to the 2020 All-Star Team in his second season. Last season, he led the Hawks to the East Conference Finals for the first time in franchise history since 2015. There are too many highlight moments in this section. Playoffs first round against the Knicks, 0.9 seconds before the final, Trae Young threw to lock in the victory. In the Eastern Conference semifinals G5 against the Philadelphia 76ers, he contributed 39 points and seven assists. In the Eastern Conference Finals G1 vs. Bucks, he set a new playoff record 48 points + 11 assists + 7 boards. (Trae Young missed G4 and G5 with a right foot bone contusion in this series.)
This season, Trae Young is fourth in the scoring list and third in assists with an average of 27.6 points and 9.3 assists per game, and he is also expected to be named to the All-Star Team again. While on the team side, thanks to a flaw-ridden defense and disappointing performances by role players, the Hawks have slipped to 12th place in the East with 17 wins and 25 losses.
For his son to be portrayed as a villain by the outside world, father Rayford is also happy, after all, he also has a "credit". But for mother Candice and their young son and two young daughters, it is sometimes hard to accept. Especially in last year's playoffs, Candace, who watched at madison Garden Arena, was really frightened. Originally, the whole family bought tickets to go to the Broadway show after the game, but they were almost swept away by the audience's ruthless mockery of Trae Young. "It almost ruined our trip until Trae Young hit the winning goal and then everything was perfect," father Refford said, laughing.
For Trae Young, the taunts sounded as good as music. After playing a wonderful performance, he will swing his body in response. He would make gestures to silence the audience. He is happy to be the enemy of the whole people.
Rayford has long been accustomed to this, and these segments of the game can really motivate Trae Young, saying: "Trae Young is eager to shoot a long three points on the next field, look at the audience and tell them to shut up and sit down. He wanted to be the protagonist of the stage. ”
When the game is over, the fans who mock him will also praise his excellent performance. At this point, Trae Young may take off his shoes, hand them to these fans, and may even give away his jersey.
Why reward these taunts? Because they inspired him?
"It's true." Rayford said.
By Melissa Rohlin
Compilation: Thick beard