Trae Young may not wear the Hawks jersey anymore, but that does not stop the Knicks fans from hating him. The Wizards guard famously secured the “villain” status in New York following the Hawks’ shocking playoff run in 2021 that ended with them in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Even today, basketball fans in New York are not very fond of Trae Young. Among them is also their mayor, Zohran Mamdani, who hilariously took a jab at Young during his latest press conference.
“First, I would like to say I blame Trae Young, and I think it’s always important to blame Trae Young,” Mayor Mamdani jokingly said when asked about pricy playoff tickets. “I think we have seen sports become more and more of a luxury commodity. And that is not what it always used to be.”
“My political mentor is Bernie Sanders, and Bernie Sanders has shared time and again that one of the moments where he realized just how broken this political system is was when he saw the Dodgers get taken away from Brooklyn. And I think it speaks to how time and again New Yorkers are being pushed off the things that give them so much joy.”
“I am still confident and hopeful for a championship this year. I do wish all these tickets were more affordably priced,” Mamdani said.
“I think for New Yorkers, I think the game is something that is celebrated throughout the entire city. When the Knicks do well, you feel it across the whole city. I think every single owner across the country needs to be doing more to make their tickets more affordable.”
Trae Young saw these comments on social media and was rather amused to see that he still lives in the Knicks fans’ heads.
“Remember what happened the last time the Mayor of that City had my name in his mouth during a time like this… 😂✋🏽. #DontBlameMeWhenItHappensAgain,” he wrote on X.
Last season, the prices to watch the Eastern Conference Finals at Madison Square Garden went as high as approximately $108,000, and the cheapest ticket for entry was $765 and averaged about $1900 per ticket for the series against the Celtics.
Subsequently, the Knicks came under fire as even during the regular season, as they averaged the most expensive tickets this season as well ($1,138). And now, going into the playoffs, their cheapest tickets are listed at $334 for the games at MSG and $93 for the games in Atlanta’s State Farm Arena.
The Knicks are set to face the Hawks in the first round of the 2026 NBA playoffs. It is hilarious to hear Mamdani bring up Trae Young because he is no longer even on the Hawks. However, when he was in Atlanta and became the villain of New York, Young made sure to give his best against the Knicks.
The former Hawks guard averaged 25.6 points, 9.8 assists, and 2.9 rebounds while shooting 40.4% from the field and 34.1% from beyond the arc in the 30 games he has played against the Knicks in his career, including the playoffs.
He had a 2-8 record in the first 10 games against the Knicks before he embraced the villain role in the 2021 playoff series. He maintained a 9-11 record against the Knicks in the subsequent games he played.
But as far as ticket prices are concerned, the league should consider stepping in and ensuring that certain sections of the seats have a price cap across the league during the playoffs, or take a measure of that nature.
