Knicks' Brunson Won't Put 'Fake Energy' into Being Upset by Trae Young's Celebration

Jalen Brunson admitted that Trae Young's Las Vegas-themed celebration following the Atlanta Hawks' win over the New York Knicks in the NBA Cup bothered him, but said doesn't plan to let it consume his energy as he focuses on the season ahead.

"Do I have an issue with it? Yeah, but he won, they won," Brunson said, per The New York Post's Zach Braziller. "So why put in false and fake energy to do something like that, when you could've done that to try and win the game. That's just my point of view on it."

The Hawks knocked the Knicks out of the NBA Cup with a 108-100 win in the quarterfinals on Wednesday behind Young's 22 points and 11 assists. The win punched Atlanta's ticket to the NBA Cup semifinals in Las Vegas, which explains why Young mimed rolling dice at midcourt as the game concluded.

After the loss, Brunson said there's a simple way to avoid having to watch celebrations like Young's.

"We should win the game if we don't want him to do that," he said.

Though the loss ended the Knicks' hopes of competing for the NBA Cup and the $500,000 prize, New York has had a slightly better overall season than Atlanta, sitting at 15-10 on the year compared to the Hawks, who are 14-12.

Since their 2021 playoff meeting, the Knicks and Hawks have developed a bit of a rivalry thanks to things like Young's celebration on Wednesday. Losing to Atlanta in a crucial NBA Cup game adds to the bitterness between the two fan bases and should make for an exciting matchup when the two teams square off next in January.

The Hawks have controlled the season series thus far, winning the first two meetings this year, but the Knicks will get three more chances to take down Atlanta this year.

New York will certainly remember how things went last time the next time it sees the Hawks.