Atlanta Hawks star Trae Young is not exactly popular in New York City. His decimation of the New York Knicks in the postseason has made him the modern NBA‘s newest Madison Square Garden villain, but the world’s most famous arena isn’t limited to just basketball games. It hosts a wide variety of sports and entertainment events, and on Friday, Young poured some salt in the wound by appearing at the Garden for a completely non-basketball-related event: WWE Smackdown.
Young was a surprise guest at Smackdown on Friday, and the Knicks fans present were quick to remind him how they feel about his presence. He was relentlessly booed as he walked onto the stage, but he took it in stride and gestured for fans to make more noise.
In the end, Knicks fans got the last laugh. Young was ejected from the event for attacking wrestler Rey Mysterio.
Young is quickly becoming one of the NBA’s bigger presences in the wrestling world. Earlier in the year, he announced a pay-per-view event that would be taking place at his home stadium, State Farm Arena in Atlanta, on Jan. 1, 2022.
“I don’t know about you, but I think New Year’s Trae would be a great name for the event, and I can’t think of a better way to bring in 2022 than with the WWE Universe,” Young said, according to ESPN.
If he appears at that event, he’ll surely receive a far warmer welcome than he did in New York. Whether on the court or off of it, Young remains a villain in the eyes of the Big Apple.
