Trae Young made history and scored a career-high 56 points, but the visiting Atlanta Hawks still fell 136-131 against the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday.
Young’s total set a new NBA season-high mark, surpassing Kevin Durant’s 51-point performance for the Brooklyn Nets on December 12. Young also became the first ever player to score 56 points and dish out 14 assists in a game, according to the NBA.
But despite Young’s heroics, it was the Blazers, led by Anfernee Simons’ career-high 43, who took the win and ended a four-game losing streak.
“I don’t care about nothing besides the fact we lost, so it sucks I had this type of night on a loss because, at the end of the day, that’s all that matters to me,” said Young.
The 23-year-old ended the first half with 29 points, which included draining a three-pointer from the edge of the Blazer’s logo with 2.8 seconds remaining in the second quarter.
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The Hawks had a lead heading into the final quarter, but quickly saw it dissipate in between two Nassir Little triples.
From there, the Blazers held out for the win and improved to 14-22 on the season.
The 22-year-old Simons, the team’s top scorer on the night, became the youngest Blazer ever to score 40-plus points in a game.
He also recorded nine three-pointers – a career high – and later dedicated his performance to his late grandfather.
“Sadly, my grandpa died yesterday from cancer. It’s all him, honestly,” said Simons.
“I dedicate this whole game to him. Like I say, I can’t take credit today, that was all him … he would have wanted me to play today, so I wanted to go out there and play my game and play to the best of my abilities. That was all him that took over my body tonight.”
The Blazers next host the Miami Heat on Wednesday, while the Hawks – who have just two wins from the past eight games – face the Sacramento Kings.