Tempers flared on the Atlanta Hawks’ bench Tuesday during a crucial win over the Miami Heat in an Eastern Conference play-in tournament matchup.
The Hawks’ star point guard, Trae Young, got into a heated exchange with assistant coach Jamelle McMillan at the end of the first quarter, footage of the fiery encounter shows.
TNT cameras captured Young seemingly yelling at McMillan on the sidelines after the final possession heading into the second quarter.
The coach walked away as Young’s teammate pulled him in another direction.
It’s unclear exactly what was said between Young and McMillan or what led to the apparent verbal spar.
Tuesday’s intense moment comes two days after The Ringer reported that Hawks head coach Quin Snyder has the “green light” from the front office to do whatever he wants concerning potential trade opportunities for Young in the offseason.
Young’s name has been mentioned in trade rumors — especially if Atlanta doesn’t make it out of the first round of the playoffs.
Jamelle’s father, Nate McMillan, was fired as Atlanta’s head coach in February after failing to build on the success of leading the team to the 2021 Eastern Conference Finals.
McMillian was relieved of his duties when the Hawks were in the eighth spot in the Eastern Conference standings with a record of 29-30.
The move came a few months after Young missed a game against the Nuggets following a reported spat with the elder McMillan.
Atlanta swiftly hired Snyder as the team’s head coach and kept McMillan’s assistants on the staff.
Tuesday’s 116-105 win over the Heat in Miami earned the Hawks the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs and a ticket out of the play-in tournament.
“I know [Heat forward] Jimmy [Butler] guaranteed a dub, so I was really focused on making sure that didn’t happen,” Young said after the game while sporting a pair of tinted sunglasses.
The two-time All-Star finished with 25 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists.
It was a triumphant win for Atlanta, which didn’t make it out of the first round of the playoffs last season — losing in five games to Miami.
Young is in the second year of a five-year, $207 million rookie maximum extension he signed with the Hawks in August 2021.
The 24-year-old is under contract through the 2026-27 season but has an early termination option after the 2025-26 season.
The Hawks face the Celtics in the first round of the playoffs beginning Saturday.
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