On Thursday evening, Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks improved their record on the young 2023-24 season to 9-9, good for ninth place in the Eastern Conference, with a narrow win over the San Antonio Spurs. Young was electric in this one, scoring 45 points and dishing out 14 assists in the victory, but it was on the defensive end of the floor where he made the play of the game to seal the 137-135 win for Atlanta.

The play occurred when the Hawks turned the ball over on an inbounds with just seconds left, allowing Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan to drive down to the other end of the floor with a chance to either tie or win the game. Instead, Young beat him to the basket and stood in to take a charge, giving the ball back to the Hawks and essentially sealing the win.

After the game, Young got one hundred percent honest on what he was thinking as the play unfolded.

“I knew he was going to try to get to the basket. It was a transition play,” said Young, per Bally Sports: Hawks on X. “I was the only one back. I could only foul him or try to take a charge, so I just stood over and tried to take a charge.”

Trae Young, to his credit, has made noticeable strides on the defensive end of the floor since the hiring of head coach Quin Snyder last year. While he might not ever be a positive on that end of the floor, he deserves credit for making himself less easy for opposing teams to attack.