There was a time not too long ago when a twenty-point game by Thaddeus Young was not only an expected occurrence, but a common one. In the 2013-14 season, his last with the 76ers, Young scored twenty or more points 29 times. This year, nearly a third of the way through the season, he’s only done it once, and you’re here to witness it.
The thing is, Young has spent most of his career being the second (or sometimes, even first) option on mediocre-to-bad teams. This allowed him to put together a string of 13 PPG seasons that is unprecedented for a player who is so anonymous and little-known. Now that he is on a winning team, he takes a back seat to the main scorers on the team. He’s still a consistent and skilled scorer, but he’s no longer called upon to shoulder an unnecessarily burdensome scoring load.
Next question: is Thad Young the best Young in the NBA or is Trae Young better?