Atlanta Hawks' star player, Trae Young, was ejected from the team's game against the Indiana Pacers on Saturday after throwing a hard pass at a referee in frustration. The incident occurred late in the third quarter when Young disagreed with a call made by the official.
According to sources present at the game, Young received a technical foul for arguing with the referee and then proceeded to throw an overhand pass directly at him. The ball hit the official in his leg and bounced away as he immediately called for security.
The ejection of their leading scorer did not seem to affect Atlanta's performance as they went on to win 129-117 over Indiana. However, it is yet unclear if any disciplinary action will be taken against Young for his behavior during the game.
Speaking about the incident after their victory, Hawks' head coach Nate McMillan said that while he understood how passionate his players were about winning games, there was no excuse for such behavior towards officials.
"It's important that our guys keep their emotions under control and respect everyone on and off-court. We don't condone such actions like what happened tonight," he said.
Young has been one of Atlanta's standout performers this season, averaging 25.3 points per game along with 9.6 assists per game. He has also been named an All-Star twice in his career so far.
This is not the first time that a player has been ejected from a match this season due to misconduct towards officials; earlier this month, Los Angeles Lakers' superstar LeBron James was fined $15k for using inappropriate language towards referees during their defeat against Sacramento Kings.
It remains to be seen whether any further action will be taken by NBA authorities regarding Young's conduct during Saturday night’s match or if it will just result in fines similar to LeBron James’ case earlier this month.