East Notes: Hawks, Trae Young, Nets, Hornets

Hawks

Guard Trae Young said his game-winner to beat the Nets was something he’s envisioned his whole life. Young beat the buzzer with a pull from 12 feet.

“I’ve been counting down those seconds since I was 5 years old, 6 years old,” Young said. “That’s nothing new.”

The Hawks improved to 2-0 under interim coach Joe Prunty.

“It’s great,” added guard Dejounte Murray. “Like I continue to tell the players, we have no control over what the front office does. We’re going to continue to work and try to build as many wins as we can.”

• In case you missed it, the Hawks officially hired Quin Snyder as coach. The team has a press conference scheduled for Monday. (Full post.)

Nets

The Nets have lost four of five since trading Kevin Durant to the Suns.

“It’s a part of basketball and you can’t feel sorry about yourself,” coach Jacque Vaughn said, via Brian Lewis of the New York Post. “I’m not gonna give them excuses about this, spin a new group and this is only their fourth or fifth time playing together and the lack of practice and all that stuff. People, you can hold on to that. 

“Not going to give that to the group. What we have to do is continue to stay together and believe that we can get it done. That’s the mental hurdle for this group.” 

• Vaughn intends to use rising guard Cam Thomas as a scorer off the bench, per Lewis. Thomas is averaging 26.1 points in February.

Hornets

The Hornets are promoting two-way rookie shooting guard Bryce McGowens to the standard roster via a four-year, $7.4 million deal, Mark Bartelstein and Kyle McAlarney told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

The Hornets have two openings on the roster, so won’t need to make a corresponding move. The fourth year of the deal is a team option, Wojnarowski reported.

• Forward Kelly Oubre Jr. sounds as if he would like to remain in Charlotte beyond this season. He will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. “I have a lot to give to this city, to this organization, to my teammates as far as my leadership and my life path,” he said, via Rod Boone of the Charlotte Observer.