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New York Knicks Veteran Reacts to Malachi Flynn's Historic Performance

New York Knicks veteran Josh Hart commented on Malachi Flynn's big performance for the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday.
Justin Grasso|
Apr 3, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Malachi Flynn (14) reacts with Atlanta
Apr 3, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Detroit Pistons guard Malachi Flynn (14) reacts with Atlanta | Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

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New York KnicksDetroit Pistons

On Wednesday night, the shorthanded Detroit Pistons took the floor against the Atlanta Hawks. With Cade Cunningham out of action, Monty Williams had to make some changes to his guard rotation. Rookie Marcus Sasser got the start, with Malachi Flynn stepping in for the backup minutes.

Flynn ended up making the most of this opportunity against the Hawks, etching his name in the history books. In 34 minutes off the bench, he erupted for 50 points on 72% shooting. Despite this massive scoring barrage, the Pistons still weren’t able to secure a win. Atlanta ended up winning the game by a final score of 121-113.

As expected, many people in and around the NBA reacted to this impressive outing from Flynn. Among those to do so was one of his former teammates, Josh Hart. The New York Knicks forward brought back his “Evil Donte” nickname because Flynn resembles Donte DiVincenzo.

Hart and Flynn were only teammates for a brief period due to a series of trades. Flynn first arrived in New York after the Toronto Raptors traded him in the OG Anunoby deal. A few weeks later, he was dealt again to the Pistons in the Bojan Bogdanovic/Alec Burks trade.

With his 50-point outing, Flynn has set a new NBA record. He now has the lowest career PPG average of a player to score at least 50 in a game.

In total, Flynn has appeared in 18 for the Pistons since coming over in the trade. During that stretch, he is averaging 8.2 PPG, 2.0 RPG, and 1.5 APG.

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Justin Grasso
JUSTIN GRASSO

Justin Grasso was a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s 76ers On SI Network. Grasso got his start in sports media in 2016 with FantasyPros, working the news desk, providing game-by-game player analysis and updates on the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors. By 2017, he joined FanSided’s Philadelphia Eagles site as a staff writer. After spending one season covering the Eagles as a staff writer, Grasso was promoted to become the site’s Co-Editor. For the next two NFL seasons, he covered the Eagles closely before broadening his NFL coverage. For a brief stint, Grasso covered the NFL on a national basis after joining Heavy.com as an NFL news desk writer. In 2019, Grasso joined the 76ers' beat on a part-time basis, stepping into a role with South Jersey’s 97.3 ESPN. Ahead of the 2019-2020 NBA season, he concluded a three-year stint covering the Eagles and joined the Sixers beat full-time. Grasso has covered the 76ers exclusively since then for Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Pro Basketball Writers Association. Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoMedia

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