Grayson Allen, Trae Young tangled up in NBA summer league; social media goes wild

Former Duke star Grayson Allen led a controversial NCAA basketball life during his four years at Duke.

Allen, a first-round draft pick by the Utah Jazz, tripped players a few times in college and it became a topic of national conversation. Everything he did on court seemed to be dissected on social media. He spent a good bit of his pre-draft interviews talking about the reputation, unwarranted or not, that he developed because of it all.

Originally seen as a second-round pick, Allen moved up into the first round as he impressed NBA scouts at the NBA combine, in one-on-one workouts and in interviews.

Social media lit up again Thursday night after Allen and former Oklahoma star Trae Young got tangled up, more than anything else, during an NBA summer league game between Allen's Utah Jazz and Young's Atlanta Hawks. The tweets and headlines talked about "skirmishes" and "altercations" and "fights." It seemed that Allen, intentionally or not, got his arms entangled with Young, who was attempting a shot.

Young didn't seem to like it and tried to force Allen to the ground. On the way back up, hands aloft as if he were trying to end the play, Allen appeared to give Young a slight shoulder check. But, to our eyes, it was a long way from a fight.

What did social media get right about Allen Thursday night? Exposing the leaping ability that many had heard about but not really seen much.

This story was originally published July 5, 2018 at 11:01 PM.