The last time Trae Young faced the Knicks in an elimination game nearly five years ago, he beat the home team at MSG and ended the night with a Broadway bow.

At the time, the Hawks-Knicks had the makings of an intense rivalry with two young, up-and-coming franchises.

If any team had the edge in 2021, it was the Hawks, thanks to Young and the way they handled the Knicks in five opening-round games.

But then the teams went in different directions.

The Knicks’ progress wasn’t exactly linear — there was that unusual 2021-22 season — but it certainly improved over the next three seasons.

The Hawks, on the other hand, mostly just fell.

Symbolic of that direction since the 2021 playoffs, the Knicks were heavy favorites in Wednesday’s NBA Cup quarterfinals and were clearly comfortable against the Hawks.

New York had a chance to chase it in the NBA Cup as the East’s top seed – which would have meant a showdown against the Celtics in the quarterfinals instead – but weakened in the final game of the group stage to maintain the point differential for a while in the Hawks matchup .

In the Magic game, the Knicks were ahead by 31 points with six minutes left and won by just 15 points. A win by 37 points or more would have meant a place in the quarterfinals against the Celtics.

While Tom Thibodeau held back, Josh Hart essentially acknowledged that the Knicks were aware of the impact as their lead evaporated.

It was a smart move for several reasons, including because the NBA Cup is also a regular season game. Who wants to have an extra game against Boston on their schedule?

That’s how the Knicks faced the Hawks and Young, who had lost so much since the 2021 playoffs that his coach Quin Snyder wanted to leave the past in the rearview mirror.

“One of the big things for us is that we’re really moving forward,” Snyder said. “And part of that for Trae this year is maintaining and continuing a lot of the things that make him the player he is, but also continuing to develop.”

Snyder’s vague overview of “evolution” includes better leadership from Young and a focus on ball movement. But the Hawks were just one game over .500 before Wednesday.

The Knicks had a 15-9 record and have a higher ceiling, but also don’t resemble the team that faced the Hawks in 2021.

In fact, they have zero players on the roster who took part in this series.

“And that’s the nature of the league,” Tom Thibodeau said. “There is constant change and how quickly can you adapt? It could be an injury, it could be free agency. There are so many different variables at play. And even sometimes you come back with the same team and don’t play the same way.

“I think that’s the challenge every year – you start over. There is constant change in the league itself. It depends on how quickly you can adapt.”

The Hawks still have several players remaining from the 2021 series, including Young, Clint Capela, Bogdan Bogdanovic, DeAndre Hunter and Onyeka Okongwu.

But they understood that there was no deportation.

“Obviously it’s a great souvenir (of eliminating the Knicks at MSG),” Capela said. “But it is a completely new team and we are aware of that. They don’t even have one player left. That’s crazy.”