East Finals Preview: Atlanta Hawks vs Cleveland Cavaliers
By Mitchell Kay
The 2015 Eastern Conference Finals are finally set. The Atlanta Hawks will meet the Cleveland Cavaliers beginning on Wednesday, May 20th, in Atlanta.
Led by LeBron James, the Cavaliers recently put away the lifeless Chicago Bulls who didn’t look like a team playing with a sense of urgency in a Game Six scenario. Cleveland comes into their series with Atlanta riding a title wave of momentum.
As for their part, Atlanta finally put away the Washington Wizards. The Hawks narrowly escaped Game Five after Paul Pierce tied things up from downtown. Al Horford then soared into the paint, securing an offensive board while managing to stick the put back.
Game Six ended in dramatic fashion as Pierce once again launched a ridiculous shot that fell. After review, it was determined that time had expired. The “Hail Mary” wouldn’t count.
The Hawks clawed their way back into a series that, at one point, looked like they may lose. Atlanta showed tremendous poise, heart, and determination closing out the second round.
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After an early dismissal from the playoffs in 2014, the Hawks have passed the tests that have gotten them to where they are now. Their next challenge comes in the form of a very dangerous team in the Cleveland Cavaliers, a team stacked with talent and depth.
Some will point to bench scoring to question the true depth of the Cavalier roster but that’s not the case. We have two heavyweight rosters set to slug it out until the final bell.
Let’s look at where both teams are following the first two rounds and how these two teams match-up accordingly.
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