Atlanta Hawks: How Hard is the Team’s Remaining Schedule?

A swift peek at the remaining schedule for the Atlanta Hawks.

As of the afternoon of March 9, 2019, the Atlanta Hawks currently sit with a 22-44 record, which is 12th in the Eastern Conference ahead of only the Chicago Bulls, Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks.

The playoffs are well out of the question for Atlanta this season, so the real race is for draft positioning. The odds have been flattened somewhat this year, so if you toss the Phoenix Suns into the equation – who are also very much in the running for best draft odds – the Hawks right now only have a 10.5 chance at the #1 overall pick.

The first pick is what every team wants this year as the prize will be likely superstar Zion Williamson. However, as our recent mock draft has outlined, there are plenty of good players to be had in the top 10 of the lottery – and beyond.

In the fifth spot in terms of draft odds means the Hawks have a 42.1 percent chance to move into the Top 4 – not bad odds for a team whose young players look far better than they did earlier this season.

One secret weapon the Atlanta Hawks have up their sleeve is how difficult their remaining schedule is. According to Tankathon.com, the Hawks have the third-hardest schedule in the NBA and the hardest of any rebuilding team.

Here’s the full list of strength of schedule for all teams that are currently slated to be in the top 5 of the lottery: Hawks – 3rd, Cavs – 4th, Knicks – 11th, Suns – 15th, Bulls – 17th.

If you dig a little deeper, teams such as the Wolves (6th hardest remaining schedule), Lakers (10th hardest remaining schedule) and Mavs (12th hardest remaining schedule) might be able to move up a bit in the lottery standings, but none of these teams can match how difficult the Atlanta Hawks’ remaining schedule is.

If all goes according to plan, the Hawks might be able to move into even better draft positioning before May’s fateful draft lottery, but the team has to, you know, actually lose games, which seems less likely than it did to start the season with the team playing quite well of late. We shall see what happens over the final 15 or so games of the season.