Atlanta Hawks: The playoff picture four games out.
What a difference a day makes for the Atlanta Hawks. Just 24 hours after convincingly beating the Phoenix Suns, one of the best teams in the NBA, they lose to the Indiana Pacers. The Pacers, on the other hand, lost to the Sacramento Kings and appeared to be falling apart.
Unfortunately, the Hawks struggled in the first quarter of a back-to-back for the second straight game. Last back-to-back they had a very dusty first half against the Chicago Bulls before taking control of the game in the second half.
Unfortunately, the Hawks could not bridge the gap created by starting poorly, meaning the Pacers took the game by seven points. This gave the Pacers the tiebreaker in their series which means that they are still mathematically able to dislodge the Hawks. They are going to have to win every game and hope the Hawks lose every game for this to be possible.
How the Atlanta Hawks playoff rivals fared
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The Charlotte Hornets made their job of qualifying for the playoffs directly more difficult, losing to the Chicago Bulls by 21 points which helps the Hawks out. The Hornets are only four games back in the standings but they have two more games to play.
Add to that the Hornets hold the tiebreaker over the Hawks and you can see why it is so important for Trae Young to lead his team to as many victories as he possibly can. The playoff race in the Eastern Conference is so tight.
The Hawks go into three days off where they can rest and recharge. They might also be able to get some practice time in so that Kris Dunn can start to log more minutes. He has been on a minutes restriction and only used when the team desperately needed him due to injuries to others.
In that time the New York Knicks, who hold the fourth seed play the Phoenix Suns and the LA Clippers. If they lose both these games then the Hawks will be level with the New York franchise. Unfortunately, the Knicks hold the tiebreaker so the Hawks need to beat the Washington Wizards in the next two games to hopefully move into the fourth seed.
Next. A denied offer for RJ Barrett. dark
The run into the playoffs is everything the NBA should be. It is tight, with a win or a loss impacting seedings on a daily basis. It great for Hawks fans to be right in the middle of the action rather than watching it with the team languishing at the bottom of the standings.