The season is only seven games old for the Atlanta Hawks but every game has meaning in an NBA season. While the Hawks have been struggling with their offense on so many levels on the road, their home games have been a joy to behold.
While this is usually the case with young teams, this team has title aspirations this year. It feels like a championship or bust for Lou Williams as it is going to be the veteran’s final season. However, in order to do this, the Hawks need to fix their road issues.
The last game that they played against the Washington Wizards reminded us all what this team can do when they are on. It was a stark contrast to road games against the Wizards and Philadelphia 76ers. The Hawks showed a fight in the home game that was missing on the road.
Why the Atlanta Hawks can set their season up with a victory against the Nets.
Prior to the season starting the Nets were considered the team that was going to make it out of the Eastern Conference for a shot at the NBA title. Then the Kyrie Irving vaccination saga which means that the Nets are missing one of their big-3 for the foreseeable future.
This is one of the reasons that the Nets are a surprise in the East which helps the Hawks. Both have a 4-3 record and have not played up to their expectations. The Nets are a really good team, even without Irving.
On top of that, with both of these two teams expected to be vying for a high playoff seed, it is critical that the Hawks get the tiebreaker. If the two teams were to finish with identical records, this will be how the Hawks get a better seed.
If they can win, this will also give them some crucial confidence on the road. With a home game against the Utah Jazz followed by a four-game Western Conference road trip as their five games after this one, they could use any edge that they can get.