The playoff picture for the Atlanta Hawks with seven games remaining
The Atlanta Hawks are almost a lock to be in the play-in tournament. With seven games left, they are 4.5 games ahead of the New York Knicks and five games ahead of the Washington Wizards. Both of these teams are mathematical possibilities of getting into the postseason.
However, it is unlikely that they will make it due to the Hawks having the second easiest schedule of their remaining games in the entire league. In fact, their next game is against the OKC Thunder who are ranked 27th in the league with a 22-53 record.
This is no guarantee of a win as shown by the recent losses to the Detroit Pistons. However, the Thunder are depleted with injuries to Luguentz Dort, their best defender, and Josh Giddey their super-talented rookie. If they win, the Hawks continue to pressure the Charlotte Hornets who are half a game ahead of the Hawks currently in the standings.
The Atlanta Hawks must keep winning to qualify as high as they can.
While this statement seems a little obvious, the Hawks have their destiny in their own hands. They split their season series with the Hornets but are only half a game behind them in the standings. They should be able to climb over the Hornets with the seven games remaining in the schedule.
However, if they want to finish above the Brooklyn Nets they must win one more game than the Nets. The Hawks are down 0-2 in the three-game season series and therefore the Nets hold the tiebreaker. The Hawks are 1.5 games behind the Nets with the chance to pull a whole game back with their matchup early in April. This could help them sneak above the Nets.
The guaranteed playoff spot is pretty much out of reach with the Toronto Raptors holding a five-game advantage. However, despite the Hawks being four games back from the seventh seed, they have a chance to squeak by the Cavs. This makes the second games of the upcoming back-to-back huge.
Next. Cat Barber is leading the CP Skyhawks to the postseason. dark
If the Hawks can win it then they pull a whole game closer to the Cavaliers which is massive given that they are falling down the standings since losing Jarrett Allen. The Hawks have shown that they can compete with the best in the NBA, now they have to do it every game until they are knocked out of the postseason.