What is next for the Atlanta Hawks after beating the Charlotte Hornets?

The Atlanta Hawks have managed to pass the first test of the play-in tournament. They took down the Charlotte Hornets with a tremendous team game which shows how much the team is maturing. They did it without much scoreboard impact from Trae Young in the first half.

Clint Capela took it to the Hornets early on and then De’Andre Hunter basically eliminated the Hornets with a third period that could be career defining. The one-two punch of Young and Hunter proved too much for the Hirnets in that period.

So, the question now stands, what is next for the Hawks? Well the simple answer is that they are about to face the Cleveland Cavaliers in the game that decides the eventual eighth seed. The winner of that game then take on the Miami Heat in the first round of the playoffs.

The Atlanta Hawks have so many more questions that need answering

After the season that was the Hawks have so many more questions that need answering than they did at the start of the season. First and foremost, just who is this team. Are they the Eastern Conference finals team from last season, or are they the play-in team from this season?

They have started to show maturity as a team but what is the future for this team? With so much money committed to salary next season, the answer to the first question is crucial. After giving John Collins, Young, Capela, and Kevin Huerter deals in the offseason. the Hawks need to make some more roster decisions.

This is the potential ramifications of losing a single game. While it is not normally the case, the Hawks are sitting at $144.2 million with only nine players signed. This figure includes Danilo Gallinari who has $21.4 million of unguranteed salary.

Gallinari is a huge piece for this team, his combination with Bogdan Bogdanovic is almost unstoppable. However, thanks to John Collins being out, Gallinari has had to start and the Hawks have been really good.

With the four extensions signed last summer and Hunter eligible for his rookie extension in the offseason the Hawks have to decide what they are going to do. If they can beat the Cavaliers and then lose to the Heat, then next season they should reload and go again. If they lose then these questions will be asked.