Should the Atlanta Hawks be excited for an in-season tournament?

The Atlanta Hawks have not won much silverware in their franchise history. They have won their division 12 times in their history, never won the conference title and they have only won a single NBA championship all the way back in 1958.

Why is this relevant? Well, the NBA is looking to implement an in-season tournament that is going to be very similar to the WNBA’s Commissioners Cup. This in-season tournament has certainly generated interest in teams that are competitive early in the season.

The in-season tournament is not set in stone yet. According to Shams of the Athletic, the NBA and the NBPA are still working out the details. However, the bones of the tournament are going to be that eight teams will advance to the single-elimination finals.

All teams will continue with the regular season and there will be an extra game for the two finalists. This is slated to start in the 2023-24 season if it happens.

So why should the Atlanta Hawks be interested in an in-season tournament?

Well, as discussed in a previous article the Hawks are in the bottom third of the NBA in terms of tv ratings. Having a tournament at the start of the season may actually drive up the level of interest in the fanbase pre-Christmas which would help the Hawks potentially gain more national tv games. This will help Trae Young‘s case for a second All-NBA selection

On top of that, the Hawks would love to win some silverware that has eluded them for too many years. They are struggling to gain the respect of the NBA, as shown by the lack of a Christmas Day game after they had their issues with the Covid-19 crisis last season.

Another reason that it would be a good thing for the Hawks if the tournament was to come in, they may not have had the playoff hangover that they appeared to have last season. The NBA regular season is a grind, an in-season tournament could spice it up a little.