Atlanta continues to teeter on the edge of the play-in tournament, a familiar face that they've known all too well over the last several seasons.
The last few weeks of basketball have been kind to the Hawks, seeing a rapid-fire series of victories buoy Atlanta to a potential slot above the play-in for the first time in many months. Unfortunately for Atlanta, this might be bad news for playoff matchups.
Atlanta has long existed in the 7-10 range this season, where they'd be slated to face the 1 or 2 seeds atop the Eastern Conference: Detroit or Boston. Now that the Hawks have stumbled their way to the 6 seed, they're slated to cross paths with a particularly nasty foe in the 3-seeded New York Knicks.
The Knicks have found new life in the calendar year. Prior to January, their defense was towards the bottom of the league. Since then, coach Mike Brown has seemingly put the pieces of the puzzle together, creating a defensive monstrosity to flank his elite Jalen Brunson-led offense.
Atlanta's history with New York has been exciting, to say the least. The 2021 series, headlined by Trae Young, would no doubt bring an extra level of intensity to such a rematch. However, the Hawks would be significant underdogs due to one vital factor, an aspect that another top East seed lacks.
Atlanta's best outcome for the playoffs: go back to the play-in?
Ironically, the Hawks would be better off dropping back to the 8-seed to take on the Detroit Pistons, as the 1-seed lacks two aspects that both Boston and New York possess: deep playoff experience and health.
Detroit just lost Cafe Cunningham for the foreseeable future as a result of a collapsed lung. While the All-NBA ex-Sooner guard is poised to return for the playoffs, he’ll no doubt be rusty and possibly even residually injured.
Given that the Pistons rely so heavily on Cade to deliver their entire offense when he's on the floor, it would be an absolute dream for the Hawks to match up with them in the first round. Atlanta boasts two of the most fearsome point-of-attack defenders in the entire league in Dyson Daniels and Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who could significantly weaken Cunningham’s impact, especially while he's bereft of perfect health.
While the cards may not fall that way, I wouldn't be surprised if the Hawks, especially given their newfound dominance, took Detroit to 7 games in the first round, and potentially even emerged victorious.