Eastern Conference First Round: Atlanta Hawks vs. New York Knicks

Tonight, the Atlanta Hawks are back in the playoffs for the first time since losing 4-2 to the Wizards in the first round back in 2017.

The past few years have been tough to watch as a Hawks fan, but it seems like we’ve successfully rebuilt with the signing of Nate McMillan and the growth of players like John Collins, Kevin Huerter, Bogdan Bogdanovic, and of course Trae Young. In my opinion, when fully healthy, the Hawks are as good as anybody in the league.

Being that I’ve been a Hawks fan since I was about 5 years old, my takes may be a little biased but I truly see big potential in this team and I think these guys might surprise a lot of people in the first round. The opposing Knicks have had a very similar season compared to the Hawks. New coach, massive leaps from star players, and they also have Derrick Rose as a good leader and veteran presence for the team. While Lou Williams plays that role for the Hawks just as good, maybe even better, I think he is going to play a huge part in the Hawks post season success.

Anyway, the majority of NBA analysts and coverage accounts have the Knicks taking the series in 7. While this makes sense and I could see the argument, like I said: I think the Hawks are gonna surprise a lot of people. I’ve never been one for making accurate playoff predictions and I don’t think I’ve ever had a successful bet when it comes to gambling but I’ve got a good feeling about this young Hawks team. I’m going to put my full series predictions below and then revisit my picks after every game. So stay tuned. And note that I’m making this post at 3:00 pm and game 1 starts at 7:00 pm Sunday night. So this post might not get published until after the game, but just know that I made these predictions before the series started.

Okay here are my predictions:

Game 1 @ NY

Hawks: 118

Knicks: 111

Game 2 @ NY

Hawks: 109

Knicks: 121

Game 3 @ ATL

Hawks: 122

Knicks: 119

Game 4 @ ATL

Hawks: 110

Knicks: 103

Game 5 @ NY

Hawks: 115

Knicks: 118

Game 6 @ ATL

Hawks: 123

Knicks: 121

Series final: Hawks 4-2

Like I said I’m pretty biased but I tried making these picks as unbiased as possible. So this is what i got.

It’s gonna be a high scoring series with momentum going both ways. But the Hawks have done such a good job with closing games out in the back half of the season and I think that trend is going to carry over into the off season especially since they have gotten a solid amount of time to rest and prepare while these play-in games have been going on. My thought is that Trae Young is going to continue his solid play, but Kevin Huerter and Bogdan Bogdanovic are both going to play huge parts in getting past the first round. Trae Young has been the key figure in the Hawks success this year but they role players are the ones to watch and will really be the deciding factor. So if they can get in a rhythm and make a positive impact, I think we’ll be just fine.

My picks may be completely wrong or they will be surprisingly accurate but either way I’m so hype to be watching the Hawks play is the post season again. It’s such an unsatisfying feeling to miss the playoffs 4 years in a row and not go out with a fight. So I’m thankful to be here with any hope at all. We may not make it out with a championship but I think there’s a good chance we’re gonna see these Hawks make a run for it. Stay tuned.

peacenlove