The Atlanta Hawks are the first team to book their spot in the NBA playoffs. That statement bears repeating over and over again. The Atlanta Hawks are the first team to book their spot in the NBA playoffs. The Atlanta Hawks. They’ve really impressed.
The reason this sentence is quite amazing is because the Hawks haven’t been known for swooping down and tearing teams apart. Not really before this season.
On Tuesday night the Hawks came back to beat the Houston Rockets in a further display of their title credentials. It’s looking pretty good right now.
The Hawks have won only one NBA Championship, way back in 1958 when they were known as the St Louis Hawks. Since changing their name to the Atlanta Hawks in 1968 they haven’t tasted true success.
Their last conference title arrived in 1961. Current coach Mike Budenholzer was eight years old. It’s fair to say a run at the title hasn’t always been on the minds of Hawks fans, especially not after they lost key forward Josh Smith, who was traded and ended up at the Houston Rockets.
Not even Dikembe Mutombo and Dominque Wilkins could bring the title to Atlanta.
Atlanta lead the NBA and the Eastern Conference as they continue to impress. They’re seventh in points per game, averaging 102.6, second in assists per game with 25.5 and they’re miserly in defence, allowing only 96.4 points against them. That’s the second best defensive record in the league.
It’s all about team chemistry as they share the ball well and put in a fantastic joint effort night after night. They don’t have any players in the top 20 of the points per game stakes. Paul Millsap is 30th as he averages 16.9 and Jeff Teague is 33rd with 16.8. Millsap averages eight boards per game as well. Teague is seventh in the assists per game table with 7.3 per game.
Their star turn is Kyle Korver. The dead-eye marksman leads the NBA in three-point shooting. He makes an average of three buckets from beyond the arc per game. His percentage from three-point land sits at .496.
With a team that can share the point scoring, pass the ball around fast and they a three-point specialist as well, the Hawks can dream. The title isn’t out of reach if they continue to show character when it counts.
