Weekend Reflections: Hawks on verge of clinching playoff berth

The Hawks had a great weekend. They handled business by blowing out the Nets in New York on Friday, then their Eastern Conference playoff chances got a boost from other results.

The 76ers (43-35) and Raptors (43-35) both lost. They are two games behind the fifth-place Hawks (45-33) with four to play. Sixth place and above make the playoffs, while seven through 10 are relegated to the play-in tournament.

The Hawks have the hardest closing schedule among the three teams, as measured by opponent winning percentage. But that comes with an asterisk.

The Hawks are set to play the Cavaliers (49-29) back-to-back, away and home, on Wednesday and Friday. The Cavs could have first-round home-court advantage locked up by then. Their magic number is one.

The Cavs will be assured a top-four seed with a Hawks loss to the Knicks (50-28) on Monday night, or a victory over the Heat (41-37) on Tuesday. If that happens, the Cavs may not give the Hawks their best shot later in the week.

The Hawks will be a virtual lock for the playoffs if they beat the Knicks at State Farm Arena.

According to PlayoffStatus.com, the Hawks would have a 99% chance of finishing among the top six if they beat the Knicks. A victory over the Knicks also would increase the chances the Hawks draw New York instead of the Cavs in the first round.

The Raptors and Sixers aren’t out of the race for the top six.

The Raptors finish with two games against the Heat and one each against the Knicks and Nets. The Raptors have the head-to-head tiebreak advantage over the Hawks.

The Sixers are set to play Western Conference contenders Houston and San Antonio, plus Indiana and Milwaukee. The Hawks hold the head-to-head tiebreaker edge over the Sixers.

The Hawks would prevail in a three-way tie if they win their division. They are 2½ games ahead of the Hornets in the Southeast division. The Raps and Sixers have been eliminated from the Atlantic Division race.

The Hawks haven’t qualified for the playoffs since 2023, and they last won a series in 2021.

Braves slugger Baldwin does ‘small ball,’ too

Braves right-hander Tyler Kinley’s 1-2 slider to Diamondbacks slugger Nolan Arenado wasn’t a bad pitch. Maybe it could have been a bit more off the plate, but Arenado had to reach far to muscle the ball into the outfield for a go-ahead single in the sixth inning Sunday.

The Diamondbacks went on to win 6-5 in the 10th to split the four-game series. He got a big hit using a contact approach. The Braves have a power hitter who can do the same.

Catcher Drake Baldwin continued his hot start by going 5-for-18 with five RBIs in Arizona. Only one of those hits was a homer (Baldwin’s single against catcher Kyle McCann during the farcical ninth inning Thursday still counts).

After Baldwin hit a solo shot in the first inning Sunday, he tied the game three times: RBI single in the fifth, RBI groundout to the right side in the seventh and RBI single in the ninth.

Baldwin’s four home runs are tied for most in the National League. His 1.003 on-base plus slugging is tied for ninth-best in the league, and his .378 OBP is 21st.

It’s a small sample size for this season. But include Baldwin’s NL Rookie of the Year campaign in 2025 and his .827 OPS ranks among the top 35 big leaguers with at least 450 plate appearances during that time.

The Braves need Baldwin in the lineup as much as possible. Catcher Sean Murphy (hip) is expected to begin a minor-league rehabilitation assignment soon. His return will make the offensive drop-off at catcher less severe than it is now when Baldwin is the designated hitter and Jonah Heim (0-for-7, three walks) fills in.

Emotional problems for Atlanta United

Atlanta United lost 3-1 to previously winless Columbus at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Saturday. Manager Gerardo Martino said his side wilted after conceding the game’s first goal.

“They get down, emotionally they get down and are thinking, ‘Things didn’t go (well) last year and aren’t going well at the moment.’ So, that’s something we need to address.”

There seems to be no end in sight for Atlanta United’s inconsistent efforts that usually end in defeat. So far, this year feels much like last year for the Five Stripes (1-4-1).

The roster was largely untouched during the offseason. Martino was brought back to try to get more out of essentially the same group. Now, Martino says his players don’t respond well emotionally when things go wrong because they are scarred by last season.

If that’s the problem, then it’s going to take more than six games to fix it. Some Five Stripes supporters apparently are getting impatient.

They loudly voiced their displeasure as their team hit the familiar notes against Columbus. They’ve seen this too many times before: Not enough goals scored, too many game-changing goals allowed.

There was a new twist. Martino was shown a red card and ejected. He said he was sticking up for his players during a scuffle. Atlanta needs better soccer to go along with the scrappy spirit.

Three quick thoughts

1. Emory got unlucky at the buzzer to lose the NCAA Division III men’s basketball championship. Mary Washington’s Kye Robinson attempted an awkward, off-balance shot that missed the rim and landed in the hands of teammate Colin Mitchell under the basket. Mitchell’s put-back basket denied Emory its first basketball national title. Emory had rallied from a 13-point deficit to tie the game with 12 seconds to go.
2. Stymied by courts and Congress, college sports leaders enlisted the authoritarian leader of the executive branch to help them roll back labor rights for athletes. President Donald Trump signed an executive order Friday intended to limit athlete eligibility and transfers. Trump threatened to withhold funding from schools that don’t comply with the order, with ESPN reporting that lawyers from both sides say it will be ruled “unconstitutional and unenforceable if challenged in court.”
3. Ayla Guzzardo bolted from McNeese State after one year for the greener pastures (and bigger money) at Georgia. It’s cool because Guzzardo is a coach, not a player. Guzzardo helped McNeese State win a school-record 29 games this season for a women’s NCAA Division I record 19-win improvement. UGA announced the hiring of Guzzardo a day after it announced a mutual parting with Katie Abrahamson-Henderson.