Hawks center Clint Capela yelled and pounded his chest after finishing a no-look alley-oop from Trae Young, igniting the State Farm Arena crowd in the first quarter.
It was one of many moments in the Hawks’ 132-103 play-in tournament win vs. Charlotte on Wednesday night that captured what the Hawks can be at their best – unstoppable on offense, exuding attitude and swagger.
After falling to the East’s No. 9 spot, still needing to polish off another win-or-go-home in Cleveland on Friday to officially advance to the playoffs as the eight seed and take on the Heat, the Hawks probably are tired of comparisons to last year, when they drastically exceeded expectations on a magical run. But it’s hard not to do so when they’re raining 3s and pouring it on thick like they did in that 42-24 third quarter against the Hornets.
One thing that helped the Hawks on that magical run was success on the road, something they’ve lacked this season (remember Young’s dramatic bow at halfcourt after sending the Knicks packing in the first round? Or the 26-point comeback in Game 5 in Philadelphia?). The Hawks went 6-4 on the road in last year’s playoffs, including two losses to the eventual-champion Bucks, and went 10-9 in regular-season away games after Nate McMillan took over as coach in March. Teams often shoot for at least a .500 record on the road.
“You saw the way we played (Wednesday) night, the intensity we came with and played with. I don't think we can look at the regular season anymore. We seemed to be pretty good on the road last year when it mattered, too. We have all the confidence in the world."
This year, the Hawks are 20-3 in their past 23 home games and are 27-14 overall at home and 16-25 on the road. To beat the Cavaliers, who lost to the seven-seed Nets but get another chance against the Hawks since they finished eighth in the regular season, the Hawks will need that success and swagger at home to translate to the road again.
“We are going to have to keep that crowd out of the game,” McMillan said at practice Thursday. “Part of that is making sure we don’t give them momentum plays. We take care of the basketball. We rebound the basketball. We stay solid. You have to do that for 48 minutes. Playing the game we played (Wednesday), being the aggressor. We have to be the aggressor. The team that is faster, quicker out there against a big team. We’ve got to be quicker to loose balls.
“We’ve got to be quicker to the rebounding. We have to be faster up and down the floor tomorrow night. We have to be solid. You can’t give them easy baskets, easy points. Keep everything in front of you. Make them score over the top. In order to win games this time of season, you have to rebound the basketball.”
The Cavaliers are a much different opponent than the Hornets, bigger and tougher on defense (No. 5 defensive rating at 108.9). The Hawks may still be missing John Collins and the scoring and rebounding he brings; he continues to play 4-on-4 but is still dealing with a right foot strain and right ring finger sprain. Jarrett Allen’s presence could make a big difference for the Cavs, but he’s been out since March 6 with a fractured finger and his status is up in the air.
The Hawks went 3-1 vs. Cleveland in the regular season, losing only the first matchup.
The last time the Hawks beat a play-in team (one that finished 7-10) on the road was Jan. 23 in Charlotte. The last time they beat a playoff team (one that finished 1-6) on the road was Dec. 23 in Philadelphia.
So, this will be a big road test for the Hawks in another win-or-go-home scenario. The winner will face more road games, with a playoff series against the No. 1-seed Heat slated to begin Sunday in Miami.
“The regular season is a lot different than the playoffs,” wing Kevin Huerter said of the Hawks’ road record. “You saw the way we played (Wednesday) night, the intensity we came with and played with. I don’t think we can look at the regular season anymore. We seemed to be pretty good on the road last year when it mattered, too. We have all the confidence in the world.
“This is a team that’s had a lot of confidence all year regardless of what our record was, or where we were in the standings or the season. We are ready to go into tomorrow and take care of business.”
