Rethink everything you may have thought about the Hawks.
We are seeing the other side of the Hawks’ looking glass — the team that hustles, the players who share the ball for open looks, the Josh Smith who defends at one end, attacks at the other and broods at neither (and the angels sing).
The Hawks lost their first two playoff games by 32 points, and so we thought the obvious: “They’re done. They’ve quit on the season. They’ve quit on their coach.”
They won their next two games by 32 points, having been left for dead, while tickets at home were being marked down like factory-second dress shirts with upside pockets. Fans should view this as a good sign — not merely for this series, but in the big picture.
It’s silly to think anybody knows what’s going to happen next. The Hawks and Indiana are tied at 2-2 going into Game 5. Every game has been decided by double digits, which generally is not the way things go in a 2-2 series. The Hawks have momentum. If you’re wondering what that’s worth, ask the Pacers. (Bupkis.)
But regardless of how the remainder of this series unfolds, this 180 is a good sign for the future of this franchise. It’s affirmation that general manager Danny Ferry knows how to pick players and, yes, if he remains free of ownership entanglements, maybe he can convince a star or two to come here and build a contender. The “same-old-Hawks” mocks would’ve followed Ferry into the offseason and free agency if his team was buried in a short series.
These past two wins also say something about Smith, a guy who, while justifiably criticized at times for taking some bad shots or making bad decisions, seldom gets enough credit for actually wanting to win. This series turned on Smith’s defense against the Pacers’ Paul George in Games 3 and 4. Smith became the difference-maker that he has long shown he can be.
This turnaround also says something about coach Larry Drew. There has been a perception that he had lost the players or wasn’t open to change or maybe just didn’t know his X from his O. Drew went “big” in Games 3 and 4, starting Johan Petro over Kyle Korver. The ripple effect has been obvious. The Hawks’ defense — Smith on George, Al Horford on David West, Petro on Roy Hibbert — has Indiana scrambling for answers. (West: “I’ve got to figure out a way to be more effective.”)
Drew acknowledged Tuesday he probably should have changed the lineup after Game 1, but his mindset at the time seemed logical: The first loss wasn’t about the lineup so much as it was the performance of his players. Even Smith said, “I think mainly what (changed) was our energy, our intensity and our effort.”
The Hawks started doing things that dead teams, hopeless teams don’t do. They chased loose balls. They contested jump shots. When Indiana went on runs, Hawks players didn’t get that wildebeest look in their eyes.
“The encouraging thing about Game 4 is when (the Pacers) put together a little bit of a spurt, we didn’t panic. We stayed together,” Drew said.
What does it mean? Just that the resiliency that the Hawks showed during the season despite the losses of Lou Williams and Zaza Pachulia hasn’t worn down. It’s a positive sign for this series and a better sign for the future.
It probably also didn't hurt the Hawks' cause when Indiana coach Frank Vogel told the Indianapolis Star on Sunday, "I'm encouraged. We're the better team. When we play the way we're supposed to play, we'll win.'' The "better team" statement is probably accurate, but seldom will an opposing coach provide any semblance of bulletin-board material.
“Nobody ever gave us a chance to make the postseason and then when we made it, they said we were going to get swept,” Smith said when asked about external perceptions of the team. “Being able to respond just shows you the resilience of this team. We have an opportunity to win this series just like they do. We’re going to keep playing confident and not worry about what anybody else says.
“We have nothing to lose. We’re not supposed to get past the first round. So I guess we can go into it with that attitude. If everybody has that same mentality and that chip on their shoulder, we should be OK.”
Maybe that’s the key: Assume the worst, and the Hawks will respond.
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