Hawks rise in power rankings

After beating the Cleveland Cavaliers 126-125 in overtime on Sunday, the Hawks rose six spots in ESPN's NBA Power Rankings.

Previously ranked at No. 20, the Hawks (42-38) rose to No. 14 on Marc Stein’s list. Although they’ve been struggling in the second half of the season, the Cavaliers (51-29) remained at No. 6 on the list after the loss to the Hawks.

"For all the second-half slippage that the Hawks have endured, they have at least preserved the only active double-digit streak of playoff appearances on the NBA map outside of San Antonio,” Stein wrote. “Gregg Popovich has steered the Spurs to 20 consecutive trips to the postseason ... and now his protégé Mike Budenholzer has held Atlanta together sufficiently to book a 10th successive playoff berth for this franchise. Even more enjoyable, surely, is the double dose of torment Atlanta has heaped upon Cleveland over the past few days, first by beating the Cavs on their home floor despite resting Paul Missap, Dennis Schroder and Dwight Howard, then with that furious rally at home Sunday night.”