It may not have been the road map that the Hawks anticipated following an appearance in the Eastern Conference Finals a season ago, but they found their way into the 2022 postseason with last night’s victory over the Cavaliers.
From the highs of lengthy winning streaks to the lows as the team battled injuries and COVID, the Hawks now have a chance to put their roller coaster of a regular season behind them as they shift their focus to the top-seeded Miami Heat. This afternoon on 92.9 The Game, Hugh Douglas didn’t mince words when saying it’s time for this team to show their mettle.
“We’re going to find out what these Hawks are made of,” Douglas said.
Atlanta has their work cut out for them after securing the final spot in the eastern conference playoffs. They’ll face a Miami team that took three of the four regular-season matchups in the series.
While Trae Young averaged just 25.5 points in those four games, if his performance against Cleveland is any indication, playoff Trae is a different beast.
Health is a concern for Atlanta entering the series with Clint Capela’s status to be determined after he went down with a knee injury last night, and we’ll see if John Collins can return from foot and finger injuries.
Meanwhile, the Heat, led by Jimmy Butler and Kyle Lowrey, are healthy with Bam Adebayo clearing COVID protocols, and both Tyler Herro and P.J. Tucker are poised to return to the lineup after dealing with minor injuries late in the regular season.
Regardless of what happens in the postseason, John Fricke and Douglas agree that the Hawks have likely learned their lesson when it comes to taking the regular season seriously.
“I don’t think you'll have the type of attitude or mentality you had at the beginning of this year. What I mean by that is you’re not talking about ‘oh, the regular season is boring.’ You now know how important the regular season is,” Douglas said.
Fricke followed up by asking, “do you really want to be in the play-in? That’s all you have to preach at the beginning of next year.”
You can hear all of the Hawks playoff games right here on 92.9 The Game!