Hawks Can Change The Narrative Around Their Team and Their Season If They Can Continue To Win

Coming into the season, the Hawks were one of the most talked about teams in the NBA and were often labeled as darkhorses to win the Eastern Conference.

Things did not go as planned right out of the game however. Trae Young and Kristaps Porzingis got injured early in the season and the Hawks never really recovered. They traded Young and Porzingis, as well as Luke Kennard and Vit Krejci and by the time the All-Star Break rolled around, Atlanta seemed destined to be in the play-in tournament once again and then have another quick exit into the offseason.

Things have changed since the All Star Break however.

What is different?

The Hawks are 7-1 in the eight games since the All-Star Break and their biggest acquisition at the trade deadline, Jonathan Kuminga, has only played in three of those games due to a nagging knee injury. Kuminga has been fantastic in the three games that he has been able to play, but Atlanta has managed to win without him as well.

The 7-1 record over the last eight games is tied with Oklahoma City and San Antonio for the best in the NBA over that period and the Hawks have the 4th best net rating, 2nd best defensive rating, and 5th best offensive rating. While they are still 9th in the Eastern Conference, they are three games behind the Raptors for the No.5 seed and two games behind the Magic for No 6.

In other words, their playoff hopes are still very much in tact and they have the upward mobility to keep climbing in the standings and potentially reach the top five of the East, where many projected them to be at the start of the season.

Atlanta is currently the hottest team in the NBA and owns the longest winning streak in the league as well. Jalen Johnson is fresh off of a big game against Philadelphia and continues to lead this team towards a playoff bid.

Johnson tallied a game-high 35 points on 12-19 shooting, including a perfect 9-9 from the charity stripe, to go along with a team-high 10 rebounds, seven assists, and two steals in 39 minutes of play, securing his 39th double-double and his career-best 12th 30+ point performance this season. In four games against Philadelphia this season, Johnson has three double-doubles and one triple-double.

The Eastern Conference is very compact in spots 5-10. Toronto, Orlando, Miami, Philadelphia, and Charlotte all have a shot at moving up and with the exception of the Raptors and 76ers, are playing very good basketball.

The Hawks were left behind after they moved Trae Young and seemingly admitting that they were more focused on the future instead of just this season. Instead, they have a shot at getting into the top five or the top six and changing the narrative on their season.