Latest Giannis News Has Big Impact On Atlanta Heading Into The Final Stretch Of The Season

The Atlanta Hawks have won four straight games and now sit at 31-31 for the season. They have gained ground on the 76ers, Magic, and Heat in the playoff race, but that is not the only race that the Hawks have their eyes on. Atlanta has been watching the New Orleans Pelicans and Milwaukee Bucks all season because they own the most favorable unprotected 1st round pick between the two. The Pelicans have the 6th best odds to win the NBA Draft Lottery and the Bucks are at No. 10.

Milwaukee had been left behind after the Giannis Antetokounmpo injury, but the Bucks stayed alive by winning games and staying within striking distance of the Hawks and now it appears that they are going to get Antetokounmpo back. According to ESPN's Shams Charania, Antetokounmpo is slated to come back tonight as the Bucks face the Boston Celtics.

Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo is expected to return tonight against the Boston Celtics after missing the last 5-plus weeks with a right calf strain, sources tell ESPN.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) March 2, 2026

How does it affect the Hawks?

Atlanta has made it to the soft part of their schedule and have a real chance to move up in the standings. However, the Bucks getting Antetokounmpo back is huge for them and it not only impacts the Hawks in the playoff race, it will likely hurt their chances of maximizing the potential of the draft pick.

The Hawks and the Bucks play twice the rest of this season, including on Wednesday and those games are going to be massive for both teams. The Bucks have won the only matchup between the two teams and if they were to win either game the rest of this season, they would own the tiebreaker over the Hawks if it came down to it.

The Bucks overperforming while Antetokounmpo was out might be the biggest reason that he is coming back. If the Bucks had fallen apart after his latest injury, they might be too far back as a team to make a real push for the play-in.

Wednesday's game between the Bucks and the Hawks just got that much more important. Atlanta has been able to take advantage of the easier matchups on their schedule and now they are three games back of Philadelphia for the No. 6 spot in the Eastern Conference and 1 1/2 games back of Orlando and Miami for the No. 7 and No. 8 spots.

WIll the Bucks go on a run now that they have one of the league's premier players back? It will be one of the biggest storylines for the rest of the season and impacts the Hawks playoff and draft pick hopes.