The Atlanta Hawks are in the playoffs for the first time in nine years. Their stay might very well be short.
It wouldn't even be surprising if the last postseason series to start is the first to end.
"I told them, 'Go out there, have fun, enjoy yourself, play a good game, play hard,' " on the road against the Boston Celtics tonight, general manager Billy Knight said. "We'll see what happens."
Win one game? Maybe. The series? It'll be awfully tough.
The Celtics' 66-16 record was the best in the NBA. They had 29 more wins than the Hawks, the biggest difference between first-round opponents since Chicago was 30 games better than Miami and swept the Heat in a best-of-five series in 1996.
There are many adjustments the Hawks can make, from a strategic point of view, to better compete in Game 2. But first, they need to make a mental one. Throughout the game, I noticed a sense of calm with the Hawks' players, when they only trailed by eight to 16 points in the second half. As if that amount of points is easily made up with more than 12 minutes left to play. And they're right, if they were playing any other team.
But the Celtics, and their terrific defense/ball control offense, make a 12-point margin seem like 20 because teams just can't string together a good enough run to get back into the game. And that false sense of security will guarantee doom for Atlanta unless it understands this rule: When the Hawks are down 10 or more points in the second half, they must make adjustments immediately or they will get blown out. They need to play, and make decisions from the bench, with more urgency.
