The Atlanta Hawks were not expected to be in this position. Heading into the 2014-15 season, the Hawks had undergone issues in their front office and were predicted to be one of the bottom-feeders in the league. There were no indications they were a playoff-bound team. However, fast forward and the Hawks are the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference entering the playoffs. Critics are still not looking to give them much success in the postseason and Atlanta will look to prove them wrong as they face off against the Brooklyn Nets in Game 1.
The Hawks are well aware what kind of trouble a No. 8 seed can be. Atlanta beat Brooklyn in all four games this season by an average of at least 17 points, but they are not underestimating the team that has been in playoff mode for several weeks. Last year, Atlanta came into the postseason as the No. 8 seed and pushed the Indiana Pacers to seven games, coming close to upsetting them. Atlanta cannot afford to put themselves in the same position.
The Nets come into the postseason with similar low expectations that were beaten during the year. After sending both Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett packing, the Nets have been capitalizing on Deron Williams being fully healthy and Brook Lopez playing an improved game. Brooklyn scooted into the playoffs on the final night of the regular season and will now aim to be only the sixth No. 8 seed to win a series since the format expanded in 1984.
Injuries are certainly a concern for Atlanta. They will be without defensive star Thabo Sefolosha after he suffered a broken leg following a run in with the New York Police Department. Paul Millsap will be back after he suffered a shoulder sprain that caused him to miss five games. Millsap is an x-factor for the Hawks and they cannot afford to have him hurting entering the postseason. Mike Scott is also expected to be back after he went down with a bruised back in the final week of the season.
Brooklyn's x-factor will be Lopez who has stepped up since the All-Star break averaging 19.7 points and 9.2 rebounds per game. He is fully healthy and will be a threat under the rim. The Hawks will try and counter Lopez with speed and outside shooting.