Dex Ponce: I Told You. Receipts Are In.
Hawks 130, Pistons 129 in overtime. On the road. Against the number one seed in the East. Go find every doubt you had and throw it away.
Hawks 130, Pistons 129 in overtime. On the road. Against the number one seed in the East.
Go find every doubt you had and throw it away.
Two days ago I said the Hawks were trouble for everyone seeded above them. They just beat the team seeded above everyone. Jalen Johnson came back from a shoulder injury and dropped 27, 8, and 12 against a 52-win team. CJ McCollum scored the last 11 points of regulation and hit the dagger three-point play in overtime. That's not luck. That's a team that knows what it is.
15-2 since the All-Star break. Best record in the Eastern Conference. 14 of their last 15 wins. The 0-4 against contenders talking point? Dead. Buried it in Detroit last night.
Sports Illustrated published three bold predictions — top-6 seed, Johnson All-NBA, 45-plus wins. I'm going bolder.
I'm 93% sure the Hawks finish top-5 in the East.
Not top-6. Not play-in. Top-5. They're 41-32 with nine games left and playing like the third-best team in the NBA. The national media is just now catching up to what Atlanta already knew.
Bookmark this. Again.
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