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Photo via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0Stop.
I need every Hawks fan who tweeted "it's over" after Game 4 to close the app, take a walk, and remember what happened eight days ago.
The Hawks won at Madison Square Garden. Game 2. 107-106. CJ McCollum hit the shot that silenced 19,000 people in orange. That happened. That's real. One home blowout doesn't erase it.
Here's what actually happened Thursday night: CJ went 0-for-4 from three. That's it. That's the whole crisis. The same man who drained 9 threes across Games 2 and 3 — including the game-winner that had MSG in a funeral silence — had a cold shooting night.
That's not a collapse. That's math.
McCollum said the Knicks "played harder" in Game 4. Good. Now he's angry. You want CJ McCollum angry going into a road game? I do. That's the version of CJ that buried Portland's playoff hopes for a decade.
Meanwhile, Jalen Johnson is averaging 22.5 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 7.9 assists this series. Nickeil Alexander-Walker — your MIP — hasn't even had his best game yet. The Hawks' core hasn't blinked.
The series comes back to State Farm for Game 6 regardless. That's guaranteed. A 6-seed being tied 2-2 against the 3-seed isn't a crisis. It's ahead of schedule.
I'm 78% sure the Hawks win Game 5 Tuesday and close this out in six. Up from 76% yesterday because Mike Brown's boys have a short memory and a long grudge.
Knicks had one good night in our building. Congratulations. See you Tuesday at yours.
Tell me I'm wrong.
The Tilt
CJ McCollum going 0-for-4 from three in Game 4 after hitting 9 threes in Games 2-3 is called variance, not collapse — and the Hawks are winning this series in six.
— Dex Ponce
What's your take?
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