Jumping on the Bandwagon - Hail to the Hawks

By halftime of last night's game, I was prepared to write this posting regardless of the outcome of Game 4 between the #8 seed Atlanta Hawks and #1 Boston Celtics. The young, athletic Hawks won me over after rebounding from an early punch in the mouth to take a 9-point 1st half lead over the heavily favored Celtics.

When Atlanta rebounded from being down 10 points in the 2nd half to defeat Boston last night 97-92, I was officially converted.

I am now an Atlanta Hawk.

Weak, I know. Listen, I love Steve Nash and the Suns, but watching them with Shaq is like watching Arnold Palmer try to swing a golf club these days. Steve Kerr killed the Suns and their chance to win a run and gun championship. My NBA loyalties are once again up for grabs and the Hawks snatched 'em up.

How can you not love this team right now? First, they are young and athletic. They are running everyone's champs out of the gym by creating turnovers and pushing the ball up the court. They are blocking so many shots inside that the Celtics are content to throw up scared, middle school basketball shots from inside the paint rather than challenge Atlanta's bigs. Joe Johnson is unstoppable with the ball. Josh Smith is fearless. Josh Childress cannot be blocked out. Mike Bibby is taunting the Boston crowd. Al Horford is talking trash while putting up double-doubles. Zaza Puchulia is in Kevin Garnett's face staring down the potential league MVP.

Don't these guys know they are the Atlanta Hawks?

And how about the fans in Phillips Arena? That place has been rocking for the Games 3 and 4 victories. The players have clearly been feeding off the energy and the Celtics are clearly rattled by it.

Coming into these NBA playoffs, this looked like the least interesting of all the 1st round series, but it has quickly developed into the best one. The Celtics look fatally flawed right now. They are not athletic enough to keep up with the young Hawks. They are getting beaten to loose balls and wearing down in the 4th quarter. The only Celtic that looks ready to compete with Atlanta is Rajon Rondo.

Meanwhile, the upstart Hawks have made all the right moves to turn this into a Best 2 of 3 series. Give Coach Mike Woodson credit - his decision to shorten the bench and go with his young studs is paying off. Remember that Woodson was nearly fired during the season as Atlanta struggled to compete for the playoffs. Now, the former Pistons assistant with the freshly shaved head is taking it to former Hawk Doc Rivers.

The series is about to get even more interesting. Will Kevin Garnett be suspended for Game 5? Garnett threw an elbow at Puchulia after a rebound exchange that erupted into a near brawl. Puchulia reacted like a good hockey goon who realizes a superstar scorer is willing to fight - he went after Garnett with the intent of getting the Celtic superstar ejected.

It might have worked, but even better than expected for Atlanta. Garnett shoved a referee during the melee. The NBA could easily suspend Garnett for the crucial Game 5 because of the action. It might also suspend starting center Kendrick Perkins for stepping onto the court from the bench.

In short, the Boston wheels seem to be coming off. The mechanics, however, deserve much of the credit. After getting blown out in Games 1 and 2, the Hawks have been brilliant for back-to-back games and have a chance to pull off one of the great upsets in NBA history.

Whether or not they win the series, they are winning back some fans who left the team along with Dominique Wilkins, Kevin Willis, Mookie Blaylock and Dikembe Mutumbo. They have won me back.