Milwaukee Bucks: Getting To Know Potential Playoff Opponents
By Rohan Katti
Atlanta Hawks: Regular Season Series 3-1 Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks have had the NBA world scratching their heads for the majority of the season. On Jan. 7, the Hawks traded known human fireball Kyle Korver to the Cleveland Cavaliers. To even the most casual NBA fans, this was a clear sign at a rebuild. Or was it?
The Korver trade prompted rumors that All-Star forward Paul Millsap would be traded as well. However, that did not happen, and Atlanta has secured itself in the middle tier of the Eastern Conference. Recently, the Hawks have struggled to win, as shown by a seven-game losing streak in the second half of March. Sliding down the standings in the East, Atlanta has been dealing with injuries to Paul Millsap and Kent Bazemore.
Al Horford’s departure has been another reason why the Hawks have struggled this season. Losing a rebounding, shot blocking stretch-5 is tough to replace, even though Dwight Howard has done his best to replicate that role (minus the three-point shooting).
The Atlanta Hawks took the season series against the Bucks by three games to one, partly thanks to point guard Dennis Schröder. The main reason he was so successful facing the Bucks was due to his ability to draw fouls. Getting to the line consistently helped the Hawks in their attack, and forced the Bucks to play conservatively on defense. However, the playoffs are a different animal in this sense.
Similar to how James Harden has struggled in the playoffs in recent years, Schröder could struggle because officials will be much less likely to call fouls in the postseason setting.
An interesting matchup between the two teams was Thon Maker versus Dwight Howard, which worked out better for the Bucks than one might have thought it would. Even though Howard is not the same low-post force as he was earlier in his career, he is still very strong.
If Milwaukee could hold that dimension of the Hawks’ offense from starting in any potential meeting, it would put the Bucks in prime position to prevail.