How They Got Here
• Atlanta: After rolling to the East's No. 1 seed, many of us (present company included) expected the Hawks to make short work of the Brooklyn Nets. Instead, they looked like a team that hadn't played many meaningful games over the season's final month and needed some time to rev up.
They struggled to put Brooklyn away in Game 1, and needed late miscues by Deron Williams to hold onto Game 2. They managed just 83 points in a Game 3 loss and couldn't control a vintage Williams in Game 4, leaving Coach of the Year Mike Budenholzer searching for answers to the tactical adjustments Brooklyn made to throw Atlanta off its game.