After 72 grueling games, the 2020-21 regular season is in the books. The Atlanta Hawks — despite all of their injuries — finished the season with a 41-31 record, securing themselves the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference, just shy of homecourt advantage by way of a tiebreaker. The team in possession of said tiebreaker are the team the Hawks will face-off in the first round: the New York Knicks.
Everyone is (or should) be in general agreement that this series was the best outcome for the Hawks in the first round, avoiding the Milwaukee Bucks in the 3-6 matchup and the Miami Heat in a 4-5 matchup.