One of the more perplexing questions pertaining to the NBA is why are some teams strong at home but awful on the road? With every NBA court being 94 feet long and 50 feet wide, and all baskets measuring 10 feet high, logic dictates that the game should be played at similar levels, whether a team is in their own building or in enemy territory. But clearly that is not the case.
And the Atlanta Hawks embody this contradiction more so than any team in the playoffs.
After getting smashed by LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals by 99-72, the Hawks are 1-7 in their last eight post-season games on the road and have lost those seven by an average of 19 points.
Few expected the Hawks to pull a series upset coming into this round. With the NBA’s newly minted MVP James playing at a level no one is matching, the Cavaliers are steamrolling anyone standing in their way. Yet the Hawks have too much talent to be such a poor road team. During the season, they were 31-10 at home but only 16-25 in opposing arenas, the third worst record of the eight Eastern Conference playoff teams.
These numbers indicate a lack of mental toughness and focus, and is the primary reason the Hawks are not a threat to the Cavaliers, who are 42-2 at home this season, including being undefeated in the two playoff rounds thus far. They look to remain perfect at home tonight (Thursday) in Game 2. In the other Eastern semifinal, the Celtics faced the possibility of going down 2-0 versus the Orlando Magic last night in Boston after dropping Game 1 at home on Monday night by 96-90.
A loss would almost ensure that the Celtics are not moving on, as they would have to win four of the remaining five games of the best-of-seven series against Dwight Howard and the Magic, which is highly improbable.