Atlanta made the bargain for Saturday night in the NBA. The Hawks picked up against the Brooklyn Nets (122-115) their fifth consecutive success, going from 10th to 8th place in the Eastern Conference.
Winners of 10 of their last 13 matches, Clint Capela and his teammates now have a record of 41 wins for 37 losses. They thus overtook the Nets of Kevin Durant (55 points on Saturday, personal best) as well as Charlotte, who are both certain to have to go through the pre-play-off box.
The Hawks have kept thanks to this success the hope of qualifying directly for the play-offs (top 6). But they no longer have their destiny in their hands four games from the end of the regular season: Chicago (6th) won 45 for 33 losses, Cleveland (7th) having obtained 43 successes in 78 outings.
Atlanta was in any case full of confidence on Saturday, against a team that it could find in the pre-play-off. Its leader Trae Young (36 points, 10 assists, 6 rebounds) once again released the big game, scoring 9 points in the last minute of play. Clint Capela meanwhile managed 9 points and 12 rebounds.
/ ATS
