We now know the four teams left in the Eastern Conference of the 2021 NBA Playoffs. On Wednesday, the Atlanta Hawks and Philadelphia 76ers booked their tickets to round two.
The Hawks eliminated the New York Knicks in five games with a 103-89 victory at Madison Square Garden. Hawks point guard phenom Trae Young led Atlanta in scoring with 36 points, while Clint Capela had a double-double, as he had 14 points and 15 rebounds. According to ESPN, Young now has 146 points, the most points ever by a Hawks player in his first five postseason games.
Atlanta is the only lower-seed to advance to the second round of the NBA playoffs so far. Atlanta was fifth, while New York was fourth in the East. However, one must realize Atlanta and New York had identical records of 41 wins and 31 losses, and the only reason why Atlanta was seeded behind New York was because the Hawks lost all three games to the Knicks in the regular season.
The 76ers also moved to the Eastern Conference semifinals with a 129-112 win over the Washington Wizards. Philadelphia won their series in five games. In the 76ers’ series clinching win, Seth Curry had 30 points, while Australia’s Ben Simmons had a triple-double (19 points, 11 assists and 10 rebounds). It was the fourth postseason triple-double for Simmons in his NBA career.
The Eastern Conference semifinals now have Atlanta against Philadelphia, and Brooklyn against Milwaukee. The first seeded 76ers and the third seeded Bucks were only separated by three games in the regular season.
In the West, the Utah Jazz eliminated the Memphis Grizzlies in five games on Wednesday. This game was over early as Utah had the 47-27 lead after the first quarter. Donovan Mitchell led Utah with 30 points as Utah won 126-110.
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