The Atlanta Hawks find themselves in the middle of one of the most crowded races to the bottom the NBA has seen in years.

For most of the season the Hawks have been the worst team in the NBA. But since the trade deadline, several teams have decided to “mail it in” for the season. Currently 8 teams could be considered to be “tanking”. They are: Atlanta, Orlando, Memphis, Sacramento, Phoenix, Dallas, Brooklyn and Chicago. New York could also be considered to be tanking but it does not appear that they will be able to “catch” the other teams at the basement.

Not only do Hawks fans need to keep an eye on our standings, we must also keep an eye on the Minnesota Timberwolves. We own their first round pick if they qualify for the Postseason. That appeared to be a sure thing until Jimmy Butler went down.

Many fans have started to panic about our Draft positioning and flat out pissed every time we win. I have one word for those people. RELAX. No seriously, everyone relax. These players have been out here every game fighting their tails off. Openly rooting for us to lose when these guys have been giving us their all is a bad look. Yes, we want that number one pick but look at the staff we have in place compared to the other tanking teams. I trust Bud and Schlenk to draft and develop the right guys and in addition, Koonin, Grant Hill and Tony Ressler will do anything in their power to make this team succeed. Top to bottom, none of the other tanking teams have the staff we have in place and flexibility we have going forward. Not to mention, heres our schedule for the remainder of the season:

@ Indiana

Vs Chicago

vs OKC

Vs Charlotte

@ Milwaukee

@ Utah

@ Sacramento

@ Golden State (B2B)

@ Houston

@ Minnesota

Vs Philly

Vs Orlando

@ Miami

Vs Miami (B2B)

@ Washington

@ Boston

Vs Philly

Let’s be real, I don’t see more than 2 or 3 wins. When compared to the other tanking teams, we have one of the hardest remaining schedules. Also, I’m not saying “we need to win as many games as possible” but the blatant disappointment and anger from a segment of our fanbase after the past few victories is ridiculous.

Last Night’s Tankathon Impact Game Results

Hawks 90 at Raptors 106

Nuggets 107 at Mavericks 118

Nets 101 at Warriors 114

Tonight’s Tankathon Games to Watch

Grizzlies at Bulls

Pelicans at Kings

Magic at Lakers

Updated Tankathon Standings

Memphis: 18-45 Phoenix: 19-47 Dallas: 20-45 Atlanta: 20-45 Brooklyn: 20-45 Orlando: 20-44 Sacramento: 20-44 Chicago: 21-42

*Minnesota Timberwolves Update: 38-28. 2 Games Above 9th Place. Wolves must qualify for the postseason for Atlanta to get their pick.

For more simulations and information on the “Tankathon” visit www.tankathon.com.

Phil Veasley | @_ATLPhil

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