When CJ McCollum believes Hawks picked up their playoff momentum

ATLANTA – For the first time since the 2022-2023 season, the Atlanta Hawks will be making a playoff appearance, and they were able to do so after defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers 124-102 in the second-to-last game of the season. It was a rough start to the week for the Hawks as they lost to the New York Knicks and Cavs, two potential teams they could see in the first round of the playoffs.

Nonetheless, they showed in both matchups that they could give them a run for their money if they had to see either in a series; the only thing was that they had to clinch a spot first. With the Cavs already having their spot secured and resting Donovan Mitchell and Jarrett Allen in the rematch, they made it easy for the Hawks to get the job done.

For the Hawks, they were able to put themselves in this position after having a strong month of March, but the work started way before that.

“The goal was to get into the playoffs,” CJ McCollum said after the game. “And now for us, it’s about getting healthy, making sure everybody is ready to go, we can ramp up. We did a great job of rallying together and executing the game plan and getting our momentum started in January and February, whenever we started kind of putting things together.”

“I just think this opportunity and all the adversity we faced this year, just being able to overcome it, stay together, and we’re rewarded with a playoff spot,” Jalen Johnson said.

This team has had several iterations of itself since the start of the season. Whether it was trades or injuries, they continued to fight, and once they found some stability for an extended period of time, they took off.

“The team has really jelled well together,” Dyson Daniels said. “Guys have come together, the chemistry is high, guys are playing for each other. We have a really good group that can go out there and make some noise. We just have to stick together, come in with a game plan. I think if we do that, we can show the world what we’re about.”

Dyson on the journey of making the playoffs:

“Guys have come together, the chemistry is high, guys are playing for each other. We have a really good group that can go out there and make some noise. We just have to stick together, come in with a game plan. I think if we do that,… pic.twitter.com/rkBC9dZBhj

— Malik Brown (@_MalikATL) April 11, 2026

“We’ve grown a lot,” McCollum said. “We’ve had a lot of conversations behind closed doors, watched a lot of film, communicated at a high level to hold each other accountable. We aren’t afraid to ask questions. We aren’t afraid to say when we see something that we should be doing better individually.

“I think that’s about growth, and we all are like-minded individuals who work hard and want the same things for each other, so I think that’s kind of shows in how we play, too.”

The Hawks have several players on the team with playoff experience, whether it’s just one year or multiple. As a collective, this will be their first time going to battle together in these types of high-intensity matchups.

“A lot of us it’s going to be our first and second time in the playoffs, but we’re looking forward to the opportunity,” Johnson said. “Looking forward to the challenges that we’ll face ahead… The rest of the league knows our identity, and we’ve done a good job at embracing that and fully diving into that.”

As of now, the Hawks don’t know who they’ll be facing, but they’ll be ready for either the Knicks or Cavs when everything is set in stone in the next two days.

“Everybody is aware of the whole seeding situation,” Johnson said. “But I think our intensity and our mindset remain the same, and how we approach those games. We approach it like any other game. I think just having that mindset and the will to win is great for us.”

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