The Atlanta Hawks were one of the biggest surprises during the 2020-21 NBA season and finished the year with a 41-31 record and in the No. 5 seed in the Eastern Conference. It was a special year and the team feels very good, both on their chances against the New York Knicks in the playoffs and about their future. Nate McMillan and company have a lot of young talent to work with and should only get better moving forward.
However, the primary focus right now is on the team's playoff series coming up against the Knicks. Atlanta will not be satisfied with a first-round exit. They believe they can and should win the series and they are going to have to fight hard to make that happen.
Trae Young is the face of the franchise for the Hawks. He has become a legitimate star in the NBA and is one of the better scoring point guards in the league. With him leading the way, Atlanta will always be a dangerous team capable of putting up big-time offensive production.
Hawks' X-Factor in Playoffs vs. Knicks
If the Hawks do want to come out victorious over Julius Randle and the Knicks, they are going to need players to step up and play consistently around Young. That is where this article comes into play.
Let's dive in and take a look at who will be the X-Factor for the Hawks in their first-round playoffs series against the Knicks.
Clint Capela is Atlanta's game-changer vs. Knicks
Clint Capela is without a question the biggest X-Factor for the Hawks in this round of the playoffs. Why? Quite simply, the Hawks will have the opportunity to take advantage of the Knicks' lack of talent and depth in the front-court.
All season long, the Hawks have found success with their front-court pairing of Capela and John Collins. Both players have been quality offensive players and Capela has added elite defense and rebounding. Atlanta will need both of those qualities on full display in this series in order to win.
Throughout the course of the regular season, Capela ended up averaging 15.2 points per game to go along with 14.3 rebounds and 2.0 blocks. He shot 59.4 percent from the floor and was not demanding of the basketball. That made him a perfect fit.
McMillan has found ways to put his players in the best position for them to succeed. Capela has fit in perfectly in his system, just like Myles Turner did with the Indiana Pacers over the last few years. While McMillan has struggled in the playoffs, the Hawks feel like they have the necessary talent to make a run in the Eastern Conference.
Defensively, the Hawks have to make sure that they contain Randle and don't allow him to get to the rim with ease. If they can force him into contested three-point attempts, they will see a lot of success. Capela will be the anchor in the middle of the defense that defenders on the perimeter try to force their man into.
Offensively, the Hawks don't need Capela to make a huge difference. But, his ability to grab offensive rebounds and score off of put-back attempts will be a major quality that comes in clutch for Atlanta against the Knicks. New York doesn't have anyone who will be able to consistently keep Capela off the glass, which could come back to bite them.
All of that being said, the Hawks have quite a few players who need to step up around Young, but none more important than Clint Capela. If he puts together a big series, Atlanta will be in a very good position to win. This is going to be a fun series to watch between two up-and-coming young teams who have been major surprises this year.
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