The Cleveland Cavaliers will begin the NBA postseason as the Eastern Conference’s No. 4 seed after a 124-102 defeat to the Atlanta Hawks on Friday, coupled with the New York Knicks’ victory over the Toronto Raptors. The loss in Atlanta eliminated Cleveland’s last chance to climb to third place.
Three Teams in Mix for No. 5
Atlanta (46-35) currently occupies the No. 5 spot and can lock it up by beating the Miami Heat on Sunday. A win would give the Hawks 47 victories and the decisive tiebreakers—most notably a Southeast Division title—needed to clinch a first-round matchup with Cleveland (51-30).
If Atlanta falters, the Raptors and Orlando Magic, both 45-36, could overtake the Hawks. Toronto hosts the Brooklyn Nets, while Orlando visits the already-settled No. 2 seed Boston Celtics. The Raptors own the head-to-head tiebreaker against Atlanta; the Hawks swept Orlando during the regular season.
Regardless of the outcome, the Cavaliers know they will open the playoffs at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse and will learn their opponent after Sunday’s regular-season finales.
Hawks Pull Away After Halftime
On the court Friday, Atlanta seized control with a 16-0 third-quarter surge that stretched an 11-point edge to 27. CJ McCollum paced the Hawks with 29 points, while Dyson Daniels posted his second career triple-double—13 points, 12 assists and 10 rebounds. The victory clinched both a playoff berth and the Southeast Division crown for Atlanta.
Cleveland struggled from long range, hitting just 26 percent of its three-point attempts, and played without Donovan Mitchell, Jarrett Allen and Sam Merrill. James Harden finished with 20 points, and Jaylon Tyson returned from a 10-game absence to add 15.
Source: Hoops Wire
