The second half of the season is upon us, and the Atlanta Hawks got off to a good start with a 117-107 win against the Philadelphia 76ers. From now until the end of the season, every game will become more important for the Hawks as they try to climb the Eastern Conference standings.
The Hawks, currently seeded ninth, have a chance to make some headway given the teams ranked above them, but they could fall short in no time with the Charlotte Hornets behind them.
Following their win against the 76ers, Johnson shared what the Hawks will need to do to move up in the standings as the season continues.
Johnson said, "If we continue to play a full 48 minutes, we'll put ourselves in a position to win every night. I know the guys in that locker room, the coaching staff and everybody, we believe in each other." "So if we continue to believe in each other, I think we'll have a good effort."
The Hawks apparently had a team meeting the night before the game, and Johnson said a message was clear throughout the group.
"We're ready for the second half of the season. We have the same mentality and I think we understand what needs to be done and what needs to be done," Johnson said.
It's been an interesting season for the Hawks, as they've had several iterations of this team throughout the year. Six new players have been added to the team via trades, and it's clear this is not the same group the Hawks started with this season. With that, they have to build chemistry with new people, while also trying to figure out where they fit in.
In the end, the Hawks still have a solid group that can win games, and they are still in position to get a better seed before the end of the season. After playing the most road games in the league in the first half of the season, the Hawks get a break in the second half, and they have one of the easier schedules in terms of opponent winning percentage.
As Johnson said, if they can continue to play the full 48 minutes, they may give themselves the best chance to keep winning games.
