ATLANTA — The Heat made it to the 2020 NBA Finals, were swept by Milwaukee in last year’s opening round and then dominated the Hawks in this year’s first round. The Hawks say they can follow Miami’s example of getting back up after getting beat down. They aim to do the same after they followed a run to the 2021 Eastern Conference finals with a five-game clunker against Miami in this year’s first round.
The Hawks won’t do it if they stand pat. The Heat tried that last season and got diminishing returns, same as the Hawks this season. Taking the next step for the Hawks will require general manager Travis Schlenk to strategically shake up the roster, and not just on the edges. That’s necessary now that it’s clear that the ceiling for the current group is well short of the NBA Finals.
The Heat came to a similar conclusion after last season. They finished fifth in the East before the Finals run. They were the sixth seed when the Bucks swept them from last year’s playoff. They are the No. 1 seed this year.
