The victory of the Sixers, Saturday evening against the Grizzlies, put an end to the (tiny) doubts which remained on the poster of the “play-in” between the 9th and the 10th in the East. Unsurprisingly, the Bulls will challenge the Hawks on April 17. It remains to be seen where the meeting will take place since there is only one victory difference between the two teams. Or rather two since Billy Donovan's men have the “tiebreaker” (2-1 in the regular season series) over Dejounte Murray's teammates.
Before planning on a possible second play-off against the loser of the match between the 7th and 8th in the East, and a first round against the Celtics, we must already concentrate on the end of the season and this “match to the death” against Atlanta.
Billy Donovan is already analyzing the meeting
Precisely, Billy Donovan takes advantage of every opportunity to prepare his team for this deadline. Tonight's game against the Knicks is one. Even deprived of Trae Young, the Hawks have progressed, particularly in the physical impact, and the two games against the Knicks, between now and the end of the season, are ideal opportunities to prepare for it.
“It will be a big physical challenge for us”announces Billy Donovan. “Atlanta has made significant defensive progress in recent weeks. This is what it's like to play against these types of teams at the end of the year, and I think it can only help us to face them. There are certain things that we have to do, on a physical level, that we sometimes struggle with, honestly. Whether in the rebound battle or to disrupt the opposing ball carrier after screens. »
Many areas of the game are taken into consideration by the former Thunder coach, who dwelled at length on the future “play-in” meeting.
“They do a tremendous job in the offensive rebounding area. They have an incredible wingspan offshore and on the wings”, underlines Billy Donovan. “ Then, defensively, because of that wingspan, their size and their physique, they do a very good job being active with their hands. »
A revenge in the viewfinder?
If DeMar DeRozan's teammates won twice against the Hawks, Billy Donovan reminds us that a lot has changed since then. The absence of Trae Young in Atlanta allowed some to explode.
“The only thing for us is that we are facing a slightly different team than the one we played”Billy Donovan is wary. “Obviously, Trae's absence clearly changes the dynamic of the team. (Dejounte) Murray and (Bogdan) Bogdanovic played exceptionally well in his absence. »
Last year, the Bulls found themselves in the same position, and they won the first game against the Raptors before losing to the Heat on the doorstep of the playoffs. Maybe it's time for revenge!
Tie breaker : when two teams have the same record at the end of the season, home advantage is determined by a series of successive criteria. The first is that of the results of the regular season meetings between the two clubs.
