Group play ended Tuesday and now the Hawks know who they will face in the knockout rounds of this year’s NBA Cup tournament.
The Hawks will play at the Knicks on Dec. 11. The Knicks clinched the best record in East Group B after defeating the Magic at Madison Square Garden.
The Hawks, who were among three teams to secure their spots in the next round before Tuesday, clinched East Group C after they beat the Cavaliers last Friday finishing group play with a 3-1 record. Though they had the same record as the Celtics, the Hawks beat them in Boston on the first night of group play, securing them the head-to-head record in the tiebreak scenario.
The Hawks and seven other teams will advance to the knockout rounds. This group includes the winners of each of the six groups, along with two wild cards (the team from each conference with the best record in group play games that finished second in its group).
Things have gotten a little more difficult since the stakes are now win or go home. The knockout rounds are single-elimination games beginning with the quarterfinals, played in NBA team markets on Tuesday, Dec. 10 and Wednesday, Dec. 11.
Since the Hawks finished the Cup as the third seed they will head to Madison Square Garden to face the Knicks for the second time this season. Should they lose that matchup, their bid for the NBA Cup ends.
But, if they win, they head to the semifinals, to face the winner of the quarterfinal matchup between the Bucks and Magic. If they prevail, they advance to the championship to face the Western Conference winners.
Both the semifinals and championship will be played in Las Vegas on Dec. 14 and Dec. 17, respectively. The teams will compete for a prize pool and the NBA Cup championship trophy.
All games, except the championship, count toward the regular-season standings. Should they get eliminated after the semifinals, another regular-season game will be announced to ensure they finish out an 82-game season.
The seven games in the knockout rounds will be televised nationally. TNT will broadcast the one of the semifinal games, while ABC/ESPN will air the second game, as well as the championship.
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