The NBA regular season as arrived at its conclusion. While most teams are locked in to their playoff seeding or out of the playoffs entirely, there is still some things to be sorted out, particulalry in the Eastern Conference.
After beating the Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday night, the Atlanta Hawks locked themselves into the top six and clinched a playoff spot in the East. Coming into tonight’s game against the Miami Heat, the Hawks have a chance to lock up the No. 5 seed and set up a first round matchup with the Cleveland Cavaliers, but there are more ways to do that than just by simply winning the game.
The Hawks, Raptors, and Magic are all going to be keeping an eye on each other today. Orlando is playing Boston (who will be without most of their key contributors) and Toronto is playing Brooklyn (a tanking team) and depending on the results of the three games today, all three teams could be in different spots. For the Hawks, either a win vs Miami, an Orlando win vs Boston, or a Raptors loss vs Brooklyn would send the Hawks to Cleveland next week. If the Hawks lose to Miami, Boston beats Orlando, and Toronto beats Brooklyn, Atlanta will head to Madison Square Garden to face the Knicks.
The odds favor the Hawks getting the No. 5 seed today, and you can tell that by the way the Hawks’ injury report looks. Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Dyson Daniels, Jalen Johnson, Onyeka Okongwu, CJ McCollum, Gabe Vincent, and Jonathan Kuminga are all listed as out on the injury report for tonight, and Mo Gueye is listed as questionable. It will be as shorthanded as a team could be for tonight/
So who wins tonight?
Picks and Predictions
Apr 10, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks head coach Quin Snyder reacts on the sideline during the game against the Cleveland Cavaliers during the second half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images
The Heat are mostly healthy heading into this game and the Hawks seem likely to be missing nearly every key player on their team.
With all of these guys, who will play? The Hawks would have Corey Kispert, Zaccharie Risacher, Buddy Hield, Keaton Wallace, Mo Gueye (maybe), RayJ Dennis, Christian Koloko, and Tony Bradley.
With the uncertainty surrounding the Hawks and their rotation tonight, coupled with the fact that Miami is going to be aiming for a win here, would make the Heat the sensible pick here. The Hawks goal here is to remain healthy for next weekend, no matter the opponent.
Final Score: Heat 123, Hawks 111