{"id":706501,"date":"2026-04-09T09:43:03","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T09:43:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/706501\/"},"modified":"2026-04-09T09:43:03","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T09:43:03","slug":"cavaliers-defeat-hawks-delay-playoff-clinch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/706501\/","title":{"rendered":"Cavaliers Defeat Hawks, Delay Playoff Clinch"},"content":{"rendered":"

Got story updates? Submit your updates here. \u203a<\/a><\/p>\n

\"AA cubist interpretation of the intense late-season clash between the Cavaliers and Hawks, hinting at the potential for an exciting playoff rematch.Cleveland Today<\/p>\n

The Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the visiting Atlanta Hawks 122-116 on Wednesday night, powered by 31 points from Donovan Mitchell and a career-high-tying 19 rebounds from Evan Mobley. The win prevented the Hawks from clinching a playoff berth, setting up a potential postseason matchup between the two Eastern Conference teams.<\/p>\n

Why it matters<\/p>\n

This late-season clash between the Cavaliers and Hawks had major playoff implications, as Atlanta was on the verge of securing their spot in the postseason. Cleveland’s victory keeps the Hawks from clinching a playoff bid for now, setting up an intriguing potential playoff preview between these two rising Eastern Conference contenders.<\/p>\n

The details<\/p>\n

Donovan Mitchell led the way for the Cavaliers, scoring 31 points, while Evan Mobley recorded a career-high-tying 19 rebounds to go along with 22 points. The win improves Cleveland’s record to 47-32 on the season, while the Hawks drop to 43-36 and will have to wait at least a little longer to punch their ticket to the playoffs.<\/p>\n

The game was played on Wednesday, April 9, 2026.<\/p>\n

The players<\/p>\n

Donovan Mitchell<\/p>\n

A star guard for the Cleveland Cavaliers who scored 31 points in the win.<\/p>\n

Evan Mobley<\/p>\n

A young forward for the Cavaliers who recorded a career-high-tying 19 rebounds to go with 22 points.<\/p>\n

Atlanta Hawks<\/p>\n

The visiting team that was unable to clinch a playoff berth with the loss.<\/p>\n

Cleveland Cavaliers<\/p>\n

The home team that defeated the Hawks to delay their playoff clinching.<\/p>\n

Got photos? Submit your photos here. \u203a<\/a>
\n What they\u2019re saying<\/p>\n

\u201cWe knew this was a big game for us and the Hawks. Our guys stepped up and got the job done tonight.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 J.B. Bickerstaff, Cavaliers Head Coach<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next<\/p>\n

The Cavaliers and Hawks will likely meet again in the Eastern Conference playoffs, setting up an intriguing postseason matchup between these two rising contenders.<\/p>\n

The takeaway<\/p>\n

This late-season clash between the Cavaliers and Hawks showcased the depth and talent of both teams, hinting at an exciting potential playoff series to come. Cleveland’s victory keeps the Hawks from clinching a postseason berth for now, setting the stage for an intense battle down the stretch.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Got story updates? Submit your updates here. \u203a A cubist interpretation of the intense late-season clash between the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":706502,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[3772],"tags":[7,306,305,193,3846,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-706501","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-cleveland-cavaliers","8":"tag-basketball","9":"tag-cavaliers","10":"tag-cleveland","11":"tag-cleveland-cavaliers","12":"tag-clevelandcavaliers","13":"tag-nba"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nba\/116374104343628173","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/706501","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=706501"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/706501\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/706502"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=706501"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=706501"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nba\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=706501"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}