For the first time since 1970, the Atlanta Hawks have made it to the Eastern Conference Finals.
There, they'll meet the gatekeeper to the east side of the NBA Finals in LeBron James, who will be making his fifth consecutive conference finals appearance and his seventh overall. James made it at least that far in each of the last four seasons with the Miami Heat, and he's made it back in the first season of his return to his hometown Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Hawks punched their ticket by beating the Brooklyn Nets and Washington Wizards in a pair of six-game series, while the Cavs swept the Boston Celtics and then won a six-game war of attrition against the Chicago Bulls.
The east final kicks off Wednesday in Atlanta and could extend as far as June 1, three days before the NBA Finals are set to tip off. The schedule for the series is as follows:
| Game | Location | Day | Time (ET) | Network |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Atlanta | Wed. May 20 | 8:30 p.m. | TNT |
| 2 | Atlanta | Fri. May 22 | 8:30 p.m. | TNT |
| 3 | Cleveland | Sun. May 24 | 8:30 p.m. | TNT |
| 4 | Cleveland | Tue. May 26 | 8:30 p.m. | TNT |
| 5* | Atlanta | Thu. May 28 | 8:30 p.m. | TNT |
| 6* | Cleveland | Sat. May 30 | 8:30 p.m. | TNT |
| 7* | Atlanta | Mon. June 1 | 8:30 p.m. | TNT |
The Hawks won three of four meetings with the Cavs in the regular season, and Cleveland will enter play without Kevin Love and with Kyrie Irving banged up. Atlanta's offense hasn't been running smoothly in the playoffs but they appear to have ironed out their earlier defensive issues and should prove a formidable foe for James and company.
Cleveland, meanwhile, has the benefit of five days off to get healthy and plan for Mike Budenholzer's ball movement-heavy offense.
This has the makings of a six- or seven-game series. Check back Tuesday for a full series preview.
