Black Hawk Down.

by Heartless James McNeil

Atlanta sports teams will break your heart. Just ask loyal Falcons fans who lovingly followed them to a super bowl meltdown. Ask the Braves fans who witnessed their club win thirty eleven pennants, but capture only one lousy World Series crown. Now, the Hawks are here to put you on a crash course to Heartbreak Ridge.

Don’t get me wrong, the Hawks are looking good with the new addition of Bibby, and their always strong supporting cast of ballers. Especially, what was most impressive was their 11-3 record. And until last night, they hadn’t had a loss at home. Enter the Orlando Magic on Turkey Day.

The Defending Eastern Conference Champion Magic came into Atlanta with a near identical and equally impressive 11-4 record themselves. I must admit that I was watching this game last night. And at one time I remember the Hawks nursing a 10 point lead. Aside from the sparky alternate red jerseys the hawks were wearing, I was bored solid and must have dozed off. When I awoke, the Magic had won the game.  Final score Magic 93-Hawks 76. Let’s see what happened.

At halftime, in the Magic’s locker room, Stan Van Gundy gave a fire speech to the troops. He said to them, “The question is, does anybody want to play?” He continued that, “I think we were pouting. We were tired. It’s easy to make an excuse, but at the end of the day they’re going to give you a W or an L. Nobody cares how long they’ve been rested or anything else. Nobody cares.”

That must have worked, because at the start of the 3rd quarter, Atlanta dropped a 14 point lead. The Magic proceeded to go on a 25-10 run that ended with a Vinsanity three point play and a 64-63 lead with 2 minutes and change left in the 3rd.

Joe Johnson finished with 22 points for the Hawks, and Josh Smith helped out with 13 more, second on Atlanta’s starting line-up. For Orlando, Dwight Howard had 22 points, and Vince Carter contributed 21.

Atlanta sports teams will break your heart. Just be ready for the tears.