If true... this change EVERYTHING

Tonight, the Atlanta Hawks have a major opportunity to get a W in the win column. Only thing is, the number one team in the Western Conference is coming to town. And yes, I'm going to come up with something and I'm going to tell you guys, I really feel as though the Atlanta Hawks actually are on pace to possibly win this game and hopefully go on another winning streak to hopefully improve their chances of landing outside of the play-in tournament, which does seem like it's almost assured a certainty that they're going to be there. But before we get into all that, what's going on, everybody? My name is Walter Pollard. This is Atlanta Hawks Digest. And I'm going to break down everything to you guys because, again, the Atlanta Hawks, they have a really, really major opportunity. They can do this. You dig what I'm saying? And I'm going to point out why. Of course, you see above me. Right now, the Atlanta Hawks are 9 and 11 versus top five teams. And in the next two games, the Atlanta Hawks are going to be taking on top five teams. But before we dive into that, because that's a whole other show in itself, we have to talk about this article that I read. And I want to say, yeah, it was on Sports Illustrated. And it was talking about a player that could possibly be on the move. And when I tell you I let out the heartiest of laughs, I mean, seriously, it was ridiculous to me. And I just go ahead and bring it out to you right now. Joellen Bede to the Atlanta Hawks, WTF, you know what I'm saying, like what is going on? And you really must not have anything to talk about when you say that Joellen Bede is possibly going to be headed to the Atlanta Hawks. But as I did my research and I started to, as I started to look at it, I really looked into it. It came, it first originated from a betting site that basically listed the chances of the Atlanta Hawks landing Joellen Bede. And you can see right here, Atlanta have the second, they have the second chances or the second best odds of landing Joellen Bede. And the only thing that I have to say to that again is, LOL, LMAO, I am cracking myself up because I just can't fathom, okay? I don't understand where Joellen Bede fits. You dig what I'm saying? I'm going to show you some things and no, this is not me bagging on Joellen Bede. This is not me making fun of him. This is literally me asking the question, how? Barbecue chicken alert. Okay, Shaq. We get it. Barbecue chicken alert. Whatever. But I really want to know how, because if you look at the Atlanta Hawks as far as how they're constructed, I just do not see a place for Joellen Bede. And then not only to mention, you look at somebody like a Muhammad Gaye who is actually filling in for some of the big men that we do not have. But also too, you got Muhammad Gaye who stepped up and who's come up from the Atlanta Skyhawks, I mean the College Park Skyhawks. And now you have him, you have Onyeka Okungwu, and yes, you still have Clint Capella. Why in the hell would you want to bring in Joellen Bede into the Atlanta area, okay? And I'm going to show you, just in how he plays and what we've seen recently, the constant reaching for a call, in my honest opinion. And I'm just being, not critical, but I am pointing out that it just wouldn't make any sense. You dig what I'm saying? It just wouldn't make any sense, the style of play that Joellen Bede plays under, as well as too, he's a dominant big. He's a ball-dominant big. Also look here. I'm sorry, I get drawing the foul, but damn, what are you doing? In my honest opinion, he's a ball-dominant big, and I don't see how he and Trey Young could coexist, mainly because of the simple fact that Trey Young feels like he deserves the ball. And also Trey Young, he's on a tear right now, as far as the CISC is concerned. And I really feel as though if you have somebody like a Joellen Bede on your team, he sucks that away. He pulls that away from the team, and I just do not see how that could even possibly make any sense. You dig what I'm saying? I just don't see, well, I'm not talking about this guy, I'm talking about that guy. Also too, this was the closest he ever got to an NBA championship. Now, let me not bag on Joellen Bede too heavy, okay? Since he joined the NBA, we already knew he had health issues. Unfortunately, it took him literally two seasons to get on the court before his debut. So that was already a red flag, first of all. But when you look at his overall career so far, I mean, he's a seven-time All-Star, you know what I'm saying? He did win the MVP back in 2022 and 2023. But again, his rookie season, you know, he only played 31 games. Last season, he only played 39 games. And this season ended, unfortunately, because he has to go into surgery again to fix something. And he only played 17 games this season. So again, I ask you, why would we want to bring Joellen Bede to the Atlanta Hawks? No! God! No! God! Please, no! No! I think I share in the sentiments of my man, Michael Scott, when everybody has to say, no. Okay? That is not going to happen. I put my stamp on it. And if you guys have something that could give me a better perspective or some insight, let me know. Tell me in the comments, how would you work this or even if it could work? I want to know if it could even possibly work for Joellen Bede to end up on an Atlanta Hawks team that right now is on the come-up. They are on the come-up. And I want to point something. I want to play something for you guys again that we have played once before. And this was a former NBA analyst. And he was just talking about how the Atlanta Hawks are poised for the next two to three years. Yeah. They still have young pieces at Richochet and those guys. But I think the Hawks are building in the right direction. And I think a year or two from now, we should finally be able to see a finished product. And two years from now, this team should be one of the better teams in the NBA. Okay. So he said one to two years. Either way, two to three years, one to two, whatever. However, I feel as though as long as the Hawks are headed in this direction, I can see that something can happen. Would I say this season is a wash? No. I don't think this season is a wash. I do feel as though there is a way that the Atlanta Hawks can salvage this season and also make a decent enough run in the playoffs to get some eyes and some attention on us going into next season. But with all of that being said, I'm going to give Joellen Bede the rest. Let him stay in Philadelphia. Let them figure it out up there because I really feel as though you have a superstar that is being squandered because you want to continue to trust the process with Joellen Bede. That's my two cents. I'm leaving it there. Okay. Now, tonight, of course, the Atlanta Hawks are going to be taking on the Oklahoma City Thunder. Now, of course, they are the number one team in the Western Conference, which I do feel as though the Western Conference is a lot harder. You dig what I'm saying? I feel like if you get a decent seating in the Western Conference, you're just a really good team. And then when you look at everybody from what, one to ten, everybody is really good. I'll say one to nine. You dig what I'm saying? From team one to nine, everybody, you can say everybody beats or could beat anybody on any given day. Now, when it gets down to seven game series, that's just a whole nother deal. But with all that being said, the Atlanta Hawks, they do have an opportunity to get a win over the Oklahoma City Thunder. Right now, the Thunder, I do say, I do believe that they're on a three game win streak right now. So, of course, the Atlanta Hawks would definitely love to try to put an end to that. No, I'm sorry, not a three game win streak, a three game road win streak. So they would like to keep that alive versus Atlanta, but I have heard of this thing where they say that there is this Atlanta bug or this Atlanta flu that a lot of players catch when they get down here. And I say that with, you know what I'm saying, quotations because, you know, they might get down here and they might want to check out some lemon pepper wings from an exotic, an exotic shoe display location. You dig what I'm saying? They might want to go to Magic City. They might want to go out and hang out because I do believe that they came to Atlanta I think a day earlier before tonight's game. So tonight's game tip off is at 730. Y'all know how I'm going to be checking in. I won't be listening to it from 92.9. Those guys, Steve Holman, Mike Conti, shouts out to all of them because I actually like listening to it. Respectfully, I do like listening to it and the way that they talk about it, it's really good. So for sure, I'm definitely going to be checking that out. Some other things about tonight's game, the Hawks are 13 and 14 when they're on their home court, which is really good. They average about 29 assists per game. So definitely be on the lookout for Trey Young to definitely get a major, major assist day to day. And again, the Hawks are 9 and 11 versus top five teams. That stat line doesn't necessarily look sexy. It doesn't pop out to anybody. Hell, it doesn't pop out to me. But when I look at that stat, it shows me that they are not afraid of top five teams. OK, we can go back to when they played against the best team in the NBA, the Cleveland Cavaliers, and they beat them twice, once at home and once on the road. They went up to Boston, beat them in Boston. We've had a back and forth with New York, but we even took care of business versus the New York Knicks. So the Atlanta Hawks are not afraid to take on some stiff competition. And again, with Dyson Daniels being how he is, the new guys showing up, Karis LeVert, Terrence Mann, George Nyang, I do believe the Atlanta Hawks, they're in a good position. And I feel as though if the team chemistry can finally get a click, if they can finally start to notice or understand each other's tendencies during the game and also during certain situations, maybe the Hawks can possibly get a win. I'm very optimistic of tonight because of this specific stat line. Again, 9-11 versus top five teams. They've shown that they can win on the road versus top five teams, and they've shown that they can win at home versus top five teams. So be on the lookout for a major win by the Hawks tonight. I do feel as though they can possibly get a win. Hey, who knows? Maybe my man Chris, Tim Moore, can take it on from here, and he can definitely be excited and be talking about a win other than just a loss. I got tongue-tied there. But either way, with that being said, my name is Walter Pollard. This is Atlanta Hawks Digest, and I am signing out. Peace.