Atlanta Hawks: Top 5 Rivalries Entering 2015-16
By John Buhler
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The more you think about it, what the Atlanta Hawks have with the Indiana Pacers is a sneaky-good rivalry. Both squads met in the first round in the Eastern Conference Playoffs in both 2013 and in 2014, with the juggernaut Pacers coming out on top.
Atlanta took the Pacers to six games in 2013 as the 6-Seed in round one before Indiana ultimately fell to LeBron James and the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference Finals. In 2014, the 8th seeded Atlanta Hawks took the Top-Seeded Pacers to Game 7 in the first round and had the Pacers on the brink of elimination heading into Game 6 at Philips Arena.
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Though the big bruisers of Roy Hibbert and David West are no longer in Indianapolis, superstar Paul George remains as does their strong HC Frank Vogel. Between Bud and Vogel it’s always a strong game of strategy between two very cerebral head coaches. Both try to win the games by shutting the other down on the defensive end.
But what really takes this rivalry to the next level is that Jeff Teague is a Indianapolis native. He grew up idolizing the Pacers and always plays his hardest when his Hawks play the Pacers. Jeff Teague views this as a primary rivalry of the Atlanta Hawks. Though the Hawks and Pacers only meet 3 or 4 times a year, the passion is there and should they meet in the Playoffs this summer, expect the rivalry to only grow.
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