Step 2? Winning a few games they aren't supposed to. The Hawks did that twice at the beginning of the season against Dallas and Phoenix, but haven't replicated the feat since.

Why do I bring this up? Cause the schedule this week is brutal, and with the Hawks only a game under .500 at 9-10, it would make an excellent time for the team to pick up an unexpected win or two.

Saturday's win over Memphis was a positive sign, especially given the frustration with the previous few games. The team played well in the third quarter, much to everyone's relief, and in general played the up-tempo style we've all been wanting to see.

Tonight we will see if that form holds, as the Hawks travel to Orlando to take on the division-leading Magic. Orlando has been on fire since the season started, due mostly to the dominance of Dwight Howard inside. I don't expect Al Horford and company to be able to provide much resistance to him tonight (no knock against our guys, just no one has really been able to slow him so far), so to me the focus should be on trying to limit the damage done by perimeter players like Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu.

The Magic aren't the only big obstacles in the road this week - the Raptors come to Philips on Tuesday on a back-to-back, and then the Hawks travel to Detroit Friday night to face the team that whipped them but good last Tuesday. Charlotte is a beatable opponent, but we all know how Atlanta has struggled against them in the past.

What does it mean? It means the Hawks can't afford to bring anything less that their top effort into each game, or we could be looking at a bad week. And with the positive vibes flowing following a 3-1 record last week, that would be a shame.