I have Magic Numbers swimming in my head. First it was 3, then it was 2, then after we beat the Wolves it was down to 1, except that it really was back to 2 unless Detroit won last night, which they didn't, and yet somehow today it's back to 1 (sorta). Right? HA!

Here is the scenario for clinching a playoff spot tonight, and this is straight from the NBA.

The Hawks will clinch a berth if EITHER of these two things happen.

1 - Hawks win (easy enough)
2 - New Jersey loss + Milwaukee loss + Charlotte loss (significantly less likely)

In other words, if the Hawks win tonight, they are in. But if they lose, and all 3 of the other teams don't, then the official celebration will still be on hold.

I'll be honest - this whole situation was driving me a little crazy, that is until I realized something relatively important, and I've felt better ever since. And that is that all of this is pretty trivial, because no matter what, the Hawks are GOING TO THE PLAYOFFS, and they are going to make it there with a few weeks to spare. Regardless of when we can officially tout our official playoff-clinchitude (new word?), we know that we won't have to be scoreboard watching down to the last day, and though we've still got goals to accomplish in this regular season (namely home-court advantage), the first hurdle has pretty much already been cleared.

Considering where we've come from, that is a huge relief.