Apologies for beating this horse so mercilessly, so relentlessly ... but Golden State, at 47-32, is the last hope to snare an up-for-grabs playoff spot in the West. Back East, the last floating contender is Indiana, who after tonight's home loss to the Charlotte F. Bobcats stands at 35-45. This is unbelievable.Atlanta lost in Boston, so Indiana lives another night. They need to sweep Washington and New York on Monday and Wednesday, respectively. They also need Atlanta to lose to Orlando and Miami on Tuesday and Wednesday. It's hard to blame the Hawks for not being able to clinch Saturday night against the Celtics -- The Big Three did play for three quarters. Of course, Atlanta was tied after those three quarters ... and were outscored by 10 in the fourth with Sam Cassell doing the damage.
Don Nelson let some "this isn't fair" sentiment slip after his team's loss to Denver on Thursday. It sounded like sour grapes then, but he's completely right: this is bull. God bless Atlanta for finally finding a way into the postseason, but they'd be in 12th place in the West. Golden State would be fourth in the East. Something's gotta give.
