Atlanta gets some props in the 5 on 5 from ESPN.com

[capstone21]

1. Which dark-horse contender has the best shot in the East?D.J. Foster, ClipperBlog: Chicago. Defense travels well. The Bulls have the best road record in the Eastern Conference, and any successful postseason trips to South Beach will require some serious perimeter defense. The Bulls have that covered with Luol Deng and Jimmy Butler, but they'll need to find a way to score consistently. Paging Derrick Rose?Curtis Harris, Hardwood Paroxysm: Atlanta. One can never trust the Hawks, but they are beginning to establish themselves as the best East team flying coach. Retaining Josh Smith obviously buoyed their hopes. But Al Horford's amazing February and Jeff Teague's continued improvement have truly elevated Atlanta recently.Andrew McNeill, 48 Minutes of Hell: Atlanta. Truthfully, this race is down to the Heat and if they let themselves be beat, but the trade deadline has passed and Josh Smith is still a Hawk. Maybe now the Hawks can rekindle some of the early-season magic they had and make a run come playoff time.Eddy Rivera, Magic Basketball: New York. If there's any team in the Eastern Conference with a puncher's chance of beating the Heat in a seven-game series and derailing their seemingly predestined Finals trip, outside of the Indiana Pacers (the trendy pick), it's the Knicks. If New York can get back to playing defense like it did earlier this season, it has the offensive firepower to make things interesting.Michael Wallace, ESPN.com: Boston. Everything about the Celtics says they're on their last legs, fading into a massive rebuilding process. But every once in a while, Boston puts it together and shows it's still a team to be reckoned with. The Celtics are a feisty, veteran squad led by champions in Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett who aren't to be taken lightly in the playoffs.

[Kimsey]

D. Jones will help us more than people realize. But considering he is the best perimeter defender on the team speaks volumes on how much of a deficit it is in that area.

[ATLJA316]

I love reading things like that this time of year...

I'd love to see the Celtics again in the playoffs in a 'dark horse' battle.

[Guest]

I want another shot at the celtics..I want us to finish off pierce and kg and send them off for good :-)

[taz]

I want another shot at the celtics..I want us to finish off pierce and kg and send them off for good :-)

One last dance for all the marbles

[DrReality]

Here's hoping we peak at the right time

[Dragitoff]

D. Jones will help us more than people realize. But considering he is the best perimeter defender on the team speaks volumes on how much of a deficit it is in that area.

Not to split hairs with you, but technically, Josh is our best perimeter defender. He was recently ranked one of the top perimeter defenders in the NBA. Deshawn isn't a slouch either. I think our weakness is post defense and PG defense.

[Admin]

Not to split hairs with you, but technically, Josh is our best perimeter defender. He was recently ranked one of the top perimeter defenders in the NBA. Deshawn isn't a slouch either. I think our weakness is post defense and PG defense.

100% agree with this.