Living here, I can tell you that the city of Atlanta (from the fans to the radio and television personalities all the way down to the players) came into this playoff series thinking they were entitled to the NBA Championship round. That we were a speed bump. That they were going to wrap it up in four or 5. That our team was merely made up of Lebron and a bunch of rec leaguers. That we should just lie down and let them get it over with quickly because they had the best record in the East and were the #1 seed and we had nowhere near the overall talent that they did. Well guess what? We didn't lie down ...Instead, we are showing who the better team is, who the best team in the East HAS BEEN throughout the second half of the season, and who the tougher team is. The Hawks are a beaten team. (they were done after game 1, to be honest) They are soft. And, instead of blaming themselves for the losses (Korver's poor playoff in total; Carroll's and Millsap's relative ineffectiveness against Lebron; their poor defense; their overall poor shooting) they are blaming everyone else. In game 1, it was "the refs". In game 2, it was "injuries". (I laughed at that one) In game three, it was "Matthew Dellavedova's dirty play". It was never "the Cavaliers are just a better team". -- I am on the edge of my seat right now as to what the excuses will be after we close them out tonight.
I say all of that to make the point that the false allegations made against Delly by the Hawks players, fans, and national media are an emotionally irrational response to being so thoroughly beaten down by a better team that it is all they have left without having to force themselves to look in the mirror and come to terms with the truth. The Celtics and Bulls were hesitant to do the same and resorted to the same kind of rough and dirty play that Atlanta is starting to exhibit. They are bullies getting bullied and they don't like it.
If I am a teammate like Lebron, Mozzy, TT, or JR, I am watching Delly's back tonight. I wouldn't be surprised to see more extra-curricular activity from the Hawks aimed in the direction of a guy whose only crime is that he wants it more than any of the "entitled" players on that Hawks roster right now. He has gotten into their heads. And it will cost Atlanta the series ...