Harry's Fired Up

For those of you not paying attention to the NBA playoffs, a quick preface to this mascot-related story. The Atlanta Hawks went 37-45 during the regular season, the Boston Celtics 66-16. The Celtics easily won the first two games of the teams' opening-round playoff series, as expected. The Hawks won the next two in Atlanta, which is stunning. This note was sent to Bill Simmons, an ESPN writer, from a former intern of his, a Hawks fan. Enjoy:

This series makes no sense. I was at both home games, and I'm still trying to process it. For instance, you know how teams gather in a circle before tip-off and hype themselves up around one guy yelling in the middle, be it 'Sheed, KG, Shaq, the Bulls' "What time is it?" chant, etc.? It's a storied tradition. So on Saturday night I look down and see the Hawks doing the same, and I'm feeling good . . . only then I suddenly realize the guy in the middle is Harry the Hawk, going berserk and presumably yelling muffled profanities through his enormous beak. It was horrifying - I think I may have dropped my beer in slow-mo. at that point I would have laid down a million dollars on us getting swept. And then we reel off two of the most inspired playoff wins in team history. It's crazy.

Needless to say, I'll be crestfallen if someone didn't capture this on video. For now, there is a montage of Harry highlights out there, and it's pretty entertaining.