Fanning the flames

When Hawks point guard Mike Bibby called the large crowds in Boston “fair-weather fans” early in the first-round playoff series between the Hawks and Celtics, the comment elicited umbrage from Bostonians, as well as an obvious response: “What, as opposed to Hawks fans?”

Atlanta sports fans aren’t exactly renowned for passion or dedication. Braves fans are jaded by the years of restrained success, and Falcons fans are understandably bitter about their team’s fits and starts.

And Hawks fans? For much of the last 20 years, they’ve mostly just stayed home – more no-weather than fair-weather.

But that’s changed during the last seven days. The last three games at Philips Arena, culminating in Friday night’s largest crowd in venue history, have been a coming-out party for a city that’s been wanting to like its basketball team for years. The young Hawks needed a pumped-up crowd to win, and the wary crowd needed an exciting Hawks team to get pumped up about. The stars are currently in alignment.