Josh Smith said Atlanta was going to shock the world. The world, in response, laughed at Josh Smith.

Last night’s game featured the second straight that Boston was incapable of stopping Josh Smith and Joe Johnson (especially the latter, who went for 35 points, 20 of which came in the fourth quarter), and the Big Three, who looked flawless together all season, are suddenly looking the part of an old bunch unable to make adjustments.

It’s 2-2, and while I’m not going to say the Hawks have won this series, I will say this: They’ve got Boston on the ropes second guessing most everything they’re doing. And somehow, some way, this excitement the Hawks have stirred is buzzing its way through the country, much like Golden State did last year. That Dallas team, you’ll remember, had 60+ wins and was expected to coast to the Western Conference Finals.

Above is the slight altercation that transpired and, even as a Hawks fan, how can you get mad at KG for his actions? The guy is bounced every year in the first round, and here, playing the part of Goliath, he can’t help his team beat a team that only made it to the playoffs because you have to have eight teams in the playoffs. The next game is Wednesday night, and then there’ll be one more on Friday night in Atlanta. It’s the first time in my 25 years of life that I’ve seen this kind of buzz and Hawks tickets are actually selling for more than 20 bucks.