Archive for July, 2010

Hang in there, Hawks fans. We’ll make it through this summer yet (or so I keep telling myself, anyway).

While things seem fairly quiet in free agency, and that would be for all NBA teams at the moment, a few tidbits are floating around that may prove to be a useful diversion for a minute or two. As we discuss those, I keep thinking about the missing Lorenzen Wright. Missing persons cases more often than not are either a false alarm, or they don’t end very nicely. But some do. And I hope that this is one of those where “all’s well that ends well.”  Peace and blessings on his family, who I’m sure are sick with worry. These kinds of things never seem to matter to people until they hit close to home. Again, I hope this ends well.

Tough Times

As much noise as we make about adding size and toughness to the roster, do we bother to consider that adding toughness doesn’t always mean adding a body? When the official announcement of the signing of former Lakers forward/center Josh …

Continue reading Hawks bits and pieces »

Doldrums Driving You Delirious?

No time is worse for NBA basketball fans than that time between the free agent flurry and summer league hoopla,  and training camp. Very little is usually happening right about then, and in the case of Hawks fans, is it possible to have less than NO activity? To be fair, it’s been reported that Lakers forward Josh Powell is soon to be a Hawk . Beyond that, however, not much is being said. What positions will the Hawks look to fill in as they bring their roster total up to 13? Will they carry more than 13 players? Nobody really knows right now, maybe not even the Hawks themselves.

While the debate of what positions the Hawks need to pay attention to the most continues, an semi-old name has popped back up, albeit in another team’s news circle. Remember Garrett Siler? The large player from a small college spent last season in China on a team owned by Houston Rocket center Yao Ming, and got some token minutes on two different NBA summer league …

Continue reading Stray summer thoughts on Atlanta Hawks »

Summer League Wrap Up

Now that the Atlanta Hawks summer league team finished things off in Vegas with a 3-2 record, there isn’t much left to do other than watch the grass grow. Or at least that’s how most Hawks fans are probably feeling right now, what with free agency seeming to move at the speed of light every BUT Atlanta. However, before the true doldrums of summer set in, let’s have a look at the performance of the guys wearing Hawks summer league jerseys. Some were there to get their warmups. Others to get indoctrinated in a faster and perhaps more desperate pace than what they faced in college. Still others merely want a job in the League. 

Jeff Teague – 15.6 ppg, 52% FG, 4.2 apg, 4.4 TO/pg

The Hawks second-year point guard figures to be a regular part of the rotation this coming season, assuming he can build on what he did in the summer league. Teague’s defense was substantially improved, and it seemed to have an effect on the team as well. Of course, assistant coach …

Continue reading Hawks Fans: How about a summer leaguer? »

So far, not much is going on with the Atlanta Hawks in terms of free agency. As we all know, Joe Johnson has been re-signed, and Josh Childress has been signed-and-traded away to the Phoenix Suns (with a $3.6 million trade exception and a 2012 second round pick are what was recouped). While the return on Childress is less than exciting, it’s still better than nothing. So, what else is going on? Nothing. Or maybe something. It’s hard to tell right now, and the summer is still young. But who wants to hear that?

The Trade That Wouldn’t Go Away

While no one may be sure where this first started, the speculation on a trade that would bring Shaquille O’Neal to Atlanta and send Marvin Williams to Cleveland has yet to be completely dissolved. The AJC’s Mike Cunningham thinks it may be a dead issue, but some folks think differently. Follow those opposing views to the latest semi-sourceless twitter noise and one simply does not know what to think.

It could be that Shaq wants more money …

Continue reading Hawks Fans: Are you okay with the bare minimum? »

The Hawks’ first summer league game was rather interesting. I watched it live on my computer, and it was definitely worth taking the time to do. For those who missed it, I don’t know if it is, or will be playing on NBATV later, but if you get a chance to watch any of these games, I don’t think you’ll come away disappointed. No, it’s not regular season NBA basketball.  But it is a first glimpse at what the Hawks are going to be doing differently this season, and as AJC Hawks beat writer Michael Cunningham’s  first hand account shows, there is something to look forward to. At any rate, here are my observations of the game.

Guards

Jeff Teague looked pretty comfortable all game, but he still looked like he was deferring at times. Maybe it was just him giving the ball up quicker than I thought he should here and there, or maybe it was what he was supposed to do in the offensive set. At the same time, he wasn’t tentative, cutting into the teeth of the defense at will, and dishing …

Continue reading Summer’s first glimpse »

But first…

Okay, so now we know Lebron is going to play for Miami. Talent-wise, we know the southeast division just got a lot tougher. But, if there’s one guy I may not want to be right now, it’s Eric Spoelstra. Now he has two and a half big egos to manage. That’s if he even gets that far. For all we know, Big Boss Pat Riley could decide to swoop back to the sideline to get himself another ring (or three), particularly if the Heat don’t start the season 25-0. It would certainly seem that the balance of power in the NBA has shifted. The irony of it all? Well, let’s just say that in the Southeast division, much less the East, having a center who can deal with Dwight Howard is no longer the biggest issue. On the other hand, we also now know Lebron for who and what he is. The best players in the game, the guys who headline the hall of fame…they work to be the best. They look to lead and will their teams to victory. I thought Lebron would be one of those guys. Bosh claimed to want …

Continue reading Hawks must examine their core »

There may have been a couple of reasons for Joe Johnson to leave Atlanta, but he ended up with around 119 million reasons to stay. Many are unhappy with the size of the contract, but the Hawks only had two choices, really. Either pay your only established star player, or go in another direction with less overall talent. The Hawks knew it. Joe and his agent knew it.  Then again, how many choices did Joe really have, that he would have been happy with? What if the Hawks hadn’t offered him the max? Where would he have gone, and been comfortable? Personally, I think it was posturing more than anything else. After all, Joe would have been second fiddle almost anywhere else he could have gone, his destiny partially (and maybe largely) dependant on somebody else. A co-star at best, and paid like one. Were there any contract offers made by other teams, or did they talk more about signing him and then getting him to recruit somebody else?  Considering things like that, it’s probably no …

Continue reading Joe’s back, five questions follow »

If you’re following Atlanta Hawks news, then you’ve probably seen offers to star guard Joe Johnson for a 6 year contract, with reported totals ranging from $117 million to $124 million. One site after another has lambasted the idea of paying Johnson such a contract, stating that he isn’t worth a ”max” contract that would pay him anywhere from an average of  $19.5 million to $20.67 million per year (though we know that these contracts actually start around the $16 million mark and increase per year). Many are suggesting that the Hawks take a small step backwards by letting Joe go, and spending the money wisely on free agents that will add depth, even if if they don’t provide star power. It’s actually somewhat amusing, considering how many people didn’t believe that the Hawks would pony up the dough in the first place. Now they’re not supposed to dole it out? Take for example NBA.com’s Fran Blinebury, who counts this move as less than wise. But what of the promise by Rick Sund …

Continue reading Hawks Fans: What should be Plan B? »