Psycho-T brings the pain
Tyler Hansbrough didn't leave anything on the floor after his workout with the Hawks Sunday morning at Philips Arena. The rugged North Carolina forward is a a player to keep an eye on this week with the Hawks drafting 19th in Thursday's NBA draft.
HAWKSVILLE - The reviews were unanimous.
On 10-point scale, Tyler Hansbrough’s Sunday morning workout for the Hawks at Philips Arena ranks at the very top of anything conducted in the past five days.
It wasn’t any one thing in particular that had the Hawks’ coaches buzzing. It was everything. Hansbrough’s energy, effort and obviously better-than-advertised shooting and athleticism caught more than a few folks in attendance by surprise.
“He kicked the meter up. It was off the Richter Scale,” said Hawks assistant coach Larry Drew, who ran the team’s workouts all week. “That was one of those 8.0s, one of those quick, hard earthquakes. Because his energy is at another level. You just don’t see many players capable of playing with that type of energy and effort and can sustain it through a game, or even a workout. He plays at a totally different level than some of these young guys out here.”
I felt like I needed an ice bath after watching his 90-minute workout. But Hansbrough proved a theory that a wise Eastern Conference executive reiterated to me Sunday night, “effort is a skill in the NBA.” And Hansbrough has it in reserve.
Alade Aminu (Stephenson High and Georgia Tech) and Shawn Taggart (Memphis) were the other bigs on hand Sunday. And they were also impressive in the individual drills and two-on-two work that was done. But Hansbrough’s refusal to go at anything but full bore during the entire workout had everyone buzzing afterwards.
Love him or hate him, and Hansbrough laughed about the fact that he’s inspired the masses to do either one or the other and sometimes both, he’s going to do it his way. And the truth is the Hawks could do a lot worse with the 19th pick. But they probably won’t have to worry about Hansbrough there, as I haven’t spoken to anyone anywhere that believes he’ll still be on the board when the Hawks are on the clock Thursday night.
“If this kid is still there at 19, the Hawks better not hesitate,” another Eastern Conference executive told me Sunday afternoon. “The kid’s a dream for coaches in our league, because he’s going to come in and crank things up automatically. He’s just wired differently than most of these other guys.”
That’s the real problem with a pick that late. You can project who you think might be there and evaluate accordingly, but there’s no way of knowing who will be around by then on draft night. One glitch on the draft board in the early lottery can swing the draft in a totally different direction than projected.
The Hawks sent things sideways in 2004 when they took Josh Childress ahead of Luol Deng and Andre Iguodala – defying most mock drafts that had those other two guys going ahead of Childress.
And anytime one player rises and is picked ahead of projection, someone else falls and lands in the lap of an unsuspecting team like the Hawks (who have no doubt done their due diligence throughout this process by examining all the possibilities).
DaJuan Summers is my sleeper pick for the draft. Too bad he didn't get a chance to workout for the Hawks while he was in town last week (a sprained ankle sidelined him).
Check any mock draft you want and go over the list of names where the Hawks are picking and there are either guys you draft on potential (Wake Forest’s Jeff Teague, who acquitted himself well in his workout Saturday, or Ohio State’s BJ Mullens, who did the same a day earlier) or seasoned college guys that will be needle pushers as rookies (guys like Hansbrough, Pitt’s Sam Young, Louisville’s Terrence Williams and Georgetown’s DaJuan Summers, all of whom the Hawks have had face time with throughout the process).
The usual anxiety surrounding the Hawks at draft time doesn’t really seem necessary this year, at least the way I see it. The Hawks’ heavy lifting is going to come in free agency – and that’s where Hansbrough and all the bigger guys on the short list I’ve detailed above come in handy. Follow me now. When the Hawks lost Josh Childress to Greece last summer, they didn’t have a ready replacement for a 6-8 guy with his skills and seasoning, mostly because they didn’t have a draft pick to use on a player of that ilk. Say, for the sake of my theory, that the Hawks are unable to keep all their free agents. Don’t you think another cat with size and versatility might come in handy next season, even if he’s just a situational rotation player as a rookie?
While I didn’t agree with the notion that drafting 6-8 to 6-9 players ever year now matter what would lead a team from 13-win seasons to the playoffs, I can see the wisdom in taking players that fit that mold if you’re in the best-player-available mode on draft night and picking outside of the lottery. It’s just wise to have your roster well-stocked with a couple Trevor Ariza/Mickael Pietrus/Linas Kleiza types. I think the entire league realizes that now after the playoffs.
FROM THE DO YOUR HOMEWORK FILES …
A quick aside from the Hawks-themed portion of the program requires us to look across the pond fro a moment.
Flooding Europe with scouts from every NBA team has finally caught up to the league and to the crop of talent. The Euro harvest is expected to be extremely thin Thursday night.
Jonathan Abrams of the New York Times had a staggering statistic in his story about the sudden change in philosophy regarding drafting European (and really international) prospects:
“Teams appear to be straying from the recent trend of drafting overseas players because many of them have not lived up to expectations. Of the 39 international players selected in the first round since 2002 with no prior experience playing in the United States, only Yao Ming has surfaced as an All-Star. In that same time, 14 of 171 American players drafted in the first round made at least one All-Star team.”
Math was never my best subject in school, but I know crazy numbers when I see them. And that’s craziness.
OTHER LASTING IMPRESSIONS WERE MADE DURING WORKOUT WEEK, including a stellar showing by a guy not getting any first round buzz. Keep LSU combo guard Garrett Temple in mind in the second round. He’s going to make someone a nice player wherever he is drafted (provided he is drafted, and if not, he’ll be a good free agent pick up for some team). I remember watching him shut J.J. Redick down at the Georgia Dome during LSU’s run to the Final Four a few years back. He’s got NBA height for his position but his frame is need of some bulk to stand up the type of pounding he could endure at the pro level. But he’s got every tool you want in a player and he’ll compete with anyone.
Another guy the Hawks had in that made an impression me was Lester Hudson, a 6-3, 200-pound bull from Tennessee-Martin that refused to let anyone slow him down in his workout. He’s the kind of feisty guard that NBA teams love to have coming off their bench to wreak havoc on opposing defenses and to harass opposing point guards. And you talk about a guy breaking down walls to reach his goals, tell me Hudson hasn’t done exactly that after reading this from my man Chris Low from ESPN.com.
Fearless seems like an appropriate description of Lester Hudson's game.
Jonesboro’s Toney Douglas (Florida State) was by far the most tenacious defender in attendance all week. He didn’t miss an opportunity to mix it up in the drills I watched. I can see why folks have been gushing about him as a potential, Ben Gordon-like combo guard. But he’s a defender like Gordon wishes he was (granted, few guards this size on the planet can score from the distance and in the variety of ways Gordon does). Still, whatever team nabs Douglas on draft night will have happy coaches and fans that will appreciate his in-your-face style.
Summers is my sleeper pick for the draft. I got into a heated debate with my man JB “Beans” Beckett Sunday about Summer and Young. After watching some film clips of both, including some of their head-to-head matchup from the season, we agreed that we were both right and that Summer and Young have a chance to contribute as rookies wherever they go. Now if we could just convince someone to let us draft for them Thursday night.
All joking aside, I have no earthly idea what happens Thursday night. Who does?
Too much can swing things on draft night. And we didn’t even get into the all the crazy scenarios that could happen if the Hawks were to find the right package to move the pick (and whatever else necessary) to shore up their depth issues at certain positions.
Nothing is outside of the realm of possibility right now, my friends. Nothing at all.
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803 comments Add your comment
O'Brien
June 24th, 2009
4:38 pm
If Acie is healthy, I think he will play well in GS.
Be careful what you wish for LOL. I wanted the Hawks to make a move, but I’m not sure how Crawford fits.
Do we slide JJ to the 3, Crawford as our SG, and Marvin coming off the bench? After all, Marvin excelled as a 6th man in college.
Or maybe we bring Crawford off the bench as our top scorer (No more Flip). Crawford can give JJ a break at SG, and we can play both sometimes (slide JJ to the 3).
If this deal happens, WDWD? (What does Woody do?).
jerrywest
June 24th, 2009
4:38 pm
Didn’t Crawford score 39 on the Hornets in a crucial game on the last week of the season, and made NO go down from 2nd position to the 6th/7th position?
niremetal
June 24th, 2009
4:40 pm
Didn’t Crawford score 39 on the Hornets in a crucial game on the last week of the season, and made NO go down from 2nd position to the 6th/7th position?
Didn’t Crawford go 5 for 21 from the floor like 34678 times in his career?
SSI FAN
June 24th, 2009
4:40 pm
Think about this. Crawford does not renounce his player option and becomes an unrestricted free agent. The Hawks free up some salary cap money which might be helpful in making trades or saves the cash strapped ASG some money.
terrell barron
June 24th, 2009
4:40 pm
How can yall complain about Crawford making 10 mill, when Craig was making 6 for doing absolutely NOTHING? And Bibby made 15 mill last year. Give me a break. At least Sund did something. Maybe there’s another deal in the works? Btw, I love JJ at the 3.
jerrywest
June 24th, 2009
4:40 pm
BK finally got his tall point guard.
Anakin Joe
June 24th, 2009
4:41 pm
Volman, we’re spending approximately $35M on 3 players. If we get back to our $65M payroll, that’s about $3M each for 10 more players. Now tell me, how do we fit Marvin or Bibby into that budget?
niremetal
June 24th, 2009
4:42 pm
Well, y’all know what I think. If Jamal’s ok being SuperFlip, then I’m cool. Otherwise, someone point me towards the nearest tall building to jump off…
Rod from College Park
June 24th, 2009
4:43 pm
Wow,
I did state earlier this year that I would like Jamal Crawford here. Great move. Maybe Sund does read the blogs!!!! Guys while I do agree, there are some concerns, Crawford is better defensively than Bibby and can play the 1 and the 2. You have to look at the Hawks main problem in the playoffs. We could not score. I will take Jamal Crawford wide open shooting a Jump shot over anyone on our team except Joe. My only question is do we consider him a point or a 2 guard. Once I hear that from Sund, I will be able to tell what direction we are going. We just got another 20 ppg guy. I will renew my season tickets now, if this deal goes through.
Anakin Joe
June 24th, 2009
4:43 pm
Nire, I think it was 34,677 times. Stop exaggerating.
jerrywest
June 24th, 2009
4:44 pm
Didn’t Crawford go 5 for 21 from the floor like 34678 times in his career?
So has Bibby.
Ariose
June 24th, 2009
4:44 pm
DAMN, I JUST HIT UP EVERY SPORTSWRITER ON TWITTER LOL. I MADE THIS THA BIGGEST DEAL SINCE SLICED BREAD HEHEHEHEHEHE!!!!!
kwooden1
June 24th, 2009
4:45 pm
If the trade is as advertised (Speedy and Law) for Crawford, then its a steal. I thought Crawford would be leaving Golden State, but I thought they would definitely try and get more than Acie for Crawford! The money isn’t as bad as you would think especially if you let Flip walk,. This is definitely a steal if the Hawks can make this happen!!
GO HAWKS!!
terrell barron
June 24th, 2009
4:45 pm
Anakin, we should’nt try to fit Bibby into that budget. IMO
Ariose
June 24th, 2009
4:46 pm
FROM LANG WHITAKER:
“I like this Crawford/Atlanta deal (if it happens)…all Hawks do is go one on one and that’s all JCreezy does, too”
Riverdale Hoops Fan
June 24th, 2009
4:46 pm
Only time will tell if this is a good move… Gotta see what else Sund does. If Crawford is here to add depth/replace Murray or Mo as the first guard off the bench, then I think I like it. If Crawford’s here to start, we could be in major trouble.
(my optimistic guess: Bibby’s gone; Zaza, Marvin and maybe even Flip come back, we use the pick on the best front court player available (hopefully Hansbrough) and then sign Jarrett Jack)
jerrywest
June 24th, 2009
4:46 pm
what we were paying for JJ/Josh/Speedy/Acie will now be paid to JJ/Josh/Crawford.
BosnianBaller
June 24th, 2009
4:47 pm
All you people that don’t like the trade calm down.There will be more moves to come.Just remember what Ben Gordan did in the playoffs.Crawford is capable of the same.
Ariose
June 24th, 2009
4:47 pm
ROD, YOU KNOW DAMN WELL THIS WAS NOT A CONCENCUS BLOG MOVE LOL!!!!
Melvin
June 24th, 2009
4:47 pm
If this deal goes thru, do we still accuse the ASG as being cheap/broke???
Anakin Joe
June 24th, 2009
4:47 pm
Rod, playoffs? Playoffs? Did you say playoffs? That’s funny. We were badly out-rebounded in the post-season. You think a chucker like Crawford will have success when defenses are playing at their best? Joe will be able to crash the boards at SF? Again, 23rd in rebounding last year and now we have a SF combo of Joe, Evans and the promising Othella Hunter to help Josh and Horford (oh and RandMo, how could I forget about RandMo).
Clyde
June 24th, 2009
4:50 pm
Jamal Crawford to Atlanta for Acie Law and Speedy Claxton. Ok but we still need a point guard and a center.
Acie Law deserves better and coach Nelson will make him into a quality point guard.
FIRE SUND AND WOODY
O'Brien
June 24th, 2009
4:50 pm
I dont see Jamal opting out of his deal. So we will have him for 2 years, right?
If this deal happens, then that would mean Bibby is gone. And thats fine with me. Sign Jarrett Jack. He will make less than Bibby, and he doesnt need the ball like Bibby does, plus he plays good defense.
The Crawford deal (if it goes through) provides the Hawks some flexibility, and thats a good thing.
newkid
June 24th, 2009
4:51 pm
My gosh AJ, this rumored move really has you hyperventilating. Could it be that Chef Sund is just starting to collect the groceries, and we won’t really know what’s on the dinner menu for 6-8 weeks (or more)? This is a deal that could have easily been executed after the draft and after June 30th, but looks like it’ll get done before the draft. Maybe there are reasons it’s getting done sooner rather than later. Not a big Sund fan (to this point), but maybe we ought to allow him to get a bit further along on his shopping list – since it seems that after entire year of ‘evaluating’ he has finally started – before we discard the asparagus.
Just bugging you man…
Melvin
June 24th, 2009
4:52 pm
Dang I remember when Acie/Speed use to get dog on this blog. Now we are crying for possibly trading these guys…
Ariose
June 24th, 2009
4:55 pm
CLYDE, I GUESS THAT A NO-GO ON THOSE “FREE!! ACIE!! IN 09′” T-SHIRTS…
jerrywest
June 24th, 2009
4:57 pm
I think Acie will be a stud in GS, but Crawford will help Woody get another contract. Darn it.
Rod from College Park
June 24th, 2009
4:57 pm
All of you that say Crawford can be a 6th man are funny. Can yoou actually say that Bibby is better than Crawford. I have personally watched Crawford torch the Hawks for his whole career. He might have a 28 ppg career average agianst us. Did Bibby and Joe not chuck all year long? Damn guys, we just got a proven scorer for two guys who played about 40 minutes all year. Wait and see what the next move is. I just hope that Marvin is gone!!!!!!!!! Great move Sund.
cp
June 24th, 2009
4:57 pm
I think this means Bibby is gone. I like Crawford but his defense is as bad as Bibby’s. The one thing he does better is drive to the hoop. He has a questionable shot selection though. I guess we go with a big backcourt. In this offense we don’t need a traditional point anyway. I think Flip wont be back either. If we bring back Marvin and Pachulia we should be alright. With the 19th pick we have to get a pg now. I guess it will be Maynor instead of Teague. We need to get another second rounder and grab Danny Green. I think Crawford fits in with what we do offensively.
Anakin Joe
June 24th, 2009
4:59 pm
Again, $35M on 3 players. Assume a $65M payroll. Evans and RandMo make about $3.5M together. That’s $26.5M with only 5 players signed on the roster. Let’s say that you need at least 13 players. 8 more players averaging $3.3M. Let’s say that you bring in 3 minimum wage earners (like Garnder, Hunter and West). That’s about $2.4M. So now we need to sign 5 guys at less than $5M each. Well, that eliminates Childress and Marvin. (By the way, unless you’re getting back draft picks for Marvin, you can’t even afford to S&T him for a player at this point. So I expect that Sund will renounce him soon. Chill’s agent should tell him to return so that Sund will likewise be forced to remounce him and we can lose 2 lottery picks for Jamal Crawford). Our 1st round pick will earn around $2M so now we’re at 4 players and $22M. So we need 4 players to sign for around the MLE or $5M. Is it doable? Absolutely. Is it likely a playoff team? No way, no how. Was it a wise trade to back yourself into such a corner for Jamal Crawford?
terrell barron
June 24th, 2009
5:00 pm
If we keep Crawford, I think we resign Flip and Zaza, sign-and-trade Marvin along with Mo Evans for a big body, draft Sam Young at 19 to replace Marvin, and replace Mo with the 2nd rdr.(Dionte Christmas)
Riverdale Hoops Fan
June 24th, 2009
5:01 pm
Bibby’s out… But now Slick Rick’s gonna grab Jarrett Jack for the 4J starting backcourt (with JC getting heavy minutes as either JJ’s first sub off the bench). Now, we gotta bring back Marvin, Zaza, maybe even Flip and then add another solid front court piece (Hansbrough?).
And any time you can pull off a trade with Golden State, that’s generally a good thing. We just got Crawford for Craig Claxton and Acie Law IV. The same Crawford that GS got in exchange for Al Harrington. Can you imagine anyone trading Acie Law for Al Harrington?? I think the GS front office is secretly being run by Billy Knight–and thank God we got Jamal Crawford and not Corey “worst contract ever” Maggette.
Melvin
June 24th, 2009
5:02 pm
Anakin,
Sounds like you hate Crawford more than Rod hates Marvin…lol
Rod, just poking at ya…
Big Ray
June 24th, 2009
5:02 pm
Heh heh heh…..
Manny, I’m not mad about Crawford.
Volman
June 24th, 2009
5:03 pm
Astro Joe,
I understand your anger completely, but again you have to realize this off season is not other. I am hoping there is something that Sund is working on (a bigger picture)
I cannot begin to explain how EXCITED I am that Speedy Cla Cla Claxton will be GONE FOREVER. The guy is nothing. I even tried to be nice to him and wish him good luck for the season at the season ticket holder event and he gave me the cold shoulder. Good riddance, you did nothing for this franchise.
I understand that Crawford costs $10 million per year. What if Bibby wants that? What if Flip wants $4-5 million? The Hawks have an insurance policy if one of those two are gone. The Hawks have options, they do.
Let’s just all take a deep breath and let this thing work out and we’ll see what happens.
THIS IS SO MUCH FUN! Let the madness begin!
Volman
June 24th, 2009
5:05 pm
Over..not other!
jerrywest
June 24th, 2009
5:05 pm
Anakin Joe – Does your calculation change if we give Crawford’s money to Speedy/Acie?
Blast
June 24th, 2009
5:08 pm
I like the Crawford deal. Hawks need shooters, something Acie could not do, and Speedy basically stole Hawks money for 3 years. Don’t think Sund is done wheeling and dealing yet. and I also don’t see why Hawks cannot still pick a point at #19. Crawford is more a shooting than a point guard.
Go Hawks, Go.
At least Sund is being proative rather than reactive this off-season. Camby is available. Now if only we could off load some more floatsam and debris to get Camby. Wonder how much payroll the ASG is willing to shoulder?
Big Ray
June 24th, 2009
5:12 pm
Some of you are just too funny.
You act like the draft has already happened, free agency is done, the summer is over, and the season is about to start. Please get your little pink panties out of a wad, or change over to a freakin’ thong.
newkid
June 24th, 2009
5:13 pm
If Crawford isn’t a part of a draft night package deal tomorrow, could it be that he and the Hawks have possibly already agreed a 4-year $30 million deal (with a team option on a 5th year) that becomes effective on July 1st? Why would he do something like that? Largely because of uncertainty about what he might reasonably expect to earn under a new collective bargaining agreement when his current contract expires, but also because at 31 years of age (i.e., after his current deal expires) he can’t be sure he’ll even get a job in the league at the league minimum (whatever that might be in 2011/2012).
Cowa
June 24th, 2009
5:14 pm
Newkid, the deal is being done now because it falls $22k short of the trade rules if they wait until July 1. Could have been done after the draft, but would need anpther part (RandMo) to execute after June 30.
My gut tells me Crawford is our starting PG. Joe’s not moving to SF. It think sund wanted Sessions and doesn’t think Milwaukee will let him go after making the moves yesterday, and Sund wanted a known.
Also, his salary will go off the books when Horford is up for his raise. My guess here is that we are drafting our PG of the future (Jennings or Teague, possibly Maynor or Douglas) and Crawford is going to fill in until the guy is ready, then assume a Flip role.
Lastly, Flip was going to hit up against our MLE money, and that wouldn’t allow us to sign any vets in the offseason. That’s the part about Flip I hated. This frees up that money to go after a big instead, along with resigning Marvin at $8M and Zaza at $5.5. That would put the Hawks at just over $58M with 10 of our roster slots full (includes our two draft picks). Leaves us with the full MLE of $5.6 and sign two guys at 700k-1M each, and we’re at the $65M target. And we can still extend JJ to starting at $17M in 2010 adn stil be under the luxury tax. This can work…
Volman
June 24th, 2009
5:14 pm
Big Ray, what about those Tim Tebow panties? Do you have any extra?
terrell barron
June 24th, 2009
5:15 pm
Maybe we’re moving up in the draft in a deal that involves Crawford? It’s possible
Volman
June 24th, 2009
5:16 pm
Cowa, beautiful work. Keep it up!
Cowa
June 24th, 2009
5:17 pm
I’m just bummed we couldn’t work Brandon Wright into the deal. Randolph is the guy they love at the same position.
Anakin Joe
June 24th, 2009
5:17 pm
Volman, if Bibby wanted $10M then you offer Sessions or Jack $6M. If Flip wanted $5M then you offer Rashard McCants $3M. What I don’t think you do is back yourself into a corner before free agency starts and you can explore all of the options.
Logo, it’s harder to complete a roster when you pay one guy $10M vs. 3 guys a combined $10M. Heck, why not just find 6 guys and pay them $10M each? Then find another 7 at the $700k minimum and you can stay at $65M. But what are the odds that formula translates into a playoff appearance?
tbhawksfan
June 24th, 2009
5:21 pm
Two useless players costing nearly $8M for a 20 scorere at $10M, where’s the problem?
Crawford also totally opens up our options at the 1 and 2.
Bibby’s gone.
What else will Sund do before the end of the summer?
MW seems like the only other real question. Zaza and Flip will likely command more than their worth.
I think we can keep MW and sign another contributing big or PG; depending on what we draft.
Ramon
June 24th, 2009
5:24 pm
Astro, I understand your frustration, I really do. However, statistically what do you think we could have gotten for Acie and Speedy? And to add to it, can you prove that we could have gotten something better? Acie and Speedy, more times than not, were paid a combined $8 million dollars together to sit and watch the game like we did. True they had on better suits than we did, but they were just spectators.
Personally, I love Acie’s game. I think he has good enough skills to be another Rod Strickland. But he wasn’t playing here, and neither was Speedy. So with the subtraction of Acie and Speedy, and the addition of Crawford, you’re really only playing $2 million more for someone who triples their production.
So if Bibby was making $15 mil, and we all KNOW there is no team willing to pay him that again, you know that his salary will drop **at least ** 2-3 mil next season. So does a new contract for Bibby, and Crawford’s contract not equal or saves money when comparing to Bibby (old contract), Speedy and Law? So how does that really hamper so many more things? Marvin is not going to get offered $10 mil a year. So you’re not looking for a substantial raise for him.
Is this a great deal, I won’t say that. But this deal doesn’t put the Hawks in any worse position than they were in previously. And as far as a bench, it actually adds to the bench. Especially, if Mo could be traded for a decent back up big.
Volman
June 24th, 2009
5:24 pm
Anakin, I’ll be back in about an hour to discuss further! Gotta drive home from work!
Anakin Joe
June 24th, 2009
5:24 pm
Cowa, so that makes our bench #19, #49, Evans, RandMo and Zaza. Plus 2 minimum wage players (like West and Hunter).
Having Marvin on board (according to your scenario) makes me feel better, but that still looks remarkably like a 30-win team.