Cut Day!
The Mario West era came to an abrupt end before practice Wednesday. He was one of three players the Hawks cut to trim the roster to 13 players.
HAWKSVILLE – A group that numbered 20 just a few weeks ago is now down to just 13.
It was cut day at the Hawks’ practice facility Wednesday, and the scene was grim.
Mario West and Courtney Sims got the word that their time was up before practice, so there was already a feeling that something (or more accurately someone) was missing.
But the gut-punch came later when rookie center Garret “Big Glacier” Siler got his pink slip afterwards.
As his teammates filed into the locker room each one glanced at the big fella with one eyebrow raised. He returned fire with a hollow look in his eyes and the peace sign. Even though they all knew this was not only a possibility but most likely a probability, it didn’t make the event any easier to swallow. Othello Hunter is the only free agent camper that remains from the army of eight that showed up with designs on landing one of the (three) open roster spots available.
Second-year forward Othello Hunter is the last man standing. No one should be surprised. He made the team the same way last year. And he’s gotten loads better since then. So he his inclusion was well earned (the Hawks’ roster stands at 13 players heading into the final two preseason games before next week’s regular season opener against Indiana).
Hawks coach Mike Woodson was worn out after having to speak to all three players. He was the one that championed West’s cause two years ago, when the energetic but undrafted rookie from Georgia Tech put on a hustle showcase in training camp to make the team.
“People probably thought I was crazy and didn’t know what I was doing,” Woodson said. “But I wasn’t crazy. This kid is probably the hardest working kid I’ve ever coached as far as coming early, staying late and making every single second of practice competitive. And when we put him in the game, he did some good things for us. And over the time he was here he got better. So this is tough, really tough. Anytime you cut a kid it’s a tough day. But for me, it’s tougher than you can ever imagine because I became so attached to him and his work ethic. That’s what you try and teach young guys. That’s the first part of being a player in this league.”
It wasn’t easy for the regulars to watch guys like West, Sims and Siler leave, either. After all, relationships were formed. Friendships were cultivated. Good times were had by all.
“It’s tough because I’ve been in their shoes before,” Zaza Pachulia said. “So this hurts me in so many ways. You get used to having guys around, especially when they are guys with great personalities like the guys we had here. They brought so much positive energy to this team. They were unselfish. And they listen to you and they’re trying to get better. It would be different if they weren’t such great guys.”
The 13th man on a 12-man team as a young teenager, Pachulia talked about the feelings he had on cut day years ago for the junior national team in his native Georgia. “I had all my bags packed thinking I was making the team and all my friends back home thought I’d made it, too,” he said. “I was only 14 at the time, but it felt like I was already in the big time.”
He was crushed when he learned that he was the odd man out.
“It was such an exciting time for me just being their in the training camp,” Pachulia said. “I thought I was going to Italy. And then when they told me … I will never forget that day. I used that as motivation to get better and work even harder. And that’s how these guys have to take this, as motivation. It has to give them energy and make them want to fight more to make it. And they’re good guys, so you know good things will happen for them. Hard work always pays off at some point. You just have to stay positive.”
Sims was the D-League MVP last season and has NBA experience, so finding another job won’t be hard. West has two years of NBA experience under his belt and could chase his fortunes with another NBA team or explore his options overseas. Siler’s a behemoth with plenty of ceiling. Pro basketball is obviously his future.
However, he was still trying to get over the initial shock of the news when I saw him last. He said he has just spoken to his agent and that he would figure out a plan for his next step.
It wouldn’t surprise me if any of these guys showed up on the Hawks’ radar again, maybe even this season.
“Hopefully,” Siler said with a half smile. “I guess we’ll see what happens down the road.”
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481 comments Add your comment
jerrywest
October 22nd, 2009
7:19 pm
is the miami game on radio?
KevinA
October 22nd, 2009
7:31 pm
I can’t find it anywhere
jerrywest
October 22nd, 2009
7:40 pm
Teague had 3 turnovers in 4 minutes. 1 offensive foul and 2 bad passes.
truly1
October 22nd, 2009
7:41 pm
me neither it started on 790 then it got cut of for troy aikman who wants to hear that
jerrywest
October 22nd, 2009
7:45 pm
Josh 0-4 from foul line. 3 fouls alrady. 1 technical.
Teague 3 turnovers in first 4 minutes.
Crawford shooting jumpshots.
Marvin playing center at the end of q1.
dispite that hawks are up 23-14.
jerrywest
October 22nd, 2009
7:47 pm
Teague had his 4th turnover in 7 minutes. another offensive foul. whats happening?
KevinA
October 22nd, 2009
7:48 pm
make that 4 turnovers
truly1
October 22nd, 2009
7:48 pm
jw you are watching this on courtside live arent you any sound
KevinA
October 22nd, 2009
7:50 pm
Jerry – did you find a link or watching the box score
Mz. Hawkdafied
October 22nd, 2009
8:02 pm
Guys the game is back on 790 the zone now! Don’t forget the Hawks are on the road. They be trippin on the road. They don’t have to win pretty, just win. Preseason or not don’t want the team to lose to the Heat.
KevinA
October 22nd, 2009
8:04 pm
Mz. Hawkdafied,
ty, tks, tkx.
KevinA
October 22nd, 2009
8:13 pm
Al tearing it up -
Mz. Hawkdafied
October 22nd, 2009
8:15 pm
I know we didn’t miss a Jamal Crawford dunk. They gotta put that on the highlights vid.
jerrywest
October 22nd, 2009
8:22 pm
Joe & Joe played really well. Al was great.
Crawford, one of the worst rebounder in NBA is crushing the board. He already had a steal and a block! Wow!
Teague is sloppy today. Josh’s foul shot will be a problem all season.
Chalmers bone headed foul with 1 second left. Marvin got the defensive rebound and was smart enough to shoot it. 3 foul shots.
Woody closed the first half with Joe+Crawford+Marvin+JoeSmith+Al. That’s my offensive closing lineup as well. Very happy about that. Joe Smith is so intelligent. He will help us a lot.
Sautee
October 22nd, 2009
8:27 pm
Ken,
Not a peep from me.
vava74
October 22nd, 2009
8:37 pm
Ariose,
I don’t have the patience to back check, but I think that you were not so optimistic just a little while ago.
I think I was the first to say that 57 wins was my goal/prediction and I was considered by most as “childishly optimistic”.
My only concern are the injuries. If we get by the year without any significant injuries (no more than a cumulative 10/12 games without a starter) we will certainly break the 50 win mark.
vava74
October 22nd, 2009
8:41 pm
Josh is 1-10 or 1-11 right now from the FT line.
Someone call a doctor!!
He is either a sleep walker or has some sort of phobia against uncontested shots…
Najeh Davenpoop
October 22nd, 2009
8:56 pm
Where are y’all watching these preseason games?
Najeh Davenpoop
October 22nd, 2009
8:56 pm
1/10 from the line, holy sh*t… he really should try shooting underhanded.
Najeh Davenpoop
October 22nd, 2009
8:59 pm
Other than J-Smoove’s free throw insanity and the turnovers from the second unit, things seem to be going pretty smoothly for the Hawks in this game. I just wish I could watch it somewhere. I have the UFL, of all things, on TV right now because there is literally nothing else on.
Sautee
October 22nd, 2009
8:59 pm
Time for a sports psychologist
kwooden1
October 22nd, 2009
9:13 pm
Looks like I’m late to the game, but it looks like the HAWKS are making quality personnel moves opposed to trying to reach for something. I didn’t think the HAWKS would keep another project big man, since Morris is under contract. Clearly Othello was the most improved player on the bubble in camp. Mario is a great locker room guy but just didn’t improve his game enough. I thought the HAWKS might make some space for Mario, but it looks like their just keeping space on the roster for during the season.
Big Ray
October 22nd, 2009
9:26 pm
Can’t see the game, so I can’t see Josh’s “form.” Whatever it is, somebody better fix it quick. Of all the things for him to be limited by… Not being able to hit free throws negates any smarter moves/better shot selection that he is already showing.
Big Ray
October 22nd, 2009
9:29 pm
Say what you want about Horford’s offense, but I’ll take 12 and 10 on 6 of 9 shooting in 27 minutes any night, all else being equal.
And how about JJ? 50% shooting, 6 boards and 8 dimes? Yessss!!
Big Ray
October 22nd, 2009
9:31 pm
Game appears to not even be as close as the score suggests. Heat tried to mount a late rally in garbage time.
Sautee
October 22nd, 2009
9:35 pm
This is different. Our bench gave us this:
40 pts / 12 reb / 7 ast / 5 steals and 3 blocked shots.
All without Zaza. Not bad.
niremetal
October 22nd, 2009
9:36 pm
But 34:30 on the floor for JJ, before the preseason is even out.
And so it begins.
Sautee
October 22nd, 2009
9:37 pm
Yeah Ray just think, if Josh shoots even 60% from the line it’s an easy 10 point win. That’s one reason they hung around.
richbrave
October 22nd, 2009
9:43 pm
Deluded WIZARDS fans just don’t want to hear my takes on how good the HAWKS are. “Well, when we get all our people back healthy, we’ll show them.” Delusional, they just don’t get it. Show them what’s up on the 30th at PHILLIPS.
That said, the “ZARDS are better than last year. Not HAWKS quality, but not pathetic. MILLER, FOYE, and OBERTO are an upgrade.
richbrave
October 22nd, 2009
9:46 pm
BIG RAY:
Not seing much of doc lately. Is he o.k. or just tiring of the blog thing?
niremetal
October 22nd, 2009
9:48 pm
richbrave,
He made some posts on the last thread and over on the Fan Nest blog.
And seriously – don’t get your hopes up about the Wiz. I admit to being probably the most pessimistic person in the country when it comes to their prospects, but my prediction is that they’ll go 35-47.
niremetal
October 22nd, 2009
9:49 pm
On the plus side – if you subtract Josh’s line, the Hawks were 15-18 from the line. That’s 83.3% – pretty durn good if ya ask me.
Hoops
October 22nd, 2009
9:54 pm
nire,
It must be kinda strange to live in the DC area and be a Hawks fan. Especially if the only time you get to see them live is when they play the Wizzards in DC.
Big Ray
October 22nd, 2009
9:58 pm
Nire ,
34 minutes is a good bit less than 40. Woody said he’d play the starters lightly for the first 4-5 games (and he did). He then said he’d play them more minutes in the last two games (he has). So really, this is no surprise.
Plus, it showed that we could win with him playing 34 minutes. Imagine if he only has to average 34 or 35 minutes per game? I think we’d be happy with that, yes?
Big Ray
October 22nd, 2009
9:59 pm
Somebody call John Smoltz’s psychologist for Josh Smith. I hope that 1-10 was just an aberration, but I have a bad feeling about this…
Big Ray
October 22nd, 2009
10:05 pm
Nire ,
Saw your comment on the other blog. Point well taken, guess we’ll see what happens, eh?
bigdave
October 22nd, 2009
10:05 pm
Jamal getting 31 mins… dont mind that if Bibby can only manage 1 assist.
niremetal
October 22nd, 2009
10:26 pm
Hoops,
I moved up to Philly over the summer, so I won’t get Wiz games on the tube anymore. But it was good going to the Hawks-Wiz games last year…mainly because the Hawks won both times
. Hopefully I’ll have the same luck here – I’ve already got tix to the game on Nov 27th.
KevinA
October 22nd, 2009
10:27 pm
I am
KevinA
October 22nd, 2009
10:29 pm
I am more concerned about the turnovers. It is amazing how much better we play at home. We won’t be able to get away with this kind of game against Orlando.
doc
October 22nd, 2009
10:43 pm
richie, i am here bud, still got the warm ups on waiting for the season. canniblogging has never been my thing nor style unless it is to do a retort. the scroll thing woks if someone continues to show their arse real quick. life is too short at least from my present viewpoint.
i also had a computer lap top key board problem. no e, so i was having to cut and paste every friggng one. do you know there are few words without e’s? it blew my mind, as i am a terrible typist anyway. hence the “occasional” skipped comma and the e.e. cummings look. got my season tickets, my optimistic look on my face and all set with “expectations”.
wwwd … will woody deliver?
doc
October 22nd, 2009
10:44 pm
wwwd? … what will woody deliver?
got away from me.
DW
October 22nd, 2009
10:52 pm
All right homers, here’s something to get you riled up (it teed me off a little): http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/blog/ball_dont_lie/post/BDL-s-2009-10-NBA-Preview-Atlanta-Hawks?urn=nba,197466&post_comment=1&success=1
That’s the Ball Don’t Lie’s (Skeets’s) prediction of the Hawks’ season. His predicted record? 43-39! I told him I wished I could bet money with him that the Hawks would exceed that total and that I’d even give him an extra W.
Skeets, Skeets, Skeets. Sigh. Well, I guess the ball really doesn’t lie–we’ll see!
Ken Strickland
October 22nd, 2009
10:57 pm
NIREMETAL-you really should be tired of responding to comments about Bibby, since you seem to have taken it upon yourself to butt in on all comments involving Bibby that you disagree with, even if the comments aren’t directed at you. In the end, nothing any of us say or believe will matter because it’s Woodson’s call. You claim you’re tired of me saying the same things over and over. Well, at least I’m saying something. You’re argument is so weak, you can’t come with enough justification to even be repetitive. DON’T TAKE YOUR FRUSTRATIONS OUT ON ME BECAUSE YOU AND I DISAGREE AND YOU CAN’T COME UP WITH ANYTHING BETTER THAN A COUPLE OF LAME A$$ EXCUSES IN SUPPORT OF YOUR POSITION.
GEEMACK-while I can’t agree with everything you said, I can’t disagree with everything either. I do agree that Woodson would probably be very successful as HC of the talent and veteran ladened Celtics. I don’t see what criteria you used for stating Bibby is hands down a better PG than Teague. (1)Has he proven he’s better defensively than Teague? (2)Has he demonstrated he’s a better penetrator and interior passer? Has he demonstrated he’s better at creating easy scoring opportunities for others? Yes, Bibby is savy, dependable, effective and a clutch long range shooter, but his DEF is nonexistent and his overall OFF skills are limited. Aside from shooting long range jumpshots, what does he do to punish teams for doubling JJ, especially when the jumper isn’t falling?
I WANT A STARTING PG THAT CAN CARRY THE TEAM, NOT ONE THE TEAM HAS TO CARRY. I’m still waiting for a response to the question I asked those who insist Teague isn’t ready or hasn’t proven he’s ready to become a starter. The question was, IF YOU FEEL TEAGUE HAS DONE NOTHING TO PROVE HE’S READY OR CAPABLE OF SUCCESSFULLY STARTING, EXACTLY WHAT HAS HE DONE, OR HASN’T DONE, TO PROVE HE’S NOT READY?
gwite
October 22nd, 2009
11:04 pm
As if Skeets views meant anything.
Skeets opinions mean absolutely squat!
doc
October 22nd, 2009
11:10 pm
richie, with all this young passionate blood in here, i am feeling more and more the vet role, late in the game with singular pursuits in mind for whatever is necessary. my words are being carefully chosen, not as brief but along the lines of my friend ATFan. again got tix so come on down my friend, bring the old lady and ill pass them on to you.
let the games begin, soon, please?
bigdave
October 22nd, 2009
11:13 pm
Hawks on ESPN tomorrow…
This is your brain on drugs
October 22nd, 2009
11:15 pm
“I don’t see what criteria you used for stating Bibby is hands down a better PG than Teague. (1)Has he proven he’s better defensively than Teague? (2)Has he demonstrated he’s a better penetrator and interior passer?”
Bibby an all star and a 3pt marksman with 10 years in the NBA is clearly better than a guy who is yet to play his first NBA game. paradoxically the nuclear physicist cannot see where the criteria is coming from… could it possibly be from….EXPERIENCE? DUH!@!
I guess Teague’s organic growth from the preseason work outs puts him on par with Bibby. I guess this is the same sardonic type of criticism he slings at woodson.
truly1
October 22nd, 2009
11:18 pm
ken maybe be with the team for a year an a half and play a regular season game. we must crawl before we can run
Brain Fart
October 22nd, 2009
11:18 pm
Not only hasnt Teague proven hes is ready to start. He hasnt play a game of regular season pro basketball. Before we anoint him the messiah can he play one game first?