Injury concerns for Hawks?
Smile Joe, you're rocking the new red jersey my man. And for once, an alternate uniform actually looks good.
HAWKSVILLE – After a reasonably injury-free preseason the Hawks came crashing back to reality Sunday.
Al Horford sat on a corner table with wires hanging from his ankle (courtesy of a twisting in Friday’s loss in Orlando) and Mike Bibby joined him later on wire duty (on his non-shooting wrist) after jamming it during a drill in practice.
That scowl on Hawks coach Mike Woodson’s face, also a product of Friday’s dismal showing against Magic, immediately turned into a look of worry.
Woodson hadn’t planned on either his starting center or point guard being questionable for Wednesday’s regular season opener against Indiana at Philips Arena.
But as of this morning there’s some concern that one or both of them will be forced to play at less than 100 percent against the Pacers.
“Al tweaked his ankle and he tried to go a little bit [Sunday], but he said it wasn’t responding,” Woodson said. “I hope both of these guys are ready.”
Woodson said he would know more after today’s practice, which wraps up early this afternoon (check back here for more updates as the day goes on).
I asked Woodson what he would do if either one of them isn’t ready to play Wednesday night and he admitted that he hadn’t thought about that yet; he’s understandably holding out hope that both will be fine (and in all likelihood, they should be able to play).
But what happens if they do have to sit?
What would you do?
Mario West isn’t around anymore to insert into the lineup on those crazy nights when you need a fill-in starter and want to keep your bench rotation the way you like it. So it’s a dilemma the Hawks surely aren’t interested in having to deal with on the eve of the season.
My easy answer to fix this problem, if it actually becomes a problem, is to go with Jamal Crawford at the point and Zaza Pachulia as fill in starters.
NEW UNIFORMS?
So the Hawks unveiled their new red, alternate uniforms (above) at the Paint the Town affair Sunday, huh?
Funny, I remember seeing these things in the summer. Or at least a very real knock off. I like the red joints. I even like the ATL on the chest (even though I’d have loved to see the Pac-Man logo brought back just to clown). I’d much rather they come with the red stuff than one of those two-tone alternate sets like the Wizards sport or a silver get up like the Mavericks sport every once in a while. And they’re much better than those pale yellow joints that the Hawks rocked a couple years back.
If you’re not a fan of the new stuff, don’t fret. From what I understand the Hawks won’t be wearing these new uniforms much this season.
VIDEO SELECTION OF THE DAY
Injury news aside, Horford is caliente in the streets these days. Not only is he a part of the NBA’s new Hispanic marketing campaign, there’s some fresh video circulating of him being interviewed for CNN’s “Latino in America” series. In case you missed it:
MAGIC REDUX
As you might imagine, the Magic game was the topic of discussion for several observers. The recurring theme was that they were glad the Hawks got smacked around a little bit and that it served as the wake-up call needed for a team that had gotten a little comfortable abusing other teams during the preseason.
“That game was a perfect illustration of what we can’t do this season, against anybody,” one keen observer pointed out. “Orlando is so good inside and out that you have to pick your poison and just deal with it. We doubled Dwight Howard in the first half and did a pretty good job of limiting him but they shot lights out from deep and buried us. After halftime we stopped doubling Dwight and he ate us alive. That was a tactical error on our part. By then the shooters were already in a rhythm and we couldn’t do anything to slow them down inside or out. They just took us apart. That’s what will happen to you against a great team like that, and I don’t care what anybody says, that’s a great team. Orlando making [the NBA Finals] was the worst thing that could happen to the rest of us. They didn’t even need Rashard [Lewis] the other night and they ran away with it. They’re going to do that to a lot of people this year.”
I mentioned that I thought the Hawks’ strategy to play the Magic in a half court game was as flawed as always, only to be reminded that the Hawks couldn’t run with the Magic making nearly 70 percent of their shots during on stretch. But my point remains, the Hawks will never have a half court advantage against the Magic. Dwight is too big and dominant. And Jameer Nelson can probe the defense and find shooters all day long if you’re working just half the floor. The Hawks waxed the Magic to start last season by beating them up and down the floor and forcing the action. I said it then and I’ll say it again, that’s the blueprint they need to use every night. Every single night.
HOT TRACKS
Veteran big man Joe Smith (aka Joe Beast) is a bit of a lyrical star himself, having owned his own record company for years and showing off MC skills some of his NBA brethren wish they had. He’s whipped up an intro song for the Hawks that he played in the locker room after Sunday’s practice that had a menacing sound to it (there were heads bouncing as it played. It had me bouncing, too, for pure clown effect, of course). Seriously, it sounds good. I’m working on locating a bootleg copy of the track for you to hear before it hits the charts. In the meantime, check out this playoff track he cooked up for Cleveland last season:
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255 comments Add your comment
Dekaturkingz
October 26th, 2009
9:18 am
ATL Stand Up!!!
AJ-HangTime
October 26th, 2009
9:23 am
First….?A?A?
AJ-HangTime
October 26th, 2009
9:24 am
I admit that “first” thing is cheesy, but I couldn’t resist. Now that I got that out of my system…..
ILL-logical
October 26th, 2009
9:45 am
What is it with Atlanta pro teams and the media spotlight? It seems like every time there is a chance to shine , they get their behinds handed to them.
Case in point: The Falcons -Cowboys “game”. Like the Hawks , this year was being touted as a breakout year with a “star”, Matt Ryan(insert Joe here foe Hawks analogy) leading the team to the playoffs. With Coach Smith , a defensive coach,( insert Woodson here)leading the way.
Well, the GM genius (insert guess who here) drafted two defensive players who had a long history of injury as starters and they are where? Injured. Oh, and the size anology is painful: the Falcons refuse to hire any defensive back over 5′9″ and the Hawks want all of their players to be 6′9″.
Seriously, both teams are progressing but these total meltdowns in big games is not encouraging at all.
Ariose
October 26th, 2009
9:48 am
FOURTH!!!
a1andonly
October 26th, 2009
9:48 am
ATL all day. The reason they didn’t show up to Friday’s game was because they were thinking about those R. Kelly after parties goin’ down in Atlanta. Plus its preseason. They would like to avoid injuries. AL hurt himself during this “preseason game.” Go Hawks. All Dwight does is dunk and get put back. Boring!!!! He’ll never be Like Shaq!!!!
Ariose
October 26th, 2009
9:48 am
….darn..
Ariose
October 26th, 2009
9:49 am
Like I said, Just play man to man defense and Hack howard….Easy win.
bigdave
October 26th, 2009
9:55 am
i like the new digs…
Ariose
October 26th, 2009
9:55 am
Dwight didn’t look much Bigger than AL in the game tho….He’s only 6′11. Just Hyper Athletic…
Daniel
October 26th, 2009
10:05 am
Ill- It was a bad weekend for us. I didn’t even win the tickets, but we gotta move on. Both teams are improving and the Hawks loss did not count. All will be forgotten with a couple of big wins this weekend.
Daniel
October 26th, 2009
10:08 am
I am not a fan of the alternate jersey. I like the colors, just the oversize ATL looks stupid. It looks like they are trying to be hip, but are about 4 years too late for the whole ATL, vibe. The same lettering with HAWKS, would be cooler.
G-Dot
October 26th, 2009
10:08 am
Joe “The Beast” Smith put it down on that track. Can’t wait to hear his Hawks version.
Sekou Smith
October 26th, 2009
10:09 am
I’m sick you didn’t win Daniel. Worst news I’ve had since Penn State destroyed my Wolverines Saturday evening. Plan B?
Daniel
October 26th, 2009
10:13 am
I will say that the Orlando loss is exactly the kind of loss that the Hawks cannot afford this year. We had so many blowout losses last year for a team that had a winning record; it was unnerving. I expect a few more wins this season (5-7), but I really expect a significant drop in blow out losses!!!!!
Daniel
October 26th, 2009
10:15 am
Appreciate that Sekou, I did get tickets to three games. I guess I will pick up a couple more here and there. My wife even offered to forgo Christmas to buy some season tickets, but I can’t be that selfish. So it is what it is. I really was disappointed because I had suggested several times that we just split the tickets no matter who won, and I would have. But, the other dude just ran out the door.
O'Brien
October 26th, 2009
10:27 am
Sekou,
I agree. Start Jamal at the point, and then when Teague comes in, Jamal can give JJ a breather.
Why is it that so many of us can see that the Hawks need to run more, but Woody can’t? And in 5 years, where are his in game adjustments?
Blindog
October 26th, 2009
10:32 am
It will be the same as it ever was with Woodson still here.Vagas gives the Hawks no respect for that very reason. plane and simple!
Mike is back
October 26th, 2009
10:35 am
Sekou that was a hooooot track. Can’t wait to hear the Hawks version. It was cool to hear the observers ditto the same comments I made on about the blow loss to Orlando on the previous blog.
I also stated it is on Woodson this season…I can understand him not wanting to reveal his new strategy to a division rival…I hope that was the case…however I didn’t see the game…but the sound bite about the offense still sounds the same as last season and that is a concern for me.
Stevie Wonder can see that you can’t run plays for Al against DHoward strait up going to the hole…this guys has terrorize guys 6’11’ thru 7’4” , AL is 6’10”, ”CMON MAN” the picture in the blog says it all. DW is a beast…that’s a bad matchup for AL…you got a run some back screen from the opposite and some misdirection to give guys like AL and Josh a chance to use their and athleticism and quickness on guys like DW…other that they are going to struggle against the elite Bigs in the league. The sentiment about the Hawks remains the same …WOODY GOT TO RELEASE THE HOOOOOOOOOUNDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Khao$
October 26th, 2009
10:38 am
I agree with you Sekou. The Hawks should be running guys up and down the court. That is clearly their strength. The personel, as currently constructed, is built for that type of game. That isn’t to say we shouldn’t have a half court game. However, our staple should be running and gunning.
**That said…how do you explain us not fully embracing a running offense?** Is it the players not being in the best condition to play this frantic style of play or do you think Woody is reluctant?
Daniel
October 26th, 2009
10:46 am
Mike- I like the idea that Woody didn’t want to show his hand and just run a vanilla set. I had not really thought about that, but I am not sure I believe it either. I hope you are right. The Hawks just looked flat and scared to be honest. Looks like they gave up.
Westurd
October 26th, 2009
10:46 am
Two days until tip off……….ATL Throwing it DOWN!
vava74
October 26th, 2009
11:11 am
Why don’t we keep the tar and feathers on hold for a little while before we run Woody out of town?
Right now ATL is 0-0 and so is ORL.
We had a very bad game and a lot of last year’s mistakes re-emerged but we were playing back to back games, after a comfortable win on the road against MIA and against a an ORL team which clearly wanted to show us something.
This was a clear case of ORL showing their best against ATL showing its worse. Let’s wait and see who is favored by the average.
Ultimately there is limit to what a coach can instill a team to do. Don’t get me wrong but I will again raise the example extracted from the media day when Josh simply questioned the play Woody designed: we don’t know how undisciplined the players behaved after the win against Miami, if they sticked to plan or not, etc… It looks like JJ said that he was disappointed with team’s performance which seems a pretty obvious acknowledgement that they (including himself) did not execute what they were supposed to.
And Samuel, Vince’s game was a fluke (as was Anderson’s who even got blocked against twice): everyone plays him soft and he usually goes 2/8 from downtown.
His accomplishments have been always below what his potential allowed him to achieve.
Sautee
October 26th, 2009
11:21 am
Sekou,
Right on the money regarding the Hawks “need for speed”.
Why are we NOT USING our best asset?
I fervently hope that you will beat that drum LOUDLY if we ignore the running game!!!
Mz. Hawkdafied
October 26th, 2009
11:42 am
The red jersey is very vibrant in contrast to the blue depressing road jersey. Or perhaps the blue one depresses me because it reminds me of 30-40pt blowouts. Kinda disappointing to know the team will still be sporting the blue jersey most of the time. I’d prefer the red.
Al Horford and Bibby injured? You gotta be kidding me. Talking about adding insult to injury. Over 30 pt blowout and injuries to two of your starters. OH LORD, SMH :-/
GeeMack
October 26th, 2009
12:15 pm
Daniel
I was listening to the radio Friday when they anounced the winner. Better luck next time homie.
The injuries are another excuse the Hawks will use for not getting off to a good start. The same excuses we used last year for not competing in the playoffs against Clevland, eventhough we spent the off season addressing our depth.
Daniel
October 26th, 2009
12:20 pm
Appreciate that Gee!
Mz. Hawkdafied- I hadn’t thought about that with the Blue uni’s but I totally agree with your point. what about the big ATL though?
cdog
October 26th, 2009
12:46 pm
sekou ,is there any chance of bringing back siller and west?
tiger woo
October 26th, 2009
12:48 pm
I was hoping the Hawks broke their habit of falling way behind early in games – happened too often last year.
Wouldn’t worry too much about this game – the Hawks simply didn’t shoot well enough to compete with a loaded (re-loaded) Orlando squad.
Mike is back
October 26th, 2009
12:53 pm
Daniel, I hear ya bro…I try to start each season off with a fresh perspective. Orlando is going to be a tough customer as long as they got DHoward. Lest hope that the Hawks gleaned something from this beat down they can use to attack Orlando when real game rolls around. lol
Personally, I can go with either color on the uni as long as we are getting Ws…The red uni does seem like a nice change of pace…that ATL is hard.
Sekou, with the injury to AL…I wonder if there have been some overtures to Siler or another Big…in cast we take hit on our thin front-line?????
JSS
October 26th, 2009
1:12 pm
Folks, put Friday night in the mirror or we will be in for a world of hurt on Wednesday night!
Sekou, you should have been kinder to my Eagles (Hurons); Joe PA may have taken pity on ya… Dang, Lloyd Carr is not looking so bad now is he?
vava74
October 26th, 2009
1:21 pm
After experiencing a blow out loss like this in which – apparently as reported by who watched the game – we felt a “talent gap” and a defensive inability to stop both ORL’s perimeter shooting and inside game, how can anyone suggest, as I saw on the previous blog and here today:
1. Trading JJ for K. Martin (injury prone, zero defense) and Nocioni (another undersized PF with no post game);
2. Trading JJ for Stephen Jackson, a chronic malcontent, who would bring zero defense and who is an offensive black-hole AND Turiaf, an undersized C, a personal foul machine with no hops (I challenge anyone to prove that he jumps any higher than Zaza).
3. Bring back Siler and West: one extremely raw big body and the other a limited utility man as if these guys would change the outlook of our game!!!! Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t mind like them both as 14th and 15th players.
Let’s keep our heads cool!!!
Monitoring the voice of ignorance
October 26th, 2009
1:29 pm
Crawford nor Teague have yet to play a regular season game for the Hawks. Whats the Emotional and irrational diarria about using our assest of speed? Run and Gun gets you to the play offs…maybe, but a half court offense is what take you deep into the playoff. You need an low post offensive scorer to have a legitimate half court offense, something that the hawks lack.
The reality is the Hawks dont have enough talent to compete with the big three. They have one second tier allstar in Joe Johnson ,potential in smoove/marvin and a good player in crawford. Other than that the hawks are slightly less than average.
Quit whinning. this is a decent team not a championship team. Wake up whiners.
I MUS WRITE
October 26th, 2009
1:38 pm
Come on….. I for one could care less about Joe Smith’s rap lyrics or his record label that no one has ever heard of. I more concerned about his game` is he ready to step in behind Smoove and make a contribution. If Al is out im cool with ZAZA starting. Thats why we signed these guys -Im not sure that Crawford wouldnt be a better fit starting anyway so…
Ariose -Dwight and Al might look the same size but its no contest, Dwight just man handled Horford and got anywhere he wanted in th post,but he does that to everybody except the lakers/Shaq
Al is a hard worker but he will get his lunch ate against most teams with big strong front lines-Orl,La,Cleveland….. I think we are stuck in the 4th/5th sedd for the next cupl years -You cant win at a high clip when ur C and PF are 6′9 and 6′8. Shaq is sumwhere lick his chops .
Daniel- I can live with the Orlando loss but we cant afford to lose to teams like NJ on back to back games like last year. We have to win winnable games develope an identity and possibly shake the lineup up a little.
Wednesday will be intrestin… Indiana is a solid team…Hibbert much improved big,Murphy-all he does is shoot 3’s and avg 12 boards a gam,Granger maybe better than our so called Allstar,Rush/Ford are solid.
Solo is gonna take sumbody out just because. Good measuring stick for us…we shall see
Bad weekend for the ATL sports fan- hawks and Falcons go down crashing back to earth….Well atleast tech won and are now sitting on topp of the ACC.
Daniel
October 26th, 2009
1:42 pm
WOW, Monitoring etc.– Thanks for that assesment. I really appreciate that in depth insight and critique of the team. I had no idea that I was “asleep” to be concerned about how my team plays or hope/expect them to get better. Thank you for your reminder that we need to accept mediocrity or become a bunch of whiners. Clearly, the fans here have a bunch of unreasonable expectations… I guess we should reserve passion or fandom until we get a superstar. Do you mind telling us when we can appropriately support our team?
Daniel
October 26th, 2009
1:46 pm
IMUS- Word on the Joe Smith comments.
Danny Granger is NOT better than Joe. I will stand behind that one.
True, thank goodness for GT, otherwise we would have had a major downer of a weekend. I kinda of did anyway, but I had a lot of fun playing with my daughter, which is what is really important anyway.
terrell barron
October 26th, 2009
1:46 pm
So what if Al is a little nicked up. It’s not like Woody he’s going to get a lot of touches in Woody’s so called offense. Just plug Collins or Zaza in there and move on. If we cant beat Indiana at home, just because Horford is out, we’re not going anywhere anyway.
terrell barron
October 26th, 2009
1:47 pm
“It’s not like he’s going to get a lot of touches”
JeJe
October 26th, 2009
1:51 pm
THIS TEAM HAS NO REBOUNDING, DOES NOT CRASH THE GLASS, SCORES NO EASY BASKETS, HAS NO SHOTBLOCKING, AND NO IDENTITY
SOMEONE PLEASE PROVE ME WRONG.
The Truth
October 26th, 2009
2:10 pm
JJ publicly saying that he is disappointed with the team’s performance is disturbing to me. There are subliminal messages in his statement that suggests he is growing frustrated and is ready to move on. As he used words like “It’s discouraging. Sometimes, you never know what you’re going to get from this team. And that won’t work.” For your leader to feel this way, is he already throwing the team under a bus before the season starts? Is this a CYA move to keep his quest for elite status alive and untarnished? I hope not. Even though he may speak the truth, shouldn’t that type of discussion be made unpublicized? When JJ starts airing dirty laundry, not only will the team be exposed but he will as well.
As I reflect again on the blow-out lose to Orlando via my DVR, I noticed the stagnated Hawks offense was punctuated by the excessive amount of ISO plays ran for JJ. It was apparent that over 50% of the Hawk’s offense was basically a 2-man game between Mike Bibby and Joe Johnson. As the ball is passed to JJ mostly in the corners, he is either getting trapped causing turn-overs or he takes bad shots. When JJ is successful passing out of double or triple-team back to Bibby who is wide-open, he also miss too many shots. If both of these guys start out flat this way and that becomes 50% of the 1st quart offense, then it’s automatic that the Hawks will start behind if the opponent starts out hot as Orlando did. The Hawks offense gets stalled this way and also because there is no movement without the ball by the players. They may occasionally pass the ball around but they are just standing and don’t move around. When that happens, the defenders can begin to cheat and gamble with their man to setup traps and steals. Orlando did this all night long. So as JJ and Bibby goes, the Hawk team goes.
So if JJ is disappointed with anyone, he needs to look himself in the mirror because he is mostly the offense (by design). Everyone else on this team just supports him. If we are inconsistent, it is because of him. If we lay an egg on national TV it is because of him. If we self-destruct in big games, it is because of him. So goes JJ, so goes the Hawks. The opponents know that as that is the reason he is always double and/or triple team. To beat the Hawks, you just need to beat JJ.
It is very hypocritical of JJ to publicly make these comments when he is the majority of the offense when the game is on the line. So as JJ ponders whether he is an elite player, maybe the answer to that question will soon be revealed if not already.
Harry Hawk
October 26th, 2009
2:25 pm
The Falcons’ D isn’t good enough to hold up very well in the bright lights. I think the Falcons are in decent shape, but the offense has to be a lot better. They have to be able to put a lot of points up. That just hasn’t happened this year. If something doesn’t change, they’ll probably be an 8-8 or 9-7 team. I’d take 9-7 even with a missed postseason because it would get rid of the ol’ “no back-to-back winning seasons” thing, but this team is capable of doing more than that.
As far as the Hawks are concerned, is this team really all that great? No. We also know that we don’t have a very good head coach. I can’t see the Hawks cracking the top three in the East. I also can’t see them getting past the second round. It’s almost like we’re witnessing the 1990s all over again. This particular team is just more interesting than the Smitty-Mookie-Deke teams.
Willie Coyote
October 26th, 2009
2:30 pm
I like the red alternates. I was the happiest of all when they changed the uniforms a couple of years ago because those things they wore during the 13-win season were horrible and should have been burned. I do wish they had kept the old color scheme though (red-yellow-black).
I can’t wait for Wednesday. Lets get the taste of that debacle in Orlando out of our mouthes and start off strong.
bigdave
October 26th, 2009
3:03 pm
hey, “The Truth”…
how much of that blame are you given to the head coach for a poorest design of an offense…
the best players to ever play the game have never been asked of such…
bigdave
October 26th, 2009
3:04 pm
* “have you given”
Daniel
October 26th, 2009
3:08 pm
The Truth- I cannot disagree with any of your statements on their face value. I do think it is a little early to be that harsh. You may be right, but I hope you are wrong.
cp
October 26th, 2009
3:08 pm
The offense still looks as terrible as it has under Woodson from day 1. Still no adjustments.. Joe still cant pass out of a double team. We still switch on defense although the good teams just force us into a match-up that benefits them. What has Woodson been working on as a coach this whole summer? And please no Nique in the booth this year. I cant take another year of heat check.
The Truth
October 26th, 2009
3:10 pm
bigdave
Plenty; I can only shot one at a time. When JJ opens his mouth that way, then naturally, he gets the first round of bullets.
The Truth
October 26th, 2009
3:19 pm
Daniel
Sometimes The Truth “hurts”. As always, though, my comments are meant for constructive purposes only. I have no agenda.
O'Brien
October 26th, 2009
3:23 pm
The only reason JJ is our captain and so called leader is because since he’s been here, he’s been our best player. However, he only leads by example, and it seems to me that the only time he opens his mouth is when he talks to the media.
Obviously, I could be wrong because I am not privy to the locker room conversations. But when JJ is on the court, he doesnt get on the refs, and he doesnt get on his teamates. I want a leader who will speak up on the court, during timeouts etc. Get on your teamates when they’re making simple mistakes, fire up the team when they’re lacking energy etc.
All JJ does is walk to the huddle, and walkback to the court. No comments, no nothing. And thats the reason why publications are always saying the Hawks dont have a leader. (Although the acquisition of Bibby has helped in that regard).
In time, I think Big Al will be our captain. And he will be a much better leader than JJ.
The Truth
October 26th, 2009
3:28 pm
O’Brien
Good point
bigdave
October 26th, 2009
3:55 pm
“The Truth”…
well get you an AK or AR cause if you were gonna hit JJ who’s done nothing but loose years of his pro basketball career by trying carry out curing world hunger, fixing the current state of the economy, and play assist-man/scorer under Woody’s regime than the orchestrator of his current duties should’ve been sprayed as well…
bigdave
October 26th, 2009
3:56 pm
*”trying to carry out”
theZaZaguy
October 26th, 2009
3:58 pm
I wonder if it’s possible for Big Al to get well…bigger. He got pushed around way too much by Dwight. Dwight outweighs Al by 20 pounds, if he could gain just 10-15 pounds more without sacrificing mobility, maybe he could hold his ground and at least slow Dwight down.
theZaZaguy
October 26th, 2009
3:58 pm
I wonder if it’s possible for Big Al to get well…bigger. He got pushed around way too much by Dwight. Dwight outweighs Al by 20 pounds, if he could gain just 10-15 pounds more without sacrificing mobility, maybe he could hold his ground and at least slow Dwight down.
TheHawksFan
October 26th, 2009
4:04 pm
The Hawks didnt take too many 40 points ass whoopings when Mario was here. Coach Woodson is no fool. Like he said ” Mario did some good things for us”. The Hawks had a open deal with him. The Hawks dont want to pay 1 mil to guy that will earn EVERY single cent, but will pay 6 mil for 3 years to a guy that doesnt even play. WTF??? Yeah there is trouble on the way.
KevinA
October 26th, 2009
4:05 pm
On our way to 50-54 wins our improvement will show in the form of wins from teams that are not as good or close to our skill level. Orlando is clearly better. So are Boston and Cleveland.
Here are a few teams we can do better against and improve from last years win total. Nets, Pacers, Bucks, 76ers, Clippers, Bobcats, Grizzlies.
Here are a few teams we almost always lost to but are now within reach. Rockets, Suns, Jazz, Hornets,
All of these teams represent losses or multiple losses last year. We don’t have to beat the best teams to improve our record. As we win these games maybe we will close the gap on the best. Optimism gets burn in this house.
cp
October 26th, 2009
4:16 pm
So we didn’t take many 40 point beat downs because we had Mario? Is this even a serious response? lolllllll. Hmm I recall being man handled in the playoffs with Mario sitting on the bench. I also remember when Orlando was being us by 50 points last season at one point with Mario out there so please explain to me how Mario made this defense oh so much better.
Daniel
October 26th, 2009
4:23 pm
Word up! Kevin A
ufo
October 26th, 2009
4:32 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94xAkiWcUBQ
yeah!!!!
ufo
October 26th, 2009
4:34 pm
Thats me on the video.
ILL-logical
October 26th, 2009
4:37 pm
Finally saw the article regarding Joe’s “dissatisfaction” with the direction of the team and one of the more interesting tidbits was that the Hawks originated as the Buffalo Bison-I did not know that!
Anywho, it sounded as if Joe’s decision to turn down the team’s offer this summer may be rooted in more than market economics. What I read into the piece was that (1)he is not sure about the whether or not the franchise is willing to bring in the players to compete(see his quest for A’mare this summer) and (2) it sounds to me if he has some doubts about his coach as well.
Whatever Joe’s reasoning behind the comments attributed to him in the article,after reading it, I don’t feel all that confident that Joe will be wearing a Hawk’s uni next year.
Dick D. Byggest
October 26th, 2009
4:45 pm
There’s not much difference in Zaza and Horford, Horford is a little better defender, but both are scrubbs in the grand scheme of things. There is no offense between them. Both collect garbage and put backs. So what are we missing. The Hawks are going no where. They have 1 second tier all star and that’s it. Crawford can play and so can Josh but the rest are either on their last leg, unproven or another teams rejects. All of the publications pick this team from 4-8. On paper they are correct. This has been a team of over-achievers but this team now may be weaker than last years team. JJ may not even resign if Woodson is not going to be here. This team may be on its way down!
Lou Dobbs
October 26th, 2009
4:46 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITntOLfAuEc
and that why I hate mexicans.
F_ck Sund
October 26th, 2009
4:50 pm
Dick D. Byggest Id have to agree with you. There just isn’t enough talent here to go very far. May be we can trade Horford for something. Bosh for Horford to give us a low post scoring threat. That will open up the offense and allow it to be fluid.
La Raza
October 26th, 2009
4:51 pm
Why the Mexican Race is the only race that matters. LA Raza- The race. Viva Mexico
Hawks Fan In New Orleans
October 26th, 2009
4:53 pm
Truth -
I agree with you on JJ. You should never be brutally honest with the media where your team is concerned – I mean, it was a preseason game. I hope I’m wrong – but this could be a precursor to him divorcing himself from the team. Elite player’s don’t complain to the press about his team (refs maybe), they MAN UP and hustle harder. Elite players don’t fold up when teams are pounding them – they turn it up in response and get their teammates involved (not throw them under the bus – esp. when said star didn’t play so hot himself.)
Let’s hope these early injuries are not an indication of a injury=plagued season!
Now!!! On the man who boasted about every game being important and his team coming to play after the Heat victory…
It was just a preseason game and all, but that Magic game was indicative of Woody coaching prowess throughout the duration of his tenure as Hawks HC – no response when we get punched in the mouth by elite conference foes. We roll with the same stale iso plays – no ball movements. There is a disgusting lack of adjustments after half-time and the lack of hustle in the third quarter. An offensive coordinator and a MOTIVATOR are in order. Let’s hope we are not saying these things come December.
Go Hawks, Jeah!!!
The Dept. of Unintended irony
October 26th, 2009
4:54 pm
Should we be surprised that “Monitoring the voice of ignorance” would misspell the word “whining”?
Maybe that should be Mentoring The Voice Of Ignorance.
Either way it’s the unintended irony we have all come to love on this blog.
The Truth
October 26th, 2009
4:55 pm
bigdave
Agreed; I’ll get him next. Just waiting on him to open his mouth, say something stupid and then I will pounce. It would otherwise be OK for JJ to openly and publicly criticize his team for underachieving since players like D Wade and even MJ have done it in the past, but the difference is their individual performances are rarely questioned. We can’t say the same about JJ. For some unknown reason, JJ has more of a tendency not to show-up during primetime when the outcome really matters. Yes, the coach play-schemes have something to do with that but also player execution as well. For example, I think it is the player responsibility to knock-down open jumpers or make free-throws or pass-out of double teams or avoid turn-overs, etc. Woody can point things out but he can’t make them execute. However, to JJ’s credit, compared to the Hawks of the past before JJ, any success is better then none at all. We have to thank JJ for getting us get to this point. But we have to continue to raise our standards, we can’t continue to play and look mediocre because of our history. If that were the case, we would just be stuck where we are.
La Raza
October 26th, 2009
4:55 pm
We Mexicans are better than any other race. Thats why we bring the mexican flag every where we go. F_ _ _ k America and Lou Dobbs,
http://www.mayorno.com/WhoIsMecha.html
Monitoring the voice of ignorance”
October 26th, 2009
4:56 pm
The Dept. of Unintended irony…..Quit whining”
swatguy
October 26th, 2009
4:58 pm
O’Brien, I believe only captains can pull refs aside and discuss issues. I’ve never seen Joe do that. Heck I’m waiting to see him dive for a loose ball too.
Well, you cannot make leaders, they are born.
Bibby is the captain.
Hawks Fan In New Orleans
October 26th, 2009
4:59 pm
La Raza can go eat a chalupa and kick rocks!
Sekou Smith
October 26th, 2009
5:10 pm
Both Bibby and Al Horford are expected to be good to go for the Pacers. Bibby was on the practice floor today (shooting lights out, by the way) and Al got treatment and just rested to make sure he gets all he can before the game.
Marvin’s (inadvertent?) dunk on Woody in practice today at the end of a drill was beyond hilarious. I’m still laughing hours later.
I’ve heard nothing about the Hawks making any overtures to any other bigs floating around in the ether. Expect them to go with this 13-man group from now until something drastic happens (which I don’t see on the horizon).
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
5:14 pm
I want to know if the guy with the name La Raza is really a mexican or a white guy trying to make mexicans look bad, i think your a white guy.
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
5:20 pm
What dumb ass would say F_ _ k America.
I`m mexican and I love this country, I just hate racist white people. example Lou Dobbs.
Who ever said F _ _ k America need a smack.
doc
October 26th, 2009
5:22 pm
truth i said often last year it is hard for jj to be the man when things go wrong. rarely if ever does he say it is on me because the offense is run through me, i am disappointed with the way i am performing blah blah blah. would like to see him plat like a team player but accept criticism as a leader if he is going to be our star.
Sautee
October 26th, 2009
5:23 pm
Want to know the BIG difference between Horford and Zaza?
Blocked shots per game.
Zaza: 0.34
Al: 1.42
It’s either a myth or somebody’s spinnin’ to say the Hawks have no defense in the paint. Between Al and Josh they block 3.03 per game (last year).
That’s better than the starting 4 / 5 combos on MOST teams. The only one I could find better was Noah and Thomas (3.29).
I don’t deny that our SEEMING lack of post defense bothers me at times, but the numbers don’t back up that perception. And I’m cognizant that blocked shots are only a PART of post defense.
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
5:23 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Am67-Sew7k
The ghost of Michael Jackson
The Truth
October 26th, 2009
5:23 pm
Sekou
How can Marvin inadvertently dunk on Woody? A dunk is a very deliberate action. You don’t accidentally do this on someone. That’s like saying your boss inadvertently fired you.
The Truth
October 26th, 2009
5:25 pm
doc
Totally agree
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
5:26 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqKvSxmUoVQ
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
5:28 pm
Lou Dobbs what a joke.
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
5:30 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqKvSxmUoVQ
I can see you guys at 2:13 in this video.
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
5:32 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9endvlpBny4&feature=related
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
5:36 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEe18ECiQh4&feature=related
LOU DOBBS VS RICK SANCHEZ
RICK NEEDS TO SMACK LOU.
bigdave
October 26th, 2009
5:44 pm
Satuee…
another example of the numbers lying… because we block a few shots a game does not mean that we are defending the post well… they get tried enough, the ought to block something… what bothers me is the uncontested drives to the basket… when a 1.. 2… or 3 just parades to the lane with no fear. i think we do a decent job out of isolation’s in the post because the arm length and jumping ability (particularly Josh when he’s defending the post) forces the opponent to change a shot release, angle, or trajectory to avoid the block. for example we had Boston (at Phillips) scared throwing up wild shots at the basket in that 7 game series trying to avoid a big momentum block…
Idiot check
October 26th, 2009
5:50 pm
Al plays about three times more minutes a game than zaza. I do agree however that there is very little difference between all and horford.
Can somebody explan why this sport blog is being used to promote the mexican race rather than deal with basketball?
Idiot check
October 26th, 2009
5:53 pm
God love white people and black people too. Can we talk about the Hawks?
.......
October 26th, 2009
5:57 pm
What kind of Message does Jamal starting at point in place of Bibby send to Jeff Teague our BACKUP POINT GUARD BTW. Why we pullin’ rank on Teague like that? Thats the same thing we did to Acie. Jamal is NOT our backup point guard! Now if Joe gets injured than Jamal can start at SG SINCE HE IS THE BACKUP SG……were never gonna develop any more youngters if we keep this nonsense up…Let the kid get his feet wet. It’s just the Pacers. T.J Ford can’t shoot a lick just like Teague and I highly doubt Jamal can stay in front of T.J Ford for any significant amount of time….too fast….That’s Teague’s department That’s why we call him J-Quick
Anyway, it seems as though Bibby is a go so it’s not even an issue anymore.
Dick D. Byggest
October 26th, 2009
6:04 pm
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
5:20 pm
I`m mexican and I love this country, I just hate racist white people
Why am I not surprise that you are Mexican and a racist at that! Im not really interested in your race or your racial political make up. Who cares? You are more racist than Rick Sanchez. Take your racial discussion some where else. This is a hawks sports blog sight. Call Mr Sanchez if you want to discussion Mexican racism or as you say La raza the race.
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
6:08 pm
How is Rick Sanchez racist?
Do you mean Lou Dobbs, but forget it, talk about the hawks.
Sautee
October 26th, 2009
6:13 pm
“He’s going to be fine,” Woodson said of Horford. “Honestly, I just don’t ever concern myself with Al because he’s always been so much more advanced than your average rookie. Defending and rebounding, he does it all. Offensively he has to get a little better, but that’s where we come in as coaches. We have to help make that happen.”
So bigdave, have the coaches failed to help Al enough on offense? That’s exactly what Woody seems to be saying.
He ALSO said “defending and rebounding, he does it all”. Sounds like Woody LOVES his young, playing-out-of-position Center. Odd. Seems like those who defend Woody to the teeth (not you) would believe in the judgement of their idol.
And BTW, you DID see my caveat that blocked shots were only a PART of post D, didn’t you?
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
6:25 pm
http://bastadobbs.com/
YEAH!!!!!!!
Sautee
October 26th, 2009
6:25 pm
Fact check: “Al plays about three times more minutes a game than zaza. I do agree however that there is very little difference between all and horford.”
The facts say:
Al: 33.5 min / gm
Zaza: 19.1 min / gm
Not even twice as much. Much less THREE times as much. Nice try.
Hyperbole alert!!!!!!!
Idiot check
October 26th, 2009
6:29 pm
Al is about as good as he is going to get. He doesnt have an offensive game and is mediocre as a defender. He plays against other power forwards who play center out of default and he puts up mediocre numbers against them. So that tells me that he is a mediocre player.
At the end of the day if Al wanted to develop an offensive game(if he could),he is responsible for it himself. All the good players and put in the time after the game to get better. A coaches job is to teach you how to play the game and run his plays. Its your job to develop yourself. Your mother doesn’t live here. Man up and stop blaming the coach because john cant play!.
.......
October 26th, 2009
6:31 pm
Blowout Not Blown Off: Micah Heart W/Player quotes (Teague…hint, hint)
http://www.hawksbasketblog.com/2009/10/26/blowout-not-blown-off/
Sautee
October 26th, 2009
6:40 pm
Did you see me blaming the coach? No, you saw me quoting Woodson. And wondering what the quote meant.
If Al is good enough on D that Woodson says “Defending and rebounding, he does it all. ” then why are you, who defends Woodsons’ every move, DOUBTING YOUR IDOL?
Are you saying that Horford is a mediocre defender and Woodson is lying to all of us?
Woodson, not me, says “Offensively he has to get a little better, but that’s where we come in as coaches. We have to help make that happen.”
That’s Woody talking. Are you saying he’s WRONG?
You say “At the end of the day if Al wanted to develop an offensive game(if he could),he is responsible for it himself.”
Are you DOUBTING WOODY?
bigdave
October 26th, 2009
6:43 pm
Sautee yes.
the coaches have failed everyone on this roster. ive felt that way since Woodson got “star struck” after Joe’s game 4 v. Leprechaun’s performance. instead of treating that game like a pro coach saying okay… i have a guy that can pull performances like that out when need be, he tried design an offense where its to be duplicated every single play night end and out…. thats a shame. Al Horford plays like a guard in the post. yes he has been mis-managed. he was a bull at Fla. now he comes into the league where he needs a bit more skill and he is taught to size up and jab step? boy.. he has never scored off those moves. nobody falls for those slow jabs, and fakes. Al is at his best when he gets the ball and goes quick. i tell you Saut, ive never been more disgusted with Woody and his inability to game plan. he does the same thing night end and out regardless of opponent. as if we are just that dominant of a team to just force our will or something. it sucks. our defense by design sucks. our offense by design sucks. our personnel is not that bad. its just not formatted for our system. its like putting a phillips head to a flat head base. to be honest i have no earthly idea as to how we have progressed to where we are now given our coaches defiance to counter and to game plan. i think its simply growth and cohesiveness, while the league changes and moves dont pan out how positively the Hawks remained cohesive. its time for a COACHING CHANGE!!!!
Idiot check
October 26th, 2009
6:45 pm
No, Im saying , Woody says one thing to the press and another thing in the locker room and another thing to the gm and another thing to Horford. How classy of Woody to take the heat for Al’s lack of talent. Great leadership to keep the heat off your players and put it on yourself. Thats coaching.with leadership.
As for your argument about minutes between al and zaza… they are both scrubbs so what does it matter?
bigdave
October 26th, 2009
6:50 pm
yea idiot check,
i blame the coaching… what are they advising Al to work on during the summer to better help the Atlanta Hawks… damn Al Horford … how can Al get better for the sake of the Atlanta Hawks and “what we do”? they advised Marvin to expand his shooting range. he did it… and guess what, it helped the Atlanta Hawks to some degree last year. my question is, what are they advising Al to do? what, just hit the weight room? seems like it… ive seen no growth in his offensive game from. if Woody say’s, yea “we as coaches have to… blahzay… blahzay” then its admission. it is what it is. cause if its not then simply our players arent put in the best positions to excel. period. at that point its STILL a coaching problem.
Sautee
October 26th, 2009
6:57 pm
IC,
You said:
“No, Im saying , Woody says one thing to the press and another thing in the locker room and another thing to the gm and another thing to Horford. How classy of Woody to take the heat for Al’s lack of talent. Great leadership to keep the heat off your players and put it on yourself. Thats coaching.with leadership.”
Either you are saying Woody is lying to us about Horford’s defense or your contention that Horford is a mediocre defender is flat wrong. You just can’t make that work out both ways no matter how hard you try to spin it as “great leadership”. LOL!
How classy of Woody to be disingenuous to his boss, his team, the press and the fans. Boy, THAT’S quite a spin!
“As for your argument about minutes between al and zaza… they are both scrubbs so what does it matter?”
As I recall I was YOU who brought that up in error. I guess it mattered to you enough to mention it.
Idiot check
October 26th, 2009
7:02 pm
I thought it was quite clear to Al that he needed to work on his offense during the off season. I knew that. Are you saying Al did not? How did he become a pro and the most NBA ready man in the draft if he doesn’t. know what he needs to work on. Are you saying that Al does understand what the coach is asking of him? Bottom line is if he could develop a offensive game he would have by now, but he cant. this is as good as he gets.
Idiot check
October 26th, 2009
7:07 pm
I feel u sautee. You feel woody is responsible for Al’s home work…Did you finish college? Did the professor do your work for you? I believe he did.
bigdave
October 26th, 2009
7:08 pm
pff.. ok…
ufø
October 26th, 2009
7:26 pm
Josh Smith is a pretty good SF & and Zaza is a good bench player everyone else sucks including JJ.
niremetal
October 26th, 2009
7:34 pm
Guess you didn’t get the memo about Josh playing less than 30 minutes at SF over the course of the entire last season. Funny that…
Al came back with a greatly improved midrange jumper. How is that not improving?
Sautee, I get the feeling this guy ain’t worth the trouble.
Jody
October 26th, 2009
7:38 pm
I wonder has anyone ever considered that some of Horford’s injuries may be due to him playing out of position at the 5?
Big Ray
October 26th, 2009
8:21 pm
“No, Im saying , Woody says one thing to the press and another thing in the locker room and another thing to the gm and another thing to Horford. How classy of Woody to take the heat for Al’s lack of talent. Great leadership to keep the heat off your players and put it on yourself. Thats coaching.with leadership. ”
No, that’s NOT coaching with leadership. It’s lying. If Woody is saying one thing in the locker room, and something different to Horford (one of the players IN the locker room), then says something different to the GM, then he’s doing something other than being classy. If this is true (and I don’t believe it is), then you may as well change Mike Woodson’s name to Don Nelson, Sr.
If the intent is to exalt the coach and crucify the players all at once, I suggest another method altogether, because THAT quote above only makes Woody look like a villain.
Having said that, I believe that Sautee’s comment is both compelling and valid. Woody has said that he loves what Horford brings. Yet I find that one of Woody’s most ardent (and vehement) supporters has little more than disgust for Horford (don’t ask me to bother with quotes, too many different names are used to express a single person’s opinion, and 12 out of 13 of them will all deny the same thing, using the exact same words…go figure…).
If this person were a campaign booster, and Woody a politician, it would be like continuing to donate to his campaign to get elected, but voting against him in the polls….
Very strange, yet entertaining all the same.
Sautee
October 26th, 2009
8:22 pm
Jody,
Injuries can and do happen regardless of position. Truth-serum likes to talk about how Al got worn down last season. The trouble with that argument is that it ignores the fact that Horford was 3rd in the league among Centers (after Howard and Yao) with double-doubles AFTER the All-Star break. That’s not exactly “breaking down”.
It also doesn’t equate that Yao is the biggest Center in the league, with a HUGE size advantage over almost everyone, but it didn’t keep HIM from injury.
Big Ray
October 26th, 2009
8:30 pm
Jody ,
Maybe, maybe not. However, it’s as likely a factor as any.
O'Brien
October 26th, 2009
8:31 pm
Maybe JJ is thinking about going to Cleveland next year to play with LeBron (if the Cavs can afford him). Doesnt Shaq and big Z come off the books next year? (Although I dont know what the Cavs would do with Delonte West).
Maybe JJ realizes that he is much better off as Robin, rather than Batman. And lets face it. LeBron and JJ on the same team would be tough to defend.
Big Ray
October 26th, 2009
8:51 pm
The Truth ,
Interesting comments about JJ.
O’Brien ,
Despite how it may make me look to other Hawks fans (I can’t help that part, it’s a guaranteed misunderstanding), I have to hand it to you on your 3:23 post about JJ today. That was a good one, and I’m no JJ-basher, which I know you aren’t either. Wow. Bravo.
Big Ray
October 26th, 2009
8:57 pm
O’Brien,
Now you’re scaring me. But you could be right.
Jody
October 26th, 2009
8:58 pm
Sautee/Big Ray,
Good points. I’ve just always felt that Horford playing the 5 was not the best thing for him or the team due to his size and wondered if some of the injuries had anything to do with that. It’s clear the guy is a power forward and when I think back to the game last year against Chicago where he put up 27 points and 17 rebounds all at the 4 spot (where he man handled the opposition), I worry that is size and potential are being wasted playing the 5. Steve Smith always talked about how he felt Horford’s numbers and game would explode if he ever moved the 4 spot full time and Charles Barkley had similar thoughts. But hey, what do they know about basketball, right?
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
9:00 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnJVSbtLyL8
Yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sautee
October 26th, 2009
9:08 pm
bigdave,
Enjoyed your 6:43 reply. Lots that I agree with including this:
“Al is at his best when he gets the ball and goes quick.”
Exactly. I’m thinking of one play in particular when Al got the ball on the left block and IMMEDIATELY drove across the lane with Howard in his face and scored with a nice half hook. We need to see a LOT more of THAT. And that was in the face of the reigning Defensive Player of the Year.
“our offense by design sucks. our personnel is not that bad. its just not formatted for our system. its like putting a phillips head to a flat head base.”
All too true bigdave. I guess either way we’re screwed.
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
9:13 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8BsErFbBqE&feature=related
Josh Smith is the future OF the Hawks
& GIOVANNI DOS SANTOS is the future of the mexican national soccer team!
YEAH!!!!!!!
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
9:16 pm
BADASS PLAYER http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NPgUoagFbYg&feature=response_watch
Sautee
October 26th, 2009
9:27 pm
Idiot check
October 26th, 2009
7:07 pm
“I feel u sautee. You feel woody is responsible for Al’s home work…Did you finish college? Did the professor do your work for you? I believe he did.”
Don’t put words in my mouth. I never said that about Al. WOODY SAID IT!
And no, I wasn’t able to finish college as I dropped out to help feed the family when my dad got sick. Thanks for your personal attack. It figures. As soon as you get painted into a corner, you invariably come with the personal attacks.
It doesn’t change the fact that when it comes to Horford, you obviously disagree with Woody, while hating on OTHERS who disagree with him.
Whatever, man, whatever.
Big Ray
October 26th, 2009
9:32 pm
“It doesn’t change the fact that when it comes to Horford, you obviously disagree with Woody, while hating on OTHERS who disagree with him. ”
Hmmmm …..
??/////// = truth serum ran out of names
October 26th, 2009
9:34 pm
I hate to state the obvious
doc
October 26th, 2009
9:38 pm
jody, that may be horford’s high mark for his career. last year i stated just that to sautee right after it happened and he never approached those number again though his line mates josh and marvin went down for prolonged periods last year. that performance may have been the anomaly.
doc
October 26th, 2009
9:40 pm
richie, how do you stand it … the redskins, the wiz and the nats? thank goodness for the caps, eh? talk about loserville.
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
9:42 pm
Hell yeah I ran out of names since I have so many on this blog!!!
Jody
October 26th, 2009
9:46 pm
doc,
It may or may not be an anomaly. Until the Hawks get a real center (not necessarily a better player than Horford) as Hubie Brown suggested during the Orlando game, we may never know.
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
9:49 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrPx48ysn0I
What a great rivalry!!
98 bottles of beer on the wall.
October 26th, 2009
9:50 pm
You can call it what you want. When the press ask what do you think of so and so player, you say what is politically correct. When you boss ask you he gets your professional opinion. When a player asks you face to face then its between you and that player. The is a politically correct answer for the press, a professional opinion answer, and a, I care about you as a person answer. All three are the truth as they are being applied, politically, professionally and from a friend. Learn to distinguish the difference.
I hope you are having a nice day Ray and things are going well for you. Ive made my rounds today and was able to check in with my lap top in tow. I appreciate the start. But the bottom line is Horford is a mediocre player who should be a backup power forward. Further more as Ive said for over two seasons:
98 bottles of beer on the wall.
October 26th, 2009
9:50 pm
The Hawks need a center!
1
98 bottles of beer on the wall.
October 26th, 2009
9:51 pm
when your boss
niremetal
October 26th, 2009
9:53 pm
Further more as Ive said for over two seasons: [nothing]
That’s the most intelligent thing you’ve said for over two seasons.
rusty
October 26th, 2009
9:53 pm
the woodpecker hinders the whole team with his lousy attitude,his lousy
defense & offense schemes. joe doesnt have a clue how to play any different than iso joe. he is pissed off at all of the criticism he is getting & is is just frustrated.
??////////////
October 26th, 2009
9:58 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tFaJnhMj3To&feature=related
Now lets take the world cup
YEAH!!!!!!!!!!!!
Sautee
October 26th, 2009
9:59 pm
doc,
You MAY be right, and that’s the career high water mark. We obviously won’t know that for years. But here’s the thing…… in that game (which I recorded and have since watched) many if not most of Horfords points came when he beat his man to the paint, and we GOT HIM THE BALL.This is what I’ve been saying for the last two years. USE HIS SPEED. When he hustles down and has his man pinned deep, he needs the ball THEN, and not after his defender has set up. And that’s JUST what I saw against CHI that night. The big question is, why did we not learn something from that game?
Yes, he’s playing Center with a power forwards’ body. But he DOES have an advantage over most Centers that we fail to maximize.
Who me?
October 26th, 2009
10:00 pm
Jody
October 26th, 2009
8:58 pm
Good post. Yeah, he would be better playing his natural position. He may be to far along in his career to develop offensive ability, but he can be useful by picking up garbage rebounds and put backs. Reality is he is not going to suddenly develop sweet moves, take people off the dribble, form a deft three point shot or do acrobatics at the rim. He doesn’t have that kind of talent. There is a difference between talent and skill. Skill can be learned. talent is a natural gift. Josh has talent. Crawford has talent. Horford has skill, but is not a center.
Who me?
October 26th, 2009
10:02 pm
Please note the semi colon and the message that follows non mental.
Poot-Ommeter
October 26th, 2009
10:12 pm
I’m out for the night
Fellows, its be real… and its been nice….but it aint been real nice. I’m out guy shalom!
Sautee
October 26th, 2009
10:15 pm
Two quotes and everyone can decide for themselves what’s what:
From our multi-named blogger:
“.But the bottom line is Horford is a mediocre player who should be a backup power forward.”
From Coach Mike Woodson:
“He’s going to be fine,” Woodson said of Horford. “Honestly, I just don’t ever concern myself with Al because he’s always been so much more advanced than your average rookie. Defending and rebounding, he does it all. Offensively he has to get a little better, but that’s where we come in as coaches. We have to help make that happen.”
I tend to take our coach at his word. Enough said. Good night all.
Poot-Ommeter
October 26th, 2009
10:16 pm
In parting Ray. I agree with Woodson. He did an excellent job of handling a potential explosive question from the press and gave a politically correct answer. I also agree with the way he handles the closed door evaluations of the skill levels. I appreciate the trap but it get a -2 on the poot-om-meter!
Poot-Ommeter
October 26th, 2009
10:18 pm
Looks like we all agree, the coach did a good job! Have a good night!!!
Najeh Davenpoop
October 26th, 2009
11:56 pm
Love the alternate jerseys.
I would start Smith or Collins and continue to bring Zaza off the bench if Horford has to miss any time. I like Zaza’s presence off the bench, bringing energy and rebounding, better than what he provides as a starter, which too often results in bad shots and foul trouble.
SWAT Native
October 27th, 2009
12:16 am
I for one have been calling for an “ATL” jersey for a few years. I think they’ll sell a zillion of ‘em, even to non-Hawks fans. You’ll see them in rap videos very quickly. I already had the golf shirt, but I can’t wait to get an authentic jersey, and I love the fitted hats, too.
I can’t wait for opening night. I’ll be in the house.
Ken Strickland
October 27th, 2009
12:32 am
What disturbs me the most is 2 days before the season opener, when asked what he’s going to do if his starting center an PG can’t suit up, Woodson says he hasn’t thought about it, WOW! Now we know why he can’t seem to think or make adjustments during a gm.
This fool has more talent, depth, experience and versatility on his bench than at any time during his 5yrs as HC, and he still can’t think in terms of utilizing his bench. He’s still programmed to ignore the bench and push his starters whether they’re exhausted or injured. HOW CAN WE EXPECT HIM TO UTILIZE HIS BENCH UNDER NORMAL CIRCUMSTANCE WHEN HE CAN’T BRING HIMSELF TO EVEN THINK IN TERMS OF UTILIZING HIS BENCH WHEN FACED WITH LOSING 2 OF HIS STARTERS DUE TO INJURY?
And their are still people out there who believe he’s a good HC and actually has a clue.
richbrave
October 27th, 2009
12:41 am
Starters out at #’s 1 and 5 are a recipe for disaster. As a WIZARDS fan I should know.
richbrave
October 27th, 2009
12:43 am
Maybe he’s been told to zip it, KEN. Just a thought. No offense O.K.?
Ken Strickland
October 27th, 2009
1:06 am
And please stop with this undersized BS, please. The Pistons won back to back titles with 6′9″ BWallace and the Celtics also won titles with 6′9″ DCowens and 6′10″ KPerkins at center. If you need an excuse to justify our underachievement that badly, find something that doesn’t sound so stupid. The Suns, Spurs and Pistons have been among the winningest teams over the last decade, including NBA titles, but their starting linups are about the same size as ours. Compare their starting linups during their peak to our current starting lineup.
(1)PHOENIX SUNS C-AStaudamire 6′10″ 249lbs, PF-SMarion 6′7″ 228lbs, SF-RBell 6′5″ 215lbs, SG-LBarbosa 6′3″ 202lbs & PG-SNash 6′3″ 178lbs.
(2)DETROIT PISTONS C-RWallace 6′11″ 230lbs, PF-AMcDyess 6′9″ 245lbs, SF-TPrince 6′9″ 215lbs, SG-RHamilton 6′7″ 193lbs & PG-CBillups 6′3″210lbs.
(3)SAN ANTONIO SPURS C-TDuncan 6′11″ 260lbs, PF-MBonner 6′10″ 240lbs, SF-BBowens 6.7″ 200lbs, SG-MFinley 6′7″ 225lbs & PG-TParker 6′2″ 180lbs.
Compare these lineups with the Hawks starting lineup and then tell me how any of you can say we’re undersized.
ATLANTA HAWKS C-AHorford 6′10″ 245, PF-JSmith 6′9″ 240lbs, SF-MWilliams 6′9″ 240lbs, SG-JJohnson 6′7″ 240lbs & PG-MBibby 6′2″ 195lbs.
Our starting lineup is even comparable to the Orlando Magic’s, a team that went to last yrs finals and just whipped us like we stole something. Our problem isn’t with a lack of size. The other teams players operate within OFF/DEF systems that allow them to take full advantage of, and get maximum results from their talent. That’s definitely not the case with the Hawks.
KevinA
October 27th, 2009
1:58 am
Mercy, ya’ll al got the Hawks going down over one last preseson game. Fact is we may be young but we will get tougher as time goes by. It may be next year or the next but the Hawks improvement is real. Trust me this year the gains will make you ok. And then it will just get better. yall talking pu-ssy talk . Man up and support your team. No need for big changes, time will tell.
Clyde
October 27th, 2009
3:53 am
All this stuff yall are saying I said three years ago.
Roll Tide!!!!!!!!!
vava74
October 27th, 2009
4:02 am
Realty Check:
SE Division Standings:
ATL 0-0
ORL 0-0
vava74
October 27th, 2009
4:02 am
Get a grip!
vava74
October 27th, 2009
4:02 am
Wait at least 15 games before passing judgment on the new season!
I MUS WRITE
October 27th, 2009
4:03 am
Live from the Patty Melt Play Pin!!! Rufus Brown and Jessie Mae Turner will be performing their Greatest Gospel Hits….Songs such as The Old rugged cross,He left me,Down by the river,and a special gospel rendition of the Jimi Hendrix classic “Hey Joe”. Advanced tickets 3.50 and 5.00 at the door
Special Guest; Cattfish Wilson The One Man Band
vava74
October 27th, 2009
4:04 am
Relax: if Woody does not pull it together, he will be out before Christmas.
Right now the team needs support, not hysteric fans. It was just one pre-season game.
Monitoring the voice of ignorance
October 27th, 2009
8:27 am
The Hawks have only a second tier allstar in Joe Johnson and a bunch of rejects from other teams, an unproven rookie and a few vets on their last legs. For the last four years this team has been overacheivers that no one expectet to make the playoffs or go very far should by a miracle they make it.To all you who think the hawks are ready to challenge for the championship…
my question is(Thanks Jeff Shultz): Is everybody else seeing something we’re not?
The Hawks won one playoff round last season. How many will they win in 2009-10?
One. (Par.)
Two. (A step up.)
Three. (Going to the finals.)
Four for the title! (Drinking the Kool-Aid.)
Zero. (Still don’t like them.)
View Results
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By now, you’ve might’ve heard that several national media outlets have projected the Hawks this season to finish on par or even below last season’s results. Actually, I have yet to find one that has them either: 1) winning more games, or, 2) winning more than one playoff round.
This hit home a little harder Thursday night. I received an email from Bodog.com, an online sportsbook, which does a pretty good job accurately reflecting the feelings in Las Vegas (and I’m still waiting for at least one hotel-casino magnate there to say: “You know. We really blew it with those odds. I think I’m just going to build a nice little Best Western with a coffee shop over here.”).
According to some of Bodog’s prop bets, the over/under on the Hawks’ win total is 44.5, which is a step back from last season’s 47.
The “dis” factor doesn’t end there. Some examples:
♦ Southeast Division: Hawks are 15-2 to win the division, which is third behind Orlando (1-4) and Miami (13-2), whom the Hawks beat in the playoffs last season, and they’re barely ahead of fourth-rated Washington (10-1). Looking for a longshot? Charlotte is 55-1.
♦ Eastern Conference: Hawks are 20-1 to win the conference title, which is tied with Chicago, Detroit and Miami for a DISTANT fourth behind Cleveland (5-4), Boston (2-1) and Orlando (3-1).
♦ NBA title: Hawks are 45-1 to win it, which ranks tied for 11th. (Lakers are favorites at 2-1.)
A few other observations follow.
♦The Sporting News has been previewing each team, one per day, backwards from No. 30. The Hawks check in at No. 12 overall and will rank only sixth in the East, behind — in uncertain order as of today — Cleveland, Boston, Orlando, Washington and, yikes, even Toronto.
♦ ESPN had a panel of 10 each predict standings. Most have the Hawks fourth in the East. Once exception is Chris Sheridan, who tabbed them for seventh. His analysis: “Mike Bibby didn’t look like he had a lot left in the tank last season. I was surprised they re-signed him and thought Andre Miller would have been a better fit. Joe Johnson is entering a contract year. And newcomer Jamal Crawford likes to put up 20 shots a night. Hmmm.”
♦ Sports Illustrated picks the Hawks to finish fifth in the East. An excerpt from an unnamed scout: “I like their signings of Joe Smith and Jason Collins because they needed
size off the bench. Those are moves a contender would make, and moves the Hawks didn’t make in the past.
Ariose
October 27th, 2009
8:38 am
Blake Griffin (Los Angeles Clippers) out up to 6 weeks with stress fracture: InsideHoops.com http://bit.ly/1ggVPK
Guess who won’t be watching the clippers game tonight ha!
clint
October 27th, 2009
8:50 am
Are the pacers at full strength for tomorrow night or do they have any significant injuries. Hope Phillips is packed even on a weeknight and competing with a heavyweight clash in the world series.
Daniel
October 27th, 2009
8:54 am
Good grief guys, listen to Vava, we haven’t even played a game this season. You do have to give it a couple of weeks at least to begin to see what is going on with the team.
Does anyone who is critical of the team have anything new to say?
Al Horford is out of position, Iso Joe is a bad offense, Woody can’t coach, yada yada, yada… None of those points make any sense given the Hawks continued improvement and success over the last three seasons. Find something new to say please.
Truth- you do not find anything new to say, because you really know how to stab it into the heart. I respect your opinion and b-ball knowledge, but dang man your killing me.
Joe Johnson is underrated not overrated, so everyone get a grip.
Here are the issues for the team early in the season, as I see them:
1) How will Woody manage minutes? (so far, pretty well)
2) Will Josh Smith make free throws? (scary!)
3) Will Marvin be more aggressive? (I have no idea)
4) Will this team play with heart and a desire to win? (the biggest question of them all) I can deal with losing as long as they play with heart and don’t look scared or even worse quit!
Go Hawks!
Ariose
October 27th, 2009
9:24 am
Glenn “Big Baby” Davis Out indefently with thumb injury….
vava74
October 27th, 2009
9:27 am
Greg Poppovich about one of the biggest tools achieve success: “appropriate fear”
“It gets more difficult after a win to come back and understand how that subconscious sort of complacency can set in. You can’t allow that to happen. You have to keep an appropriate fear of your opponent so that complacency will dissipate as soon as possible.”
in Bill Simmons ESPN Page 2 – The Sports Guy’s World
The question is:
Did we lose (badly) against ORL on account of lack of “appropriate fear” following the easy victory against MIA or did we lose badly because we had too much fear??
vava74
October 27th, 2009
9:34 am
In my opinion, at this juncture in time, psychological/maturity issues are more important for the Hawks than many others people like to throw around here.
If we win at home and lose away, this means two things:
1. The fact that we win at home consistently (as we did last year), means that our system and our team has enough quality to succeed;
2. The fact that we lose away from home consistently (as we did last year), means that our mental capability and maturity as a team is low and that is the obstacle preventing us from being more successful.
Bad teams, bad players and bad systems suck all the time, not only away from home.
Ariose
October 27th, 2009
9:40 am
Vava, you know. When we win at home, that means the opposing team is loosing on the road that night……it’s a league wide problem for 2nd teir teams even some top teir teams….I agree we have to be stronger mentally though.
As far as Orlando is concerned though, they treated that like a playoff game lol. They won’t be happy to see us in the regular season, I can tell you that much. The guys will be itching for some retribution
Daniel
October 27th, 2009
9:52 am
vava- I agree with your second point whole heartedly. I think we played scared against Orlando. I do think the mental aspect of the game is the biggest issue for the Hawks, now. Hence, my point #4.
Ariose
October 27th, 2009
10:01 am
J-Smoove: It’s on me for We
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TjuWUAIpMVc
vava74
October 27th, 2009
10:14 am
Ariose,
Again on the same subject, how many levels do believe exist in the NBA?
My take is that there are 4 tiers with some sub-categories which indicate if teams are going up or down and on account of what (I will not go into subcategories right now):
1. Contenders
2. Playoff teams
3. Purgatory teams
4. Bottom dwellers
I believe that we are definitively tier 2 and that we cannot complain if we do not reach tier 1 this year.
In my opinion, one of the most important factors to break from tier 2 to tier 1 is mental and this quantum leap should be felt within the team as a whole and within some players’ minds.
Maybe JJ is now “mind blocked” and will not be able to take it up to tier 1. This is the 1 million dollar question. I think that the success that opposing teams had double teaming him is now bringing him down mentally and he is sulking.
Josh definitively should try to find some sort of miracle pill to get him to concentrate during games and whilst shooting FTs since he has tier 1 potential (as a 5* all round role player)
Al has the heart and the willingness and in my opinion should get a lot more touches (regardless of the number of initial bricks) making him the no. 2 guy offensively so we could balance our game instead of being just a guard oriented offense.
Marvin also has the tools to do it and I believe that the only thing preventing him from being a consistent inside-outside threat seems to be mental.
Is the above Woody’s fault? Difficult to tell. Sometimes it’s the franchise culture and we should not ignore that the Hawks, as a franchise, are stranded between categories 2 and 3 and it is extremely difficult to break the cycle.
Ken Strickland
October 27th, 2009
10:24 am
I hope I’m wrong about everything I’m feeling as a result of that beatdown by Orlando. I hope Woodson and the Hawks do a complete 180 and use that gm as motivation to get it in gear and do what needs to be done. I don’t want to see Woodson or the Hawks fail, because being a diehard Hawks fan would make me a part of that failure.
Ken Strickland
October 27th, 2009
10:43 am
If Bibby is unable to go, who do you think will replace him, or who would you like to see replace him, Teague or Crawford. It would be interesting to see if the Pacers would be willing to double JJ with either of them in the gm. Since the Pacers aren’t a physical team, especially up the middle, would Collins or JSmith be the 1st off the bench to replace Zaza, if he starts.
Daniel
October 27th, 2009
10:47 am
Ken- according to Sekou’s article, Bibby is good to go.
Ariose
October 27th, 2009
11:25 am
Ha!
I’m with you Vava, I’ve talked plenty of times about Amare’s two microfracture knees and his bad eye. Especially when he was first on the trading block and some people around here wanted to trade Smoove in order to get him…..we’d be the worst defensive team in the league if we did that.
I was thinking about JJ last night and about what it would take for him to reach an eletie level. In my thought process eve Danny Granger came to my mind. He is just as athletic (or less) than JJ, but he does something that JJ refuses to do. HE ATTACKS FAST. What JJ doesn’t realize (or chooses to ignore) is that as soon as he catches the rock out on the peremeter; for that split second, HE IS OPEN! Granger realizes this and it’s the very reason why indiana gives us all kinds of trouble. Granger doesn’t TRY to draw the doubleteams to him (neither do most elite players) he is the agressor he gets his shot off AS SOON AS HE RECIVES THE PASS so there is nothing you can do about it. Why doesn’t JJ do this. The guy doesn’t need a whole bunch of time to get his shot off. He’s one of the best shooters in the league. He could literally make jumpshots with his eyes closed. So why does he take so darn long to attack? He waits entirely too long and let’s the defense suffocate him before he even thinks about making his move. Elite players make the defense adjust to them, not the other way around…
Which brings me to my second point. Elite players get to the Free Throw line. This one little fact is why some Hawks fans beleive that Josh Smith will eventually pass him as the superstar for our team. Because players like Kobe and Carmelo attack early and often, they catch the defens off guard and on their heels to the point where thay are so out of position that all they can do is foul.
Heres a perfect Example:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKx__9FdxOg
When Josh is confident in his Freethrow ability and is attacking like he shouls, he is a nightmare for opposing defenses. All they can do is foul. This is why he ALWAYS comes up big in big bames. His whole gmae is predicated arouund beating his opposing PF off the dribble with his SPEED and finishing at the rim. In the second round of the playoffs last season in game 4, Smoove had 26pts. They couldn’t stop him from getting to the rim so they had to foul. San antonio did this to us late last season, but Smoove was in his FT slump and only had 19pts or so…
If JJ does not make these changes, he will never be elite and he will never be able to take us to the promise land. If you think back to game 7 against the Heat last season, JJ let it fly as soon as he received the pass. HE has to play like that ALL THE TIME. It’s not woody, because Teague and Smoove have not problems with atttacking and getting to the FT line. It’s on him to recognize this and change his ways….Marvin has the same deficancies, he has a gift (drawing fouls by driving to the basket) but he’s not agressive and rarely uses it.
As far as Horford is concerned, I have absolutely nothing negative to say about the guy. He works hard, knows what needs to change about his game and he adapts to whatever situation you put him in. I agree, on a bottom feeder, or even with more touches, he can get you 20/10. Josh on the other hand could get us 20/8 right now if he steps up.
JJ and Mike Woodson are minimizing the amount of touches and potential points that the Hawks can get wtih their Old man style of offense (slow halfcourt grinder). You know we probably didn’t get ONE fastbreak point against Orlando the other night (the Magic may heve tried to do that on pourpose though) and JJ/Marvin didn’t help the situation with their poor decision making (takinf too long to initate th offense/attack and being agressive).
Woodson is not off the hook in all of this. I’m tired of everything being run through the backcourt, especially at the beginning of games (Bad decision making by Mike Bibby….our POINT GUARD) which usually always results in us falling behined by a ton of points early. All of that jumpshooting when the oppositions is fresh and not tired? Of course they are going to capitalize of all of the brick laying we do! The first quater should be frontcourt EXCLUSIVE. Pick N’ Roll basketabll and just attacking the rim in general.
Melvin
October 27th, 2009
11:26 am
Fellow bloggers, I caution you not to push the panic button yet. As someone said earlier, we haven’t played our first regular season game yet. Let see how this team perform after the first 20 games. That should give us a good indication of what to expect from this team. Also, I wouldn’t put too much trust into these experts preseason perdictions. The season is 82 games long and anything could happen such as injuries, suspensions and trades.
I’m prime and ready for this season to start. Go Hawks….
T.C
October 27th, 2009
12:02 pm
To monitoring the voice of ignorance,jeff shultz don’t know nothing about basketball.Hell he don’t know nothing about sports.Jeff is a race bating commentor.
Poot-Ommeter
October 27th, 2009
12:08 pm
Well its important not to let your emotions over come what is reality. This team has a second tier allstar, unproven players, 1-2 years from retirement players, Josh,crawford,Marv, not much else. NO Im sorry this team wont contend for a championship and will at best make it to the playoffs. I love the Hawks but Im also realistic. Hope is not equal to reality.
Just keeping it real fellows.
monitoring the voice of ignorance
October 27th, 2009
12:13 pm
T.C That may very well be true, I dont disagree with you. Schultz does have some racial issues. The many professional sources that he listed and qouted are legitmate sources and have voice rational view points. Ive learned over the years to let my rationality govern my emotions and ive been better for it.
98 bottles of beer on the wall.
October 27th, 2009
12:15 pm
fire up the crowd Mr. Daniel!!! Lets get this show on the road. Its almost game time!
Ariose
October 27th, 2009
12:20 pm
Gelnn Davis is going to be suspended:
http://sports.espn.go.com/boston/nba/news/story?id=4598533&campaign=rss&source=twitter&ex_cid=Twitter_espn_4598533
vava74
October 27th, 2009
12:29 pm
JJ should never be the recipient of the first pass and should be shooting off picks like Rip Hamilton.
If he did this, he would be shooting 48/50% from the field.
niremetal
October 27th, 2009
12:41 pm
And the chance of Woody running an offense that looks like that is…
T.C
October 27th, 2009
12:45 pm
To Monitoring the voice of ignorance,understood.But coming from the source is a little disturbing.
Ken Strickland
October 27th, 2009
12:52 pm
VOICE OF IGNORANCE-you need to start by doing a little self monitoring. The Hawks won 47 gms, made the playoffs, finished ahead of all but 3 teams in the East and made it to the 2nd rd of the playoffs. As hard as you seem to be trying, you can’t trivialize those accomplishments. Sounds to me like you should be commending, not vilifying the accomplishments of a team comprised of a bunch of overachieving castoffs, over the hill vets and an unproven rookie.
That bunch accomplished more than the majority of the teams in the NBA last yr. Ignorant individuals like you should be spueing your particular brand of venum and dilusional BS on the teams that fell short of what we accomplished. You showed your special brand of ignorance and stupidity when you said JJ is a 2nd tier Allstar. Well, doesn’t being selected multiple times as an AllStar by the coaches and his peers, whether 1st or 2nd tier, mean you’re considered better than the overwhelming majority of the players in the NBA, DUMBAZZ?
Look at all of the teams with so called 1st tier Allstars like DWade, AStaudemire, SNash, CBosh, CPaul, DWilliams, VCarter, MRedd, Shaq etc, that either didn’t make the playoffs, or didn’t accomplish any more, or as much, as the Hawks did during the season and/or the playoffs. YOU NEED TO GO BACK AND MONITOR YOUR OWN BS, CLOWN.
Ariose
October 27th, 2009
12:59 pm
Vava, that is an exellent point. I thought Mike Woodson said he LEARNED something from Lerry brown during his time in Detroit? Apparently it has absolutely nothing to do with offense…..
O'Brien
October 27th, 2009
1:06 pm
Ken,
I agree with you in that our lack of size does not have to be a big issue. The key is how do we utilize our advantages, which is that we are young and athletic, with 4 guys (JJ, Bibby, Marvin, Crawford) who are good shooters. We just have to impose our will on the other team.
If the Hawks would run more, then we would beat some opposing bigs down the floor, and Horford’s lack of size wouldnt be a big issue. Or if we can get Horford the ball in good spots, he’ll be better equipped to make his move. The bottom line (for me) is Woody needs to do a better job of utilizing Al.
Vava/nire
I dont know why Woody is so blind to realize that he should not have JJ initiate the offense. Run some screens and plays for him that will give him a 1 on 1 matchup (or get him some open shot sometimes). When JJ gets the ball early, the other team doubles him, and our other players stand around and wait for a pass, or JJ takes too long to pass out of the double team, and we end up with a bad shot.
I guess Clyde was one of the first to get it rolling years ago, but here we are, 5 years later, and we’re still having the same conversations about Woody.
dap01
October 27th, 2009
1:15 pm
O’Brien: You summed it up perfectly! Woody is so creative! But this year he will have no excuses for the excuses.
The Truth
October 27th, 2009
1:26 pm
Ariose
October 27th, 2009
11:25 am
Agreed with this post; JJ played this way his first year as a Hawk. He was very aggressive. He shot with little hesitation. For some reason, perhaps Woody trained him to use the ISO as a strategy to get his team mates open. This has evolved into the 2-man game between JJ and Bibby. The ISO strategy is fine during spot moments when you’re trying to make the big shots. But Woody uses it like a main course meal. It slows the game down and deprives other team players from participating in the offense. He uses very little pick-and-roll or pick-and-pop. Marvin would flourish in that style of offense. When Marvin gets good looks at the basket and enough touches, he’s quite consistent with his jumper. His off-the-dribble moves however are still a work in progress. There are many great NBA players that had poor off-the-dribble moves; Reggie Miller and even Larry Bird just to name a few. These guys needed screens and picks to be effective. Woody is likely hampering these players by depriving them of what they do best.
Ken Strickland
October 27th, 2009
1:28 pm
ARIOSE-when comparing JJ with Granger, you have to factor in the following.
(1) The entire OFF system and philosophy we have in place is built around shooting jumpshots and doesn’t provide options for attacking the basket, either with or without the basket.
(2) How many times does Granger get double/triple teamed compared to JJ?
(3) Granger also has the benefit of playing with a quick, fast multidimensional PG that can create driving lanes and easy scoring opportunities for him.
(5) JJ knows he’ll have to conserve his energy because as the designated DEF stopper he’ll have to defend the quickest, fastest elite PG’s that Bibby can’t guard. (6) He also knows he’s going to finish 1st of 2nd in MPG, so he shoots jumpshots, which is our OFF philosophy, rather than attacking the basket and expending energy he might not have.
Wasn’t JJ doing what you claim he’s not doing now when he was teamed up with PG SNash in Phoenix? I’m certainly not saying you’re wrong, I’m just offering some plausible reasons for why it’s not happening.
vava74
October 27th, 2009
2:06 pm
The Truth,
You are right, Marvin would also be deadly if we ran plays for him this way.
Actually, we could have a killer play if we had something designed to feed any of two players benefiting from picks on the same set.
Chingo Bling
October 27th, 2009
2:35 pm
Chingo Bling
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2zKMKQ3RSw&feature=related
Sautee
October 27th, 2009
2:51 pm
vava74,
About this:
“JJ should never be the recipient of the first pass and should be shooting off picks like Rip Hamilton.”
“If he did this, he would be shooting 48/50% from the field.”
And vava, why do you think that is?
If Detroit 04 is the model we’re following, then why, oh, why do we not run Joe off of multiple picks?
And imagine the assist opportunities Joe would have in addition to killin’ folks with his mid-range game.
S.p.M
October 27th, 2009
3:08 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRY6URnn2i8&feature=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxFdHb58ZGU&feature=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6fUYTOm5MA
Lil` Rob
October 27th, 2009
3:12 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xTVC8VgU1I&feature=related
Ariose
October 27th, 2009
3:17 pm
Ken, Amen. Mike Woodson needs to step his game up. All of the factors you mentioned are a direct result of Woodson’s decision making. I’m growing tired of it…..we’ll see what happens this season.
IND Granger now listed as doubtful for tomorrow night vs Hawks (bruised right heel)
I still think he’ll play though. Bibby played through a bruised heel when we first aquired him…..
Ariose
October 27th, 2009
3:18 pm
Truth, that is so true. Woodson has not been utilizing his weapons coorectly. All I have to say is, Rick is taking notes lol.
The puerto rican
October 27th, 2009
3:18 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gMZ06eV2CE
Hoops
October 27th, 2009
3:36 pm
Clyde,
The Tide got real lucky Saturday. Mt. Cody saved them! Just sayin’.
monitoring the voice of ignorance
October 27th, 2009
3:40 pm
Ken Strickland, Its not that the hawks are so go as much as the other teams are that bad.
Hoops
October 27th, 2009
3:40 pm
The pre-season is over. The Hawks got and needed a wake up call against the Magic. It’s a long season and the Hawks need to be ready to go! Anything can happen during an 82 game schedule. Being consistent and staying healthy is the key!
There will be many adjustments that have to be made to make this season one we will never forget! GO HAWKS!!!
monitoring the voice of ignorance
October 27th, 2009
3:48 pm
Guns dont kill people, people kill people. In boxing coaches dont get knocked out players do. Coaches dont get blown out…players do. Only on this whining fashionable. Woodson will be here or hell coach some where else. Doesnt matter who is the coach the result will be the same. A second tier allstar+ three nearly retired players+a pack of average guys = an average team. Doesnt matter who the coach is. You cant get water from a rock, elevation from zaza or pure shooting and strong moves from Horford. Go figure.
Shout out to 98 bottles of beer on the wall
shout out to F_CK Sund
monitoring the voice of ignorance
October 27th, 2009
3:49 pm
only on this blog site is whining fashionable
monitoring the voice of ignorance
October 27th, 2009
3:50 pm
not that the hawks are so good as much as the other teams are so bad
Sautee
October 27th, 2009
4:06 pm
Shout out to ALL of my aliases. LOL!
tyger
October 27th, 2009
4:17 pm
Stackhouse cont.
Surprised the Hawks cut Garrett Siler – not even a min. wage non-guaranteed K? Doesn’t make sense to me, especially now that Horford is hurt. And after Dwight Howard’s ownership of Joe Smith, it makes even less sense. Joe is not a banger, he’s not going to slow down the 7′0 monsters. At least, Siler could lean on them a few minutes per game, but ….
Did the Hawks just save a spot for Stackhouse is the question? Horford and Bibby are dinged, so the injury train just took off. History shows Marvin, JJ, Josh, Mo, Al will all miss significant time every season. So, why not take a former all-star with some juice left?
Everyone said Vince Carter was done too – and you see how he dismantled us, so doesnt it make sense to have a veteran option on the wing just in case?
Samuel
October 27th, 2009
4:34 pm
2. Trading JJ for Stephen Jackson, a chronic malcontent, who would bring zero defense and who is an offensive black-hole AND Turiaf, an undersized C, a personal foul machine with no hops (I challenge anyone to prove that he jumps any higher than Zaza).
I saw again, chior boys don’t win championships. The Bulls, The Lakers, The Pistons and many others did pretty good with the “so-called” malcontents.
Jack plays no defense. Ask ya Boy “Dirk”.
Turiaf is undersized huh:
NBA Blocks: Per 48 Minutes
NBA Blocks Leaders
RK NAME GP MPG BLK PF BLKPG BLKP48M BLK/PF
1 Chris Andersen, DEN 71 20.6 175 174 2.46 5.75 1.01
2 Ronny Turiaf, GSW 79 21.5 168 243 2.13 4.75 0.69
3 Dwight Howard, ORL 79 35.7 231 270 2.92 3.93 0.86
4 Roy Hibbert, IND 70 14.4 76 215 1.09 3.62 0.35
5 Samuel Dalembert, PHI 82 24.8 146 248 1.78 3.44 0.59
6 Tyrus Thomas, CHI 79 27.5 151 220 1.91 3.33 0.69
7 Marcus Camby, LAC 62 31.0 132 129 2.13 3.29 1.02
8 Jermaine O’Neal, MIA/TOR 68 29.8 136 211 2.00 3.22 0.64
9 Kendrick Perkins, BOS 76 29.6 150 253 1.97 3.20 0.59
10 JaVale McGee, WAS 75 15.2 75 155 1.00 3.15 0.48
Mac-Town
October 27th, 2009
4:36 pm
I agree with ILL-Logical about Atlanta pro sports franchises choking in these big games. I agree, we are progressing but this stings, as people will still ride them of as the same ol hawks and falcons…after choking against traditional powerhouses. We have to turn this around,
I completely disagree with Daniel about the alternate uniforns.
For one thing, ALL the other jerseys have Hawks or Atlanta on the front, I dont see anything wrong with having “ATL” and changing up a little.
It’s unique. How can they be “4 years to late” on trying to be “hip”..??
ATL = Abbreviation or Airport Code for ATL……it’ll never be old.
lol referring to Atlanta as ATL isnt a fad.
poot-ommeter
October 27th, 2009
4:41 pm
Hortford aint hurt. His sorry azzse in playing hurt so he can get a free hamburger, mother frocker.
Im down with F_ck sund,98 bottles of beer on the wall,Truth-Serum is the man.
Shout out to Dezz Nuttz, the monitoring the voice of ignorance and keeping it real. Dont let the BUBBA CREW- A NATION OF WHINERS, run you guys off the blog. Its still Hawks nation!
WHAT
October 27th, 2009
4:53 pm
WHY IS BIG RAY ACTING LIKE HE IS SEKOU BY HIGHLIGHTING EVERY ONE OF HIS POSTS? NO ONE CARES WHAT YOU SAY!!!
Ariose
October 27th, 2009
5:05 pm
Sautee, Are you confessing?
Sautee
October 27th, 2009
5:10 pm
Monitoring the voice of ignorance
October 27th, 2009
8:27 am
“The Hawks have only a second tier allstar in Joe Johnson and a bunch of rejects from other teams, an unproven rookie and a few vets on their last legs.”
Sounds like WHINING to me!
monitoring the voice of ignorance
October 27th, 2009
3:50 pm
“not that the hawks are so good as much as the other teams are so bad”
More WHINING?
Sautee
October 27th, 2009
5:12 pm
Ariose,
Oh, no, just stick poking.
hawks_4_life
October 27th, 2009
5:51 pm
It is the night before tip off,
And for our Atlanta Hawks,
Only hate was being written,
In the words we talk.
Ken Strickland
October 27th, 2009
5:54 pm
VOICE OF IGNORANCE-All of these bad teams you mentioned, didn’t elite teams like the Celtics, Magic, Lakers, Nuggets, Mavericks, Cavaliers etc, play those same teams? If we use your flawed logic, since you claim the Hawks, and all of the teams we outperformed, are bad teams, wouldn’t that mean the teams that outperformed us are also overachievers and bad as well?
Only 8 teams from each conference make the playoffs, and only 3 finished ahead of the Hawks in the East. Only 2 teams from each conference can advance beyond the 2nd rd. Losing in the 2nd rd certainly isn’t a goal, but it’s definitely nothing to be ashamed or anything to be criticized for. The Hawks should envy only 2 Eastern conference teams from last yr, and that’s Orlando and Cleveland. On the other hand, there are dozens of teams that envy the success the Hawks experienced last yr. You have to be awfully slow on the uptake if you can’t comprehend that logic. OH, AND PLAYERS DON’T GET FIRED, BUT HC’s DO.
TYGER-Joe Smith didn’t play in the Orlando gm, and neither did JCollins. Since Collins is big and tall just like Siler, plus he’s probably had more NBA starts than Siler’s had gms played for his entire career, there’s no guarantee he would have played against DHoward either. How will signing a former Allstar like Stackhouse help us stop DHoward?
When we doubled DHoward, we successfully held him in check. When they started hitting a high percentage of their jumpers, Woodson panicked and abandoned the double team. That allowed Howard to abuse us inside, and they continued hitting a high percentage of their jumpers. That wasn’t an intelligent decision. I guess if you worship the jumpshot, like Woodson seems to do, you also fear it as well. If a team has an inside scoring monster like DHoward, you don’t abandon what’s working against him to worry about a bunch of jumpshooters. Orlando might not shoot like that again for the entire season, but DHoward will destroy us everytime if we back off and allow him the freedom to operate like we did.
I agree that Smoove has to increase his basketball IQ and start making better basketball decisions. However, we have to start seeing that same increase in basketball IQ and decision making from the sidelines as well.
poot-ommeter
October 27th, 2009
5:56 pm
WHAT
October 27th, 2009
4:53 pm
It is a fair question you ask. Some times people assume themselves to be right and absolute. Highlighting text or stationary is a way of saying my word has more authority than yours.
Personally I like to read and make my own evaluation of writers blogs. Some times they are insightful and often on this blog page they are whiney. One guy just whined about another guy who stated fact about the Hawks teams make up. I wish he wouldnot b!tch. But hes just being himself. Please stop b!tching B!tches.
poot-ommeter
October 27th, 2009
6:03 pm
I appreciate your hopeful nature, Ken. You really told that guy off! Some times I pretend that My ford escort is a Mercedes C class. I only have to envy the lotus and the lambangini.
What wrong with that guy? I guess he cant count. He said we only have 1 allstar and hes a second tier one at that. Im sure you straightened him with facts! How many allstars do we have Kenny?
Any way I appreciate your….Hmmm. I appreciate you any way you get a 7 on my poot o meter!
Sautee
October 27th, 2009
6:36 pm
“I wish he wouldnot b!tch. But hes just being himself. Please stop b!tching B!tches.”
Sounds like b!tching to me! Or more whining.
LOL, it’s like the bloggers who come on and criticize the blog for not being more positive, while missing their own negativity.
Big Ray
October 27th, 2009
8:16 pm
Truth-Serum ,
Sorry for the highlighted posts. That just shows that I’m logged into Word Press, which means I’m working on a post for the Hawks Fan blog. Invariably, I like to take a break and see what’s going on in this jumpin’ spot. Sorry if I offended you, but the highlighted thing is something I’m not even thinking about when I post. However, I don’t see how that can be interpreted as me thinking I’m right about everything. I never make such an asinine assumption. I will admit to having strong opinions, however. Maybe some people see that as a character flaw.
Big Ray
October 27th, 2009
8:28 pm
Ray you now you straight with me. Do you my peep. We don’t always agree but you recognize my views, I recognize yours . You step to me like a man, I reciprocate. Handle your business. I m good. I often get credit for bloggers not a part of my posse. But hey, I can live with it. Between me and you, some one did voice a grievance and I just gave him a bloggers fist bump.
As always I appreciate the shout out!
Clyde
October 27th, 2009
8:32 pm
WHO GONNA BE AT THE GAME 2MORROW? MEET ME AT THE JACK DANIELS BAR
Truth-Serum
October 27th, 2009
8:37 pm
*Ray you Know (correction)
Monitering the voice of ignorance
October 27th, 2009
8:39 pm
When you have no inside game you have no choice by to try an score outside. One thing is for sure….You aint getting Sh!t out of Horford and Zaza. Hamburger and his helper.
Big Ray
October 27th, 2009
8:52 pm
Truth Serum ,
It’s all good, man. We’re havin’ fun, and you are straight killin’ me with the “Hamburger and his helper” references. I laugh every time, I swear. That ish is too funny!
Big Ray
October 27th, 2009
8:59 pm
Close game between Cleveland, Boston.
Waiting to see how Washington does against Dallas. We have them after Indiana, and this is the team so many pundits say will be fighting us for the 4th seed.
Melvin
October 27th, 2009
9:07 pm
When Boston wants to play defense, there isn’t a team in the league that is better.
Monitering the voice of ignorance
October 27th, 2009
9:10 pm
Ken I believe Josh has and will improve his basketball IQ…Now if we could just get your sorry aizze to improve your lame aizze IQ…In any subject but particularly basketball.
Big Ray
October 27th, 2009
9:11 pm
You know, the Mavs are one dysfunctional bunch. Between that and Gilbert Arenas acutally playing point guard, the Wiz may win this game.
Sautee
October 27th, 2009
9:13 pm
“One thing is for sure….You aint getting Sh!t out of Horford and Zaza. Hamburger and his helper.”
OK, let’s compare them to a “true center” Brook Lopez, and his backup Josh Boone. Of course we’ll use last years stats since we haven’t started the 09-10 season yet:
Points:
Lopez 13.0 Boone 4.2
NJN Combined: 17.2 pts.
Horford: 11.6 Zaza: 6.2
ATL combined: 17.6
Hmmmm…. maybe rebounding would be a fairer comparison:
Lopez: 8.1 (for a 7 footer?) Boone: 4.2
NJN Combined: 12.3
Horford: 9.3 Zaza: 5.7
ATL Combined: 15.0
Boy, it’s a good thing we have Al and Zaza.
If they are Hamburger and helper, what are two centers giving even less?
Monitering the voice of ignorance
October 27th, 2009
9:16 pm
Al and Zaza the dynamic do,do!
Melvin
October 27th, 2009
9:23 pm
Ray,
Looks like the Hawks aren’t the only team that has problems defending Jose Barea.
Sautee
October 27th, 2009
9:27 pm
Good one. So what then are Lopez and Boone?
I know, the Dynamic Doo-wop. It IS Jersey, after all.
No, it’s not a non-PC comment. It’s a form of street corner music from the 50’s.
Sautee
October 27th, 2009
9:33 pm
Sautee
Shout out to ALL of my aliases. LOL!
Sautee
October 27th, 2009
9:39 pm
I could have SWORN that I posted that earlier.
Big Ray
October 27th, 2009
9:41 pm
Melvin ,
So it would seem.
Mybe it was you alias
October 27th, 2009
9:41 pm
Enter your comments here
Maybe it was your alias
October 27th, 2009
9:43 pm
could it have been your alias posting?
Sautee
October 27th, 2009
9:45 pm
Funny how all of MY aliases post as Sautee. And obviously there are OTHERS posting as Sautee as well. But that’s ok. At least I know who I am. Well, tonight, anyway. At my age, I may NOT know tomorrow.
What did you just say?
Melvin
October 27th, 2009
9:47 pm
Look like Rasheed is about two inches taller than Perkins and folks want to company about AL Horford height…
Big Ray
October 27th, 2009
9:50 pm
Sautee ,
LOL…
Melvin ,
Yep…
Sautee, Are you confessing?
October 27th, 2009
9:50 pm
I dont think you should. Just act normal
Melvin
October 27th, 2009
9:55 pm
Now if Josh complain to the ref like Lebron just did, people who say he’s whining. What do you call it when Lebron does it? Cross examining….
Sautee
October 27th, 2009
9:57 pm
Normal. Now THERE”S a subject for debate.
But not tonight. ‘Night all.
Big Ray
October 27th, 2009
9:57 pm
“Now if Josh complain to the ref like Lebron just did, people who say he’s whining. What do you call it when Lebron does it? Cross examining….”
Yep ….
Melvin
October 27th, 2009
10:01 pm
*people would say he’s whining…
Big Ray
October 27th, 2009
10:08 pm
Heh. Lebron is still initiating the offense, the rest of the team is still feeding off of him, and he’s still the best scorer on the team. Sound familiar? It’s not a winning forumla…as is evidenced by the score.
Yeah, ummmm…may be the first game of the season, but if this is Cleveland’s game plan (I’m not seeing a difference from last year), then hold up on giving them the crown already…
O'Brien
October 27th, 2009
10:13 pm
Washington playing at Dallas, leading 65-58 in the 3rd quarter.
Boston was down 13-2, and 19-5 at Cleveland in the 1st quarter. But it looks like they’re going to win the game. Thats the kind of mental toughness I want from the Hawks. Down 14 in Cleveland, but come back and win. Thats toughness.
macaroni tony
October 27th, 2009
10:18 pm
we need Washington to lose tonight.
macaroni tony
October 27th, 2009
10:20 pm
KG just gave us props, that means a lot.
Big Ray
October 27th, 2009
10:25 pm
Cavs aren’t winning a title like that. Oh wait, I forgot. Shaq is just playing possum, Lebron really isn’t the team’s best pg, and Mike Brown is a COY. That’s an automatic championship!
ILL-logical
October 27th, 2009
10:25 pm
Just saw a PROFESSIONAL basketball game between two of the top teams in the NBA. Enjoyed it.
All of you think that Woodson learned anything about beating the Cavs tonight, raise your hands.
O'Brien
October 27th, 2009
10:32 pm
ILL,
What I liked about Boston’s game is that Rondo would push the tempo when they get a rebound. And that led to a couple easy 3’s for Ray Allen, and a couple easy shots at other times.
And thats what I would like to see the Hawks do. Push the tempo, maybe get JJ or Marvin an easy shot sometimes. But no…Bibby just walks it up, so that him and JJ can get in position for the iso JJ, or 2 man game.
Big Ray
October 27th, 2009
10:34 pm
O’Brien ,
Agreed…
macaroni tony
October 27th, 2009
11:08 pm
Greg Oden is a bust.
Ken Strickland
October 27th, 2009
11:19 pm
It looks like more and more of you are speaking out about some of the same issues I’ve been chastised for continuously making an issue of for the last 2+yrs. It’s a matter of cause and effect. Some of you are still misguided and continue to blame the cough(the Hawk players)for causing the cold(poor OFF/DEF system and philosophy), rather than the other way around.
kwooden1
October 27th, 2009
11:25 pm
Wizards looked good tonight, the HAWKS will be fighting with those guys all year. Arenas has almost all of his athletic ability and explosiveness back.
GO HAWKS!!
Mike Woodson
October 28th, 2009
12:03 am
Everybody has to look at now. I don’t know if I’m going to be here or if Joe’s going to be here or whatever. So it’s now.” ….Hmmmm if you dont sign me joe wont sign. Joes my son and Im his coach. We will look back and be happy for the time weve had and what weve built no regrets. Ill get another Job and Joe another team. Thanks Ken for your support. Good luck to the Hawks. Now that Im got the way ken can step in and led the team the way he leads the Bubba Crew.
Mike Woodson
October 28th, 2009
12:07 am
Good luck ken and Bubba crew. Im sure The hawks will now will a championship… Hey Ken, is it true youve never play for or coached on any level of basketball? Is it true you sole experience is being a blog site jockey? Can you share with us how you be came a blog site jockey and how thats going to help you and the bubba crew run the hawks?
Sautee
October 28th, 2009
12:09 am
Ken did you use m y alias and post as me earlier?
Bob Weiss
October 28th, 2009
12:33 am
You know Ken Ive been your best friend every since you turned up the hate on Woodson. You promised me that once you ran him out of town you would help me get my job back. I hear hes about to be fired after the first four games. When you announce me as head coach, Im going to hire you as the lead blogger jockey you nasty mother f_cker. Smell my nuttz for me.What do you think? Are you going to help me get my job back?
Game #1 Preview: Sekou Smith Talks Hawks
October 28th, 2009
9:25 am
[...] down the Hawks beat for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, blogging regularly on the paper’s Hawks Blog and relaying all the NBA news fit to tweet through his @sekousmith01 [...]
Sautee
October 28th, 2009
9:28 am
HA! Like anybody on the blog would think I was actually up at my computer in the middle of my sleep time. The next time I post after midnight will surely be my first.
Hint: Old Guys need their sleep. If you want to post as me, and you want it believable, post earlier.
Ken Strickland
October 28th, 2009
11:18 am
SAUTEE-if you’ve ever had kids you know how easily they can be entertained, and how easily they can entertain themselves with silly, trivial, childish and repetitive endeavors that would normaly bore an adult mentality. You also know how they love to pretend they’re someone else and act out their dilusional fantacies. Has everyone noticed how that same type of child like mentality has been stalking these blogs?
He’s not looking to share or present anything informative or intelligent, although he wants everyone to think he’s actually intelligent, which he doesn’t believe himself. If he did he’d spend more time sharing intelligent ideas and opinions with others, rather than trying to garner attention by attacking those who do.
His overall intelligence seems to be limited to advanced formulation of sentences and paragraphs. He’s yet to prove capable of formulating an intelligent thought or idea. He’s like the school yard bully who’s not socially or academically developed enough to be a factor in the classroom, so he compensates by dominating the school yard by bullying and attacking those in the classroom he can’t compete with.
His fragile nature explains the reason he resorts to multiple names/monikers/identities, much like a very fragile and disturbed psyche develops multiple personalities to cope with what normal people routinely cope with. I equate this clown with someone like Pacman Jones, a football player with tremendous physical talent and ability, but is unable to effectively take advantage of that tremendous physical talent due to a severe lack of mental, emotional, intellectual and psychological development. BOTTOMLINE, HE’S THE TYPE OF FOOL THAT WOULD TAKE A ROLL OF TOILET PAPER TO A CRAPSHOOT.