A fresh start

I know you didn't see enough of rookie point guard Jeff Teague against Portland. Who wants to be their lunch money that he plays big minutes against Sacramento tonight?

I know you didn't see enough of rookie point guard Jeff Teague against Portland. Who wants to be their lunch money that he plays big minutes against Sacramento tonight?

SACRAMENTO – Before you finish your sentence complaining about Jeff Teague not playing against Portland and Joe Johnson playing too much, chew on one thing.

What if you are not alone? What if you’re not the only fan base whose general manager, coach, star player, sixth-man and last man on the roster drive you crazy?

What, you thought you cornered the market on being ticked off?

You are not.

Our good friend Nire passed along this message earlier today (or last night or whenever, being out west throws off my equilibrium, even after all these years of covering the league):

It’s always funny to me reading Blazers fan blogs and seeing how not alone Hawks fans are in our neuroses. Blazers fans have their own Mike Bibby (Andre Miller), JJ (Brandon Roy), Josh Smith (Travis Outlaw), Marvin Williams (Martell Webster), Teague (Jerryd Bayless), Al Horford (Greg Oden), and Zaza Pachulia (Joel Przybilla). They even talk about Nate McMillan almost exactly like we talk about Mike Woodson. Seriously, it’s uncanny. I just emailed Big Ray a series of blog posts from BlazersEdge where you could just substitute in the Hawks’ player’s names and it would be a typical comment section in your blog. My favorites:
“Brandon has dribblexia”
“Oden needs to be further integrated into the offense—immediately!”
“This team has needed a defensive-minded off guard — not a floor general (i.e., Miller), midget shooting guard (i.e, Bayless), or athletically challenged off guard (i.e., Steve Blake) — so Kevin Pritchard not trading for Kirk Hinrich midway through last season is inexcusable in my opinion.”

But why be like everybody else when you can move on? This is the time for a fresh start for your team and for you as fans. The Sacramento Kings await tonight at Arco Arena. They’re a new challenge, something else to focus on.

Win another game out here and then you can really start getting crazy about what could be in this first month of the season. Either way, I’m moving on tonight. No more griping about Mo Evans seeing limited minutes against the Trail Blazers after playing so well up until that game. I’m done taking shots at Marvin because he can’t seem to find his groove.

It’s time for a fresh start (tip off is at 10 p.m., don’t be late).

861 comments Add your comment

Ramon

November 4th, 2009
6:46 pm

Nightly prediction…

Smoove – 21 pts, 11 reb, 8 assists, 3 blocks, 2 steals, 4 tos
JJ – 19 pts, 7 assists, 4 reb, 2 steals, 31 min
Al – 16 pts, 17 reb, 2 assists, 2 blocks
Bibby – 16 pts, 4-7 3pt, 4 assists
Teague – 17 pts, 4 assists, 19 min
Crawford – 8 pts, 8 assists, 23 min
Williams – 13 pts, 12 reb, 4 assists, 2 trips lol

James58

November 4th, 2009
6:55 pm

Hopefully Teague has a good game,I would love to him and Mo and Marv do well tonite. I also wouldnt mind our first Collins sighting of the season…buts thats prolly just wishful thinking

GIlley

November 4th, 2009
6:56 pm

Interesting….I dislike the fact that Woody still doesn’t trust his bench and panics when the team isnt winning or close immediately. Then he starts overplaying Joe Johnson and neglecting his role players or young players except Jamal Crawford. Jeff Teague should have earned his minutes against the Lakers with his impressive play in little time. I am not the coach though and I guess we have to accept Woody’s style but c’mon Woody, play Jeff Teague. Rookies learn during the good and the bad.

swatguy

November 4th, 2009
7:03 pm

Could it be, we finally have a true leader on this team. One that can and will demand high competative intestinal fortitude…every game. Is Jamal the one?

rms

November 4th, 2009
7:05 pm

As if we hadnt talked about this enough? What does a guy gotta do to earn minutes. Its not some manual where you have to go by the book precisely everytime. Mix it up a little, twik the starting lineup a bit, go with some bigs to keep the other teams bigs off the glass, dont just stick with the same ol’ same ol’ everytime. Too predictable…

Rashod21

November 4th, 2009
7:08 pm

why dont collin play

JeJe

November 4th, 2009
7:11 pm

I don’t want to be my lunch money — I want to “bet” it. Jeje!

Rashod21

November 4th, 2009
7:12 pm

we should have played jason collins against lakers we probaly would have won he can gaurd andrew bynum and try goin big sometimes

jamal
marvin
josh smith
joe smith
al horford

GIlley

November 4th, 2009
7:12 pm

I agree we needs someone to bring it competitively each game but I’m not agreeing that Jamal Crawford is that guy. He is a guy who can score when Joe Johnson goes cold (which is often) and allow him (Joe) to be a silent threat or better closer since he will have energy to finish strong. Just have to be on the same page and learn the roles. Penetrate and pass. Mo Evans, Marvin for the corner 3. Joe Smith kick and pop. ZaZa and Horford and Josh layup. We need penetration to give our bigs easy points or shooters open shots. Crawford breaks down the defense and allows that. Less finesse ala Joe Johnson and more ACTION BOOM BOOM POW!!!

Rufus1

November 4th, 2009
7:16 pm

cdog

November 4th, 2009
7:33 pm

DOES IT MATTER WHO PLAYS AS LONG AS THE TEAM IS WINNING?NOONE IS WORRIED ABOUT WHO IS ON THE FLOOR AS LONG AS WHO IS ON THE FLOOR BRINGS A W A WIN. ANOTHER RACIST ARTICLE AIM AT COACH WOODSON. JUST KEEP WINNING COACH WOODSON DON’T WORRY ABOUT RACIST IDIOTS

TheAntiMe

November 4th, 2009
7:35 pm

It’s a very nice problem that the Hawks have not had in quite a while. Regardless of who winds up playing and how many minutes, the defense can now be more physical as the starters don’t have to tip-toe around on D to avoid foul trouble.

Now Woody can go deeper off the bench and everyone can play more aggressively on defense to harass the opposing team’s key players.

MyView

November 4th, 2009
7:39 pm

The Hawks are winning!!! I now have something to get excited about 3 nights a week. I used to watch every game anyway, but my day did not include as much anticipation on game nights as I’m feeling this year. GO HAWKS!!!

Jamal Crawford for Atlanta Mayor

November 4th, 2009
7:45 pm

I agree– to a point! Let’s just let the guys play for a while and then assess– maybe after 20 games or so. We should have a good idea of how things are going to go at that point.

I mean, right now, you’d think the Heat were better than the Cavs, just judging on early play and won-loss records. NOT!

doc

November 4th, 2009
7:51 pm

from last blog:

doc
November 4th, 2009
7:48 pm

truth:
Portland played well but lost it in the final minutes primarily because of our defense intangibles and unexpected rebound advantage.
Big Ump
Truth: that’s one of the better post this year.
nire:
Big Ump/Truth – Agreed
darrell:
Doc im sorry but woody almost blew the game, why in the world would you bring in bibby with 4min left to guard andre miller and move jamal 2 small forward 2 guard 6′9 travis outlaw, that was dum when the hawks was playing great defense with jamal at point.
nire:
I can’t believe I’m gonna say this…but I agree with darrell

HUH?

truth, it also goes for guys who treat the coach the same way.

Samuel

November 4th, 2009
7:53 pm

Dont know if I can handle two 10pm starts in a row. I may have to watch this one later. I wouldn’t sleep in Sactown. They got a guy who can go off for “fiddy” on any given night.

We may need to “slow our roll” a little and not get into a track meet with these guys. I can see Teague playing 20-25 minutes tonight.

Woody=COY

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
8:02 pm

Doc,

First, just because I praise a guy for making a good post doesn’t mean that I agree with every single statement he made in it. Second, I do agree that the Hawks won because of their defensive intangibles and rebounding advantage (although knowing Portland, I wouldn’t call that advantage unexpected). You still fail to recognize what I said many times on the other blog – the Hawks played great defense in the 4th quarter last night. All I criticized was three possessions where they failed to rotate as quickly as they needed to considering how important those possessions were. Those three possessions are the only quibble I have. I have absolutely, positively no idea why you’re trying to make my statement sound like more than that even after I’ve told you it directly. Come on, man.

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
8:11 pm

And yeah…I still wonder why Woody didn’t make better defensive assignments in the last couple minutes. I said so explicitly on the last blog – why weren’t we making offensive/defensive substitutions, and why didn’t we go with a more defense-oriented lineup during the last two minutes? It didn’t cost us the game, but it very well could have – because if we have Marvin on the floor instead of Bibby, I don’t think the Blazers get those three good looks on those three possessions. That’s why I agreed with Darrell. Because I thought he saw the same thing I did on those three possessions. Got it yet? Sheesh.

DHD

November 4th, 2009
8:12 pm

We’re 3-1 with a HUGE road win. Shut-up.

Remembering Roundfield

November 4th, 2009
8:12 pm

I haven’t been chiming in much lately but I have to express my displeasure with Mgmt for not keeping a huge center and possible low-post scorer in Garrett Siler. Sure It may have taken him 2 to 3 years to become a strong contributor, but why not at least sign him to our NBDL affiliate.What could it hurt?

Reggie (The Bird and Indian)

November 4th, 2009
8:16 pm

I hate these late starts.
Thing I want to see most tonight: The real Marvin Williams.

JeJe

November 4th, 2009
8:20 pm

The real Marvin Williams?

You are seeing him right now.

A guy who through 4 games is averaging 9 PPG, who has NBA wingspan and athleticism, but underachieves and flat-out sucks.

The Wreck

November 4th, 2009
8:21 pm

What? The NBA season already started? Call me in April and I might pay alittle attention.

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
8:23 pm

Making sure that people other than Roy took the last shots was a truly amazing defensive feat – usually the Blazers find a way to get him the ball in the crunch no matter what, but we managed to make people other than Roy take the last 10 meaningful shots the Blazers took. Despite the quibbles I have, I give full credit to the Hawks for making sure the Blazers had to turn to guys who aren’t used to taking the big shots.

If our guys play defense against the Kings like they did against the Blazers, this game will be over by halftime.

Reggie (The Bird and Indian)

November 4th, 2009
8:24 pm

JeJe

No, the real Marvin Williams is the one we saw last year for a stretch of time. The guy that was putting up 20 a game for a while because he had confidence. I just wish he had confidence when our team was healthy, because when he was doing that, we had a few guys out. Trust me, Marvin is a lot better that what he is doing right now. I guess you weren’t watching last year when he was doing that.

Reggie (The Bird and Indian)

November 4th, 2009
8:25 pm

Oops, sorry guys, I didn’t mean to bold the entire post. :)

Mz. Hawkdafied

November 4th, 2009
8:30 pm

Samuel are you referring to Kevin Martin scoring fiddy on the Hawks. As long as the Hawks secure the win I could care less about his fiddy. There is no NBA team that should be slept on and hopefully the team knows this and will act accordingly.

Go ATL Hawks get that 2nd road win.

roan st

November 4th, 2009
8:32 pm

Just saw my first Brandon Jennings highlights on ESPN and good lord has that kid got game. He is super talented and looks to me to be the early favorite for rookie of the year. I’m happy with our pick as well, Teague is fearless, has speed, and that is one hell of a combination. I just hope Woody gets him his minutes so he will develop properly.

Reggie (The Bird and Indian)

November 4th, 2009
8:32 pm

The Wreck
Don’t make Tech fans look bad.

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
8:35 pm

I don’t make many predictions about individual games, but I figure that since I got a shout-out in Sekou’s post, I’ll take a gamble and make one :) : The Kings’ young frontcourt has looked very good so far this year, but they will get manhandled inside by the Hawks’ frontcourt.

Reggie (The Bird and Indian)

November 4th, 2009
8:40 pm

niremetal
You were on the Braves blog during the season, right?? Or am I imagining that?

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
8:46 pm

Reggie,

You definitely imagined that, unless I have a doppelganger – not a fan of baseball anymore. It’s just the NBA, ATP, and NFL (in that order) for me.

O'Brien

November 4th, 2009
8:54 pm

I think Good Josh shows up tonight. And didnt Horford have a big game against Sacramento last year?

I look for JJ and Crawford to have big games tonight. (I just realized that Crawford is the Hawks second leading scorer at 15.8 pts per game)

Reggie (The Bird and Indian)

November 4th, 2009
9:06 pm

niremetal
I think it must be that somebody has a similar name to yours. And I’m almost positive you were a regular here last year. So maybe I got the seasons mixed up. By this time of the year, I lose all interest in baseball. It’s tough for me to watch the world series. But during the summer I watch some Braves baseball. It’s basketball time now, but the Saints and Georgia Tech are making it hard for me to focus on the Hawks, with their good years.Usually by this time of the year, Tech is 5-4 with with no hope of going anywhere better than the music city bowl, and the Saints are scoring 37 a game and giving up 38 a game.

O’Brien
I think Horford had a pretty nice game against Sacramento last year. The only huge game I remember from him is the game against Miami, I believe. He had something like 27 and 21. He’s impressed me so much this year already.

chemdawg

November 4th, 2009
9:07 pm

See, the thing is, it’s not just about winning. It’s also about keeping a sound strategy for winning over the duration of a long season into the playoffs. Guys will get tired and injured. If Woodson spreads out the minutes now, bench guys will be prepared to step up when called upon, and it may even prevent overuse injuries to the starters. Woodson has some talent and depth now. It’s his job to manage it properly.

Flappin' Hawk

November 4th, 2009
9:12 pm

I’m loving Woodson’s rotation concoctions. I know he’s loving it. I’ve never seen the man smile so much on the side line. Coaches don’t make a team good, players do…and we finally have a stable full.
Keep Mixin’ N Matchin’, Woody!
GO Hawks!

Clyde

November 4th, 2009
9:13 pm

FIRE WOODY

ROLL TIDE

Clyde

November 4th, 2009
9:15 pm

THERE SAMUEL GO WITH THAT COY STUFF AGAIN. SMH

Mz. Hawkdafied

November 4th, 2009
9:23 pm

Shum on chemdawg tellem. Wit chemdawg on:

See, the thing is, it’s not just about winning. It’s also about keeping a sound strategy for winning over the duration of a long season into the playoffs. Guys will get tired and injured. If Woodson spreads out the minutes now, bench guys will be prepared to step up when called upon, and it may even prevent overuse injuries to the starters. Woodson has some talent and depth now. It’s his job to manage it properly.

AMEN!

Nightly prediction…

November 4th, 2009
9:25 pm

Horford will be 0/7 from his own shot and will be 6/8 from garbage shots like the one Crawford gave him on the fast break. Horford cant shoot!

Big Ray

November 4th, 2009
9:30 pm

I ain’t trippin’ about Teague not playing, although I did want to see him play. I’m not going to hate on Woody about this for two reasons:

1) Would you rather see Teague guarding Roy out there? That’s no way to treat a rookie against the likes of Roy and Miller.

2) Woody gets it this time: leave the hot player on the court…this time it was Jamal.

To put Teague in there, you had to take one of those two guys out in a tough game. Or you had to take Bibby out. And while that’s arguable, a win on the road against a good team is what it is. Teague wouldn’t have played scared, and he generally takes care of the ball. But our guys got it done.

Now if he doesn’t play tonight, I’ll be screamin’ like a fool.

Interesting what the Blazer fans had to say. But I got a few gripes with their gripes:

1) They don’t know how lucky they are. Had we not had an afroed-brain fart moment in 2006, they wouldn’t even have a chance to complain about Roy.

2) Last I looked, their JJ (Roy) signed a contract extension and is locked up for another 5 years. Our JJ may not stick around, meaning this could be the last season.

3) Call him soft if you want, but Lamarcus Aldridge is a matchup nightmare, a true scoring big man, and a great #2 punch to go along with Roy. We’re still arguing about which of our guys can possibly be that #2 punch, or if we even have that on the roster.

4) They were able to add a good veteran pg to their stable of young runners. We had to add one just to have a freakin’ point guard.

So what the hell are THEY complaining about?

Oh yeah…..we DID beat that azz last night, didn’t we?

:) :twisted:

R.U. KIDDIN'ME

November 4th, 2009
9:32 pm

USING THE WORD”COACH” & THAT BONEHEAD WOODSON IN THE SAME SENTENCE IS DIS RESPECTFUL TO THE PROFESSION @ ANY LEVEL IN ANY LEAGUE!!!!

Dan

November 4th, 2009
9:38 pm

I don’t understand the complaining…the Hawks are 3 and 1, with a chance to get out of the west coast at 2 and 1…not sure what else anyone wants.

We have a good team, everyone. Sit back and enjoy the ride. We all remember how bad things used to be…just try and be happy.

Sautee

November 4th, 2009
9:39 pm

I’ll remind the Horford Haters before they get started what Woody said:

“There’s going to be nights when Al is going to lead us in scoring, and the same goes for Marvin and [Josh].”

So who doubts Woodson? I don’t.

i_am_soulstar

November 4th, 2009
9:44 pm

If JJ plays aggressive defense on K-Mart, and the Hawks play decent basketball, this one’s over before it starts

Truth-Serum

November 4th, 2009
9:44 pm

Yes!! JJ and Crawford are a 1st class back court. Now if we can get a first class front court to go with our first class coach when can legitimately get in the title picture.

Flappin’ Hawk – Ditto and amen!

GIlley I got to respect your post. All these haters because Woodson wont play their boy or run their amateur version of offense nor follow their inexperienced advice. You had the class to recognize that its Woodson’s team. He has won, He is winning and he will win, playing Woodson style of ball. I may not like it but hes getting the most out of it and the Hawks are winners and fun to watch. I dont see you as a hater but as a man who would like to see Woodson do it Galley’s way. I feel you. I wish he would do it Truth-Serums way. He is the man. Its his show. Good post Galley. Good post true Hawks!

TheAntiMe – True-Dat!! Youre on point!

cdog Yeah all these haters should be congrad u lators. Woodson Rocks!! Just win Baby!!
Let the whiners whine. Every body is better than the man doing the job. The man wins with very little or limited talent. Rock on!!!

Samuel – Go Woodson

Mz. Hawkdafied Yes Woodson is loving his many options. He did not have these before and still managed to make the playoffs, with one second tier all star. -Go Woodson.

Remembering Roundfield – Me too! Siler would have been to this organization what Bynum is to the lakers in 3 years.

Shout out to the bubba posse hate crew….Whats up haters?!

Ken Strickland

November 4th, 2009
9:45 pm

JEJE-Allstar and NBA champion KGarnett is averaging 11.3PPG, MBibby 9.5PPG, ABogut 10PPG, JCalderon 10PPG, RArtest 11.3PPG, RJefferson 11.7PPG and TPrince 12.3PPG. These are all players that have either recently signed lucrative contracts or been acquired as starters to improve their teams. WOULD YOU SAY THEY’VE BEEN LIGHTING UP THE SCOREBOARDS OFFENSIVELY? REMEMBER, IT TAKES VERY LITTLE EFFORT TO BE CLUELESS AND EVEN LESS EFFORT TO BE A NARROWMINDED HATER.

Reggie (The Bird and Indian)

November 4th, 2009
9:49 pm

Ken Strickland: Exactly.

KevinA

November 4th, 2009
9:54 pm

MVP of game last night,Josh, ZaZa close. Last year Flip and ZaZa saved many a game after the starters put us in the hole. Two players had that look in their eye. ZaZa and Josh. They willed us to win. They put everything out on the floor. Best skilled – maybe not – but these boys brought it.

Tonight is bench night and I think they will play great. We will fire off the spark of hard play last night.

Crawford was awesome.

Blast

November 4th, 2009
9:56 pm

For real, y’all. Acquiring Jamal for two cents and change might turn out to be the best trade this off season.

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
10:00 pm

I am surprised how few people have talked about Zaza’s impressive burst at center last night. He blew Przybilla and Oden out of the water while he was out there, on both ends. Horford’s 11 and 13 was pretty durned good too.

Most teams would be pretty happy with their centers putting up 23 points and 16 boards against one of the league’s deepest frontcourts, no? :twisted:

Ken Strickland

November 4th, 2009
10:01 pm

TRUTH SERUM-you made the comment: “HE(WOODSON)HAS WON”. Since no NBA team has ever gone winless, you can make that statement about anyone that’s ever coaching in the NBA. Saying HE HAS WON is a whole lot different than saying HE HAS A WINNING RECORD. Woodson 1st Hawks team won only 13 of 82gms, yet he still won. Last yr Woodson’s team won 47 or 82, and was his 1st winning season in his 5yr career as HC.

You can’t take anything away from what he’s accomplished, especially when you consider what he faced when he started. However, if he deserves as much credit as some of you seem to think, you shouldn’t have to skew the facts and/or make out of context statements to justify it.

bigdave

November 4th, 2009
10:02 pm

LETS GET IT….!!!

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:03 pm

It could turn out to be the best move of the offseason, Blast, depending on how the Hawks finish. It’s already the best bargain. No team gained more for less.

Blast

November 4th, 2009
10:06 pm

Pacers finally win a game. Phoenix finally lost one. Houston hanging tough with the world champs. Can Minny actually hand the Celts their first loss?

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
10:07 pm

Crawford’s burst reminded me…we haven’t seen Astro Joe around here in far too long. I fear there can’t be a good explanation for his sudden and unexplained absence. I hope the man’s ok.

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:07 pm

Bibby gets crazy applause from the fans that are here. And I have to admit, this is the fewest people I’ve seen in the Arco stands for a game since I’ve been covering the league. Seriously, this is place is empty compared to what I’m used to seeing in this building.

Joshua Randolph (fire Mike Woodson express)

November 4th, 2009
10:08 pm

He we go. Where is bigdave???

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:09 pm

Joe has an excused absence. But you’re right, we need an update to make sure he’s doing well.

Reggie (The Bird and Indian)

November 4th, 2009
10:11 pm

BONE

November 4th, 2009
10:13 pm

down 6 to start

Blast

November 4th, 2009
10:13 pm

Yes, Sekou. No team gained more for less. They talked about the big named trades so much, Shak, Rasheed, Vince and all. So far, I think Hawks getting the best bang for their buck. If Hawks have a great season and playoff run and Crawford wins the 6th man, chalk it down to to the best move.

Correct me if I’m wrong, hasn’t Hawks won all the opening tips so far?

Joshua Randolph (fire Mike Woodson express)

November 4th, 2009
10:13 pm

BONE

November 4th, 2009
10:13 pm

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
10:14 pm

*sigh* Josh didn’t even contest that jumper.

BONE

November 4th, 2009
10:14 pm

uh oh spaghettios

Reggie (The Bird and Indian)

November 4th, 2009
10:14 pm

Joe, with a slow start.

BONE

November 4th, 2009
10:14 pm

The hawks look tired.

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
10:15 pm

Our guards aren’t making smart decisions with the ball so far…

Joshua Randolph (fire Mike Woodson express)

November 4th, 2009
10:16 pm

I never fuss about refs, but are we playing girls bball?

Blast

November 4th, 2009
10:16 pm

Entire Hawks starters with a sluggish start.

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:16 pm

I guess we all have to deal with the fact that the Hawks are just not going to start games like a team on fire, at least not on the road. It’s just not in their DNA.

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
10:17 pm

As Big Al’s #1 fan I was very happy to see him hit the boards hard last night. Props to Josh for shutting down Aldridge. Crawford has been a lifesaver this season. I think we’re moving in the right direction. Hold judgement till the offseason for all the Hawk Haters and Woody Haters out there.

Why can’t Steve Smith return to the broadcast team?

Is Jerome working out?

Where is Zaza’s restaraunt?

More later…..Game just started.

Reggie (The Bird and Indian)

November 4th, 2009
10:17 pm

That’s what has made me mad about Marvin this year. He is completely out of the offensive movement, and when he gets the ball, he dribbles for a few seconds and then shoots a fade-away. Common Marvin, you are better than this.

BONE

November 4th, 2009
10:17 pm

Well I knew Joe was gonna come out flat. Woody played him 46 mins last night. He’s smart ain’t he

Joshua Randolph (fire Mike Woodson express)

November 4th, 2009
10:18 pm

sac loves the 3

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:19 pm

I kinda like this Jason Thompson fella. Another nice block by Josh. Kevin Martin (who is on my fantasy team) is smoking so far. I need a win as bad as the Hawks do.

Joshua Randolph (fire Mike Woodson express)

November 4th, 2009
10:19 pm

of course Woody is smart.

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
10:20 pm

It hasn’t been pretty at all, but we’re tied. I’d say take Bibby out because of the defensive mismatches, but he’s the one making good things happen on offense.

BONE

November 4th, 2009
10:20 pm

How many times do u think Nique is gonna start a sentence off with “I tell u what….”

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
10:20 pm

Conflict of interest, Sekou. Recuse yourself :)

Reggie (The Bird and Indian)

November 4th, 2009
10:21 pm

Bone
I’m gonna go with 24, in honor of Marvin Williams tonight.

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:21 pm

Love this move by Woody to rest Joe early for Crawford. Nice.

Reggie (The Bird and Indian)

November 4th, 2009
10:23 pm

That’s 5 by ‘Nique already.

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
10:23 pm

I see BIG AL!!!!

Why doesn’t anyone talk with me?!

BONE

November 4th, 2009
10:24 pm

damn Josh thats what Josh needs to do

Blast

November 4th, 2009
10:24 pm

Josh almost cracked his skull on the backboard on that dunk!

Joshua Randolph (fire Mike Woodson express)

November 4th, 2009
10:24 pm

Smith you love every move Woody makes. I remember the times the AJC writers use to hold him a accountable.

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:24 pm

Good Josh in the house.

Blast

November 4th, 2009
10:25 pm

Here goes Teague! People happy now?

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:25 pm

Young Teague in the building. Hawks need good minutes from him.

BONE

November 4th, 2009
10:26 pm

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
10:27 pm

Could you guys keep it down? I’m like 20 minutes behind on Tivo!

Talk to me…..someone…..please…..

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:29 pm

Man, what a foolish thing to write Randolph. Scan back every blog that’s been written and see how many times I’ve ever shown Woody love. Do your homework.

Blast

November 4th, 2009
10:29 pm

Hawks are so much fun to watch. No other team in the NBA is more exiting than Hawks. Most NBA games are really quite boring, but not Hawks games. Win or lose there is always drama. Guess that’s why we are fans, huh?

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:30 pm

Teague plays at another speed, which will come in handy tonight. The Hawks are going to need a change-up cat against the Kings.

Big Ray

November 4th, 2009
10:31 pm

Took us a minute to get serious about our opponent tonight.

Does Teague push the tempo, or what?

Big Ray

November 4th, 2009
10:32 pm

Josh Randolph,

I tried to tell you about that before. You ain’t been listening. Sekou lovin’ Woody? You gots to be jokin…

The Hawksta

November 4th, 2009
10:33 pm

Miss Horford, you are new here. Welcome! We love the ladies!!!

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
10:33 pm

Teague runs a team like Spud!

Big Ray

November 4th, 2009
10:34 pm

Should’ve been a foul. Jamal got hacked.

I hate a switching defense. Udrih couldn’t dribble past Teague, but the switch puts Zaza on him. Duh!

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:34 pm

I wonder if I’ll make shots like this if I start licking my fingers all the time the way Jamal Crawford does.

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
10:34 pm

Thanks for the welcome party! I haven’t missed a game in like 4 years but I have never tried this!

Joshua Randolph (fire Mike Woodson express)

November 4th, 2009
10:35 pm

i’m calling it soon boys. If the Hawks keep running this should be a cake walk.

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:35 pm

Good call Ray. Hawks radio voice Steve Holman says the team hasn’t had a player that makes it look as easy as Crawford does since Smitty. Good call.

The Hawksta

November 4th, 2009
10:36 pm

Sekou why are your post sometimes in blue and sometimes in black? Big Ray are you blogging this year? Didn’t get the memo.

Big Ray

November 4th, 2009
10:36 pm

Heh. Sekou , you’ll get the swine flu sooner…..lol…

Blast

November 4th, 2009
10:37 pm

Aaah!!! Minny could not hold on. Lost by 2. But looks like Lakers might lose tonight. What’s up with no superstar Houston? They balling, man!

Crawford with 9 points already, Joe resting and Hawks up by 2. Hawks win tonight and Lakers lose, my night is made. Late or not!

Big Ray

November 4th, 2009
10:37 pm

BONE

November 4th, 2009
10:37 pm

Teague is doin work

The Hawksta

November 4th, 2009
10:37 pm

Wow now that’s a fan! Good post Joe Smith

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
10:38 pm

Teague is such a Spud!

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
10:38 pm

So much more movement with our second unit than with our first. Zaza and JoeS setting backscreens, Crawford and Teague swinging it, Mo creating spacing…

Joshua Randolph (fire Mike Woodson express)

November 4th, 2009
10:39 pm

Domique is so dang bias. Bring Steve Smith back.

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:39 pm

Teague is so quick off the dribble it’s ridiculous. Tyreke Evans looks good as well. Great NBA body. Not sure he’s a point guard. Joe Smith is a man among boys. He just threw his own teammate (Mo Evans) to the ground to get a rebound.

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
10:39 pm

I love Steve Smith! He should come back!!!!

The Hawksta

November 4th, 2009
10:40 pm

Is Nique still at one “heat check” for the year?

Joshua Randolph (fire Mike Woodson express)

November 4th, 2009
10:41 pm

I agree Miss Horford wasn’t as bias.

BONE

November 4th, 2009
10:41 pm

See I told ya’ll Those 46 mins will catch up with Joe

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:41 pm

I spoke his name too soon. Evans is on a tear right now.

Big Ray

November 4th, 2009
10:42 pm

Told you to watch out for Tyreke Evans. He just worked Joe two times in a row. Ouch.

Blast

November 4th, 2009
10:42 pm

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:43 pm

As the “moderator” here, my posts are shaded to show authenticity (just in case I say something stupid they’ll know it was really me).

Blast

November 4th, 2009
10:46 pm

Lately, Sekou, your posts have not been shaded.

Big Ray

November 4th, 2009
10:46 pm

Nice work, Joe.

Big Ray

November 4th, 2009
10:47 pm

Instead of floppin, Josh, you could have stayed on your feet so you could challenge that shot!

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
10:47 pm

Look! Another stadium that is less crowded than ATL!!

Blast

November 4th, 2009
10:47 pm

Unless if the fault lies with my brand new laptop. Don’t think so, though.

The Hawksta

November 4th, 2009
10:47 pm

I remember when there was never an empty seat in Arco Arena! Man how things have changed there. Basketball is the only game in town

Melvin

November 4th, 2009
10:48 pm

That was a dirty foul by Nocioni on Mo…

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
10:48 pm

GO!!! AL ! You almost killed Nocioni!!!

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
10:50 pm

Woody is barking for his team to “run, let’s go, run.” He sounds like me last night.

Blast

November 4th, 2009
10:56 pm

Crawford gotta to watch that finger licking crap, man. There is so much communicable illnesses out there, so many guys touching that ball, the ball hitting so many foreign objects, you gonna fall sick touching the ball and liking your fingers.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
10:58 pm

Yeah, we’re gonna have to start calling Crawford “Swine Flu” if he keeps that up.

Melvin

November 4th, 2009
10:59 pm

Sekou,

Maybe if Woody would have left Teague in the game he wouldnt have to bark as much for the team to run….

ak

November 4th, 2009
11:00 pm

RIP Sekou blog. It will be missed.

Jody

November 4th, 2009
11:02 pm

The Kings are staying in this game by attacking the Hawks inside.

Blast

November 4th, 2009
11:04 pm

Make that ‘licking his fingers’. It’s been a long day folks, and I have been hitting the sauce. Accurate typing is not my forte right now!

bigdave

November 4th, 2009
11:05 pm

Joe should have fed Al there… he ran straight to the cup give him the ball and let him finish or get fouled…

THHB

November 4th, 2009
11:06 pm

Just dropping by to wish Sekou well—You’ve truly been an excellent beat for our team–much needed and well done. Good luck and see you around!

Blast

November 4th, 2009
11:08 pm

Hawks have to bring the defensive effort right now in the second, shut the Kings out of this game.

Joshua Randolph (fire Mike Woodson express)

November 4th, 2009
11:09 pm

bigdave; you late bro. Where u in Woodys ass are something??

RealSquawk

November 4th, 2009
11:09 pm

Lets go for a second half of the same effort and some defensive stops and this will be a pretty successful road-trip.

Melvin

November 4th, 2009
11:11 pm

Did I miss something? Is Sekou leaving?

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:11 pm

Sekou, where are you going?

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:12 pm

“Did I miss something? Is Sekou leaving?”

Unless I misunderstood, Sekou just tweeted that this is his last Hawks blog. Kind of an unpleasant surprise, came out of nowhere.

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
11:15 pm

What’s up with Joshua Randolph? I think it’s code for he’s a Josh Smith & Randolf Morris fan. Maybe he’s actually Randolph Morris blogging during the game. That explains the rage against Woody. He should be happy he’s got a front row seat to watch all the games. If you had energy and talent you’d get to play Randolph. Give Woody a break….maybe he’ll tell you to put your popcorn down. Can you tell Collins to slow down on the all you can eat seats. I think that’s why he’s not getting in the games so far this season. Can anyone give a response on Collins? Should I assume my theory is true? What’s Up!

Good effort thus far. Let’s close down the middle on defense and rebound and we can enjoy a blow out by the end of the game. They got nothin outside of Martin’s shot.

bigdave

November 4th, 2009
11:16 pm

Randolph who are you and get off my nuts…
pick another screen name to jock…

cp

November 4th, 2009
11:16 pm

Why did Teague get pulled so quickly? smh. Crawford is putting in work. Good game so far but I don’t like the number of offensive boards we are giving up. This is a very winnable game. Can we please replace Nique. Great player but he is brutal on the mic.

Brandon

November 4th, 2009
11:17 pm

Whats happening?

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
11:18 pm

Thanks for the well wishes. It’s a terrible time to leave the ‘Ville. But sometimes you have to do what you have to do. I’ll still be around, working for NBA.com. But my time here is just about up.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:18 pm

If the Hawks would cut down on the turnovers, they would win this game easily. The turnovers have given the Kings easy opportunities and allowed them to go to the free throw line.

bigdave

November 4th, 2009
11:20 pm

i feel you Sekou… get to the money… keep progressing…

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
11:20 pm

Was gonna let you all know in a farewell blog, but that got blown up tonight with the news coming out. Sorry. But the blog isn’t going anywhere. It’ll still be here. Just with a different host. Treat him (or her) well.

BONE

November 4th, 2009
11:20 pm

Damn Sekou I hope they don’t replace u with some lame guy. Well wishes.

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
11:22 pm

Enough of the see ya later stuff. We’ve got this game to talk about. Second unit saved the Hawks again. I say keep the heat turned up.

Melvin

November 4th, 2009
11:22 pm

Dang. NBA.com is steal all our good talent… First Smitty now Sekou. Hope that find a better replace for Sekou than they did for Smitty. And I love Nique the Bball player….

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
11:22 pm

Tell me it’s not Terrence Moore or Bradley. I vote Sekou stays until we approve of this change! Who will keep up the beat?

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
11:23 pm

Trade Nique for James Varrett. Let Randolph Morris do the courtside reporting since he’s already there.

Blast

November 4th, 2009
11:23 pm

We gonna miss you, Sekou! Can I have your former job?

BONE

November 4th, 2009
11:23 pm

If it’s Terrence Moore I might have a seizure

Ramon

November 4th, 2009
11:24 pm

Sekou, I wish you the best. The best AJC employee easily. This the worst thing to happen to the Hawks since they traded Nique. lol.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:24 pm

Good luck at NBA.com… keep those tweets coming so we know when you bring that new new up there.

Samuel

November 4th, 2009
11:25 pm

Go Head Cuz. I guess I’ll be leaving as well.

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
11:25 pm

Can we replace Nique with Mario? Who knows what happened to Mario West?

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:26 pm

Josh just made the ugliest post up shot of all time…

Blast

November 4th, 2009
11:27 pm

Hawks toying with Kings right now. They need to put the clamp on them. Can’t give Kings life!

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
11:27 pm

Here comes Marvin.

BONE

November 4th, 2009
11:27 pm

Marvin has finally showed up

Melvin

November 4th, 2009
11:28 pm

Najeh,

Josh shot look better on the replay. The replay show it should have been And 1.

Samuel

November 4th, 2009
11:29 pm

I said earlier that I don’t know if we want to get into a track meet with these guys. Yall be carefull what you wish for.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:30 pm

These turnovers are murder. There is no earthly reason why the Kings should be up by 1 right now. The Hawks have shot themselves in the foot by not taking care of the ball. It would be a damn shame if that caused them to lose this game.

BONE

November 4th, 2009
11:30 pm

there just trading baskets now

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
11:30 pm

The intent of the track meet was to include rebounding and defense!

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
11:31 pm

Swine Flu is about to cause an epidemic!

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:31 pm

What a block! There’s the good Marvin.

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
11:31 pm

Agreed, Najeh, that was the nastiest bank shot I’ve seen in ages.

BONE

November 4th, 2009
11:31 pm

See MArvin needs to play like this all the time

Melvin

November 4th, 2009
11:32 pm

Marvin has turn up his play this half. I guess he doesn’t want to sit on the bench at the end of the game….

Blast

November 4th, 2009
11:32 pm

Lol! Imagine life without Sekou’s beat blog and having to survive with Moore or Bradley. UUggg!!!

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:33 pm

6 turnovers for Joe Johnson, 12 for the team as a whole. Yahoo’s box scores don’t say how many points off turnovers each team has, but I’m guessing the Kings have scored at least 15-20 points off turnovers in this game.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:36 pm

Whatever Josh Smith’s faults are, basketball IQ is not one of them. There are maybe five power forwards in the league that would have made that pass to the backdoor cutter.

Blast

November 4th, 2009
11:36 pm

Nique talking about Shareed Rahim’s career. All he could say was he was a nice player who had a nice career….. Nique, I’m sure you can find better adjectives than that. The English language is rich in synonyms!

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:37 pm

“Nique talking about Shareed Rahim’s career. All he could say was he was a nice player who had a nice career….. Nique, I’m sure you can find better adjectives than that. The English language is rich in synonyms!”

Unfortunately, “heat check” is not an adjective.

Blast

November 4th, 2009
11:38 pm

Dammitt! Lakers squezzed out a 1 point lead over Houston!

RealSquawk

November 4th, 2009
11:38 pm

Joe with a dunk. Spencer Hawes with an assist.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:39 pm

This Jason Thompson is a pretty damn good player. Wonder how someone with his skills ends up at some little MAAC school.

Another turnover and another three points off turnovers for the Kings. I’d like to see Woody tear into these guys during the next timeout. They are in serious danger of letting this very winnable game slip out of their grasp if they keep this up.

Melvin

November 4th, 2009
11:40 pm

Look like the Hawks have tired legs. I wonder why.

BONE

November 4th, 2009
11:40 pm

Put Teague in and let him penetrate

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
11:40 pm

The defense is just…not good.

Blast

November 4th, 2009
11:40 pm

Funny, Najeh.

Hawks not playing well right now, though.

Ramon

November 4th, 2009
11:41 pm

Sekou, Josh must be sad that you’re leaving to. Either that or he’s sick. He’s playing decent, but seems uninspired tonight.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:41 pm

About that Lakers-Rockets game… in an overtime game where the starting center and power forward fouled out for the Rockets, David Andersen still only managed to play five minutes.

Melvin

November 4th, 2009
11:42 pm

Where is Joe Smith? Where is Teague? Why does this Coach continue to play 6 man rotation the majority of the mins.

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
11:42 pm

This must be Najeh’s first game if he’s so rattled by the game. Seems we do this every time we should blow them out of the water. I can’t wait for the Bobcats game. How many times have we pissed the game away there? Not a surprise tonight, but we’ll close it out. Just be patient.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:42 pm

Speaking of tired legs, Dirk Nowitzki has a grand total of 10 points on 4/14 shooting in the 4th quarter of that game, after his 29-point 4th quarter explosion last night.

chemdawg

November 4th, 2009
11:45 pm

Anyone else notice the connection between zaza and crawford?

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
11:45 pm

Turnover city all over again. What is it with these guys and third quarter turnovers?

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:46 pm

ANOTHER turnover. Take care of the f*cking ball, damn.

Melvin

November 4th, 2009
11:48 pm

There’s no reason why Teague shouldn’t be in the game. The Kings have no answer for his speed. Woody simply doesn’t trust young players or his bench.

Miss Horford

November 4th, 2009
11:48 pm

If Josh or Marvin would pay attention to what Z has figured out with Jamal we’d have one heck of a highlight reel.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:49 pm

By the way, the Phillies are down to their final strike.

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
11:51 pm

That’s gotta be half a dozen times that the switching defense has resulted in Beno breaking down Zaza on the perimeter. That is NOT a matchup you want.

Blast

November 4th, 2009
11:53 pm

Yeah, Teague should be getting some burn right here.

Sekou Smith

November 4th, 2009
11:54 pm

Teague needs more real minutes than this Woody. Seriously. He’s good enough to help this team in times like this.

BONE

November 4th, 2009
11:54 pm

Marvin is messing up now

Blast

November 4th, 2009
11:55 pm

No more turnovers! Come on, Marvin!

Najeh Davenpoop

November 4th, 2009
11:55 pm

A double-dribble? Seriously?

BONE

November 4th, 2009
11:55 pm

And yea Teague needs more mins

niremetal

November 4th, 2009
11:55 pm

That’s the 4th carry the refs have called tonight. Sheesh.

Timbo

November 4th, 2009
11:58 pm

Totally forgot about Teague . . . Woody has been giving him the Acie Law treatment. He’s played well enough to earn minutes.

bigdave

November 5th, 2009
12:00 am

Woody isnt going to do right by Teague… i have that feeling…

Duke

November 5th, 2009
12:00 am

Woody is doing a horrible job with his rotation. Joe smith and teague should both be playing more

Blast

November 5th, 2009
12:01 am

Hawks need this win. Miami and Orlando won tonight!

bigdave

November 5th, 2009
12:02 am

J Hova take ova…

Miss Horford

November 5th, 2009
12:03 am

Does anyone know what happened to Mario West?

BONE

November 5th, 2009
12:03 am

Joe nees to give the ball up

Melvin

November 5th, 2009
12:04 am

I give the Kings coach credit. He plays his bench. He inserts Kenny Thomas in the game for the first time to start the 4th qtr. 1pt game with 8mins left he plays the rookie Casspi and with 6mins left in the 4th qtr he puts Mason in the game for the first time….

BONE

November 5th, 2009
12:04 am

I told ya’ll Teague is gonna get the Acie Law Treatment

Miss Horford

November 5th, 2009
12:04 am

Who is Jhova? Jesus?

Najeh Davenpoop

November 5th, 2009
12:05 am

In fairness, the Kings coach really has no choice but to play his young players since they make up more than half his team. That said, Teague definitely should be playing more.

Melvin

November 5th, 2009
12:07 am

What do you know. We push the tempo and get an uncontested dunk…

Duke

November 5th, 2009
12:08 am

I took the hawks and the 5 1/2 point spread. We should beating them by at least ten

Johnny Walking

November 5th, 2009
12:09 am

Man I knew Teague was done when Woody pulled him to the chair next to him during the Lakers game. Sekou hate to see u go Bruh. You had a real grip on the happenings in Hawkville. Hawks have really turned the corner. Years past on the road back to back was almost a certain loss. The only bad thing out of all those years ATL was booming the team sucked. Now they are good and nobody can afford to go see the games. Life IS a B. Then u die. Lol. Damn…

BONE

November 5th, 2009
12:10 am

Nique said Un-rhythm LOL

bigdave

November 5th, 2009
12:11 am

thats what needs to happen when the double is sent at Joe.. a guard should flash… get the ball, big open up, easy bucket…

Blast

November 5th, 2009
12:11 am

Crawford doesn’t just lick his lips but he flicks his hands across the bottom of his shoes also. Uggghh! Dude gotta watch it, man!

Duke

November 5th, 2009
12:13 am

I sure hope the use of the bench doesn’t start any drama inside the clubhouse. What’s your feel on that, Sekou?

Melvin

November 5th, 2009
12:15 am

I would like to see Woody explain Teague development plan.

bigdave

November 5th, 2009
12:15 am

Miss Lady…

i call Joe Jigga Man… kills them with the flow… J Hova is another self given alias of Jay Z…

Melvin

November 5th, 2009
12:16 am

Now that was great Ball movement on the offense possession…

BONE

November 5th, 2009
12:17 am

Jamal with another good shot. Teague has only played 5 mins

niremetal

November 5th, 2009
12:17 am

You said it, Melvin. Crisp as I’ve ever seen their passes.

niremetal

November 5th, 2009
12:17 am

It’s plays like that where it’s disappointing that only one guy (here, JJ) gets credited for an assist.

Mychelfromatl

November 5th, 2009
12:18 am

Rod from College Park,

Um no homie, your assumtion is way off dog, I’m a man bruh and my name is pronounced as “Michael” just spelled different “Son”. Dude if you can’t tell, I’m from Atlanta, hince the “fromatl” part of my blogname. You was called “Son” because infact you come across like one on this blog. On the reference on whether or not I should have used “seen” or “saw”, dude miss me with that bulls**t cause it’s not that serious it’s a BLOG lmao. SMH at you gaining some type of gratification from a grammer error on a BLOG SMDH!!

Also you said and I quote: “You hate on someone when you dislike him or her for no reason or you are jealous of him or her. I have a reason to dislike Marvin’s game, and I damn sure am not jealous of him.” – - – -LMAO and SMH at you basically ethering yourself with your on definition.

You also said: “I would never want to be in a situation or on a team where no one respects me at my job or in my industry” – - – -Um I haven’t received the memo about Marvin not being respected within the Hawks organization or NBA.

“Non-informed bloggers” – - – -OK “Mr. Airmchair Quarterback/GM of the Year”

Question,

With all the critiquing you do “Son”, have you ever bothered to show up at a game or is you just a permanent “blog hater”.

Jay-Z – Blueprint 3 – Track 12. Hater – That song id dedicated to you “Son”.

bigdave

November 5th, 2009
12:19 am

truthfully Marvin might look better at the 4 spot…

Hawks Fan In New Orleans

November 5th, 2009
12:20 am

Sekou,
much success on your new endeavor!

bigdave

November 5th, 2009
12:22 am

Melvin

November 5th, 2009
12:23 am

It wasn’t pretty but I’ll take the win….

Miss Horford

November 5th, 2009
12:23 am

We had two Texas point guards to get the cold shoulder from Woody. Teague has shown he can contribute. Hopefully he’ll see some action against the Bobcats. They couldn’t stop him at the preseason game!

The only good part of no Hawks Live after a win is no big interviews by Nique and Jerome! We’re off to the 14-4 start to the season!

bigdave

November 5th, 2009
12:24 am

a couple of pieces have jumped in the shot behind Bob and them…

Blast

November 5th, 2009
12:25 am

Never doubted for a minute that Hawks will lose this game. They made it harder than it should have been, but they pulled if off.

Going to bed, y’all.

Miss Horford

November 5th, 2009
12:28 am

To bed for me too yall!! Thanks for havin me! Till next time!

Hawks Fan In New Orleans

November 5th, 2009
12:29 am

Great back 2 back road wins! JJ and Crawford both scored 26 points, but Crawford was more efficient at 10/15 as opposed to JJ’s 11/22. When the outside jumpers are not falling – drive!!!

Hawks Fan In New Orleans

November 5th, 2009
12:30 am

Where was JT0????

niremetal

November 5th, 2009
12:32 am

Wanna hear some great news?

1) The Hawks are 4-1
2) The Hawks just won 2 of 3 on a West Coast road trip
3) It’s 5 games into the season and Josh has yet to attempt a 3-pointer!

Big Ray

November 5th, 2009
12:35 am

Sacramento likes to run, and we let them. But once again, we scrapped for rebounds and clamped hard enough on defense in the end to secure the win.

Remember the whole bit about Crawford being a legit #2 scorer? Well there it is. Nice to watch him and Joe torch the Kings for a total of 52 points, and this three guard lineup at the end of games appears to becoming a regular thing.

Smith’s fouls kept him from doing more on the court (specifically on the boards), but he still helped out quite a bit in spots on defense, although if he didn’t have an opportunity to get a block, he more often than not layed off of his opponent, allowing Jason Thompson to score 22 points. The good news was no turnovers.

Marvin showed better aggression on a number of plays than I’m used to seeing. That, and he really fought guys on defense. His play was pretty efficient, especially on the offensive end.

Bibby showed up for this game, and was more aggressive going to the hole than he was since he got here. Fortunately for us, he and JJ also were good about snagging rebounds, or we would have lost that part of the war.

Overall, I’m glad for the win, but we should not let terrible teams play their game. We didn’t take them seriously enough in the beginning, which allowed them to go on runs throughout the game. Of course, we took it from them in the fourth, and that’s good. Against good teams, we won’t have the chance to do so.

4-1, I’ll take it. :)

Mychelfromatl

November 5th, 2009
12:38 am

Nire,

I agree lol.

Nice win Hawks, can’t wait for this Saturday…I’ll be in the house, section 121, courtside.

Goodnight folks.

cp

November 5th, 2009
12:48 am

Sekou hate to see that you are leaving. Good luck with NBA.com

Great win but it looks like the plan to get Joe some rest was just talk.. When they interviewed Joe after the game the dude could barely speak because he was grasping for air. Looks like Teague is going to get the Law treatment. He has to learn to trust the young guy and let him play. Woody complained about not having a deep bench for years and now that he has one he has went right back to ignoring them again. Good to see Marvin wake up. Crawford looks like he wants 6th man of the year…And once again I like ray’s idea of just cutting off Nique’s mic. At one point he called Kevin Martin KJ.

Grandad

November 5th, 2009
1:22 am

Sekou – Good luck and may God bless. I’ve only been posting for a week or so but I have been reading your fine work for several years. I was driving through Indy once, listening to some sports talk and your name came up. The host (name escapes) must have known you. He gave you some
great props. Best wishes to you and your family.

Big Ray

November 5th, 2009
1:23 am

Heh. I guess Nire isn’t the only guy Rod manages to piss off….

Big Ray

November 5th, 2009
1:30 am

I agree on Jeff Teague. Dude was doing just fine on both ends of the court and should have gotten more minutes.

Rod from College Park

November 5th, 2009
1:51 am

MichellefromATL,

I have season tickets Michelle, and have had them for the past 5 years. No one from Atlanta says SON, so I really have to question who you are. I’m not fortunate enough to have courtside seats, I can only afford the lowly club section. People from Atlanta also don’t jock Jay Z. Enjoy the game Michelle.

Truth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
2:27 am

I wonder how much lunch money Sekou has now. I wouldnt call teague’s time, Major.

Mike Woodson

November 5th, 2009
2:31 am

I guess Ive got Ken’s mouth closed. All that talk about him giving my job to Bob Weiss is out! The only time Ken lies is when his lips move.

Shout out to Truth-Serum

Truth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
2:40 am

Ken Strickland I appreciate the shout out. Yes, Woodson’s leadership and direction has turned the hawks from doormats to playoffs competitors.That is winning no matter how you choose to cloud it or confuse it. I cant remember when the hawks have should such confidence, unity and control. Yes, he did take over a losing team and yes that was his teams record. But, as I said earlier, he has them winning. Put a negative pessimistic spin on it if you like. You wouldnt be Ken if you didnt. Bottom line is another one bites the dust.

Do you!
Shout to Woodson, way to overcome the hate!

Clyde

November 5th, 2009
2:45 am

2 WINS IN A ROW

WHO CARES

FIRE WOODY

ROLL TIDE

nunna yo bizznezz

November 5th, 2009
2:52 am

god bless mr.smith..
i hope your replacement on here has your patience especially for our “fair weather fans”,not all of them,just some of them,aka bandwagoners,lol..

i didn’t see the game,but,like i said in other comments on here,woody is a young guard killer..he would have killed chris paul chances of being where he is today,trust!!

don’t look for woody to be around by all star break..
thats right,i said it..even if we are in the hunt in the east,sund is a stickler for player developement,and woody has yet to develope any players or even given them a chance at doing anything since sund got here and gave him his players..

and,since woody said he needed more beef up front,he brought in collins and figured al horford would be able to play his natural PF position with morris and collins in the middle..but guess what?? it ain’t happening under woody..

sund is gonna feel like his effort in getting woody the players he asked for and needed,were just wasted breath because they are not gonna get playing time..no time to jell..and if and when they get in the game because of an injury or foul problems with the others,they will look so out of sync that woody will be out of here!!

mark my words!!

Ramon

November 5th, 2009
3:05 am

With a win Friday, the Hawks will be 20% of the way to their total road wins of last year, with many of the lower level teams still left to face on the road. NY, New Orleans, Philly, Detroit, Chicago, Minnesota, and Indiana total seven more wins the Hawks should be able to secure before the end of 2009. If the Hawks can find a way to get out of this calendar year with 10 road wins, they will be in a great position to becoming more legit in the eye sight of the media.

After the new year, the Hawks will have 17-19 winnable games on the road. so even going 66% on those games would give the haws more than 12 more road wins, putting them over .500 on road victories. I think that experience alone will help the Hawks be able to close out their first round opponent in 5-6 games at the most.

Also, I expect Thanksgiving’s date with Orlando to be a playoff type game. The Hawks will have 5 full days to rest before that game. So there should be no excuse not to jump on Orlando (who will have just played Miami the night before on a national televised game the night before–you have to figure Wade is going for 45 that game lol). In the end of November and beginning of December, Orlando has an eleven game stretch where nine of the games are on the road, with 5 of those teams being likely play off teams (Boston, Toronto, Utah, Phoenix, and the Hawks). With Carter playing game on and game off, and Howard struggling with foul trouble this season, the Hawks may truly have a chance to be in place for a battle with the Magic for the division crown.

Saturday, one thing I truly hope to get to see is the battle of Teague and Lawson. These two were easily considered 1/2 in pg rankings in the ACC last season. Lawson has already looked like a 3rd/4th year veteran on his new squad. While Teague is showing that he has a gear that the Hawks haven’t seen since Mookie (pre drugs lol). I hope Woody is brave enough to allow us to watch them battle it out in the 2nd quarter.

Ken Strickland

November 5th, 2009
3:06 am

Excellent win tonight. There were some things that really stuck out to me.

(1)I simply loved the way we used backpicks and baseline picks to get people open or in position to receive passes near the paint. Woodson is really starting to open up his halfcourt OFF. We’re rapidly becoming more than just a guard oriented jumpshooting halfcourt OFF team.

(2)JJ has really started to attack the basket now that teams are afraid to double him. He has taken his gm inside the key and has become very effective.

(3)Speed kills, and both Teague and Crawford are killing our opponents. They’re providing the very thing I’ve been saying we’ve been missing with Bibby. However, it must be rubbing off because I’ve seen Bibby take it to the hole more these last few gms than I can remember seeing all of last season.

(4)Woodson is stubborn, a creature of habit, and isn’t blessed with a lot of confidence as a HC. I say that because even with a deep, talented and experienced bench, he’s starting to revert back to his old habit of overplaying his starters, committing less time and effort developing his younger player(s) as the season progresses and limiting the mins of his bench beyond an 8 man rotation. Joe Smith, MEvans and JTeague are getting cameo mins regardless of how well the perform. There’s no excuse for JCollins and/or RMorris getting DNP coach’s decision after 5gms.

(5)While I love Bibby and what he brings, what he brings can’t overcome the speed, quickness, penetrating ability, DEF pressure and future that PG Jeff Teague provides. With the all around ability of JJ and Crawford on the floor, Woodson can afford to play Teague some of Bibby’s mins in crunch time.

(6)When a HC has as much talent, speed, quickness, athleticism, depth, experience and chemistry as this team has, and is still coaching like he’s afraid of the possibility of not getting a contract extension, he has trust and/or confidence issues.

(7)Woodson seems to be focused more on coaching for his next contract rather than coaching to get valuable players like JTeague and JCollins ready for the playoffs. With Teague, we’re starting to see the old SStaudamire and ALaw syndrome again.

With all of that being said, we’re 4-1 and improving gm by gm, including Woodson. We’re starting to play on the road the way we played at home last yr, and that’s definite improvement. GOOD GM AGAIN YOU HIGH FLYING HAWKS!!!!!!

Ramon

November 5th, 2009
3:11 am

Nunna, as long as this team is in fourth place in the east, Woody isn’t going anywhere during the season. No one in the front office expects the Hawks to be better than the fourth seeded team, and lower than the 5th seeded team. If Woody can keep the team there, his job is secure at least until the off season. Even Sund will have no excuse for firing a coach who is on pace for a 50 win season, player development or not. That and also Woody may be the only hope to getting JJ back, rather we like it or not. I don’t see the front office being willing to let Woody go (while paying him) and pay the $3 mil that is required to get a good playoff tested coach as his replacement. So barring 7th-8th place in the east, Woody is here. So get used to it. Besides with everyone saying how bad Marvin has played, the Hawks are still finding ways to win games. True they lost to LA, but look what Boston did to Philly, who were in the game in the 3rd quarter, just like the Hawks. When championship teams decide to stop playing around and play championship ball, its not much you can do about it.

Ramon

November 5th, 2009
3:15 am

Ken, you’re right that was some real good back screens tonight. I loved seeing Horford and Smoove trying to screen Martin and others. And I agree, Woody has to trust the bench more. He’s so scared of going down by 11-14 points, that he forgets this same starting lineup has come back from deficits much larger than that routinely.

Clyde

November 5th, 2009
6:34 am

Did yall know our starting power forward is the leading the team in assists?

JeJe

November 5th, 2009
6:45 am

Ken Strickland,

You keep thinking Marvin has Danny Granger potential if given the touches and I’ll keep thinking how I think about Marvin, okay?

I’m sure people think Marvin had a good game last night since he had 13. Wow!!!!!

The Real Hawk

November 5th, 2009
6:54 am

Yeah, love that 5 minutes of playing time in the Sac game.
Gimme your lunch money.
This is Woodsen at his best, not knowing how to coach rookies. No matter how talented.

26 years of ATL Hawks

November 5th, 2009
7:56 am

Stressful but satisfying game last night. Crawford is making his mark with the team. I think last years team might’ve let that one slip away. I love his desire and toughness. We gotta work on that interior defense and rebounding if we expect the wins to continue. Teague is definitely a remake of Spud…only Spud got to play. He changes the game w/ his speed instantly. I can’t see how Woody won’t play him. He’s played well. He hasn’t made mistakes. Maybe he’s not scoring alot, but that shouldn’t be his job right now. Run the offense w/ few turnovers and you get minutes…with any other coaching staff. I agree Woody has killed 3-4 good guards in the past 3 years. I hope JTO gets some burn in Bobcat land. I pray they don’t overlook the Bobcats in favor of Sat’s battle.

Looking good Hawks. Keep it rolling.

dap01

November 5th, 2009
8:08 am

Sekou; thanks for years of great coverage. You help us tremendously during the rough times. I hope your replacement is half as good.

Crawford is a player. He is quick, fast and can penetrate. Come on Woody, don’t nut up and forget about Teague! Bibby 33 minutes, Teague 5, crap!

Brad

November 5th, 2009
8:25 am

I agree with most of what SEKOU SMITH says here, but the Marvin experience is a bust and always has been. He needs to be traded. I have never, and I mean NEVER, seen a more clumsy forward in the NBA. He falls down more then WNBA players. If he was a bench player, maybe he would be OK; but a starter – give me a break. He has two left feet. WHY IS HE STARTING?????? On a positive note, the Jamal Crawford pickup is huge. Teague, with some playing time also looks like he can be a great addition.

Doug

November 5th, 2009
8:26 am

JeJe: Marvin DID have a good game…6-9 from the field…look Ken may be engaging in hyperbole with the Granger deal, but his premise is right on…Granger would not be Granger with the Hawks…JJ dominates the ball sooooo much…JC is obviously option 1-2 most of every game…there are very few touches so lots of players do not develop offensive;y. Marvin could easily be a 17 ppg– 7 rpg type player.
Also…Teague is upper echelon in his speed and ability to break defenses down…he is a fearless competitiorand he gets 5 minutes in two games??? Good luck with keeping fresh legs and with not destroying the kids competitive desire and confidence!! Unbelieveable

KMP

November 5th, 2009
8:31 am

Back to Back road wins – This is huge for us! The JCraw move is looking like a deal that could put us over the top. Go Hawks!

Willie Coyote

November 5th, 2009
8:41 am

Play the damn rookie for god’s sake!

showboat

November 5th, 2009
8:44 am

Woodson is doing a great job. Isn’t everybody coaching for that next contract? If that means win at all costs then I’m with it. That’s all it’s about for every coach I’ve ever seen or been around. This squad has taken to a TEAM first attitude that is rarely seen in this star driven league. This is a very deep, PLAYOFF-TESTED team that will only get better as the year goes along. Rookies notoriously struggle on the road early in the season, so I don’t mind coach playing JJ, MB, JC, and Mo Evans during close road games. Teague will have to show Woody that he can be trusted at home before he gets any significant road minutes. The starters’ minutes are still way down from last year. I don’t think any coach in the league will sacrifice a win just to make sure everyone get in the game. It’s hard enough to get nine guys consistant minutes, let alone 10 or 11. It’s a long season, Teague’s time will come as will Collins’. Jeff will have to be patient and I’m not worried at all about the vet Collins. This team started 6-0 last year before the injuries and the struggle, but this feels to me like a 55+ win season.

Vinnie

November 5th, 2009
8:51 am

Hollinger stated best describing this year’s Hawks. What’s different? Crawford is playing Flip’s role and Zaza is the only other rotation player. Unless Woodson uses his bench, this team will have a similar story as last years. Where is Teague, Smith, Mo?

Mike is back

November 5th, 2009
9:13 am

Samuel, Ditto on the back to back 10:00 games. I thought the Hawks would win this game…had to lay it down for work…too many projects. When I got to work…the first thing I did was check the score of the game. GREAT WIN HAWKS!!!

Sekou, seriously I do not understand all the chatter about Teague minutes…is still too early in the season…Woody loves Teague…he will get him some minutes…Woody is just learning how to play poker with his line-up…BOUT TIME!!! Heh heh

The difference is Teague will probably handle it better.

I want to see what…if anything RandMo can give us while Collins is getting his conditioning back…can’t wait to see Othella…but I will be patient. If RandMo goes in and make some mistakes trying to play aggressive…I can live with that. However, don’t throw him under bus for a couple of mistakes thinking about passed. It would be a big boost to the front line if we could get some contribution out of him. Like Sekou stated early…teams are still working on putting the pieces together…I don’t expect to see Woody using a ten man rotation every night. However, I do think he will expand to a ten rotation as the season progresses…at what point who knows.

I agree that Charlotte should be another good test…if the Hawks start thinking about Denver they may overlook the Bobcats. Don’t think that will happen.

GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

JM

November 5th, 2009
9:19 am

Sekou, good luck at the new gig. Great blog you had going here. You and your old school hip-hop references will truely be missed.

Go Hawks!

ILL-logical

November 5th, 2009
9:46 am

LEADERSHIP. That is the diffence that Jamal Crawford is making so far both on and off of the court.
Consider: He has ZaZa playing better at both ends of the floor; how many times has he dunked TWICE in one game!He is talking to and encouraging his teammates while on the floor and on the bench.He doesn’t pound the ball into the floor incessently- he shares it and rewards those who do likewise.

Off of the court ,he has already become involved in civic affairs here. And gives some of the best media interviews of any ATL sports fiqure in recent history.He hasn’t thrown any of his teammates under the bus in those interviews either.

Sekou. Best of luck to you, I know that your talents will be better utilized at NBA.com. Pop in here from time to time to let us know how you are doing. You will be missed!

Turth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
9:58 am

“Woodson is stubborn, a creature of habit” – LOL big time! Why does the pot always call the kettle Black?! Ken/Grandad/Sybil, (same person), what you view in the mirror is you.Ive never met such a Jack-Ass as you in my life time. You clearly remind me of Balaam in number chapter 22 of the bible.

* hint, it a sacred book Ken.*

Yes ken, the tell all sign of when you are lying is when your mouth opens, then begins the out pouring of sin.

We do agree on one thing. Nice win!

The Real Hawk – I had first dibs on Sekou’s lunch money-LOL. I guess he may loose a few pounds this week. I appreciate the Teague fan club and the young man has performed admirably. However Im in no hurry to give him major minutes. Let wait to bibby slumps or there is an injury. Im sure he will be ready and may, when given a break, take the job from Bibby. Teaque will get his time and chance no doubt. Patience is a virtue. Lets see, JJ,Crawford,Bibby means limited time available. Again I stress patience. At some point he will take Bibby’s Job. Right now, grow and learn from the seasoned pro! Teague is fortunate to have Bibby as a mentor if he would use him. Let Bibby go out in the class and style in which he has played the game. You’ll know when the time is right for the changing of the guard.

showboat – on the money man! Kind of hard to argue with wins,(unless you are Ken and his bubba posse). Woodson is getting it done. Some people want more salt, others want more pepper, Woodson is the chef making the soup. Looks like a blue ribbon recipe to me. Just win baby!! Yeah what kind of fool GM would not sign a Coach who is capable of taking a team that has only a second tier all star and going to the second round of the playoffs is beyond me.

Showboat I also agree about the difficulties of finding minutes on a team this “newly” found depth in players. I like the fact that the competition for playing time is what it is. When Acie had his many chances last year, or the year before, he did not produce. Got to make good on your chances. That said, I like teague so far and Im a fan of his too, hell need lots of patience.

Brad I too think Sekou hits the spot more often than he misses. On the Marvin issue I have to agree with him again. Marv is a player, and a very young man too. Patience, the soup has not boiled yet. It will and then you see, Marv is a player and a team man.

Patience, patience, patience.

Clyde, Clyde, nice point! Yes Josh is an assist and block shot demon! The man is beginning to mature as a player. Sweet. Smoove. That is such a rare combo to have a pf who is an assist and blk shot leader. Did you notice that after the portland game Josh had his arms around JJ and Crawford simultaneously? Team player!! Unifier. Not the same man or player from two years ago. I guess woodson got to him with that fatherly tough love. Josh is a long way from the top of his game, which is scary.

JJ, Crawford,Josh-the real nucleus.

Its it just me or is Zaza, the slowest man in basketball A.K.A the turnover waiting to happen, playing lights out basketball? The man is finishing in the post and defending too. You just go Zaza!! Shout out to you. Im pleasantly surprised that you are finishing the way you are. Keep it up. You may get your starting job back that you lost to a power forward 3 years ago. I guess hes playing harder to keep Collins and Mo on the Bench. Hummm.

What ever it takes.

Just win Baby, Just win.

Hey Ken, this team if very unselfish, hard working and accepts thie limits and the limits of their team mates. They’ve learned to play and stay with in the confines of those limits. Im glad you aren’t the coach with that negative, divisive,pessimistic and selfish spirit of yours. No wonder no one ever let you play or taught you the game of basketball, Mr bobble head!

Turth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
10:04 am

*accepts their limits

fudd21

November 5th, 2009
10:13 am

KevinA,
I know it’s only 5 games and therefore still a small sample, but have your views on Jamal changed at all since the summer. I remember back then you were on Jamal the way that Rod and now JeJe are are on Marvin. Also many folks here were all on the Flip band wagon. I wonder if any of your views have changed since then. There is no way Flip would bring to the table what JC is doing.
Someone mentioned it earlier, but if JC keeps this up our acquisition of him will be just as big if not bigger than the other acquisitions made this summer. I am really excited about this team which is something I haven’t been able to say in a long time.

mountain_jim

November 5th, 2009
10:16 am

Sekou – I have not posted that much but always read – going to miss you but you but wishing you the best in your new gig – following in the tradition of so many of the best sports coverers in Atlanta have to go to ESPN or NFL.com or NBA.com to get paid and appreciated while the newspaper business continues to decline. Cheers!

terrell barron

November 5th, 2009
10:37 am

I hope Teague gets some good min in Charlotte. He for damm sure wont get any against Denver. Old stubborn azz is at it again.

mred1943

November 5th, 2009
10:54 am

Sekou
Tell all the people that think Al Horford is too short to play center that Houston starting center is 6′ 5′ (Hayes)

Truth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
10:54 am

fudd21 I was one who thought it would have been better to keep flip at low buget and go after a center which was more needed. I knew Crawford was a player but I did not expect the chemistry or what a world class back court that gives us if we keep JJ. If flip had the minutes we give Crawford his number would be comparative but no, Id keep Crawford. Not that we would be any less competitive or have a worse record. We still be a good team either way. I am a hawk fan so I accept what has taken place. That said, I do like Crawford and I like flip, both are tenacious. Crawford has played well and is better than flip but not by much,in my opinion.

Good question.

Dezz Nuttz

November 5th, 2009
10:55 am

terrell barron are you talking about ken?

doc

November 5th, 2009
11:15 am

sad to hear our main man, leader and fonder is going to hit the road. have considered him like a friend i invite to my table over the past four or so years. it will be tough to not see him around or as connected to this rowdy bunch as he was.

as in anything it is best to make sure good wishes are part of the feelings of loss and know it will open things up for the all of us. whoever follows are sure going to have big shoes to fill.

do you best there sekou, make us proud!!

vava74

November 5th, 2009
11:21 am

Sekou,

You will deeply missed. You are THE reason why I have been reading AJC and following the Hawks over here.

Your work as the Hawks beat writer has been always first class, combining a warm and human spontaneity with the writing technique which made your articles always a very good read.

However, I have a plan: if we all here at the blog persuade AJC’s ownership to sack those useless $&# Bradley and Schultz and use the money they would save to pay you, would you stay? :-)

O'Brien

November 5th, 2009
11:22 am

ILL-logical,

You’re right. Although Crawford is our 6th man, I think he is becoming more of a team leader than JJ is. Crawford talks more out there, and seems more passionate (JJ is just too quiet). And I’m really liking his game (no iso Crawford).

Woody said he wanted Crawford to lead the league in bench scoring, and so far, he’s looking pretty good. Crawford averages 17.8 ppg…off the bench. Wasnt there an ESPN.com sports writer who said Crawford could be the black Ginobli lol

Teague has played 45 minutes in 5 games. Come on Woody. Give the kid some burn.

I am a little concerned about our 3pt %. From behind the 3pt line, JJ is shooting 27%, Crawford shooting 32%, and Bibby 36%. Hopefully we will improve on that (and our defense).

Overall, we’re 4-1, (Congratulations Hawks and Woody), and we should beat Charlotte. Then we have a tough game at home against Denver.

Good Luck with your new gig Sekou

GeeMack

November 5th, 2009
11:25 am

Sekou good luck on the new gig.

Ken

Woody has these guys playing good basketball. He played 10 players last night. You may not like the way the minutes were distributed, but he is using his bench.

The offensive system has not changed the difference is the player are playing with more intelligence.

Truth

Good post.

doc

November 5th, 2009
12:08 pm

folks, i guess the title of this blog was an omen of sorts for the blog z, a fresh start.

Mz. Hawkdafied

November 5th, 2009
12:17 pm

Truth-Serum as soon as I finish reading all the comments on the blog I’ll get back to you. I was so sleepy and tired from watching the other two road games that I fell asleep on the game last night. Staying up late and getting up early in the morning to go to work finally caught up with me. Luckily I recorded it and will watch it at some point asap. Anywayz back to reading.

Marcus

November 5th, 2009
12:27 pm

Sekou,
you will be missed. Now, hope that the Hawks don’t lay down and have a letdown vs. lesser opponents like we did last year. I still can’t understand how we lost some games to the likes of CHA and NYK, and turn around to beat the Lakers and play CLE down to a Lebron free throw to save the game for them.

Mike is back

November 5th, 2009
12:49 pm

Sekou, Congratulation on the new gig…I share everyone’s admiration and respect…I wish you the best…you will be sorely missed. I always wondered how long the AJC would be able to retain your services. After mercifully suffers THROUGH YEARS with Bradley, Shultz, and Terrance Moore…trust me your blog was a welcome site. OH…did I mention sufferING for years!!!!!!!!! Heh heh

I been hooked on this blog ever since. I was amazed at the passion guys had for the Hawks…even in the mist of a LOWLY 13 game winning season…you would always maintain a level of civility around hear…that is a tribute to you and all the old school bloggers that has been here from the start.

I still remember all the kind’s words that you and the rest of guys gave me when I returned from a major illness…hints the name Mike is Back.

GO SEKOU, GO GUYS, AND GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

vava74

November 5th, 2009
1:02 pm

For those who suggested that Allen Iverson would be a good pick up for us and/or that he would do good in Memphis:

http://www.nba.com/2009/news/11/04/iverson.memphis/index.html

This guy only knows how to conjugate verbs with “I”… never with “we”!

Mz. Hawkdafied

November 5th, 2009
1:03 pm

Ahhh, Sekou sad to find out that you will no longer be in Hawksville. But happy for you that you will still be in the world of the NBA. Congrats on the new job.

Mike is back

November 5th, 2009
1:21 pm

Big Ray, I guess U THA MAN NOW DAWG!!!!!

cp

November 5th, 2009
1:46 pm

It looks like Teague is getting the Law treatment early. As long as the kid is not turning the ball over and is setting up his teammates then give him some minutes. Last night he was blowing past the Kings defenders and dropping the ball off to his teammates. He made one defensive mistake and he was yanked for the rest of the game. And I don’t want to hear because he is a rookie and he made that mistake on defense because our vets were looking bad on the defensive end too. The post game interview with JJ said it all. That dude could barely speak because he was so tired. When Woodrow did sit the starters and let the bench play they played well. Tell Woodrow its ok to play his bench it wont hurt. I hope JJ isn’t tired by the all star break like last year.

Volman

November 5th, 2009
1:48 pm

Mr. Smith. We definitely will miss you. Congrats on the new spot though. You are going to do great.

We really appreciate everything you’ve done for us over the past years. It’s been fun to come here and read your work. We all wish you continued success.

terrell barron

November 5th, 2009
1:58 pm

Truth serum, you have got to be kidding me? Flip could’nt hold Crawdaddys jock strap. Not even in the same category.

terrell barron

November 5th, 2009
1:59 pm

Deeznuts, I’m talking about Ole Woodrow, not Ken.

doc

November 5th, 2009
2:00 pm

mike, you da man, still get chill bumps thinking about your return.

Ken Strickland

November 5th, 2009
2:05 pm

GEEMACK-you’re buying the sizzle and not the steak. Woodson played 9 players against the Lakers, yet JJ played 46mins, Smoove 34mins, Marvin 30mins, AHorford 36mins, MBibby 35mins and JCrawford 34mins. He used 10 players last night, yet it didn’t prevent him from forcing JJ to play 37mins, Smoove 29mins, Marvin 31mins, AHorford 33mins, MBibby 34mins and JCrawford 34mins. Considering we’ve played only the 4th and 5th gms of the season, don’t you think he’s riding our starters waaay too hard?.

You’d think with the additions of guards Teague and Crawford that JJ and Bibby wouldn’t be forced to match or exceed last yrs mins, especially in only the 4th and 5th gms the season, and that’s the result of coaching scared. Woodson seems to be focused on coaching for a new contract rather than coaching his team for a playoff run.

Coaching scared makes you react for the moment and use up all of your ammo early. Coaching for the playoffs allows you to conserve you ammo and position yourself to weather the assault until help arrives. In this case, that help will be Teague, JSmith and Collins. However, you have to let them know their help is needed by consistently giving them adequate mins, or just playing them period.

It’s like a person with VD who takes a home cure rather than going to go a doctor to get professional help. The home cure succeeds in getting rid of the symptoms, but not the disease, which lurks undetected until something triggers it to return in full force. ISN’T THAT RIGHT DOC?Woodson’s insecurities are always lurking and ready to return in full force, and it looks like were starting to see some of those insecurities already.

After only playing the 1st 5gms of the season, Woodson is coaching and overusing his starters like he would if there were only 5gms left in the season and we were fighting for a playoff berth. That’s inexcusable. Maybe we’re beginning to see from Woodson some of the same issues and insecurities that concerned Sund when he refused to grant him a contract extension. AT ANY RATE, I HOPE WOODSON GETS IT TOGETHER AND COACHES US TO A SOLID SEASON AND A SOLID CHAMPIONSHIP RUN THIS YR.

Big Ump

November 5th, 2009
2:12 pm

Sekou
Man Im going to miss your blogs. They were the most professional. I don’t worry about you doing good on your next job, because you a winner and always will be a winner.

Thanks for everything
Big Ump

firewoody

November 5th, 2009
2:27 pm

Let’s hang a sign “Woody, play the damn bench” for every home game.

Sautee

November 5th, 2009
2:57 pm

Sekou,

You have set the bar so high that I honestly pity your successor.

Excellent work here for years. We will miss you sorely.

Best of luck (not that you need it) at the new gig.

And please drop by when you can.

peace

Bruce Levenson

November 5th, 2009
2:58 pm

All the best, Sekou. I assume I will still see plenty of you in the gym.

Ernest

November 5th, 2009
3:03 pm

Sekou, you may have mentioned this but when will your last day be with the AJC? Thanks for providing this forum for Hawks and basketball fans to chat. Best wishes to you with your new opportunity!

The Old G Money

November 5th, 2009
3:07 pm

Great blog Sekou! While I haven’t participated much over the last year+, I have attempted to keep up when time has allowed. I wish you the best at NBA.com. Hopefully you’ll get to write a ton more than you were able to here. I also hope that you weighed in on your replacement.

As for tomorrow and Saturday. I hope we win both. Saturday is going to be a tough test. It would be great to give the second team more burn in order to keep the starters fresh for Saturday’s action. Who knows what Woody will do. Love it that we’re 4-1. Anyone who has watched this team in person, knows that there is a BIG difference on the court in terms of maturity, resilience, and sene of purpose. Hopefully we won’t slip back into last year’s ways.

Go Sekou!

Mychelfromatl

November 5th, 2009
3:07 pm

Sekou,
God bless man. Wish you all the best!

mike

November 5th, 2009
3:20 pm

good luck sekou.. now hook me up with elle duncan..

Peter

November 5th, 2009
3:21 pm

When is Marvin going to toughen up ?

He is a boy among men !

Mychelfromatl

November 5th, 2009
3:21 pm

To the Atlanta Hawks Organization,

Could you please find new ways to improve the in-game experience for the fans. The game against Washington was dreadful to say the least. Here’s a few of my suggestions:

1)Please cut it out with that bulls**t at halftime (Anybody that was at the Washington game knows exactly what I’m talking about). That routine where you bring out the group of dudes dancing to Beyonce, ripping of their shirts. Please stop that BS, Atlanta already have a bad stigma of being a fruity city as is! Plus, even though I don’t have any, their are kids in the house.

2)I like Ryan Cameron (not sure if that’s how he spell his last name) but can we have a little more energy to hype the crowd; now I’m not saying he’s bad but we just need a little more.

3)The kiss cam is getting old and outdated (athough it’s not terrible), please empliment something new to keep the crowd guessing.

4)This is Atlanta!!! PLAY SOME GOOD HIP-HOP MUSIC INSTEAD OF THAT DANG ORGAN AND TECHNO MUSIC!!! Once, again it’s Atlanta, it is not hard to find music to get the crowd going.

I will be at the game Saturday and I expect improvements lol.

All, please feel free to add on to my list for a greater in-game experience, maybe Sekou can give the organization the memo.

Mychelfromatl

November 5th, 2009
3:24 pm

Wow, there are hella grammatical errors in my post.

**Shrugs** I’m sure y’all will still understand where I’m coming from though:)

Grandad

November 5th, 2009
3:26 pm

*Truth Serum: I am not K.S., however, I did create the moniker “Sybil” for the youngster who pretends to be me. I do not know what you, are anyone else’ problems are with Ken, but pay attn. and try to grasp who is speaking when I post. Being new here I’m not privy to your parlor games. Honestly, seriously, I enjoy sound discussion of the game I love, with a good chuickle now and then. My initial posts were greeted by Ken, Sautee and others with what I thought was refreshing, lucid and civil repartee. I was most appreciative. Now I’m certain Sybil will have a field day with this post. He/she (mh) is, both creative and obtuse. I suppose that would make sybil a paradoxical conundrum. I’m sorry TS (lengthy) just wanted to dichotomize your KS/Grndd/Sybl theory.
*JeJe – I concede, Granger is a good player. Indy is not gonna trade him to the Hawks for Marv. They would not nor should they. If I could get JaVale McGee in a trade for Marv then, then YES, I would prefer him than Granger. Actually, I would prefer Troy Murphy (over DG), better shooter(check the stats before you holler), MUCH better rebounder. Would have led Hawks in boards last season.
*Zaza should start…then Big Al could play the 4, where I think he belongs. KS would probably disagree.
*********Teager must PLAY********
*I think Mr. Sund must be thinking, “If J.Collins is not going to play, then why did we spend the money. We could have saved money and developed a young player such as Sims or Siler.”

Mike is back

November 5th, 2009
3:36 pm

Doc, thanks bro…you were one of first guys among many that offered a kind word. It meant a lot!!

Well, I guess you know Wake plays GT this weekend. I told my sweet pee this one could get ugly…no way Wake can stop that triple option…I’m looking for a score like that Vandy game…tells your contacts at GT to cut us some slack. lol

Nevertheless, I wear my Wake gear to work tomorrow and represent for my pumkin. I can hear the GT alums in the building scoffing at me already. Heh heh

GO WAKE AND GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

*ps…sorry for the shameless plug lol

doc

November 5th, 2009
3:53 pm

mike, i hope by monday you feel like a steamroller hit you. still disgusted we played wake so poorly a few years back and let an acc championship get away from us. still feeling that one and betternot mistake wake for a patsy, too well coached.

Clyde

November 5th, 2009
3:54 pm

What IS SEKOU LEAVING US?

I’m in tears.

I remember when the Hawks didn’t even have a blog. We had to post comments about the Hawks on the general sports blog. Then Sekou came along.

He gave all the die hard Hawks fans an outlet to voice their opinions about the team. I have truly enjoyed all of his articles as we vent. You will be sadly missed. Even in your absence Sekou the blog that you started will continue. We have seen too much together to just let this go.

Here a FIRE WOODY for SEKOU

Truth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
4:13 pm

Grandad/ken- yeah Right!

Ken/grandad I do agree that if zaza continues to finish in the post and show himself more athletic he should get his job back that he lost 3 years ago. He is a better representation of a center than horford, whom I like a lot. at power forward.

The experts are pretty close to right on the money, the contributions of an unproven inexperienced,very young rookie registers 0-zero on the + win side. If any thing we may lose a game or to base on his inexperience, the flip vs Crawford exchange favors Crawford by a game or 2 or three games the net effect is the Hawks should be a game or 2 better this year. Gee, Mack, you are right on the money again! Bimm.

Sekou, Ive only heard good things about you, I was very quick to judge you. You have shown me love and Class, you are quite a man. Loves blessing follow you til the end.

Ken Strickland

November 5th, 2009
4:16 pm

SEKOU-like all of the regulars have said so far, you will be sorely missed. Although you were a beat writer, you presented yourself and what you presented from a fans perspective, and that goes a long way. Last night you made the following statement: “TEAGUE NEEDS MORE REAL MINUTES THAN THIS. SERIOUSLY. HE’S GOOD ENOUGH TO HELP THIS TEAM IN TIMES LIKE THIS”.

Doesn’t is seem like Woodson is more interested in protecting Bibby’s starter status than giving a young, quick, fast and talented PG the time and attention needed to make a difference with this team? We all saw how Teague got DNP coaches decision immediately after a solid performance in the 2nd half of a serious comeback effort against the Lakers. Isn’t this the same irrational decision he consistently made with ALaw right after a strong performance?

With what Teague has shown so far, giving him 15-18MPG consistently might make it very difficult for him to justify keeping Bibby in the starting lineup wouldn’t it. HE NEEDS TO SHOW AS MUCH LOYALITY FOR THE TEAM AS HE SEEMS TO BE SHOWING FOR BIBBY.

Ken Strickland

November 5th, 2009
4:22 pm

“SEKOU IVE ONLY HEARD GOOD THINGS ABOUT YOU, I WAS VERY QUICK TO JUDGE YOU”. TRUTH SERUM, THAT SEEMS TO BE ONE OF YOUR MAJOR MALFUNCTIONS.

Truth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
4:22 pm

Ken if im not mistaken Bibby signed a new contract last year. Im sure the GM made promises to Bibby as a professional and a person. I know you could care less about keeping promises but perhaps you should address your hate of Bibby to Sund.

GeeMack

November 5th, 2009
4:23 pm

Ken

LMBO at the VD reference…that’s to funny. I would be concerned if it didn’t get better. I will say this this is just me…with the way Crawford is playing I will be more concerned with getting him 30 to 35 mpg between the 1 & 2 positions. Reason being there is such a raised level of play when he is on the floor the floor JJ and the other guys.

I got a question for you Ken..what do you think about Crawford in the starting line up and Bibby coming off the bench with JT-0? I know its a small line up but the negative impact should be small against most teams second unit. Let me know your thoughts.

fudd21

November 5th, 2009
4:27 pm

Ken,
Just curious, how many minutes would you like to see the starters playing? 20

niremetal

November 5th, 2009
4:37 pm

Sekou,

Nothing but respect, man. Someone may succeed you, but they sure as hell won’t replace you.

Grandad

November 5th, 2009
4:43 pm

TS: I don’t know what else to say.(re Ken)
About Zaza, I don’t rem. who said it earlier but Z. and Jamal have developed some nice chem. I think JC has given Z. an infusion of confidence. Among the previously listed deficiencies I have attached to Woody, “confidence killer” would be another. People who say “what happened to Acie-won’t happen to Teague”; not so fast my friend, Acie was a bright, intelligent, well spoken, happy, confident, young man who was full of faith in both God and himself when he arrived. Plus Z. was a workmanlike starter when he arrived. It could be argued that he was an MVP candidate in the ‘Boston Series’. In both sit. *Acie and *Z. Woody has mishandled ea. player. I also worry that Jamal might start hurting Joe’s chances of making the all-star team, therefore, reducing him to “mo” or less min.(horrible pun).

showboat

November 5th, 2009
4:46 pm

30-35 minutes is good amount of time for your starters and 6th man. Up to 35-38 for your hoss (JJ). I don’t know the league avg, but this team seems to be more effective at those levels. Some nights the frontcourt starters will play more and other nights the backcourt may play more. It’s a long season, everyone will be needed.

newkid

November 5th, 2009
4:49 pm

All the best Sekou. When can we expect Astro Joe to begin his new gig at the AJC?

Grandad

November 5th, 2009
5:13 pm

Bibby/Tea. … Tea./Bibby … it doesn’t matter who starts.
(I doubt Mr. Sund made any such promises) Bibby can, will, and should be a great mentor for Jeff. Woody on the other hand needs to realize
he can let Tea. run the pt. wi. both Joe and Jamal on the wings to support him. Also, that would be an incredibly fast line up wi. Josh and Al @ the 4 & 5. I’m concerned that Woody isn’t innovative enough to visualize these combinations. Another thought for Woody…get Tea. in the game early before his hind end tightens up. Same thing…3rd qtr. Last evening when 4th qtr. began, I knew Teager’s night was over.

O'Brien

November 5th, 2009
5:13 pm

Ken,

I agree. Just because Woody plays 9 or 10 men, does not mean he is utilizing his bench effectively.

JJ is still averaging 38 minutes per game. Showboat, I dont think Woody will cut JJ’s minutes as the season goes on. And lets not forget, JJ was injured during the playoffs last year, and he missed a few games during the regular season. Now that we have Crawford, I dont think JJ should average more than 34 minutes per game.

And Teague needs more PT. He played 9 mins against Washington, 0 minutes against Portland (this after helping the Hawks pull within 10 of the Lakers in the 4th Q), and 5 minutes against Sacramento. I think Teague should play 10-15 minutes per game every game.

Our offense looks better, so I’ll give Woody some credit there, and we’re 4-1. But I still dont like the way Woody handles the bench.

Some people say, Just win baby. But what happens if Bibby gets hurt? Then Teague will be thrown into the fire. What happens if JJ gets hurt down the stretch again? Then we will see Crawford playing 40 minutes per game.

O'Brien

November 5th, 2009
6:24 pm

By John Hollinger | ESPN.com

“It’s back to the future for the Hawks, who essentially went to a seven-man rotation — much like they did for much of last season — in beating the Blazers on the road 97-91. With no foul trouble — the Hawks had only 15 personals as a team — rookie Jeff Teague took home a DNP, and Joe Smith and Maurice Evans played only six minutes apiece.

The other similarity? A one-sided second quarter for Atlanta behind the two primary reserves. This time it was Jamal Crawford, rather than Flip Murray, teaming up with Zaza Pachulia to do the damage, but second quarters behind that bench duo were a major staple of the Hawks’ 47-win 2008-09 season. So, too, was the short rotation employed by coach Mike Woodson, although last year it was more out of necessity than choice. We’ll be watching to see whether either trend remains in play during the opening weeks of this season.”

vava74

November 5th, 2009
6:27 pm

Astro Joe is taking the reigns? Is he the new boss?

BONE

November 5th, 2009
6:27 pm

I don’t know whats Woodsons problem is with playing the damn bench. Everybody is gonna be worn out by playoff time again this year. USE THE DAMN BENCH U DAMN IDIOT.

truly1

November 5th, 2009
6:41 pm

You will be missed sekou

Trtuth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
7:02 pm

Ken Strickland I mis jugded the quality of Sekou’s character.I assumed that because he associate with the likes of you he must be a Bubba head as well. I was very wrong about Sekou. I wanted him to hear that from me before he left. Im man enough to admit it. Not so with your toliet of a brain. Ive witness your sewage for about two years. Whine all you want, Complain and B!tch as you do.
Woodson is a man, who has my respect, hes earned, Sekou is a man who has earned my respect.

You have proven to me to be malicious and willfully ignorant. You are more like a B!tch, to me. As a Matter of fact thats all you do is B!tch. look at all your blogs just on this page for example. B!tch is B!tching. It gets old to a true hawk fan.Stop B!tching, let us enjoy the season. All you do everyday is B!tch about Woodson and your cancer spreads to the rest of the lonely negative haters. B!tch Ken. Thats what Ive heard from you on Schultz, Bradley and here for 2 years. No Ive got you right. You are a B!tch. Now Start B!tching!

Trtuth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
7:04 pm

Trtuth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
7:30 pm

MY NAME IS LEGION.

FOR WE ARE MANY.

SOS

November 5th, 2009
7:35 pm

Somebody help dat boy. He’s demon possessed.

Ken Strickland

November 5th, 2009
7:59 pm

TRUTH SERUM-If it makes you feel better about who and what you are,feel free to call me names as much as you want. But remember, it won’t change the fact you’re an overly emotional, immature, multidimensional moron that craves attention at any cost.

There’s an old saying that goes, THERE’S STRENGTH IN NUMBERS. Well, while that may prove correct physically, you and your many alter egos have proven it doesn’t hold true mentally, intellectually or psychologically. I WISH ALL OF YOU MORONS WELL.

Ken Strickland

November 5th, 2009
8:27 pm

TRUTH SERUM-I reread your last post and a couple of things stood out. First, you said: “I WAS WRONG ABOUT SEKOU. I WANTED HIM TO HEAR THAT FROM ME BEFORE HE LEFT. “When did you come to the realization you were wrong about him and why didn’t we/he hear that confession from you before his announced departure? Since Sekou associates and communicates to and with everyone on these blogs, why would you insinuate he associates with me and people like me exclusively? IS THAT YOUR DELUSIONAL IMAGINATION WORKING OVERTIME AGAIN, OR THE SYBIL FACTOR AT WORK AGAIN?

Secondly, you seem to go out of your way to show a reverence for someone else being a MAN. You said, “WOODSON IS A MAN, WHO HAS MY RESPECT, HES EARNED, SEKOU IS A MAN WHO HAS EARNED MY RESPECT”. You say that as if only men can earn your respect. What is it about being a MAN that gets your utmost respect, and turns you on so? Your defense of Woodson is on the level one would expect from someone defending his wife or girlfriend. Just saying, heh, heh, heh!!

Mz. Hawkdafied

November 5th, 2009
8:40 pm

Truth Serum who made you Coach Woodson’s bodyguard/defender. When Mike Woodson brings a championship to the ATL he will have earned my respect. Okay over the summer the Hawks made moves that made the team much deeper than last season. What’s wrong with demanding to see this depth on a consistent basis?

Big Ray

November 5th, 2009
8:43 pm

Grandad ,

I agree. Teague can run with these guys. He seems to have the poise. Why not consistently give him some burn with the front unit, so he can get used to it? You never know….we may need him BADLY later in the season, or in the playoffs. You just NEVER know. Having said that, I’m not going to make too much noise about it yet , it being just 5 games into the season and all.

Grandad

November 5th, 2009
8:46 pm

So, Truth Serum is Sybil? Well I’ll be darned. Why is it, he only chooses one or two, to berate about criticizing Woody? It seems most on this board are fed up with him [Woody].

Sautee

November 5th, 2009
8:48 pm

Mz Hawkdafied,

An excellent and fair-handed question.

Of course you’re asking someone who can not fathom Woodson being wrong (except of course about Horford and his ability to play center).

Ken Strickland

November 5th, 2009
8:51 pm

GEEMACK-we don’t have to change our starting linup, especially not now. Woodson simply has to play Teague more, JJ and Bibby less. With what Teague has shown so far, there’s no way we’d suffer in anyway by giving Bibby a 10-12MPG reduction and JJ a 6-8MPG reduction and increasing Teague’s mins by 10-12MPG. Consider this:

MINS PTS AST AST/TO ratio

BIBBY 31.0 10.2 4.0 2.86

TEAGUE 11.3 4.5 2.5 5.0

Based on these stats, we would likey benefit overall, both immediately and longterm, from giving Teague more mins and Bibby fewer. However, both Teague and the team are being victimized by Woodson’s insecurities and misplaced loyalities.

Sautee

November 5th, 2009
9:06 pm

Grandad,

Man, if you only KNEW. It’s near impossible to have discussion with someone who is more interested in tearing down fellow Hawk fans than contributing anything meaningful to the blog. Unless, of course one considers false accusations meaningful. Funny about that from one who tries to use the Bible on occasion as a shield. The hypocrisy he shows by his “use” of God’s Word is inescapable. Ray called him out on it, and for a while he stopped until lately.

And as far as “meaningful contributions, here’s a sample:

truth-serum has stated (under at least one of his many names) that Zaza gets so many offensive rebounds primarily because he’s too lazy to get back on defense!

Yes, he actually posted that. He thinks hustle has nothing to do with it, only laziness.

He also, last June was arguing with me on Bradley’s blog, and he listed Horford’s blocked shots per game at .68 / gm (It was 1.42 / gm). He was listing the playoff stats, when Horford was injured (likely because that was the lower number). When me and several others came back and showed him the error of his ways, he said this:

Sautee

June 21st, 2009
4:17 pm

Oh I see you are using outdated stats from 08 and not this years stats from 09-10.

That’s right, Grandad, he wanted me to use stats from 09-10, despite the fact that the 09-10 season was still FOUR MONTHS from beginning!

Are you starting to get the picture?

Clyde

November 5th, 2009
9:15 pm

Yall know in little league sports when a father coaches his son and he’s sorry. The father will put his son in the game in place of a better player just so his son can shine. That’s how I feel with Woody and Bibby. Bibby is the third best point guard on the team and yet he starts. SMH

Mz. Hawkdafied

November 5th, 2009
9:22 pm

Truth Serum you totally make me laugh with this statement:

“Mz. Hawkdafied Yes Woodson is loving his many options. He did not have these before and still managed to make the playoffs, with one second tier all star. -Go Woodson.”

Many options. From his rotations the past few games I can’t tell that he’s loving his many options. And they say Missouri is the show me state. Well I’m from the A and right now I’m in a show me state of mind. Stop talking about how oh yeah I played JJ too much and I’m gonna cut down on his minutes…….sounds like the teacher on Charlie Brown to me. Mwah, mwah, mwah. I am a true Hawks fan. Everyone that knows me, know where I be when the Hawks play at home and know not to bother me when the Hawks are on the road. I’ve been a Hawks fans since I was a little girl. Stop calling people bandwagon cause they voice their concerns. Most people who visit this blog can’t be bandwagon cause it takes up time to read this blog and even comment. Who is gonna spend time and money on something or someone that they don’t give a darn about?

Grandad

November 5th, 2009
9:24 pm

It’s clearing up quite a bit. This also has been quite amusing. I just hope I can hold my own with you guys and not embarass myself. Thanks for the heads up. alot of times I’ll be 20 or more min. behind with a response; Some of us old timers type slowly.

Sautee

November 5th, 2009
9:29 pm

Grandad,

My fingers relate all too well. And I won’t admit how long it took me to type this. ;-)

Grandad

November 5th, 2009
9:51 pm

Cool lots to talk about. Sautee, are you a B!tch? You seem like one. I noticed the bold letters in the writing when your B!tch azze acted like truth serum. What a passing of gas you are. everyone could see the bold lettering in text is only given to the Woody haters crew. Ok Sautee, you are funny.

Truth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
9:56 pm

Well for a minute I miss took you for a person I may exchange idea’s with. My bad, I was mistaken. Lets go back to the place where we were before….never having conversation.

By the way, Ive never used the word bandwagon on this blog or any other blog. Good luck to you and have a nice day. Bye.

Truth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
9:57 pm

*Mz. Hawkdafied ( the above to you)

Truth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
10:00 pm

Ken I dont know who Trtruth serum is, I appreciate the flattery. I must agree, however, you do B!tch too much.

Grandad

November 5th, 2009
10:03 pm

Sautee, I dont think you are really a b!tch, truth serum probably said that. You can be my b!tch any day!!

Truth-serum

November 5th, 2009
10:04 pm

Ken/Grandad, please leave me out of your affairs. Thank you.

Samuel

November 5th, 2009
10:05 pm

Same “OLE” Ken, nothing left to talk about so he bashes Woody about minutes. Are you kidding me? He should be coaching for the playoffs? Dude, this is the Atlanta Hawks, not the Lakers. All I know is that we are 4-1 and that’s great.

Last year, we went to the second round with Woody’s philosophy. It mattered not how many minutes we played to get there, we would not have beaten the Cavs. So the only other outcome would be not make the 4th seed at all and lose in the 1st round.

Clyde,

Talk to me at the end of the year. Yall are good but you need a QB. What you gonna do with Rev. Tebow?

Woody=COY

Sautee

November 5th, 2009
10:07 pm

Grandad,

One more and I’m headed for bed.

Truth-serum ALSO used Darryl Dawkins as his idea of the kind of “ideal center” he’d like us to have.

LOL…. Dawkins career numbers: 12.0 pts 6.1 reb. 1.4 blk.

SIX rebounds for an “ideal center”!!!!

Of course this is the same guy who told Ken and I quote:

“The center post is not about rebounding.”

So, maybe for HIM, six rebounds a night IS ideal! ;-)

‘night all.

Grandad

November 5th, 2009
10:11 pm

B!tch Sautee, so truth serum made a typo on the year’s date and you b!tched out of proportion. Is that why he think? you are a fool? B!tch Sautee, can you copy and paste the post where he said Zaza gets rebounds because hes lazy? Other wise it may be that you are B!tching this out of proportion too. Can you get your stanky azzse to copy and paste it? Im your friend B!tch

Grandad

November 5th, 2009
10:12 pm

B!tch Sautee can you also post the Dawkins blog so you wont be accused of lying…

Mychelfromatl

November 5th, 2009
10:13 pm

What the Hell. I’ve been lol reading this page just now. You dudes are funny man.

Grandad

November 5th, 2009
10:15 pm

Well Sybil, there you go again, tell me one thing; do you enjoy the group sex?

Grandad

November 5th, 2009
10:16 pm

ken/sybil no, sautee

Samuel

November 5th, 2009
10:17 pm

Maybe if Sund gave Woody an extension, he wouldn’t coach so “scared” and empty the bench every night. At what point does the man deserve an extension? Any other GM would have done the right thing. Sund, you wrong man.

Mz. Hawkdafied

November 5th, 2009
10:19 pm

Truth Serum fine with me I have no time for small minded people anyway.

F_ck Sund

November 5th, 2009
10:21 pm

Its woody team B!tches

Grandad

November 5th, 2009
10:26 pm

Oh Sybil, not him too, all those others will be jealous !

Truth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
10:26 pm

Great post Samuel. Good insight. Be careful the buzzards are circling tonight.

Truth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
10:32 pm

Here an import message for Ken:

I HATE WOODY, WOODSON, HATE , ANGER, MO HATE, I HATE WOODY,SOME MO HATE, STUPIDITY, I HATE WOODSON, HATE WOODY, BITTER, ETC. ETC, MO HATE

PAID FOR BY THE LOCAL KNIGHTS OF THE SOUTHERN BUBBA CREW.

STAY TO FOR FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS.

Truth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
10:33 pm

p.s to the important message from ken.- Go hawks.

Truth-Serum

November 5th, 2009
10:34 pm

This just in...

November 5th, 2009
10:38 pm

Here an import message from Ken:

MO HATE

PAID FOR BY THE LOCAL KNIGHTS OF THE SOUTHERN BUBBA CREW.

STAY TO FOR FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS.

Blast

November 5th, 2009
10:39 pm

Hope the Bulls knock off Cleveland tonight!

Blast

November 5th, 2009
10:51 pm

Go Bulls! Whoop Cleveland’s sorry ass!

Blast

November 5th, 2009
11:37 pm

Can’t the AJC find a way to shut down these crazy folks who post multiple blogs under aliases or under other people’s screen names? While I don’t read most of their hate filled or homo themed crap, It’s just annoying having to scroll through so much hate garbage. This is a basketball blog! Not a personal ad blog. You wanna get into homosexual or racial talk, I’m sure you all known what website to go to! It’s really simple. You don’t like the Hawks, you don’t like Marvin or a particular Hawks player? The answer is easy. Don’t watch their games and don’t post on or read their blogs. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? Man, Get the f#ck outtahere!

doc

November 6th, 2009
12:04 am

blast, report it if you want to have it removed. personally, the scroll works fine for me.

Grandad

November 6th, 2009
12:49 am

Blast: my apologies if my “2″ posts offended you.
*the grp. sx. remark was in fact mine and was a play on an old
Lewis Grizzard line. It was a reference to Truth Sybil and his
multiple personality disorder.
*the other crack was in reference to TS post using the sreen name
blankity blank sund.
I was baiting him and if it was out of line then I will refrain from such tactics. He is so much like a little kitten and if you dangle a string in front of him/her…he/she just cannot stand it. Kitty just has to take a swipe @ it.

Ken Strickland

November 6th, 2009
1:07 am

SAMUEL-well, well, well. Your 10:17PM post is a definite admission of your aware that Woodson is coaching scared, which is definitely due to his insecurities. However, are you insinuating that Woodson’s refusal to effectively utilize his bench is his way of getting back at GM RSund for not giving him a contract extension? HOW CAN OUR PLAYERS BE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP A CHAMPIONSHIP CALIBUR ATTITUDE, CONFIDENCE, AND TRUST AMONG THEMSELVES AND THEIR HC WHEN THE HC CONSISTENTLY DEMONSTRATES CONFIDENCE AND TRUST ISSUES WITH HIS PLAYERS?

Some of you so called fans should concentrate more on providing more support for the team, rather than individual team personnel.

JEJE-How do you feel now that the team is 4-1, despite all of your negative minded predictions of doom and gloom for the team before we embarked on our current road trip? Do you remember when I told you this is why the NBA requires all teams to play their gms? Cleveland is 3-3 and obviously having some early chemistry issues. They didn’t need Shaq to get off to a slow start.

If we go to Carolina and take care of business, like we’re capable of doing, it will really set up an exciting match Saturday against the Nuggetts.

Samuel

November 6th, 2009
6:42 am

If 4-1 is coaching scared, i’ll take it. Cuz, if you’re still here? Maybe “Ya Boy” Rich Rodriquez needs to coach a little scared up in AnnArbor huh. LOL!!!

Woody=COY

Samuel

November 6th, 2009
6:50 am

Let me go check the Laker blogs. I bet the Phil haters are bashing him for “coaching scared”. They’re 4-1and he’s playing Fisher and Koby too much. Farmar and Morrison are not getting developed. LOL!!

Samuel

November 6th, 2009
6:53 am

Fire the Zen Master

KevinA

November 6th, 2009
8:31 am

fudd21
November 5th, 2009
10:13 am
KevinA,
I know it’s only 5 games and therefore still a small sample, but have your views on Jamal changed at all since the summer. I remember back then you were on Jamal the way that Rod and now JeJe are are on Marvin. Also many folks here were all on the Flip band wagon. I wonder if any of your views have changed since then. There is no way Flip would bring to the table what JC is doing.
Someone mentioned it earlier, but if JC keeps this up our acquisition of him will be just as big if not bigger than the other acquisitions made this summer. I am really excited about this team which is something I haven’t been able to say in a long time.

fudd21, my views have changed concerning Crawford. He is playing better than I expected and so far shooting better than his career numbers. But my major concern of offence balance still remains for the team. This last game against the Kings was a game right of last years play book. The back court took way to many shots. 30-35 BC shots would be normal in a balanced attack. Last game the number was closer to 50. I will admit the number is skewed because we played 3 guards some of the time.

If the back court can’t shoot .450 FG% they should be looking for more assists.

The 22 shots by the front court should be closer to 30 in my view. On a positive note the back court is driving more so I am not pushing the panic button plus the fact were winning. Is the Kings game our identity with back court dominance or the Pacer game our identity with great balance. Only time will tell.

Steve Nash is not our PG. If he was, the front court and Marvin would get more touches in areas they could score. I still hope Jamal, Teague and JJ become our versing of Nash type play – they have shown flashes of doing just that.

ILL-logical

November 6th, 2009
9:20 am

Sharing the ball and a strong defensive effort are the keys to victory tonight.

Grandad

November 6th, 2009
9:51 am

Kevin A: One cannot simply say backcourt and frontcourt anymore when discussing sh.%. Now it is more perim. & post. This is due to the type 3 that a team employs. In the old days a backct. referred to the two guards. You even mentioned it yourself, we employed a 3 guard off. much of the game. Which makes it even more puzzeling why Woody can’t seem to get Teager into the game. Another item; don’t always look @ hard stats,
such as bckcrt sh. %. One must factor in 3 pt % when you look @ their overall sh. %. This would even take into acct. Marv’s overall sh. %. Even though he’s a frntcrt player he takes (as he should) a high # of 3’s. Another example of looking deeper than hard #,s would be Indy’s frntcrt: they take an unusual# of 3’s[T.Murphy,D.Granger,when he's @ 4].
Lastly ea. game and ea. opponent is dif., one cannot put a set # of shots on a particular grouping of players or even a player. The other team is going to dictate some of that. By the way Jamal appears to be a wonderful addition and seems to be working as hard as he can to be a great teammate.

Ken

November 6th, 2009
9:55 am

The Hawks wll have a fine season, make the playoffs as the third seed and lose in the second round of the playoffs just like last year. The reason is not that they lack the talent but the organization lacks the vision and resolve to have as its goal an NBA championship. Sure they have improved the team and will win a few more games but that about it. With the current roster, the Hawks are a dominant center away from being a true contender for a ring but I think they are content to make improvement on last year. Celtics, Lakers, Calvaliers, even Orlando talk about championships while teams like the Hawks talk about making the playoffs. If you can’t believe or conceive of winning it all, then you will never achieve it and that my friends is truth. Can we handle the truth!!!!

Mike is back

November 6th, 2009
9:59 am

Clyde yo farewell to Sekou was ooooooooff tha chaaaaaaaaaaaaaaine bro!

GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Truth

November 6th, 2009
10:44 am

I’ve been out of pocket but I’m back. Thanks for the props guys regarding my last post. When the spirit hits me, I just write.

Doc: Yes to your response, it would seem since coaches are an extension of the team, the two are inseparable. However, contrary to college sports, the general perception of the NBA game is mostly driven by the players. Perhaps that could explain why owners first preference is to fire a coach when things go astray without dislodging fans support. While the fans may stay connected to the team, the players could be severely impacted by such a move. The drama created from this quagmire is perhaps one reason why the game is so intriguing.

SAY IT AINT SO, SEKOU IS LEAVING? NOT BEFORE THE TRUTH GETS THE LAST WORD:

Sekou, I wish you nothing but the best on your next endeavor. The fan community may be the most impacted by your departure as you have provided the one thing that was missing in the past: REAL ACCESS. You need to know how much we appreciated all that you did. While your professionalism and your body of work maybe imitated, it really can’t be duplicated. Clearly you come from a good stock as it has transcended into the excellent quality of service that you have provided us. I’m sure you will leverage it well. Without me rambling any further, I’ll just co-sign a recent comment I read from hawksdawgs of Peachtree Hoops:

Sekou Smith, beat writer extraordinaire, is headed to NBA.com. Not sure who is replacing Sekou but he or she is going to have a tough time replacing the sheer amount of quality recaps, blog posts, twitter notes, and quotes that Sekou brought year round. With all that material, Sekou made blogging easy. If you could not find something to say in the sheer volume and quality of Mr. Smith’s work well you really didn’t have anything to say. He will be missed.


The Link

Ken Strickland

November 6th, 2009
11:01 am

The thing I like most about the current Hawks, and the way they’re playing, is their ability to play on the road the way they played at home last yr. NOW THAT’S IMPROVEMENT. The The main thing we need to work on is our overall DEF. However, we’ve definitely been able to play solid DEF in the 4th qtr of gms, and that’s always the mark of a good team.

The Bobcats, at 2-2, are a team that’s talented enough to beat any team in the league anywhere, but seemingly not on a consistent basis. I looked at their depth chart and they have RBell as the 3rd option at SG. Since when did they get talented enough to demote last yrs starting SG to 3rd string? They got taller in the middle with TChandler, but I’m not so certain they got any better, especially with his struggles with injuries and learning LBrown’s OFF. This will be Horford’s 6 consecutive gm going up against a 7 footer. So far, the UNDERSIZED NATURAL PF PLAYING OUT OF POSITION has more than held his own playing center, as he’s outrebound every 7 footer he’s encounted so far.

I have to say again that I love the way Woodson has expanded his previously limited halfcourt jumpshooting OFF to include back and baseline picks, pushing the ball and attacking the basket. It’s allowed us to become #5 in the NBA in scoring. It’s scary to think of what we could do if we ever managed to stop getting off to such slow starts offensively.

J

November 6th, 2009
11:05 am

NBA.com is gaining one excellent writer. While happy for the promotion, I will greatly miss Sekou being the Hawks Beat Writer. I truly believe that he is/was one of the best in the Country.

I suppose it is good that Slam and NBA.com both are populated with Writers with ties to the Hawks.
While Sekou is not a lifelong Hawks fan the way that Lang Whitaker is, I am sure he will always have a soft spot for the Hawks. This can only help the Hawks National perception and coverage.
Sekou, fair thee well.
J

Ken Strickland

November 6th, 2009
11:27 am

CLYDE-with all of the baby sitting and childish exchanges and arguments I’ve engaged in with some of our more adalescent minded individuals on these blogs, I missed your tribute to SEKOU until reading the shoutout from MIKE IS BACK. After going back and reading it, he was right, IT WAS OFF THE CHAIN MAN. You are a man of few words, especially if it doesn’t involve Woodson or the U of AL. But in that heart felt tribute, your few words were enough to encompass the feelings and sentiments of every individual on this blog. For that, I offer a heart felt shoutout to you, my homeboy and friend. THANKS!!! I also owe you a debt of gratitude for opening my eyes way back when and turning me from a blind, narrowminded Woodson supporter, like SAMUEL and TRUTH SERUM, to name a limited few, to someone with a clue. AGAIN, THANKS.

Allow me to clarify something. I’m not saying that everyone that supports Woodson and recognizes what he’s done is NARROWMINDED OR BLIND. It’s just the select few that have a limited one way thought process when it comes to Woodson and can’t bring themselves to accept he’s flawed, not perfect, and isn’t the sole reason for the Hawks annual improvement. I actually support him as our HC, but not a lot of the illadvised, selfserving things he often does that’s not in the best overall interest of the team and it’s players.

At any rate, GOOD LUCK TONIGHT YOU HIGH FLYING HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Grandad

November 6th, 2009
11:36 am

Ken: Well said. I think Mr. Sund will change the scope and focus of the organization.
KS: Tyson Chandler, although a 7 footer, is not a hoss such as[Dwight,Oden,Gasol/Bynum,Shaq,et al]. I would take Big Al any day over Chandler, Okafor, Foster,or other middling centers. Yes, he more than holds his own. I think people like myself who see Al as a 4, do not disparage him as a basketball player. I just see a potential all-star if he had a fair fight every night. AND…for those who think Josh cannot play the 3, Dr J was pretty good, even though not a great outside shooter. He was a slasher as Josh is becoming. This weould also give Josh a fair fight every night. With the proper teaching and commitment, JS could become another Artest/lock down defender.
Just sayin’.

KevinA

November 6th, 2009
11:54 am

Grandad,

perim. & post – Using your terms, our perim players are taking to many shots. We have gotten away with it because of career percentages by JJ and JC. In past years I understood why, Josh and Al were developing as young players. But last year we finally started giving the ball to these post players. We seemed to play our best ball when that happened. Here is a crude example of a balanced offensive attack.

JJ/Jamal/JT/Bibby 30 – 35 attempts
Al/Josh/Joe/Collins 30 – 35 attempts
Marvin/Evans/Hunter 15 – 17 attempts

In my response to fudd21 I was talking about trends, not individual games. I agree with you on JT even though I would like his minutes to come out of Bibbys. I like Marvin and Evans in the line up better.

Sometimes the numbers get skewed when we pass inside and then pass out. I think that style of play is great. What bothers me is when we waste time getting into our sets and jack a jumper without any type of probing drives or passes. Something we still do to much of but has been an area of improvement.

Lastly ea. game and ea. opponent is dif., one cannot put a set # of shots on a particular grouping of players or even a player. The other team is going to dictate some of that. By the way Jamal appears to be a wonderful addition and seems to be working as hard as he can to be a great teammate.

I think I understand that each team is different and some style of play is dictated by opponents. Lets just feed the big’s first and see how they do. All of them. Then lets make sure Marvin and Evans get their opportunities.

Even in the Laker game when JJ was hot, I didn’t like it. The rest of the guys end up standing around. The balanced approach keeps everybody energized. We seem to play better D when we swing the ball.

KevinA

November 6th, 2009
12:04 pm

I want to join the rest in wishing SEKOU success in his new job. Always had great posts. He is leaving us in great shape though. Best blog on the web for endepth discussion on a basketball team. Great variety of thought with pretty with good reasoning even if one disagrees with parts of a post. The Nest and PeachTreeHoops and others make great reading and commenting. The Hawks are on the rise.

niremetal

November 6th, 2009
12:52 pm

KevinA,

That all sounds well and good if it weren’t for the fact that about half of Josh’s shots are mid-range jumpers, and JJ posts up quite a bit (and more this year than in past years). That’s why categorizing the shots by players is overly simplistic.

Sautee

November 6th, 2009
1:01 pm

KevinA,

Got to give you props for “reconsidering” your attitude toward Crawford. There are those on the blog who take a stance, and can NOT give it up. You have my admiration for your admission about J.C. I’m glad he won you over.

And, my two cents on the shot % thing:

To me it’s MUCH more important that we work inside out EVEN IF THE FRONTCOURT DOES NOT TAKE THE SHOT.

I’m saying that it makes the defense react when the ball goes inside. If that gives us more open looks, REGARDLESS OF WHO SHOOTS THE BALL, then I’ll be happier. The idea is to make them work on defense. When we go ISO, their defense gets too much rest.

And, as you and I have long discussed, Horford and Josh make good decisions passing the ball (hence their relatively high assist numbers for their positions).

INSIDE OUT!

fudd21

November 6th, 2009
1:42 pm

KevinA,
In your example of shots being taken there may be a select few games where that happens, but over the course of the season it won’t be close. For one JJ, JC, Bibbt, and JT are going to play more minutes than the other 4 guys. Second the disparity between the offensive games of JJ and JC is huge between that of Josh and Al. JJ and JC are hard to guard one-on-one as they game shoot over you or go around you. At this point Josh and Al are pretty much one dimensional, even though Josh one dimension is hard to guard on “good Josh” nights. Lastly, to me the idea of getting our bigs involved is to establish a low post game. Maybe it’s just me, but JJ seems to be doing a whole lot of damage in the post this year. I don’t recall ever seeing him post up as often as he is doing this year. I would much rather have JJ (whose offensive aresenal is vast) posting up someone typically smaller than he is as opposed to Al (whose offensive game is limited) posting up someone who is bigger than he is. But that’s just me.

rusty

November 6th, 2009
1:44 pm

jc is the big difference in our team this year. he is limiting the amount of time that the ball is in jj hands. when jc is not in the game jj plays iso joe. woody had the team moral about destroyed last
season, js took the team on his shoulders & they came back. woody is not helpful. the only thing that
is making this offense look better is less iso joe & more up tempo with jt & jc.

I MUS WRITE

November 6th, 2009
1:49 pm

OMG I Luv this blog……. Even when we are winning (4-1) We still find things to knit pick about rotation,minutes,who should start etc.. If Woody actually read our comments we could easily make the Finals or ECF LOL
MYCHELLFROMATL….. Come on man are you serious with the halftime events. Do u really think the Atl Spirit group gives a shyt about your unhappiness at halftime-Uhhm they dont!!!!. I almost never watch the halftime show- I will agree with u about the Overweight Beyonce dancers tho-Thats disgusting for real-the only people who enjoy that are my friend jasmine and the handfull of other chubby chasers in the crowd.

Suggestion- Y dont u get a Club level ticket,get to the game an hour before and get toasty at the bar. Then at halftime you can mingle with the pretty ladies -eye candy galore. At the home opener there were packs of gorgeous women and very few straight men- Me and my homie were like wolves in the chicken coop. Do it you wont be disappointed.

SEKOU- Good luck in your future endeavors man-I’ll be checking for you over there at NBA.Com, You will be missed for sure, We get after/challenge you sometimez but Its all love. You set up a forum where brilliant basketball minds can get off-Preciate all that u’ve done my man…I.MUS WRITE

I say you pass the reigns to Big Ray. He already has the Magic Highliter He’s a sharp cat also…. I wonder if crime would go up in Sav.- on second thought…….

Grandad

November 6th, 2009
1:53 pm

Kevin A, Niremental, Sautee, all great points! Inside out, much like a fb team establishing a running game first. Another observation if I may,
more movement(motion)would allow for opportunities such as, Joe posting up, Josh shootig mid-range but coming off screens and getting his shot in rhythm instead of stand still set shots. It would involve everyone. Plus Al could catch and shoot in post (off flash or cut) instead of wrestling for pos. then dribble,dribble,dribble withback to basket against taller/longer opponents. Win,Win.

mountain_jim

November 6th, 2009
1:55 pm

So did Sekou already take his ‘fresh start’, or will we hear from him here on the ajc again?

Rod from College Park

November 6th, 2009
1:55 pm

Sautee,

“There are those on the blog who take a stance, and can NOT give it up.”

What if you take a stance, and your stance is proven correct. Then what?

I MUS WRITE

November 6th, 2009
1:59 pm

Agree Rusty the man can flat out score. Not only does he break down defenses but he seems to always set sumone up with a good pass-Jus see ZAZA those two have a nice chemistry. If craw can make a man with 2inches of vertical look good just imagine what he he will do for Smoove n Horford. Flip was good for us but he was sumwhat of a black hole-he held the ball alot just like JJ. I wonder how many think it was a bad trade now….. What u say Mr Strickland-i remember you talking shyt during the summer about the money and how flip was better for the team……. UHMMMMM NO -the differences in salary is roughly 1.5 million when u factor in Ac/Speedy who by the way are’nt even playing/// I think this is the best 1.5 the team has ever spent

Grandad

November 6th, 2009
2:02 pm

Rod f C P: What if you are both right.

I MUS WRITE

November 6th, 2009
2:09 pm

I dont always do rap music but when i do its got to be the “NO CEILING” mixtape by LIL Wayne- I swear this is the best mixtape i’ve ever heard hands down. This man is the best lyricist in the game period- This is a must hear-Dude is killn Jay Z on his own tracks-my god

” The pistol means bussiness that BYT_H should have a tie on”

O'Brien

November 6th, 2009
2:18 pm

I MUS,

I know some of us are complaining about minutes already, although we’re 4-1. But Woody does not change much during the season, so the way he is now is usually the way he is after 60 games. And we dont want JJ to be tired/worn down (or hurt) at the end of the season (or playoffs). Last year, JJ averaged 39 mpg, this year he averages 38 mpg.

And if Bibby gets hurt, Teague will have to get more minutes anyway, so why not develop him more from now.

Maybe we are nitpicking, but we are also looking big picture, and down the road.

kwooden1

November 6th, 2009
2:21 pm

SEKOU, you’re the only reason I started blogging and the only reason I read blogs. (This being the only blog I read) I’m certain that you will do very well at your next position and all of the ones after. You be missed here and hopefully you can stop by from time to time.

Take care and Congratulations!

kwooden1

November 6th, 2009
2:29 pm

What I’m seeing is that Woody isn’t playing Teague that much because he likes the line-up of JJ, JC, Bibby or JC and Bibby. He likes having another shooter on the floor and Teague’s shot isn’t there yet. Clearly Teague should be getting more minutes but I’m not overly concerned. Woody coaches every game by what happens during the game and not by planned agenda’s. Teague looks like a keeper and should be well into the rotation by the end of the season.

GO HAWKS!

Ken Strickland

November 6th, 2009
2:30 pm

KEVINA-I understand perfectly what you’re saying about distribution of shots. However, the unequal distribution of shots taken on our team is propotional to the unequal distribution of scoring ability on our team. You must factor in the fact that our OFF is designed to accomodate the outshooting ability JJ and Bibby, while addressing Bibby’s limited PG skills. Horford and Smoove just aren’t offensively talented enough to be consistent scorers on their own, and Marvin isn’t asked to do so in this OFF. If you replaced Bibby with Teague as the starting PG, you’d see an increase in shots taken and scoring from Horford, Marvin and Smoove.

The entire NBA knows Bibby and JJ are deadly shooters with range, especially when taking uncontested shots. They also know neither is as good at making contested outside shots. Our entire OFF is so much better when Teague and/or Crawford are running the point, instead of Bibby. They have the ability to quickly penetrate and collapse the DEF, which creates open scoring opportunities for everyone else. Bibby just can’t do that, especially on a consistent basis.

IS THERE ANYONE OUT THERE THAT THINKS BIBBY COULD HAVE ATTACKED THE DEF THE WAY TEAGUE DID IN THE 2ND HALF AGAINST THE LAKERS OR CRAWFORD DID AGAINST PORTLAND AND SACRAMENTO? With Teague as our starting PG, we might be able to eliminate the slow OFF starts that seems to be plaguing us so far. Crawford can continue serving as our own version of the MICROWAVE and Bibby can be our combo PG/SG coming off the bench.

Crawford provides the major upgrade to our bench, while Teague would provide a major upgrade to our starting lineup. Can you imagine the problems Teague would create for the PG’s of the big 3 in the East? Even if we don’t start Teague, playing he and Bibby about 20-21MPG each would probably be just as effective.

kwooden1

November 6th, 2009
3:06 pm

Ken, I agree with your assessment of Teague’s abilities over Bibby’s but right now he’s not ready to start. The team trusts Bibby’s leadership and he takes and makes big shots. Bibby won games for the team last year and Woody wants that type of leadership on the court. Teague deserves more minutes and more time to develop his shot, but I think starting him at this point would be counter productive. I think Teague should be getting between 10-15 minutes a game and Bibby should be around 28-30mins. Bibby is effective enough on defense and penetrating for stretches, but he can’t do it for an entire game. Teague can get Bibby the rest he needs, while having time on the court to develop.

GO HAWKS!!

Ken Strickland

November 6th, 2009
3:25 pm

I MUS WRITE-you have me confused with someone else. I was the one making the point about why FLIP wouldn’t/shouldn’t be resigned. Apparently his ballhogging style alienated some of our key players. He had almost as many turnovers as assists, and he contributed very little without the ball in his hands. Don’t get me wrong, I liked Flip, and appreciated some of the elements he brought to the team. But apparently he brought some elements that weren’t appreciated by the team.

SAUTEE-I’m surprised you remember our resident psycho, TRUTH SERUM, making that totally insane statement to me, which turned out to be only one of several.

Sautee

November 6th, 2009
3:44 pm

Rod,

Excuse my ignorance, but what exactly have you PROVEN?

I KNOW that you don’t like Marvin’s game. Is THAT what you mean?

Rod, there’s no need for us to go round and round about Marvin. We think differently about him, but as you know, I AGREE with SOME of what you say about him, but I think you tend to over-exaggerate Marvin’s faults and belittle his contributions. I’m disappointed in him so far, and don’t think he’ll EVER be what we’d hope a #2 pick would be, BUT, he’s only 23 and will get better and contribute more as he becomes more experienced. You sometimes act as if he contributes NOTHING, which is not only untrue, but undermines your credibility on the issue, at least for me.

Marvin has already proven to all of us that he was picked too highly. THAT’S NOT HIS FAULT! No player can “choose” where he’s picked in the draft.

And believe it or not, Rod, I was NOT thinking of you when I wrote that post. In fact, you didn’t cross my mind in that regard until you posted. I was thinking of our long lost buddy Astro Joe, whose intransigence about Crawford was noteworthy.

dap01

November 6th, 2009
3:47 pm

Teague and Crawford play like guards should play. They can break anyone down and get to the basket, pass it to a big for an easy shot or get to the free throw line.

Nice to see.

Give Teague more minutes.

Sautee

November 6th, 2009
3:52 pm

Ken S,

Yeah, for an old guy, my memory is still pretty good. Although SOME things I’d LOVE to forget, if you know what I mean.

terrell barron

November 6th, 2009
3:55 pm

Imus, you sure about that? I thought Ken loved the trade. I know I did. Whoever complained about that deal are clueless. Ken is smarter than that. At least I thought he was.

Grandad

November 6th, 2009
3:56 pm

K S: Another factor in shot distribution is thats the way Woody wants it. Joe has to make all-stars. Bibby is his guy. Remember when we first got Bibby; Woody – “If he doesn’t like the offense, then he can change it” which may be his most assinine statement ever. even if Bibby could probably improve anything Woody concocted(off.); you still don’t say that. Now I’m angry all over again. As for Teague…suppose for a min. Chris Paul was a rookie, I honestly believe he would be sitting as well. I actually heard some folks say Teager might be in the running for ROY. Well not now. AND goodness gracious sakes alive when (not if) we do challenge for the title it’s gonna be with Teague not Bibby running theshow. I’m not knocking Bibby either, you just have to let the pup on the floor NOW. Without exp. he’s not gonna be any more ready tomorrow,the next day, next wk., next month…you do not get exp. by osmosis. Sorry, I got carried away.

terrell barron

November 6th, 2009
3:56 pm

Btw, is Acie Law still in the league?

Clyde

November 6th, 2009
4:18 pm

We are going to regret re-signing Marvin, Bibby, and Zaza in the summer of 2010.

Truth-Serum

November 6th, 2009
4:56 pm

Man the things I will say and do just to get some attention around here! If it weren’t for Ken, nobody would exchange conversation with me at all! I hate Ken but I love him at the same time. I hate to love him and love to hate him. I’m a stalker’s nightmare or would that be daydream!

Grandad

November 6th, 2009
5:07 pm

I disagree clyde, Zaza may very well be the best bargain of the three. Bibby is a perfectly fine mentor for Jeff. Last and quite frankly Marv is our best trade chip. I’m not saying we should trade him, before you put me in the anti-Marv category. He has a great contract to keep or trade. We have not had a trade chip in quite a while. Somehow, we eventually, must find a big for a true championship run. Joe has to put his cards on the table before the trade deadline(with Mr. Sund). Then he [Sund] will know which path to take. Having them[Z,Bibby,Marv]under contract gives us both flexibility and the ability to compete; unlike the Knicks.

Sautee

November 6th, 2009
5:33 pm

Clyde,

Don’t they all 3 have affordable contracts? Any of the 3 could be a good acquisition for the right team, and all the more so, since they have reasonable contracts for this market. I’m not looking to trade any of them, but their contract status, in my opinion, would not impede their being included in a deal in 2010.

JeJe

November 6th, 2009
5:43 pm

BENCH MARVIN WILLIAMS. SEND HIM TO THE NBDL SO HE CAN LEARN HOW TO PLAY. HE IS NOT AVERAGING 14 PPG. LOOK AT HIS NUMBERS THIS YEAR, IDIOTS

cp

November 6th, 2009
6:15 pm

Ken S was one of the biggest fans of the trade for Crawford so I think he is being confused with someone else. I clearly remember him going in detail about how this trade was a steal for us and how Crawford brought an element to this team that Flip didn’t.

I hope we get to see Teague tonight for more than 5 minutes.

Ken Strickland

November 6th, 2009
6:29 pm

KWOODEN1-I don’t know what Teague has done so far that would give you, or anyone else for that matter, the idea he’s not ready to start now. If he’s not, he certainly won’t reach that point with Woodson giving him the ALaw treatment. DO YOU THINK THE NBA WOULD HAVE YOUNG ALLSTARS LIKE CPAUL, DROSE AND DWILLIAMS PRODUCING THE WAY THEY ARE IF THEY PLAYED UNDER A HC THAT THINKS ABOUT THEM THE WAY WOODSON AND YOU THINK ABOUT TEAGUE? Teagie is ready to start, it’s Woodson and his love affair with vets, especially with Bibby, that’s not ready for him to start.

Did you see the last 2 gms? While Crawford hit some key jumpshots throughout the gm, it was his penetration and attacking the basket that made the difference. Although Teague can’t hit the 3 like Bibby, how many can, he can do virtually everything else that Bibby can’t do. We all know Bibby isn’t going to get any quicker, faster, shoot any better or improve overall. So how is he going to make us better as a team playing 31MPG.

Here’s my point. You’re right, Teague can’t shoot the 3 like Bibby, and probably never will, but does he need too? However, Bibby can’t consistently penetrate, breakdown DEF’s or create easy scoring opportunities for his teammates. Between the two attributes, which do you really think would benefit this team the most. Bibby’s 3pt shooting ability or Teague’s ability to breakdown DEF’s, draw fouls and create easy inside scoring opportunities for Smoove, Horford, Zaza, JSmith and/or Marvin?

TERRELL BARRON-you’re right about that. FLIP took more shots than Chills(795 to 570), played fewer MPG(24.7 to 29.9MPG), yet barely managed to outscore him(12.2PPG to 11.8PPG).

truly1

November 6th, 2009
6:57 pm

Its mighty funny how everyone was complained about Joe johnson coming out of the game in the laker game. The media asked woody the question why did jj come out. Now Woody said in his mind I will teach you guys every since teague hasnt been getting minutes. WOODY SET ALL YOU GUYS UP THAT WAS COMPLAINING

bigdave

November 6th, 2009
6:59 pm

LETS GET IT…!! 3-1 ROAD TRIP!! LETS GO MAN!!!

truly1

November 6th, 2009
7:00 pm

Ken I dont know about starting but he should be getting real minutes for sure. What woody did is said ok since you guys was complaining I dont like to play rookies anyway so I going to give teagues minutes to JJ. I also think sekou was complaining as well

rms

November 6th, 2009
7:10 pm

trying to find sekou is about as hard as trying to find waldo? where is this dude at? Does he ever read his own blog and respond to some of the questions the fans ask? not saying that he can answer all of them but I am sure he knows more than we do.

O'Brien

November 6th, 2009
7:14 pm

I am okay with Teague coming off the bench. But he should play 10-15 minutes every game. The Nuggets are undefeated, but yet they find time to play Ty Lawson 21 minutes per game. Obviously, the Nuggets have blown people out, but still…

In 5 games, Lawson has played 26, 17, 22, 13, 28 minutes.
In 5 games, Teague has played 14, 9, 17, 0, and 5 minutes.

That being said, lets beat Charlotte, and get Teague some PT.

Mac-Town'z Finest 478

November 6th, 2009
7:17 pm

Is it a rule or something for the Hawks to always let the other team jump the gun and get the early lead. Why do we start so slow???

Mac-Town'z Finest 478

November 6th, 2009
7:18 pm

marvin had a nice block

O'Brien

November 6th, 2009
7:19 pm

I like Charlotte’s ball movement.

Also, this is where our depth is HUGE. Josh with 2 quick fouls…

Mac-Town'z Finest 478

November 6th, 2009
7:22 pm

I wonder will Charlotte put up a good fight for the 8th spot this year…

BONE

November 6th, 2009
7:24 pm

Nique said Heat Check lord help us

Mac-Town'z Finest 478

November 6th, 2009
7:25 pm

lmao@Rathbun was silent after he said it probably thinkin “not again”

Mac-Town'z Finest 478

November 6th, 2009
7:26 pm

lol@marvin williams literally “bird walkin”

such a duck

BONE

November 6th, 2009
7:29 pm

I don’t even know what to think of this game. I mean we always get outplayed by the bobcats.

J.J.M.

November 6th, 2009
7:29 pm

no idea why they start so slow

J.J.M.

November 6th, 2009
7:31 pm

whats the point of using a mouthpiece?

DecDawg

November 6th, 2009
7:32 pm

Good to see Woody try Crawford on Bell because JJ wasn’t having any success tryin’ to guard him…

bigdave

November 6th, 2009
7:33 pm

J.J.M.

November 6th, 2009
7:33 pm

BONE

November 6th, 2009
7:33 pm

finally teague is in

Mac-Town'z Finest 478

November 6th, 2009
7:35 pm

I hope Flip doesnt murder us tonight

Sautee

November 6th, 2009
7:41 pm

We gotta clamp down on D

Mac-Town'z Finest 478

November 6th, 2009
7:45 pm

so glad marvin didnt trip

Mac-Town'z Finest 478

November 6th, 2009
7:45 pm

man wdf is up with our Defense…..

J.J.M.

November 6th, 2009
7:46 pm

is josh hurt???

bigdave

November 6th, 2009
7:46 pm

come with Josh Woody…

BONE

November 6th, 2009
7:47 pm

Josh just has 2 fouls woody not 4 put him in.

J.J.M.

November 6th, 2009
7:48 pm

well that sucks

Mac-Town'z Finest 478

November 6th, 2009
7:52 pm

We’re making Charlotte look like a potent offensive team

Sautee

November 6th, 2009
7:55 pm

Awful defense, shooting too quickly on offense.

bigdave

November 6th, 2009
7:59 pm

there is no intensity or pressure from the defense… its like we coasting on d…

Blast

November 6th, 2009
8:00 pm

Stay on the block all night, Josh!

Who is guarding Raja Bell?

Mac-Town'z Finest 478

November 6th, 2009
8:00 pm

On defense it looks like there’s ALWAYS an opening…..either with someone on the perimeter..or more embarrassingly a RIDE OPEN paint.

We’ve had too many games both last year and the year before where it seemed like teams had the paint open the entire contest…..you mean to tell me we can’t have corrected this after all of this time??

bigdave

November 6th, 2009
8:00 pm

was that Ed Cota in the back?

Blast

November 6th, 2009
8:02 pm

Hawks ain’t getting no calls at all.

bigdave

November 6th, 2009
8:03 pm

slow with no intensity on d…

bigdave

November 6th, 2009
8:03 pm

why did he try a runner?

BONE

November 6th, 2009
8:03 pm

O'Brien

November 6th, 2009
8:04 pm

Where is our defensive intensity?

And Josh is forcing the issue. We are down 15 to the Bobcats! What?

bigdave

November 6th, 2009
8:04 pm

why not go to Joe see if you can stop the bleeding…

BONE

November 6th, 2009
8:04 pm

The bobcats couldn’t score 60 points on the celtics now they are whoopin the dogs.it outta us

O'Brien

November 6th, 2009
8:06 pm

Bobcats are 7-12 from 3, while the Hawks are 1-8.

Clyde

November 6th, 2009
8:06 pm

terrell barron

November 6th, 2009
8:06 pm

Teague still cant get no burn. And why is Josh Smith trying to take people off the dribble?

Sam from da Swats

November 6th, 2009
8:07 pm

Settle down people, we’re always down to the Bobcats in their place every year and we come back. Refs aren’t blowing the whistle for us right now but it will turn around. Raja Bell won’t stay hot all game. Once again, Josh gets no respect, he gets clobbered twice and no calls. He is not a good free throw shooter you stupid referees so players will foul him intentionally if need be, and they are fouling him. Give him a f..king call!!

BONE

November 6th, 2009
8:08 pm

Damn we gettin raped

Ramon

November 6th, 2009
8:08 pm

I’d rather see Josh miss layups than to see Bibby and Marvin (as well as Joe) miss jumpers. At least that means he’s attacking, and trying to draw fouls.

terrell barron

November 6th, 2009
8:09 pm

Only down 13. Shoulda been a lot worse.

O'Brien

November 6th, 2009
8:13 pm

Teague played 4 minutes in the first half. Will he go over or under for the second half?

And the Bobcats are +10 in rebounds.

I hope Woody’s half time speech is different from the half time speech when we played the Lakers…

cp

November 6th, 2009
8:14 pm

Where is the intensity? These guys are sleep out there. Josh and his free throw shooting is terrible. Nique’s commentary is terrible. Where is the defense? I would say we have to come out with some fire in the 3rd quarter but this team is known to come out flat after halftime. I wonder if Teague sees any time in the second half or was that all for him for the night.

KevinA

November 6th, 2009
8:18 pm

We can’t guard guards. 11-14 for the little fellers Bell and DJ.

Blast

November 6th, 2009
8:20 pm

doc. I thought of that. But I can report the comment all I want, but they’ll just pop up under a different name.

Hawks sucking right now, playing like the old Hawks. They cannot lose this game or look past it.

niremetal

November 6th, 2009
8:23 pm

Switching defense = retarded. They get our big men out on the perimeter on a switch, take them to the lane off the dribble, our perimeter guys collapse to help, and they kick it back out to someone (usually Raja) wide open on the perimeter.

You don’t think Larry Brown had a gameplan coming in? Good grief!

kirkinga

November 6th, 2009
8:26 pm

Bobcats +11 in rebounding, that just can’t happen especially when you’re allowing the other team to shoot better than 50%.

I have been disappointed with the Hawks defense this season, but excused it away because they played some fairly good offensive teams, I thought, but the Bobcats are not such a team.

This seems like a game where Teague should get more time and Collins’ bulk might be of some use.

BONE

November 6th, 2009
8:26 pm

Man marvin drive u goofy fool

O'Brien

November 6th, 2009
8:27 pm

The bad thing with the switching defense is when Bibby is involved. He ends up on a taller guy, or Josh ends up on a guard. Either way, a mismatch for the other team.

And I hate when Joe just dribble dribble, shoot. Where is the ball movement?

BONE

November 6th, 2009
8:28 pm

Drive the damn ball

O'Brien

November 6th, 2009
8:29 pm

Even Nique points out that there are too many perimeter shots. Didnt Woody tell these guys at half time to pass the ball, set some screens, back doors…and close out on the Bobcats 3 point shooters!

BONE

November 6th, 2009
8:31 pm

Man the hawks are gonna lose this game

Blast

November 6th, 2009
8:31 pm

Two much one on one ball for the Hawks. What’s up with the rims in Charlotte? All Hawks shots are rimming out.

Sautee

November 6th, 2009
8:31 pm

Put the second team in QUICK!

BONE

November 6th, 2009
8:31 pm

O’brien Woody doesn’t know how to coach

BONE

November 6th, 2009
8:32 pm

Down 15 to the Bobcats wow

Blast

November 6th, 2009
8:32 pm

Can Jamal bring us back?

Is Sekou gone already?

KevinA

November 6th, 2009
8:33 pm

Good drive Jamal. Go to the hole

Blast

November 6th, 2009
8:34 pm

Crawford missed 2 free throws?

BONE

November 6th, 2009
8:34 pm

Horford is too short to guard chandler

Blast

November 6th, 2009
8:35 pm

Looks like Hawks are gonna lose this game, sad as that seems.

BONE

November 6th, 2009
8:35 pm

This team can’t even beat the Bobcats and they wanna be considered elite. LMAO

Blast

November 6th, 2009
8:48 pm

Flip is a real journey man in the league, man.

Get that tech Woodson! Let the refs know they are screwing us!

BONE

November 6th, 2009
8:56 pm

Woodson still doesn’t realize Horford is a damn Power Forward not a center. He’s too short woody u idiot.

Big Ray

November 6th, 2009
8:56 pm

This is awful.

And like I’ve been saying since the beginning of the season: I HATE THIS SWITCHING DEFENSE.

Big Ray

November 6th, 2009
8:57 pm

Where is Collins?

BONE

November 6th, 2009
8:59 pm

Does anybody still wanna keep Woodson

Big Ray

November 6th, 2009
9:03 pm

Yeah. We’re losing to the Bobcats because Horford is too short to play center. Well, I guess we’re also losing because Chandler has a blazing 10 points. :lol:

Big Ray

November 6th, 2009
9:03 pm

Bone,

You know better than to ask that question. Two people and 36 personalities will disagree with you every time.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 6th, 2009
9:06 pm

Looks like it’s a good thing I took a nap and missed this disaster. Just looking at the box score, it looks like one of those games that you just forget about and move on, that you really can’t take anything away from.

BONE

November 6th, 2009
9:06 pm

Big Ray I didn’t say we’re losing becuz of Horford. Where the hell are u getting this? If we actually have a true center then then Horford can go to power forward. And since Marvin is sorry at reebounding I’m sure getting a true center will improve our rebounding.

KevinA

November 6th, 2009
9:06 pm

Marvin gets a pass lol

cp

November 6th, 2009
9:06 pm

Pathetic effort. If they play like this against Denver they might lose by 50. This game is done

O'Brien

November 6th, 2009
9:07 pm

Ray,

I asked Sekou on the previous blog if Collins has been hurt. or whats the deal, but Sekou never responded. Maybe Woody is saving him for the playoffs lol

Coming into the game, these are the Bobcats point totals: 59 against the Celtics, 100 against the Knicks, 79 against Cleveland and 79 against New Jersey. This might be their highest point total of the year.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 6th, 2009
9:08 pm

I will ask this question to y’all, though, since I’m too lazy to look it up — did the Celtics, Cavs, or Magic lose any games by 20 points or more to non-playoff teams last year?

Ramon

November 6th, 2009
9:08 pm

Denver is getting blown out also.

JSS

November 6th, 2009
9:10 pm

Following the Hawks from afar the past 2 weeks (in Nova Scotia working on a nice project)

To my fellow alumni of the Washtenaw Co. Bean Field Wars…
Someone emailed me and told me that you’re departing the AJC and moving over to NBA.com… I’m delighted for you and the fans of the NBA. Nevertheless, I’m greatly saddened for those of us who call Atlanta home and the Hawks our team. You’ve been diligent, well researched, and the one clear voice on a once great paper. Thank you very much Sekou Smith, may fate be kind to you…

To the next moderator of this forum, you have some big shoes to fill…

Blast

November 6th, 2009
9:11 pm

I mean, the ‘Cats played great and all, and the refs helped them out, but Hawks played terrible. Defence was awful, the switch was exposed as never before, jumpshots rimmed off or clanged off…. Everything went wrong…. Think Hawks took these guys too lightly tonight, and just could not get over the hump. Hope they learn from this. Even Flip is killing them. They better bring it versus Denver.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 6th, 2009
9:12 pm

Did Dominique really just say he thought Denver should have made the Finals last year over the Lakers?

KevinA

November 6th, 2009
9:13 pm

If size is such an issue why does Wallace a league leader in rebounds at 6′7″.

Ramon

November 6th, 2009
9:15 pm

At least Teague gets 20 minutes tonight lol.

Big Ray

November 6th, 2009
9:15 pm

Bone ,

I didn’t say you were. Where are YOU getting this? I’m laughing at the idea that Horford is too short to play against Chandler, when he’s already played against 7′2″ Roy Hibbert and beat him senseless. I KNOW why we’re losing. And that ain’t it.

As for bringing somebody in who is taller, that’s been a point of discussion here on this very blog, since 2007. Trust me. It has. Can’t do anything about it, and last I looked, we already have two guys on the team that are taller he is. Doesn’t make them better centers. Fact is, a starting caliber center that stands 6′11″ or better is hard to come by. We don’t have one, so Al it is. I’ve argued for Al to be our starting PF for some time. For some reason, the Hawks brass isn’t listening to me anymore than they are anybody else. Go figure….

Or maybe it’s because nobody else wants to give up a starting caliber center of 6′11″ or greater without taking an arm and a leg in return….

BONE

November 6th, 2009
9:16 pm

Becuz Wallace plays with alotta effort. Something that Marvin does not do.

Blast

November 6th, 2009
9:16 pm

Yes! Nuggets getting blown out also. Crazy league, the NBA is.

Sekou, you gonna at least drop one more blog before you leave?

BONE

November 6th, 2009
9:20 pm

Randolph morris 3 fouls in 2 mins lol

bigdave

November 6th, 2009
9:20 pm

dat boy Randmo…

a foul waiting to happen…

Ramon

November 6th, 2009
9:21 pm

For sure, this game doesn’t get blamed on any one player, nor only on the coach. A blowout like this is on everyone because they all got paid to not show up.

bigdave

November 6th, 2009
9:22 pm

its like they refused to have a winning road trip…

O'Brien

November 6th, 2009
9:24 pm

Blast, the Nuggets are getting blown out by the Heat. Thats more acceptable than getting blownout by the Bobcats, who average 79 points per game.

I’m sure Rod will be glad to read what I’m about to say.

Every game this year, Nique says “We need Marvin to step up”. But 5 games in, we’re still waiting. And here we give Marvin (6′9″) props for rebounding the ball, while Gerald Wallace (6′7″), the SF for Charlotte, averages 14 rebounds per game. 14! And Marvin will be matched up against Carmelo tomorrow night.

I wonder how that will turn out. That being said, Ramon is right. This is a team loss, and I’m not blaming Marvin. The players and the coaching staff all contributed. I think Larry Brown had a game plan (something Woody knows nothing about), and the Bobcats players executed. We suck at defense.

JeJe

November 6th, 2009
9:26 pm

I knew this would happen.

Hawks looking past this game.

Joe cannot rebound for jack!@#$ for a 6″7 huge guard. Rebounding sucks bad. Marvin still sucks too. Wow this guy really cannot convert a layup. Jumps away from the basket when he drives.

get rid of this clown already

Big Ray

November 6th, 2009
9:27 pm

O’Brien,

I don’t want to think about how THAT game will turn out. I’m sure Rod will be out in full force. Who knows, maybe even his buddy Sam….

Getting blown out by Charlotte is unacceptable. I’m glad I didn’t DVR this game.

JeJe

November 6th, 2009
9:27 pm

MARVIN WILLIAMS SUCKS

Big Ray

November 6th, 2009
9:28 pm

I predict a slew of negative comments from here on out, especially if we lose to Denver. Heh.

BONE

November 6th, 2009
9:28 pm

O’brien thanks for bringing that point up about Marvin. He really has no excuse to be so sorry.

Ramon

November 6th, 2009
9:32 pm

O’brien, maybe its because Woody had a nice reunion with Brown before the game. I don’t know lol.

Also, Denver is getting blown out with Wade having less than 10 points. Remember Miami is a .500 team, and Denver was 2 wins away from the Finals last season. Denver nor Atlanta is more impressive tonight lol.

O'Brien

November 6th, 2009
9:36 pm

Some reasons why we lost.

1) Outrebounded by 20
2) Charlotte 11-18 from 3, Hawks 2-16
3) Charlotte had 24 assists, Hawks had 10 (too much 1 on 1)
4) Raja Bell outplayed JJ
5) Flip outplayed Crawford

But again, this was a team loss. Coaching staff got outcoached, and the players got outplayed.

JeJe

November 6th, 2009
9:41 pm

Look at the picture of Marvin driving on Tyson Chandler.

That pretty much sums up Marvin — awkward frail player who can’t keep balance

Ken Strickland

November 6th, 2009
9:53 pm

I only got to see the 1st half, so I can’t comment about the entire gm. Based on what I saw in the 1st half, I thought the Hawks intended to add and extension to the Charlotte coliseum after seeing all of those bricks. Again, we started out very slow on OFF and played little DEF. We have got to start taking better advantage of our speed, quickness and athleticism and STOP TRYING TO BEAT EVERYBODY BY SHOOTING SO DAM MANY JUMPSHOTS.

What I did see was us giving the ball to Horford and Smoove, clearing out so they can pound the ball and back their man down. As soon as the DEF doubles the ball, we’re lost. We don’t pass it out and we certainly don’t swing it. How many times did we see them swing the ball after passing it out of the post?

JeJe

November 6th, 2009
9:58 pm

I actually agree with Ken. Joe is an awful passer outta the double

Gwinnett to Braves: Where's our money?

November 6th, 2009
10:15 pm

Enter your comments here

Bubba Crew Head Quarters

November 6th, 2009
10:21 pm

Heres an analysis of todays game from Ken Stickland,

I HATE WOODY, WOODSON, HATE , ANGER, MO HATE, I HATE WOODY,SOME MO HATE, STUPIDITY, I HATE WOODSON, HATE WOODY, BITTER, ETC. ETC, MO HATE

PAID FOR BY THE LOCAL KNIGHTS OF THE SOUTHERN BUBBA CREW.

STAY TUNE FOR FURTHER DEVELOPMENTS.

Play Teague

Undisputed Champ!

November 6th, 2009
10:42 pm

The Hawks were crushed and out matched inside tonight. Nice game from Flip after an injury. There not much difference in Flip and Crawford except for about 4.5 mil per year. Head to head flip was very confident against Crawford and they play a lot of head to head. Nice game from flip.

Undisputed Champ!

November 6th, 2009
10:45 pm

O’Brien

November 6th, 2009
9:36 pm

Good analysis

Mz. Hawkdafied

November 6th, 2009
10:48 pm

Not a good look for the ATL Hawks tonight. What a disappointment!

Undisputed Champ!

November 6th, 2009
10:49 pm

Bubba Crew Head Quarters

November 6th, 2009
10:21 pm

Im not sure I agree, could you be more specific?

Cuartos principales del equipo de Bubba

November 6th, 2009
10:56 pm

En español

Cuartos principales del equipo de Bubba
6 de noviembre de 2009 10:21 P.M.

Heres un análisis del juego de hoy de Ken Stickland,

ODIO ARBOLADO, WOODSON, ODIO, CÓLERA, ODIO DEL MES, YO ODIO ARBOLADO, UN CIERTO ODIO DEL MES, ESTUPIDEZ, YO ODIO WOODSON, EL ODIO ARBOLADO, AMARGO, ETC. ETC, ODIO DEL MES PAGADO POR LOS CABALLEROS LOCALES DEL EQUIPO MERIDIONAL DE BUBBA. CONSONANCIA DE LA ESTANCIA PARA OTROS PROGRESOS.

Juego Teague

Cuartos principales del equipo de Bubba

November 6th, 2009
10:59 pm

En español

Cuartos principales del equipo de Bubba
6 de noviembre de 2009 10:21 P.M.

Heres un análisis del juego de hoy de Ken Stickland,

ODIO ARBOLADO, WOODSON, ODIO, CÓLERA, ODIO DEL MES, YO ODIO ARBOLADO, UN CIERTO ODIO DEL MES, ESTUPIDEZ, YO ODIO WOODSON, EL ODIO ARBOLADO, AMARGO, ETC. ETC, ODIO

DEL MES PAGADO POR LOS CABALLEROS LOCALES DEL EQUIPO MERIDIONAL DE BUBBA.

CONSONANCIA DE LA ESTANCIA PARA OTROS PROGRESOS.

Juego Teague

Bubbaの乗組員の本社

November 6th, 2009
11:03 pm

日本語
2009年11月6日 10:21 pm

HeresケンSticklandからの今日のゲームの分析、

私は木質を、WOODSONの憎悪、怒り、MOの憎悪、私憎む、MOの憎悪木質を、愚かさ、私憎む、等等木質、苦いのWOODSON、憎悪MOの

憎悪を憎む 南BUBBAの乗組員のローカル騎士によっての支払をされる。 それ以上の開発のための滞在の調子。

演劇Teague

Bubba équipage Head Quarters

November 6th, 2009
11:08 pm

En français
Novembre 6th, 2009 10:21 pm

Heres à l’analyse of todays from Ken pays de bâton game,

I HATE WOODY, WOODSON, HATE, PRÉS, MO HATE, I HATE WOODY, SOME MO HATE, STUPIDITY, I HATE WOODSON, HATE WOODY, AMÈREMENT, ETC. ETC., MO HATE PAID FOR BY THE DE KNIGHTS OF THE LOCAUX SOUTHERN BUBBA ÉQUIPAGE.

STAY TUNE FOR LOIN DÉVELOPPEMENT.

Play Teague

Undisputed Champ!

November 6th, 2009
11:10 pm

OK, I see your point. Thats very specific.

truly1

November 6th, 2009
11:39 pm

dont start this flip discussion again crawford is way better than flip he just had motivation tonight

truly1

November 6th, 2009
11:42 pm

also charlotte hasnt played since monday flip hast played at all

Bubbaの乗組員の本社

November 6th, 2009
11:52 pm

You are only as good as your performance, Truly1

Bubbaの乗組員の本社

November 6th, 2009
11:54 pm

Flip is motivated every night, also it was his first day back from a leg injury, so he wasnt a hundred percent.

O'Brien

November 7th, 2009
12:03 am

As mentioned, this is one of those games the Hawks have to forget about, and just focus on the Nuggets (who were able to make the score more respectable against Miami. Denver lost by 8).

Luckily for the Hawks, we are playing at home. But Carmelo is averaging 30 something. I think the Hawks need to double Carmelo, and make him give up the ball. Also, Denver has shot 50% from 3 every game except tonight. Hawks must rotate to the shooters.

Clyde

November 7th, 2009
12:04 am

Just like I said its the same ole sh##. When will someone be held accountable? I’m tired of the excuses. Woody needs to realize he needs to put the politics aside and put his best players out on the floor. That means moving Bibby and Marvin to the bench and starting Crawford and Teague.

PG-Teague
SG-Crawford
SF-Joe
PF-JSMOOTH
C-Horford

Bibby’s game is limited to bringing the ball down and jacking up 3’s and Marvin’s game is limited to dribbling and hoping someone fouls him so he can get to the free throw line. Their play any kind of defense.

And Woody please develop some kind of movement in your offensive system. You only have 3 players on your roster that can break a man down off the dribble and 2 come off the bench.

Dam I’m tired of saying the same ole things year after year. Its 5 years and counting.

Mac-Town'z Finest 478

November 7th, 2009
1:35 am

Same Old same ol hawks
1 on 1 offense.
leavin people open on defense……and for most parts of the game leavin the paint wide open

to be a playoff team…when we lost we usually lose UGLY

i dunno if games like this are coaching problems…lack of effort from the players…or a little of both

this is just like the hawks tho….tease us with a GREAT road win over the blazers…then get MAULED in Charlotte….what joke

to be honest….I really do think we overachieved last year

Grandad

November 7th, 2009
1:36 am

Madmoiselle/monsieur sybil: Je suis assure tu espece de cochon, je ne que si pas (articuler)francais.

vava74

November 7th, 2009
6:15 am

Charlie Rosen @ foxsports.com:

Joe Johnson — if he played in New York, Chicago, or L.A., he’d be celebrated as one of the game’s most extraordinary two-way players.

Samuel

November 7th, 2009
8:21 am

I missed the game last night but looking at the box scores Woody must have coached a hell of a game. Teague got 20 minutes and even Randmo got some burn.

I pretty much figured we have one of these, after all we’ve been on the road for a month. No big deal.We’ll eventually settle into the 4th spot, so what’s the problem.

Nothing like a loss to bring Clyde out of hibernation. Dam_ Clyde, 4 whole paragraphs. You shooting for Ando’s spot on Hawk’s hack?

Why do you clowns keep asking for Cuz? Dude is outta here. Didn’t you get the memo? GGGGEEEEZZZZUUUUSSSS!!

Samuel

November 7th, 2009
8:22 am

Besides, we got Big Ray in gray print. Direct your questions towards our interim Beat writer.

Joe Mama

November 7th, 2009
8:27 am

Wow! Looks like ken is hating in 3 or 4 languages.

Ken Strickland

November 7th, 2009
8:30 am

I’m not saying it’s a certainty, but maybe, juuust maybe, last nights beatdown was the result of playing the last gm of a West coast rd trip, playing in 2 different time zones, AND WOODSON STUPIDLY AND UNNECESSARILY UNDERUTILIZING HIS BENCH AND PLAYING HIS STARTERS WAY TOO DAMN MANY MINS. WHEN ALL IS SAID AND DONE, IN THE CASE OF OUR BELOVED HC, MAYBE YOU CAN’T TEACH AN OLD DOG NEW TRICKS.

If fatigue was a factor last night, which was the frontend of a back to back, what can we expect tonight? Realistically, every team can expect those kinds of gms from time to time. We just need to take precautions to limit there frenquency. AGAIN, GOOD LUCK TONIGHT YOU HIGH FLYING HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bubbaの乗組員の本社

November 7th, 2009
8:34 am

Grandad

할아버지 또는 Ken는, 설사에 노인의 당나귀의 균열을, 정기적으로 핥는다.

mountain_jim

November 7th, 2009
8:37 am

Did Sekou just give his 2 minutes notice and go?

AJC seems in a lurch, and nothing but an AP article on the game last night. Of course the AJC seems to be doing mostly everything with twine and bailing wire (and no editing) these days, so I can see how so many good writers and persons would have to (or be forced to) bail.

Still, somebody should officially say something soon about future Hawks coverage.

F_uc Sund

November 7th, 2009
8:39 am

Yeah, if wed have kept flip, and let zaza go, let the contracts of speedy and acie expire, how many millions would we have saved? Would we be in a better position financially at the end of the year to go after the missing pieces to get us over the fourth seed hump?… Just a question or two, keep your shirt on, like to think outside the box some times….

F_uc Sund

November 7th, 2009
8:41 am

mountain_jim this is a red neck state with a redneck media, the hawks coverage is the least of there concerns. Right now they are more concerned with the revival of the republican party.

F_uc Sund

November 7th, 2009
8:42 am

*their concerns

ILL-logical

November 7th, 2009
8:42 am

Joe Johnson meet Jamal; Jamal meet jealousy. Well that didn’t take long to reveal itself did it.? That’s your team leader for you ,throwing teamates under the bus in print again. And Sekou din’t write the article so I guess we have seen the last of his by line. Love the class and style of the folks at the ajc these days.

F_uc Sund

November 7th, 2009
8:50 am

NOTES: Hawks coach Mike Woodson said he would have liked to re-sign Murray even after trading for Crawford. “I just think that the money that we would probably have offered him would have been less money than he really deserved,” Woodson said.

Bubbaの乗組員の本社

November 7th, 2009
8:52 am

Update, on kens analysis, Woodson is a stupid dog.

Stay tune for further developments

Joe mama

November 7th, 2009
8:55 am

ILL-logical can you post a link to the article?

Ken Strickland

November 7th, 2009
9:05 am

FOOD FOR THOUGHT-Joe Smith refused to resign with the Cavaliers because after averaging about 19MPG with them during the regular season, he got the ALaw treatment during the playoffs. After Sund and the ASG went all out to get him to sign with us, he’s now getting the same ALaw treatment he got in last yrs playoffs.

Ken Strickland

November 7th, 2009
9:12 am

Please, will someone explain why we went to so much trouble to sign Joe Johnson just to see him sit on the bench and get, at most, token mins? Also, will one of you with an unnatural man crush on Woodson please contact him and let him know that just because a PG is considered a PG of the future, it doesn’t mean he has to sit until that future comes. In Teagues case, it doesn’t mean 3yrs from now when Bibby’s contract expires.

Mike Woodson

November 7th, 2009
9:41 am

I just got a call from truth serum saying that you want me to start the rookie Teague or give him major minutes. I cant do that right now, sorry. Hes still to inexperienced but if you wait towards the end off the season when hes been around the league twice I may give him more.Right now he hasnt been around the league once. Weve only played five games. I hope you learn a little more about the NBA game. I appreciate you, I heard you won a Pinocchio award for your work on this blog sight. Congrats to you, and your bubba posses. Hope youve enjoyed the season so far.

Dis is yo brain on drugsssss

November 7th, 2009
9:49 am

Ken Strickland

November 7th, 2009
9:12 am

Please, will someone explain why we went to so much trouble to sign Joe Johnson just to see him sit on the bench and get, at most, token mins?

Dude, get some help… soon.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 7th, 2009
9:57 am

Google Translate is just great… they translate “Woody” as “arbolado”, which means a place with a lot of trees.

Sautee

November 7th, 2009
10:16 am

Najeh,

LOL, no wonder he can’t see the forest…..

JeJe

November 7th, 2009
10:49 am

Joe talking about everyone being selfish on our team. Is he ever gonna say “I feel I played selfishly and will change” No. His rebounding sucks for someone his size, and his passing out of the double sucks too

JeJe

November 7th, 2009
10:50 am

We lost to a team who doesn’t have one player who averages close to 20 ppg

Good job guys

JeJe

November 7th, 2009
10:54 am

LOL @ Joe saying everyone wants to shoot the ball. No one had more than 14 shots last night, moron. Are you mad that Jamal Crawford has more fire in his game than you do and that he took more shots?

I MUS WRITE

November 7th, 2009
11:00 am

My fault KS- I thought it was you but i guess not. I remember sumone going off about Crawford making 9 mill a year and how his contributions would be minimal.
After watching 7 games -I think Teague is ready to start. His shot is a LIL shakey but his penetrating ability and on ball D makes up for that. Augustine is really quick but Teague stayed with him for the most part,something bibby probably couldnt do. The only problem is Coach X is loyal to Marvin and Bibby even tho Mo/Teague give you the same production.
Jeez i see why Collins doesnt start- He is huge easily 300+ but looks soft and outta shape. The man should only play against Shaq,Perkins,Howard only.

Cant believe im say’n this but maybe Morris should get a few more minutes.
This switching Defense puts our players in bad matchups alot of times…IE Bibby guarding Diaw- The defensive specialist Coach X needs to make a few adjustments—Can u see bibby guarding Melo or Jr Smith off the switch……Bad Things Man

Jay

November 7th, 2009
11:02 am

Sekou-best of everything in the future–you’ll be missed!

A few random thoughts:

1) A lot of guys wanted JJ to become a vocal leader–be careful what you wish for because you may not like what you get. He’s speaking out and calling out his teammates for their lack of consistent performance–especially on the defensive side of the ball. It is obvious that he has a problem with someone in the starting line-up not named Mike Bibby (my guess is Josh Smith) and probably won’t sign an extension unless or until that person is no longer with the team.

2) Those of you who are bashing Marvin Williams are way off-base. The man only took four shots yesterday, made two of them and the man he defended didn’t lead Charlotte in scoring. By the way, why is it that Marvin Williams only shows flashes of his talent when JJ is unable to play?

3) Has anyone else noticed that the Hawks start three guys whose games are very similar? While JJ has some 1-on-1 skills, he, Bibby and Williams are at their best when someone else penetrates and dishes to them for an open jumper. Since Smith and Horford don’t command that double-team from the post, and none of the five starters is a penetrator, is it any wonder why the Hawks’ half-court offense is inconsistent.

4)Chris Paul is visibly unhappy in New Orleans and will become moreso as losses continue to mount. Since Hornet ownership wants and needs salary relief, the Hawks should send Josh Smith, Jeff Teague, Mike Bibby, Maurice Evans and Randolph Morris to the Hornets for Paul and Peja Stojakovic. The Hawks could have a starting five of C-Jason Collins, PF-Al Horford, SF-Williams, SG-Johnson and PG-Paul with PG/SG Crawford, SF-Stojakovic, PF-Joe Smith and C-Zaza Pachulia as the second unit. Now you can re-sign blog favorite Garrett Siler, and either fan favorite Mario West or a vet like Jerry Stackhouse to fill out the roster. The Hornets would start Okafor, West and Smith up front with Peterson and Bibby still have Posey, Evans, plus a rookie PG to groom in Teague, plus major salary cap relief (saving $7 million on Bibby for Paul and $3 million on Smith for Stojakovic) going forward.

I MUS WRITE

November 7th, 2009
11:27 am

Yeah Poop Nique really said that LOL….. he is a horrible announcer I would prefer James verret or Snapper. Bob Rathbun could find sum good in Charles Manson-serious homer.

KevinA- Wallace goes 100 mph all the time -attacking the boards diving for loose balls etc, while Marvin seems to be coasting most of the time -the man is so passive that it makes my stomach turn. He will forever be a 13/14 6 reb type guy -never a first option or take over the game type-
I hope he gets his azz in gear -Melo is sumwhere licking his chops at the opprotunity to face Marvin 31pts 7 rebs 2steals

I MUS WRITE

November 7th, 2009
11:33 am

Good point JeJe- I think JJ is complaining about shots because he wants to pad his stats for the big payday summer 2010…. I think he looks at Crawford and knows this guy is capable of being the man offensively so now he complains about shots– I truly believ JJ like the ISO crap when the ball is in his hands for 15 of the 24 seconds on the clock……Ball rotation seems to disrupt his game.

JeJe

November 7th, 2009
11:44 am

Why is Sekou leaving? Is it more cutbacks for AJC or he is just trying to get a better job? I wouldn’t even have known he was leaving if I hadn’t gotten a text from a friend. Maybe the new writer can be more informative about what’s going on

Ramon

November 7th, 2009
11:46 am

Jay even if that deal was even remotely possible. I’m sure you would find more fans who are willing to give up JJ quicker than Smoove and Teague. You said the Hornets want cap relief, well trading for Josh who just signed an extension last season wouldn’t provide that, especially when he only makes 3-4 mil less than what Paul makes.

Ramon

November 7th, 2009
11:47 am

JeJe, Sekou is headed to NBA.com. Only greener grass there.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 7th, 2009
11:56 am

Big Ray, I have a serious suggestion — now that we don’t have a beat writer, you should ask the AJC if they will issue you a press credential to let you cover Hawks games as part of the media. I figure your job won’t let you cover every game, but even if you can attend one here or there it would be pretty cool, both for we the readers and for you I’m assuming.

Jay

November 7th, 2009
11:59 am

Ramon,
You’re right–JJ would be more attractive in the deal than Smith but Hornet ownership would be crucified for trading their best player for what would amount to a one-year rental (much like the Hawks did when they traded Dominique for Danny Manning). The biggest part of the cap relief comes from adding Stojakovic into the deal. Bottom line–the Hawks need a superstar; preferably one who is unhappy where he is. No one else out there fits that bill. Adding him gives the team an identity and changes the Hawks from a championship pretender into a championship contender.

Grandad

November 7th, 2009
12:07 pm

Ken Strickland can you explain your earlier post?

Ken Strickland

November 7th, 2009
9:12 am

Please, will someone explain why we went to so much trouble to sign Joe Johnson just to see him sit on the bench and get, at most, token mins?

Ken some one may be trying to make you look stupid, im trying to prove that you really dont need any help.

JeJe

November 7th, 2009
12:17 pm

I know Sekou is leaving for NBA.Com but why so sudden? Who’s the new beat writer gonna be? Why are there no articles lately? What’s Sekou going to be doing with NBA.Com?

O'Brien

November 7th, 2009
12:39 pm

Now we see why people complain when Woody played JJ 45 minutes the game against Portland, when Teague got no burn at all. Or when JJ played 38 minutes against Sacramento, and Teague only got 5. Because although we won those 2 games, our guys were tired last night. Maybe if Woody would play his bench more minutes, guys would not have been so tired. These are the kind of teams we are supposed to beat on the road if we want to be a .500 road team.

I really liked the ball movement from Charlotte. If Woody wants to be like Larry Brown, why cant we do more of that? I remember Larry Brown’s system also got Rip Hamilton easy shots in Detroit. Why cant we get JJ some easy looks? And I hate our switching defense, because it leads to mismatches for the other team.

vava74

November 7th, 2009
12:42 pm

Ken was talking about Joe SMITH. I think he miss typed.

O'Brien

November 7th, 2009
12:44 pm

http://scores.espn.go.com/nba/recap?gameId=291106030

“I don’t know when we all of a sudden just really became a selfish team,” Johnson said. “Now everybody wants to go one-on-one. It’s me, me, me. It’s crazy, man.”

Coach Mike Woodson called the performance “unacceptable” and was unwilling to blame it on the travel. Johnson added he’s been seeing signs of trouble despite recent victories.

“Everybody who touches it wants to score,” Johnson said. “I really think guys on this team don’t know their roles, so it’s killing us. And it’s going to continue to kill us.”

6 games in, and this is the second time that JJ has called out teamates in the media. I just hope he is calling them out in the locker room too.

KevinA

November 7th, 2009
12:46 pm

A little slow in responding.
Sautee
November 6th, 2009
1:01 pm
To me it’s MUCH more important that we work inside out EVEN IF THE FRONTCOURT DOES NOT TAKE THE SHOT.
I’m saying that it makes the defense react when the ball goes inside. If that gives us more open looks, REGARDLESS OF WHO SHOOTS THE BALL, then I’ll be happier. The idea is to make them work on defense. When we go ISO, their defense gets too much rest.

The idea I was trying to convey. Your a better word smith.
niremetal
November 6th, 2009
12:52 pm
That all sounds well and good if it weren’t for the fact that about half of Josh’s shots are mid-range jumpers, and JJ posts up quite a bit (and more this year than in past years). That’s why categorizing the shots by players is overly simplistic.
I do explain my thoughts simply. And I agree with your points. I do not do 10,000 word essays or debate small points. Rather try to convey the general theme of to many jump shots and letting opposing defenses off the hook along with etc………………….

Grandad
November 6th, 2009
1:53 pm
Kevin A, Niremental, Sautee, all great points! Inside out, much like a fb team establishing a running game first. Another observation if I may,
more movement(motion)would allow for opportunities such as, Joe posting up, Josh shootig mid-range but coming off screens and getting his shot in rhythm instead of stand still set shots. It would involve everyone.
Couldn’t have said it better.
Ken Strickland
November 6th, 2009
2:30 pm
KEVINA-I understand perfectly what you’re saying about distribution of shots. However, the unequal distribution of shots taken on our team is propotional to the unequal distribution of scoring ability on our team. You must factor in the fact that our OFF is designed to accomodate the outshooting ability JJ and Bibby, while addressing Bibby’s limited PG skills. Horford and Smoove just aren’t offensively talented enough to be consistent scorers on their own, and Marvin isn’t asked to do so in this OFF. If you replaced Bibby with Teague as the starting PG, you’d see an increase in shots taken and scoring from Horford, Marvin and Smoove.
If I had to start a team from sctatch I would pick our front court. This is my argument for better shot distrubition. Like the football analogy. You can’t pass if you don’t run. To be as simple as possible – we shoot to many jumpers with our skill set. Front court and back court. Along with not running enough etc………
Thanks for your input and comments. I also understand we are a work in progress. It may take another year or two for our kids (Al, Josh, Marvin, JT) Ken Strickland
November 6th, 2009
2:30 pm
KEVINA-I understand perfectly what you’re saying about distribution of shots. However, the unequal distribution of shots taken on our team is propotional to the unequal distribution of scoring ability on our team. You must factor in the fact that our OFF is designed to accomodate the outshooting ability JJ and Bibby, while addressing Bibby’s limited PG skills. Horford and Smoove just aren’t offensively talented enough to be consistent scorers on their own, and Marvin isn’t asked to do so in this OFF. If you replaced Bibby with Teague as the starting PG, you’d see an increase in shots taken and scoring from Horford, Marvin and Smoove.
Ken Strickland
November 6th, 2009
2:30 pm
KEVINA-I understand perfectly what you’re saying about distribution of shots. However, the unequal distribution of shots taken on our team is propotional to the unequal distribution of scoring ability on our team. You must factor in the fact that our OFF is designed to accomodate the outshooting ability JJ and Bibby, while addressing Bibby’s limited PG skills. Horford and Smoove just aren’t offensively talented enough to be consistent scorers on their own, and Marvin isn’t asked to do so in this OFF. If you replaced Bibby with Teague as the starting PG, you’d see an increase in shots taken and scoring from Horford, Marvin and Smoove.
Ken Strickland
November 6th, 2009
2:30 pm
KEVINA-I understand perfectly what you’re saying about distribution of shots. However, the unequal distribution of shots taken on our team is propotional to the unequal distribution of scoring ability on our team. You must factor in the fact that our OFF is designed to accomodate the outshooting ability JJ and Bibby, while addressing Bibby’s limited PG skills. Horford and Smoove just aren’t offensively talented enough to be consistent scorers on their own, and Marvin isn’t asked to do so in this OFF. If you replaced Bibby with Teague as the starting PG, you’d see an increase in shots taken and scoring from Horford, Marvin and Smoove.
to maximize their potential.

KevinA

November 7th, 2009
12:48 pm

Sry don’t know what happened with the post.

KevinA

November 7th, 2009
1:08 pm

Wow the JJ quotes were wild. I assume he is talking about Woody giving Crawford the green light and wanting more touches for Al. In the meantime Josh wants to be the next all star.

I think if they all concentrated on D we would all be better off.

Najeh Davenpoop

November 7th, 2009
1:27 pm

“I really think guys on this team don’t know their roles, so it’s killing us.”

That’s the line that stands out to me. He’s not calling out his teammates there. He’s squarely calling out Woody for not having an offensive system in place that puts the supporting players in a position to maximize their talents. Many people on this blog including myself have been saying this for a few years now, that Josh Smith and Al Horford in particular would be much more effective if they had well defined roles where they could concentrate on what they did best.

Ramon

November 7th, 2009
1:33 pm

This season, Smoove has been just as much of a positive asset as JJ has in terms of overall games, and so has Horford. I think JJ feels the control and leadership of the team is shifting over. I truly believe JJ is threatened that the team may be able to be a better team without him being the dominant player on the court. On THIS roster, if JJ tried to be a better defensive player than an offensive player, I think that would be contagious throughout the roster. I’ve never heard JJ say he desires to be on the All Defensive team, although he has the skills to do so. Everyone, including him, should know the transition game would bring every one enough stats and touches. However the best spark plug for the transition game is defense. When was the last time an opposing back court had a bad game against the Hawks? And does that not start with the leader of the team, especially if he plays a back court position?

KevinA

November 7th, 2009
1:36 pm

Najeh,

You are prob right. But It’s game 5. If we have the same problems at game thirty – there may be a bigger focus to the problem.

Untill we get a new beat writer we should move to the Nest. Ray does a good job.

KevinA

November 7th, 2009
1:39 pm

Ramon,

Nice post. Great defense solves a lot of problems. I would also challenge JJ and Crawford to lead in assists. In the end winning makes stars. We all focus to much on points.

niremetal

November 7th, 2009
1:40 pm

You hit the nail on the head with your last post, Najeh. For years people have criticized the Hawks for lacking a team identity and cohesion, and for leaving players’ roles ambiguous (which is why our PF ends up 20 feet from the basket so much). This is the second time that JJ has drawn attention to that in the past two weeks. The easy thing is to read it as a critique of his teammates, but it doesn’t take much codebreaking to view it as a critique of Woody – after all, isn’t it the coach’s job to give the team an identity and define players’ roles?

cp

November 7th, 2009
1:45 pm

From the way Joe has been sounding off lately I wouldn’t be shocked if he walks after this year. He has never complained this much this early into a season. Might have to explore a trade with Joe around the trading deadline just so we wont lose him for nothing. Think about it, he left a Phoenix team that was close to going to the finals to come to a team coming off a 13 win season. All im saying is he has shown before if the money is there he is willing to go regardless of how good the team is. Just something to think about.

cp

November 7th, 2009
1:48 pm

nire I was actually wondering about that the other day pertaining to roles on the team. Its crazy that Woody has been the coach this long and guys are still talking about knowing their roles and what type of team we are. From last nights game you can tell Woody still has no idea what kind of rotation he wants either. He was just throwing line ups out there. As much as we all wanted more depth on this team, Woody has shown in the past he does better when he has less to work with. More options just seem to throw off his game plans or whatever you want to call them.

Undisputed Champ

November 7th, 2009
2:38 pm

cp, Im afraid I may have to agree with you about the Joe may walk and lets trade him to get something now. With him being Woody’s boy and woody may not be coaching here next year it may just be all he needs to walk.

Undisputed Champ

November 7th, 2009
3:13 pm

Hey joe please don’t speak up and try to take leader ship.

Joe Johnson was not happy with his Hawks’ teammates after Friday’s loss, saying “we became a selfish team. Now everybody wants to go one-on-one. It’s me, me, me.”
“Everybody who touches it wants to score,” Johnson said. “I really think guys on this team don’t know their roles, so it’s killing us. And it’s going to continue to kill us.” Johnson, whose numbers are down, is playing for a contract and it was not tough to see this coming, as he’s not used to having a gunner like Jamal Crawford in the backcourt with him. The Hawks are a dangerous and deep team, but Mike Woodson had better grab some control before internal strife becomes a real problem.
Nov. 6 – 11:28 pm et

Blast
November 6th, 2009
8:31 pm
Two much one on one ball for the Hawks. What’s up with the rims in Charlotte? All Hawks shots are rimming out.
cp
November 6th, 2009
8:14 pm
Where is the intensity? These guys are sleep out there. Josh and his free throw shooting is terrible. Nique’s commentary is terrible. Where is the defense? I would say we have to come out with some fire in the 3rd quarter but this team is known to come out flat after halftime. I wonder if Teague sees any time in the second half or was that all for him for the night.

November 6th, 2009
8:34 pm
Horford is too short to guard chandler

Big Ray
November 6th, 2009
9:28 pm
I predict a slew of negative comments from here on out, especially if we lose to Denver. Heh.

Ken Strickland
November 6th, 2009
11:01 am
The thing I like most about the current Hawks, and the way they’re playing, is their ability to play on the road the way they played at home last yr. NOW THAT’S IMPROVEMENT. The The main thing we need to work on is our overall DEF. However, we’ve definitely been able to play solid DEF in the 4th qtr of gms, and that’s always the mark of a good team.

BONE
November 6th, 2009
8:34 pm
Horford is too short to guard chandler
BONE
November 6th, 2009
8:56 pm
Woodson still doesn’t realize Horford is a damn Power Forward not a center. He’s too short woody u idiot
Big Ray
November 6th, 2009
9:03 pm
Yeah. We’re losing to the Bobcats because Horford is too short to play center. Well, I guess we’re also losing because Chandler has a blazing 10 points.

cp

November 6th, 2009
9:06 pm

Pathetic effort. If they play like this against Denver they might lose by 50. This game is done

Joe Johnson you are right on the point. Horfords out of place and the team lack leadership from the players, the drama unfolds. I’ll bet you guys deal with it and come out the other side a much better team this happens with all good teams. Thanks for speaking up Joe. This aint the same team from last year, but its still your team.

preston

November 7th, 2009
3:24 pm

I am really pulling for the Hawks to do well this yr, and I actually want Woody to prove us all wrong too……but I am not starting to get that lump in my throat after going thru this first week 1/2. First of all Teague has to play, there was and is no excuse to sit him, barring injury, for an entire game. Teague has all of the skills that we want in a point guard…the guy is young, quick, can penetrate the lane, pass the ball, etc. Woody cannot and will not develope Teague with his inconsistent style of coaching unless he changes something. Acie Law was not a bad player….he was a college standout who came to Atlanta with high hopes, and showed flashes of greatness in his early games with the hawks, but he lost his way and confidence in Woody’s system. Mike Bibby has been good for the hawks, but I definately think that Teague should be starting b/c the hawks have gone as far as they can with Bibby…..and that is to the 2nd rd of the playoffs. Am I annoiting Teague as the next great pg…noooo, but I am saying that he would know his role……and that would be to bring the ball upcourt, penetrate the lane, dish the ball off, and get his teamates more involved. Woody you have a very good bench and a starting core that has been together for 3 solid yrs…..there are no room for excuses, the next level is now, so come with it, or dont let the door hit u in the azz on the way out.

Undisputed Champ

November 7th, 2009
3:35 pm

preston I dont disagree with you. I think that once Teague has been around the league a time or too and stop making rookie mistakes he will command more time. Yes This time next year he may be ready for the starting job. Did you see the “And1″ he gave up last game? I think the Hawks need to get off to a good first fifteen games, make the nba circuit one time then look at giving teague more time. Being exposed as a rookie always hurts the ego. I dont think acie will ever be any more than mediocre. Many outstanding collegiate players went burst in the NBA. Dont rust teague or he may join the numbers.

Undisputed Champ

November 7th, 2009
3:36 pm

dont rush teague

Ken Strickland

November 7th, 2009
3:43 pm

Sund and the ASG has got to start looking at the longterm ramifications of Woodsons continued irrational actions. Like CP said, JJ will likely walk, and I’m certain Joe Smith will take the same attitude towards us that he took when he refused to resign with Cleveland, and for the same reason.

Woodson’s refusal to play Joe Smith and JCollins will make it much more difficult for the team to sign quality vet FA in the future. Players know what’s going on with various teams and HC’s, and will make their choices accordingly. Any productive vet that signs a decent one yr contract is looking for an opportunity to show he deserves a longer contract, or at least another decent one yr contract. What do you think the chances of that happening be if he thinks he might end up geting the ALaw treatment, like JSmith and JCollins have gotten so far?

That means that no quality vet will waste time signing with the Hawks, as long as Woodson is the HC, unless he has absolutely no other options. And what quality FA vet would have no other options? We’re in the 6th yr of Woodson’s tenure, and we’re still looking for him to act like he has the intelligence, ability or inclination to develop the PG of the future this franchise needs. Someone needs to tell him that MIKE BIBBY isn’t what the franchise means when there’s talk about PG of the future.

Before this off season, one of Woodson’s biggest excuses for over playing his starters, and not using his bench, was its lack of talent, depth and experience. Well, Sund added depth, talent and experience, and we’re still seeing the same old SH!T from Woodson. I guess that proves he was only using those issues as excuses to mask his limitations as a HC. TAKE NOTE RICK SUND!

CP-I’m not so sure having more players and talent to work with throws his gm plan off as much as it exposes his lack of one. Isn’t it a negative indictment for any HC, going into his 6th yr of tenue, when his veteran players are still complaining about their roles? AGAIN, MAYBE WE’RE SEEING WHY SUND REFUSED TO COMMIT TO WOODSON.

Im not over reacting,

November 7th, 2009
3:58 pm

Miami 5 1 0.833 0.0 4-0 1-0 3-1 2-0 5-1 W 2
Orlando 5 1 0.833 0.0 4-1 0-0 3-0 2-1 5-1 W 2
Atlanta 5 4 2 0.667 1.0 2-1 1-1 2-0 2-2 4-2 L 1
Charlotte 3 2 0.600 1.5 3-2 1-0 3-0 0-2 3-2 W 2
Washington 2 4 0.333 3.0 1-4 0-2 1-1 1-3 2-4 L 3

Im not over reacting,

November 7th, 2009
3:59 pm

Im not over reacting,

November 7th, 2009
3:58 pm

Miami 1 0.833 0.0 4-0 1-0 3-1 2-0 5-1 W 2
Orlando 1 0.833 0.0 4-1 0-0 3-0 2-1 5-1 W 2
Atlanta 4 2 0.667 1.0 2-1 1-1 2-0 2-2 4-2 L 1
Charlotte 3 2 0.600 1.5 3-2 1-0 3-0 0-2 3-2 W 2
Washington 2 4 0.333 3.0 1-4 0-2 1-1 1-3 2-4 L 3

truly1

November 7th, 2009
4:01 pm

to respond to the november 6 11:52 pm post from bubba or maybe ken. Flip had nothing to do with that loss he had 15points we lost by 20. crawford had 13 on a off night and if you watching the games is more feared. I think raja bell was the killer. crawford had 27 and 25 a couple games before that. You are as good as the sum of your performances. CRAWFORD is BETTER than flip. I know you like teague a lot so do i, well do you really think he would play if we had flip also.

Im not over reacting,

November 7th, 2009
4:01 pm

6 games, Hawks 4-2…fire woody!

Ken Strickland

November 7th, 2009
4:16 pm

UNDISPUTED CHAMP-Don’t take such a one sided view of the situation. Many outstanding college players had, and are currently having, outstanding careers in the NBA. Where would the NBA be today if every HC and GM thought like you and Woodson? Do you think PG’s like IThomas, TParker, CPaul, DWilliams, DRose, EJohnson, JKidd, GArenas, and even MBibby, would have developed into much better players if they had gotten the same ALaw treatment Teague is getting from Woodson? And notice, almost every player listed is either in the HOF or headed their.

JCrawford and MBibby would provide a very broad safety net if he proves he’s not ready, which hasn’t happened so far. Don’t let your insecurities, or that of the HC, stand in the way of his and the teams potential progress and success.

preston

November 7th, 2009
4:20 pm

I feel you undisputed……..I actually didnt see the game last night, probaly good I didnt. I just dont to see Teague get lost in the shuffle under Woodson. I dont think that we would be rushing him by playing him now either. Wasnt Lawton selected just one pick before Teague? and look at the minutes and the impact that he is having on his team. Like I said before, it is inexcusable to let Teague play one night and learn the league, and then turn around and completely sit him out the next night. That is the worst way to treat a guy that you want to develope.

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
4:30 pm

Najeh I think this is from me, you, and doc discussing exactly what Joe is talking about…

By bigdave

February 18, 2009 3:12 AM | Link to this

i see what you’re saying Najeh, and i definitely have no answer for that… thats why i consistently stress in my post when critiquing our offense that it indirectly encourages selfish play. our sg plays point, and our pg plays an off guard role. inevitably we no longer play as a unit. it wouldn’t surprise me if this watershed our job on the glass. im not implying that anyone quit, its just that you are less likely to give all out effort, if you aren’t involved on both ends of the floor. so though it might be up to the point guard, or facilitator to distribute, our scheme must demand ball sharing, and strategically place our players in areas on the floor where they are most productive (the entire squad were jump shooters). i cant say that it does this… hence, a skewed/flawed scheme…

By bigdave

February 18, 2009 3:54 AM | Link to this

our inconsistencies could stem from a lack of identity. my question is who defines/develops the roles of our players? do they themselves? we have a unit that wants/asked to be “jack of all trades” no “master of one”. with an exception of a Mario West you is strictly our “defensive-energy guy”. he embraces his role and in limited action, for the most part excels.

sure as fans we can say, “bad shot Josh, thats not your game” when we feel he is out of his shooting range. when watching other teams this is easy to identify who will be a perimeter scoring threat, low post threat, and who isnt. i cant say that about us and its not because we have players with strong versatile abilities. however, at this point Josh takes those shots frequently one ask, is it really a bad shot/not his game? is this were coach wants him, sees him as most productive? another example, that i enjoy, but i question, is when Al leads the break. coach allows this, is comfortable with this? i mean, sure he is young and athletic, but so are other bigs, and they hand the ball off to a guard to start the break. he probably could beat his man up the floor faster without the ball. he will even shoot an ill advised jumper from time to time.

last year Stan Van Gundy called out Dwight for being to worried about his offensive touches and not focusing on boards and blocks. he felt when Dwight focuses on those areas they play winning basketball. he could careless about what the superstar wanted he knew what they needed to contend. great teams have players that know their roles and coaches that stress them. we just have guys playing positions…

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
4:32 pm

same issues different year… Fire Woody… and the whole staff…

and Sund if you can’t see this, you should go too…

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
4:41 pm

Ken Strickland

November 7th, 2009
4:16 pm

I see your line of thinking, Ken, and that an approach that had benefited some teams in the paste. For me, its not about Woodson, or anger or hate. I am a conservative thinker by nature. A lot was made about Boris Diaw when he did not get playing time too and now hes just an ordinary player. Nothing special. Im not trying to challenge your disdain for Woodson. Hate on, it doesnt bother me. Regardless of who the coach is. Id like an average rookie to circle the league once or twice before I step up his playing time to impact minutes. His learning should not come at the expense of winning games. I feel that rookie players (for the most part)learn faster from watching the starters and the league than from putting in mega minutes and repeating the game as they learned it in college. Im not trying to dis you. I can see your point of view. Just trying to get you to acknowledge a different view.

A apple falls from the tree when its ripe.

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
4:45 pm

preston I feel you too. Its good to fight for the underdog. When Magic and birds were rookies you knew they were rare talent and game changers, so they started immediately. Most average rookies on a good team have to be patient for minutes.

On my job my learning comes in the form of hands on and watching someone else with more experience than me. Id like to be the lead man, but Im going to take my spot though patience.

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
4:47 pm

Ken Strickland

*some teams in the past.

Bubbaの乗組員の本社

November 7th, 2009
5:10 pm

truly1 I agree with you on both points, Crawford is better than flip, and you are as good as the sum of your performances. That being said, flip is a very good player and scorer and may match up well with Crawford in one on one. Im looking at this from a monetary stand point by saying how much better is Crawford than flip. How many more games will we win with crawford than we would with flip….1,2, 3? my guess is about two more games, so im seeing if the end justifies the means.

Yes I like teague, nice kid. Dont want to rush him along too fast and crush his confidence, the pros will abuse a rookie. At least give him a chance to learn the league first.

Bottom line. Crawford is better, and a better fit for the Hawks…question is at what price.

Truth-serum

November 7th, 2009
5:11 pm

OK its nearing game time this is when you usually block my comments, so Ill sign off for now.

Ken Strickland

November 7th, 2009
5:20 pm

UNDISPUTED CHAMP-it’s not about hate with me either, although their are some intellectually challenged individuals that would disagree. If you’ll notice, not once have you read a comment from me where I advocated firing Woodson. I just what him to become a better HC so this team and it’s players can become better.

Bibby is on the extreme downside of his career and his limited abilities makes him no longer capable of doing anything as a starter to make this team or his teammates better. Teague adds quickness, speed, penetrating ability, which allows him to breakdown DEF’s and create easy scoring opportunities for his teammates, and he makes his teammates better and plays better DEF. In other words, he can make this team more effective, as well as less dependent on shooting jumpshots, and help solve a major DEF weakness, and that’s pressuring the ball at the point.

Those contributions alone would be a vast improvement over anthing Bibby can offer as a starter. Bibby and his attributes will still be available off the bench. If Bibby isn’t hitting his jumper, like last night, we get off to slow starts because teams will quickly double JJ. Teams know if Bibby isn’t hitting his longrange jumper, there’s little else he can do to hurt them.

Truth-serum

November 7th, 2009
6:08 pm

truly1, and Bubbaの乗組員の本社

Flip may not have nothing to do with the loss be he certainly had some thing t do with the win…. If you think 15pts and 6 rebounds and an assist in” 17.5 minutes” Is not a impact contribution, I encourage you to think again. Thats nearly a point a minute and a rebound every three minutes from a 2 guard. Let me add those weren’t his own rebounds.

Truth-serum

November 7th, 2009
6:11 pm

Crawford who was often guarded by flip, played 34.5 minutes and could only manage 13pts and 3 rebounds. Yea, flip had something to do with the hornets win and the hawks loss.

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
6:16 pm

Ken Strickland, I think we aren’t that far apart on what needs to take place. I think you and I have differences on when this needs to take place. I guess Woodson knows better than you and I, because hes paid to make those decisions and hes been doing it for quite awhile now. I second guess him a lot, but I cant argue with his results. I guess hes doing it his way.

No, Ive never read where you’ve called for his firing. Most of your gripe is that you think he should do it your way, and that s your right.

You got tickets tonight?

Samuel

November 7th, 2009
6:20 pm

Joe Johnson has lost his mind. Is he really that jealous? He needs to go now.
If anything needs to change about our starting lineup, it’s Crawford for Marvin.

Should be a good game tonight.

Timbo

November 7th, 2009
6:21 pm

Let me say that it is kinda low (on whoever decided now was the time to go, whether that’s AJC or Sekou) for the beat writer of the only birdcage liner in town to leave at the beginning of the season. I’m guessing this means even crappier coverage than we already get for the Hawks . . .

JeJe

November 7th, 2009
6:38 pm

If Sekou has left, can we please take his picture off the page?

Maybe AJC will now hire a writer who gives us daily or every-other-day blogs, who can write blogs without ubiquitous typos/errors, and who will give us an objective view, not just “Hawks have arrived” trash after we win

Yupperz

November 7th, 2009
6:45 pm

Or maybe they’ll hire someone who will ban idiots like you.

Truth-Serum

November 7th, 2009
6:46 pm

Samuel as usual good point…is Marv trade bait?

Grandad

November 7th, 2009
6:47 pm

Messers truth serum/sybil/bubba/comic linguist: Je suis assure tu espece de cochon. insulting isn’t it.
Jay: Chris Paul; I cannot believe I’m sayin this, BUT…..Joe really disappointed me this AM. When I read his comments in the paper (yes I still read the paper the old fashioned way) it made me sick. It reaked of jealously. It appears he is jealous of Jamal. Which brings me back to my point. A trade for CP could pos. be made for the reasons you expressed. We cannot wait until after season – we would lose leverage. We should offer JOE NOW. We would, as I’ve stated earlier, have to include Teague but Marv should be the other piece (better cont.). N.O.
sells their fans that they will make every effort to re-sign Joe, even though they have no intent of doing so. Before today I would not have endorsed trading Joe.
Niremental: Yourself and others have been taking about Woody’s off., team identity, etc. I have never heard Woody define his philosophy. With any great Coach you don’t even have to hear them say it, but you just know their phil. I fear Woody flat out has no b-ball phil.
***I am so tired of Joe saying “some players don’t know their roles!”
Joe should step down as team leader if he is not committed to this team. One does not have to sign a contract to be committed. However, he seems more interested in getting his shots/pts. than anything else. I’m afraid thats what he means when talking about roles – Get Me The Ball.

preston

November 7th, 2009
6:52 pm

On a side note from the hawks…………have you guys seen that pic of Sammy Sosa? What the hell happened to him.
http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/sports/NATL-Sammy-Sosas–69480167.html

Melvin

November 7th, 2009
6:55 pm

Nuggets maybe without K-Mart tonite…

“If Karl is going to pick up his 939th career victory Saturday and move past Red Auerbach for eighth place on the all-time coaching wins list, he likely won’t have forward Kenyon Martin, who left Friday’s game in the second quarter with a leg injury.”

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
6:56 pm

LETS GET IT…!!!

vava74

November 7th, 2009
6:57 pm

Sekou just made a demolishing report on JJ on NBATV…

KevinA

November 7th, 2009
7:06 pm

Sekou,

Just did a tell all on the NBA chanell. Mercy, were nation wide. This thing is out of control. He straight out said JJ told a reporter of his woes without telling the team first.

Melvin

November 7th, 2009
7:21 pm

Hawks off to a go start…

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
7:26 pm

Melo’s game has gone next level…

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
7:27 pm

keep up the aggressiveness Marvin…

Melvin

November 7th, 2009
7:31 pm

bigdave,

Agreed about Melo. He’s taken the next step.

BONE

November 7th, 2009
7:31 pm

JOes ball hoggin

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
7:32 pm

do we talk on the floor? did anyone alert Joe of the double?

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
7:34 pm

whats up with all the technical difficulties at Phillips… its like a regular occurrence?

KevinA

November 7th, 2009
7:34 pm

Josh a beast tonight

KevinA

November 7th, 2009
7:35 pm

Jamal says sit down son and let me show you how it’s done

niremetal

November 7th, 2009
7:35 pm

I’m a bit nervous because our defense isn’t tight…I don’t wanna get in a shootout with these guys.

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
7:36 pm

Mo is on early this yr. from deep…

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
7:37 pm

gee wiz… Melo…

Melvin

November 7th, 2009
7:40 pm

I think we will be ok if we limit the other players and let Melo have to work for his. right now, Melo is doing a lot of iso to score…

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
7:40 pm

i was eating dinner til Tyrone Hill showed up…

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
7:42 pm

Ken Strickland

November 7th, 2009
7:45 pm

OH YEAH, Teague isn’t ready.

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
7:46 pm

id like to see a pull up.. or little floater there from Teague…

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
7:48 pm

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
7:48 pm

Teague clotheslined…

Ken Strickland

November 7th, 2009
7:49 pm

UNDISPUTED CHAMP-tell me what you’ve see so far from Teague that demonstrates he’s not ready or has to sit on his butt for half the season before he can be given any consideration. He’s just made several plays that Bibby can only dream about.

Melvin

November 7th, 2009
7:50 pm

Ok, why did we sign Joe Smith again???? DNP 2nd half against the Bobcats and in the 1st half tonight…

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
7:51 pm

He looks good Ken!

BONE

November 7th, 2009
7:51 pm

Man why is Joe hoggin the ball

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
7:53 pm

Hes still making mistakes but, if you want to let him play his way through his inexperience im with you. Let the kid play, Time to trade bibby because hes not coming off the bench with what he makes.

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
7:57 pm

good game for Marvin to show up…

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
8:01 pm

superstar call…

Mac-Town'z Finest 478

November 7th, 2009
8:03 pm

We should have stepped on these guys necks while they were down

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
8:03 pm

it appears Mike Bibby’s mins are going to plummet this year…

Melvin

November 7th, 2009
8:03 pm

A Joe Smith sighting

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
8:05 pm

why dont our bigs give the ball up on the break and to the basket?

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
8:07 pm

who can Mo guard?

Sautee

November 7th, 2009
8:15 pm

I don’t know whether to be excited that we scored 60 or dismayed that we gave up 50.

Both, I guess.

cp

November 7th, 2009
8:21 pm

They are playing better tonight. They are hitting the boards and sharing the ball. Once again the bench shows that they produce when they are given opportunities. Teague is going to be a player. He missed a few easy shots but he gets to the hole so easy. He just needs more time..

Joe called his teammates out for being selfish but he comes out and does the same thing he criticized them for. He did the usual pound pound pound and shoot. He is getting caught in double teams. The thing Jamal does that I wish Joe would do is make quick decisions with the ball. Jamal knows whether he is going to shoot the j or go to the hole. Joe pounds the ball for 20 seconds before he decides on what to do. Joe has to make quicker decisions.

JDPeace

November 7th, 2009
8:26 pm

So is Sekou gone? His departure was handled really oddly.

Mac-Town'z Finest 478

November 7th, 2009
8:30 pm

Is Joe jealous that we have another scoring threat that is almost equally (maybe even more??) offensively gifted?

Najeh Davenpoop

November 7th, 2009
8:33 pm

I don’t get NBA TV… does anyone know if these comments Sekou made about Joe Johnson are available online somewhere?

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
8:38 pm

Hey let play the kid some more tonight. Its ablowout!

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
8:40 pm

Karl must not be a good coach because his team isnt ready!

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
8:40 pm

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
8:43 pm

stop crying BYATCH!!!

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
8:46 pm

YEAH, IT MAY BE TIME, KEN, I THINK YOU ARE RIGHT ON THIS ONE.

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
8:49 pm

TEAGUE TIME!

Yupperz

November 7th, 2009
8:52 pm

What the hell are yall talking about, Teague had one good move and has played like $hit the rest of the game. Hes out of control on offense and helpless on D. PLease boy aint ready

mychelfromatl

November 7th, 2009
8:56 pm

wholeup, what did sekou say bout joe?

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
8:56 pm

GET FAT NASTY COLLIINS IN FOR A WORK OUT.

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
8:58 pm

IM WITH KEN ON THIS ONE. LET THE BOY PLAY IS WAY TO READINESS,

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
8:59 pm

foolishness…

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
9:00 pm

SMART MOVE TEAGUE TAKES IT TO THE PAINT DRAWS A FOUL SLOWS DENVERS COME BACK.

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
9:01 pm

refs have lost control of this game.

Yupperz

November 7th, 2009
9:02 pm

I agree he should get to play so he can be ready but the idea that he is ready to start now is just dumb as $hit. Boy is 1 for 9 shooting with an assist and hes getting burned every time on D.

NOW WHAT THE HELL IS GOIN ON WITH THESE FOULS

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
9:10 pm

why didnt Joe get a whistle in the paint…?

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
9:11 pm

CRUCIAL BASKETS FROM JOE

Melvin

November 7th, 2009
9:13 pm

Josh gets knock to the floor on a layup, no foul is call. Melo drops his shoulder and run over his defender and foul is call on the defender. These refs are a joke.

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
9:14 pm

Good Lord. Josh Smith has really gotten into the Nuggets’ heads.

Yeah. This guy. You know, the one with no IQ…..

Melvin

November 7th, 2009
9:17 pm

Why is Josh guarding Billups???

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
9:17 pm

BIG SHOTS BIBBY!

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
9:18 pm

good to see Bibby hit those shots…

niremetal

November 7th, 2009
9:19 pm

Switching defense, Melvin. Gotta love it.

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
9:20 pm

Nice shots by Bibby.

Both assisted by Josh Smith …..

Samuel

November 7th, 2009
9:25 pm

Fire George Karl

Woody=COY

Melvin

November 7th, 2009
9:27 pm

Nire,

I missed that switch. I though Josh was guarding him straight up on that possession.

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
9:27 pm

LOOKS LIKE THE SMACK TALK FROM JOE MADE IT CLEAR WHOSE TEAM THIS IS. I DONT THINK JOE IS GOING ANYWHERE, HE WANTS TO MAKE SURE HE GETS THE TOP DOLLAR. HE LIKES THIS TEAM.

Samuel

November 7th, 2009
9:29 pm

Can JTO do that?

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
9:30 pm

Teague has not shot well, mostly because he’s pushed the issue the wrong way by driving into double teams and things like that. Sound familiar? Heh….

The good news is, he hasn’t turned the ball over. The kid is going to learn to be better on both ends of the floor. I’m not blown away, but the kid gets assists, and he’s yards ahead of any young pg we’ve had in these parts in I don’t know how long.

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
9:31 pm

i swear i like Randolphs offensive game…

Samuel

November 7th, 2009
9:36 pm

We’re in good shape. Just came off a monster road trip and still 5-2.

Dam_,

Jason Collins is Fat. We may as well have signed “Tractor Trailer”, Shawn Kemppr even Oliver Miller. At least they can score. Sund needs his as_ kicked. That’s a waste of money.

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
9:40 pm

Josh Smith with a grown man stat line…

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
9:40 pm

SMOOVE SAID THE DIFFERENCE TONIGHT WAS EVERYBODY PLAY UNSELFISH. JUST WHAT JOE SAID. HUMMM.

vava74

November 7th, 2009
9:41 pm

nice win but we were playing against a bunch of sleep walkers. the refs keep it competitive far too long with a series of bogus calls favoring Melo… I am sure that Stu Jackson selected Melo for his fantasy team and needed to pad his numbers a bit…

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
9:42 pm

Samuel IF HES IN SHAPE BY THE PLAYOFFS , WHEN AND IF WE PLAY SHA

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
9:43 pm

SHAQ THATS ALL THAT MATTERS FOR WHAT THEY PAY HIM.

Shawn

November 7th, 2009
9:43 pm

Man, Sekou is overweight. Someone get this guy on the Subway diet

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
9:44 pm

so i guess they responded well to their leaders comments…

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
9:49 pm

ITS JOE’S TEAM. YOU NEED A LEADER TO SAY THIS IS HOW ITS GOING TO BE. EVERY TEAM NEEDS ONE

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
9:51 pm

Al Horford with 5 dimes…

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
9:51 pm

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
9:53 pm

wow the knicks are garbage…

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
9:53 pm

THE STINGER AND S.S. ARE SIGNING WOODSONS PRAISES. SAYING THAT HES MAKING EXCELLENT SUBSTITUTIONS AND HAS THE HAWKS PLAYING UNIFIED.

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
9:54 pm

WOULD K. MARTIN HAVE MADE A DIFFERENCE TONIGHT?

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
9:55 pm

If you think Iverson was a great idea to bring here, read the link I posted above. Dude can’t get it together over there in Memphis.

I applaude Lionel Hollins for the way he has handled the situation. Instead of immediately screwing with the chemistry and togetherness that the fledgling Grizzlies are trying to build, he has stayed the course by saying “team first.” All that , and he never insulted or disrespected Allen Iverson once.

Don’t know about y’all, but I’m happy we got Crawford. He fits. Iverson? Heh….

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
9:56 pm

I wonder if Joe feels like the guys played their roles tonight ?

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
9:57 pm

Truth-Serum ,

I have to say, he definitely did. These guys were ready, and they showed it. You can’t NOT give the coach credit for that.

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
9:57 pm

JJ IS EXPLAINING HIS COMMENTS

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
9:58 pm

man Joe telling it like it is… folks wanna make a big deal about it…

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
9:59 pm

co sign Joe Johnson…

Ken Strickland

November 7th, 2009
10:02 pm

Now that was a well played, well coached gm on the part of the Hawks. It was a total team win and showed what we’re capable of when all cylinders are clicking. GOOD WIN TONIGHT OUR HIGH FLYING HAWKS!!!!!

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
10:02 pm

Interesting post game interview with Joe Johnson.

He talks about a lot of assignments being blown tonight, and I’ll assume he’s talking about defense. Okay, with this switching defense, which assignments are being blown by whom? It’s chaos and confusion. Joe has a point, but I’m not sure how this can be remedied.

Say what you want, but it doesn’t sound like he’s pointing at Woody. Sounds like he’s pointing at his teammates. To be continued…..

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
10:05 pm

FOLLOW UP RAY, THE STINGER WAS SAYING WOODSON WAS BROUGHT HERE AS A DEFENSIVE COACH AND THE HAWKS IDENTITY HAS BEEN FOR THEIR DEFENSE.

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
10:06 pm

DITTO ON THE CO SIGN FOR THE TEAMS CAPTAIN.

Shawn

November 7th, 2009
10:06 pm

Hey Sekou,

Good job not telling any of us you’re leaving. Can’t even post an article.

Way to be classy

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
10:10 pm

why does it have to be a blame thing… or a finger pointing thing… is this not what he is supposed to do as the best player/go to guy? if Joe says nothing its a problem.. if he says something its a problem. if Josh Smith made the comments, or Mike Woodson (would it be heard on deaf ears) would it be an issue? sounds like to me he wants this team playing on both ends of the floor at the level that we are capable of playing night in and out, regardless of opponent.

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
10:13 pm

Undisputed Champ ,

I hear you. The only problem is, this team has been giving up quite a few points. 100+ a game, to be more exact. So they’re not doing what Woody wants in large part. But they ARE doing it in spurts, and it’s been enough to win games (well, with help from our offense, that is). I think that is what Joe is talking about. But he also has to consistently lead on defense himself . His comments about defense aren’t bugging me at all. It’s true. The other stuff is another story altogether.

wtf JJ

November 7th, 2009
10:15 pm

bigdave-

What your best player is supposed to do is talk to his team first not the media. He is captain say something during the game or after to the team. If he thinks it is necessary say something to the media then. This guy never opens his mouth during the games but recently know he wants to talk about his team. First of all practice what you preach. When I think selfish on the Hawks he is definitely first in line. How many more times do you need to see him force a shot?

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
10:16 pm

Bigdave ,

Put your “defend Joe” banner down for just a second, will ya? I’m responding to comments on both blogs where Joe is concerned. Some have said that Joe seems to be pointing at Woody with his comments. I merely pointed out that he seemed to be talking about his teammates (who by the way, are responsible for blowing assignments).

And to be clear, you KNOW if Josh or Woody had said something like this, much would have been made about it. Unless you haven’t kept up with the blog, you KNOW this has happened plenty of times in the past.

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
10:18 pm

I wasn’t getting mad at Joe for saying something. And I DO recall saying that he had a point. Don’t know how that extrapolated into a Joe bash. Oh wait, yes I do…..

Ken Strickland

November 7th, 2009
10:20 pm

BIB RAY-Woodson obviously made some positive adjustments in that switching DEF. I noticed Bibby stayed with his man, which explains his numerous fouls, and didn’t get caught in mismatches with PF’s and centers. I saw Marvin, Smoove and Horford switch among themselves, which doesn’t create mismatches. We should allowing Bibby to continue playing straight up DEF, and if he gets into foul trouble, we have Crawford and Teague to take up the slack.

Did you notice how we attacked the basket throughout the gm? That was a complete reverse of last nights performance when we reverted back to the permeter jumpshooting team of the past. Let’s see if we can build some momentum going into NY.

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
10:21 pm

And I’m sure what Sekou (who by the way, has had all the inside insight any person could want) had to say on NBA TV has rubbed JJ fans the wrong way. Something fierce, I might add.

At the same time, Jurenovich and “The Stinger” gave Joe props for being a leader by pointing out what the Hawks needed to work on, instead of just basking in the glow of a 20-something point victory. They were right. And so was Joe. Everybody is happy when we win. When we lose, everything goes to hell in a hand basket really fast.

That’s indicative of some things I’m going to leave alone for the moment, that have been discussed here for years.

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
10:25 pm

wtf JJ

what did he say that was so malicious…? are we that sensitive of a team/fans…. please… dont take for granted how close this team is on and off the court. you hear it time and time again how they can say something to one another and it isnt taken personal but constructively. so i guess after the performance last night, a mic was thrown in his face, he voiced his opinion as any Hawk should especially Joe who is really learning on the fly how to be vocal cut some slack. if there is any division created in this group it will be done by overblown comments. nobody is being thrown under the bus, etc. etc. as far as him forcing shots.. Joe has the green light, he has earned that, and showed he is capable of making tough shots. every shot in the NBA will not be easy or uncontested. on every team someone is given the duty of taking and making shots in traffic. on ours it Joe and Jamal. live with it..

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
10:28 pm

Ray…

wasnt taking shots at your comments, just begging the question of why it has to be a finger pointing thing… giving my take on it… i dont mind comments like that from any Hawk..

Truth-Serum

November 7th, 2009
10:28 pm

Bottom line Big Ray is the Hawks responded to JJ. Woodson has anointed this a JJ team, Crawford knows it and Josh co-sign JJ too. Right or wrong a leader has to speak up when the teams dont show up for games. Im with you on the JJ has to play”D” too. Every leader has some flaws but Im not sure this team is as good as it its with out a leader to stand tough.

I know this is going to draw heat but woody doing a very good job.

Truth-Serum

November 7th, 2009
10:30 pm

bigdave I agree Big Dave, you got to draw the line some where and let the chips fall where they may. You cant win for long without leadership no matter how provocative.

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
10:33 pm

Good insight Ray. I hope they give you the keys to the locker room.

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
10:36 pm

wtf JJ is paid to shoot the ball. Thats his role on the team. Whenever he want a shot he can do that. I cant say hes making bad decisions. The three time all star and Olympic team member is a very smart player. Like him or not. He has also done a beautiful job for the Hawks and carried them for years. He can jack it up when ever!

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
10:37 pm

Ray…

i keep up with the blog bruh… at least this one… my point is from the angle of the player and teammate if Woodson made similar comments it would just look like the head coach critiquing the team. Joe being the main guy, you gain the attention of the guys who are in the trenches with you which exceeds the reach of a head coach.

as far as Sekou he’s doing what a journalist does, especially one who is looking to make a splash/headway at his new gig… i mean given him once exclusively being apart of the Hawk team to an extent he is just as guilty as Joe, if we’re blaming Joe for going to the media…

wtf JJ

November 7th, 2009
10:40 pm

bigdave-
You better go check JJ’s history. He complained in Phoenix and left. He is doing the same thing here before he leaves. If the Hawks had any sense they would move him before Feb. My point is very simple. Teams keep things in their locker room. Only the head coach should be speaking like that about their team. Maybe he had a valid point but talk to his team privately. Maybe this is a better way of explaining what value do you get by speaking publicly.

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
10:43 pm

BigDave ,

No worries. I mistook what you said. Joe has it right, and I’m glad he recognizes what we have to work on. I say he has to work on leading the defense, and he damn sure did that in Portland. It was a thing of beauty, because his teammates rallied behind him.

Undisputed Champ ,

Yeah, I don’t want to put it all on Joe, and I probably came across that way. It’s still Joe’s team, he just has to adjust to having some serious help. Crawford pretty much brings that every night. Josh brings it when he plays with more maturity and does what he does best. If he gets to a point of consistency, that will be pretty much all the help Joe could need or ask for. Another backcourt killer and a frontcourt assassin? Doesn’t get much better than that.

Ken Strickland,

I hear you. I definitely liked that Woody saw that. Bibby doesn’t fit the Detroit model by any stretch of the imagination, therefore he cannot survive in the switching defense. Same goes for Zaza, actually. And you’re right on about the attacks on the rim. We’ll need to do that against NY, who can’t defend the rim, but will only be too glad to oblige you if you want to get into a shootout.

bigdave

November 7th, 2009
10:47 pm

aight Ray… im joining your party over at the other blog.. had no idea about it…

I MUS WRITE

November 7th, 2009
10:48 pm

Does anybody know what Sekou said?

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
10:48 pm

Bigdave,

I hear you, but I don’t know. Woody gets bashed quite about around here, and I can’t recall a time he said anything critical about the team that didn’t get him a punch in the face around here. I think it’s to the point of where people are used to it, LOL.

Still, you are dead on about JJ’s comments going beyond the reach of the coach. Now…will the team rally around him on defense, as they did in Portland? I sure hope so.

As for Sekou….well, I agree about making the splash. At the same time, I talked to him after that. More there than meets the eye there, and it’s not necessarily what you might think. But I’ll let him speak for himself on that one. ;)

Undisputed Champ ,

I appreciate the vote of confidence. But I’m not a writer. It would be fun I’m sure, but Sekou is on a level many writers don’t reach. That, and it would involve pushing aside the 10+ years in my own profession. :)

Big Ray

November 7th, 2009
10:50 pm

Bigdave ,

Hell, I thought you were boycotting me, lol! Been doing this gig going on the second year now. Last year, it was called “The Hawks Hack.” Was doing it with HB Ando. He’s around…somewhere…

ufo

November 7th, 2009
10:57 pm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBVI0YinGQw
57 known types of aliens
including big foot

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
10:59 pm

Big Ray I feel you. I guess you could step your game up if you had too…. Woody has to be like a kid in a candy store being able to play an in/out game with Josh and Crawford. I do like it when Joe and Crawford are on the floor at the same time…Chaos for the other team. choose your poison. I haven’t backed away from saying we still need a power center in the low post. This team kind of reminds me of Dallas Maverick and the phoenix suns. Good but no dominance in the low post.

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
11:02 pm

Big Ray I’m not sure you need a writer as much as a moderator. LOL

Ken and Truth Serum keeps it heated up. You seem fair and impartial to them both.

ufo

November 7th, 2009
11:08 pm

Shawn

November 7th, 2009
11:14 pm

Where is Big Ray’s blog? As lame as that guy is, he has a working blog, not our departed overweight former beat-writer, who Petrino’ed us all

ufo

November 7th, 2009
11:15 pm

ufo will come in 2012

Undisputed Champ!

November 7th, 2009
11:15 pm

Big Ray I remember Hawks Hacks. Been there a time or two.

ufo

November 7th, 2009
11:31 pm

did anyone see the video?

truly1

November 7th, 2009
11:34 pm

truth-serum just responding to your last post reguarding me and bubba talking about flip look at his numbers tonight 7 points 3 of 12 shooting and crawford 25 points. We had a whole conversation on that topic you came in at the end and Bubba is right. I take it you would rather have flip that crawford based off your comments. Flip had motivation and he did not kill the hawks Raja Bell did (the starter).

Ramon

November 7th, 2009
11:42 pm

I don’t have a problem with JJ taking a lot of shots. But I do have a problem with JJ being THE offense as he was for the last 4 seasons. JJ reminds me a lot of Mitch Richmond in his younger days. Mitch was a great player, but he didn’t make anyone around him better. Has JJ not learned from Kobe and Lebron, that until you build your teammates up to be better, you will not have much success in the playoff. I think now, the Hawks are a guarantee to be in the playoffs. So why not take the first part of the season to try NEW things on offense and defense. Last night while watching the Spurs game, Hubie Brown was constantly saying how Pop always experiment with the lineup, roles, and more in the first part of the season. There’s no reason now to play each game like a playoff game. That alone will wear this team out before the post season begin.

cp

November 8th, 2009
12:09 am

Great win. Teague was fouled on at least 3 of his drives to the basket but didn’t get the calls. Crawford with another great game. Marvin was solid. When Josh plays like he did tonight its hard to beat us…

What Sekou said might be found online by googling I don’t know. I don’t remember what he said word for word but he pretty much said that if Joe had a issue he should have voiced it to his teammates and coaches after the game or during the game or whatever instead of saying nothing at all to them but as soon as a reporter asked him something he voiced his displeasure. And that was not fair to the players because they found out about it just like we did. Its not word for word but that’s what he pretty much said . He was also saying Joe has to trust his teammates and might have to adjust his game some because its not like before when it was him and just a bunch of young guys on the floor. He has to learn to trust these guys because they have grown and become better players. I cant remember everything he said I wish I would have paid more attention to it but that’s pretty much what he said. Ill see if i can find anything online about it.

Ramon

November 8th, 2009
12:36 am

CP, I’ve tried hard to find Sekou’s interview! I really want to see it also.

ufo

November 8th, 2009
12:42 am

Enter your comments here

bigdave

November 8th, 2009
12:54 am

Ramon…

i said Joe reminded me of 97′ Mitch…

Grandad

November 8th, 2009
1:13 am

Tonight’s win does not excuse Joe. Just reading what he said in the paper came across as petty and selfish. I read another writer’s perspective (I’m sorry I cannot remember his name right now) and he thought it was a jab @ Jamal. On the other hand I do not want to be negative @ a time when things seem to be going well. Winning cures alot of ills.

Ramon

November 8th, 2009
1:22 am

Bigdave, I could agree to that. But do you know RIGHT now if Joe was on any of the championship caliber team he would be each of their THIRD best player, and not second (except for Cleveland). But even there he would be the third option behind Lebron and Shaq. But in Boston, LA, SA, Denver, Orlando, and even his home in Pheonix, he would be the third option. So why can’t he see that he needs to encourage his team one on one not in the public? A JJ lead team will not win a championship series.

bigdave

November 8th, 2009
1:51 am

last year i spoke of how our isolation design of offense (iso sg,pf,c,sf) in its natural setting and progression promotes selfish basket and negates the team concept due to a lack of off ball player activity…

yet our switching defensive principles demand the all out team concept and cohesiveness in order to be effective… you’ve heard our players talk about it “playing as a team on defense, helping and rotating”…

how many times have you witnessed a player (not necessarily a Hawk or pro) not have it going or limited touches on offense and almost in unison his defensive effort lacks. or in football a receiver is not getting the ball thrown at him so he doesn’t run complete hard routes.

funny, our offensive and defensive scheme and principle are polar opposites of each other…

bigdave

November 8th, 2009
1:52 am

we have a close group, and it looks as if win or lose this year Joe is going to be critical of a less than all out effort. he say’s it looks good when you win but there are still some things we need to work on… this is on a night where both he and our key guys put up solid numbers across the board to handle a Nugget team. i can see others take but it seems to me that Joe has higher goals and standards than even we have set. hey, but like he said, “we have a long way to go”… give the guy some time and cut him some slack, Joe is just learning to be a vocal leader… gonna say some things that depending on your interpretation could leave a bad taste. however, its how the Hawks respond that matters…

Ramon

November 8th, 2009
2:54 am

Bigdave, I don’t mind him saying the things. But NO REPORTER should hear criticism from a player, before the team hears it from that player firsthand. That’s just called respect of the locker room. Out of all the times Josh and Woody have had their battles, how many times have either one of them critiqued the other one in public media without going face to face first? MJ was the greatest champion in this era, yet how many times did he cuss out a player in a practice/locker room but not critique them in the media? Matter of fact, he often times gave Kerr, Harper, Longley, and Wennington praise in the media.

KevinA

November 8th, 2009
4:50 am

JJ is just acting like the alpha dog he is. He see’s his big piece of meat being sliced and trimmed to be fed to the rest of the team. As all Alfa dogs do – they dream of even more meat, sometimes they turn away a chunk to look for a more choice cut later. Then one day the big dog wakes up and realizes that life is not a dream and the dogs he guides are chewing on the other end of the bone. The first reaction is to howl at the moon while the pack licks their chops.

Will he look over his shoulder, snapping and snarling, or be the first to accept the leather harness and put his shoulder in it. Thats what the best Alfa dogs do.

Clyde

November 8th, 2009
7:16 am

THE HAWKS BLOW OUT DENVER BY 25

FIRE BILLY

Clyde

November 8th, 2009
7:16 am

OH BILLY IS GONE ALREADY

FIRE WOODY

GeeMack

November 8th, 2009
9:44 am

I don’t think JJ was talking about the now he was looking at playing better defense period. We all know Woody’s calling card is defense and we haven’t seen that from the Hawks consistently all this season. JJ wants nip it in the bud before it gets out of hand.

However its funny than when a team is not a prolific scoring team defense is the calling card. Let that same team get multiple weapons offensively and defense is out the window.

Ken Strickland

November 8th, 2009
10:30 am

I loved the way Woodson distributed his PG’s mins. Bibby got around 20mins and Teague around 16mins. Although Bibby’s mins were reduced from the 31+ mins he’s been playing, he was able to be just as effective offensively and less detrimental defensively, although he got into foul trouble. Teague did a good job and was actually fouled, but didn’t get the call, on 3 of his drives to the basket. Joe Smith got some awful foul calls against him. On one, CAnthony just lost the ball going up and on the other Joe fell on his back while fighting for a loose ball and CAnthony rolled over the top of him, but Joe was called for the foul.

Last nights gm demonstrated the kind of team we are when we play DEF, attack the basket, and utilize our tremendous advantage in speed, quickness, athleticism and depth to play uptempo basketball. I’m also very impressed with the quickness and movement I saw from RMorris. I didn’t even know who he was he watching him move around so effortlessly. He definitely has physical talent, but until this season, I don’t think he made the mental committment to drop the weight that was holding him back and preventing him from putting it together. He agressively went after a couple of rebounds, and played agressive DEF, which he never did last yr. With his new found mobility and obvious postup OFF skills, it would be very interesting to see how effective he could be with some extra mins, motivation and encouragement.

Bibby’s mins over the last 2gms have been reduced from 34.34mins(Portland) & 33.50mins(Kings)to 19.48mins(Bobcats) & 20.13mins(Nuggets) without having a significant impact on his overall production. Bibby is a scorer rather than a facilitator and Teague is a facilitator rather than a scorer. I’d love to see Bibby brought off the bench and told to concentrate primarily on putting the ball in the basket. He and Crawford together, with Crawford as the PG on OFF and SG on DEF, would be deadly. Teague and JJ would be a better combination, talent, ego and chemistry wise, than JJ and Crawford.

Shawn

November 8th, 2009
11:46 am

SO WHERE IS SEKOU? WAY TO ABANDON US. WHAT A CLASSY GUY

terrell barron

November 8th, 2009
11:54 am

Dont know how much to take from this victory. Miami did the same thing to Denver on Friday. Good win though.

JeJe

November 8th, 2009
1:08 pm

I am very impressed with Woody’s coaching so far this year. I knew that Charlotte game was a trap game, but Woodson has done a good job with rotations. I would love to see ZaZa and Joe Smith get more minutes (didn’t Joe come here because he wanted minutes?), but his limiting of Bibby’s (getting old) minutes has been brilliant, and Teague is finally starting to get minuets (Teague has played well but just isn’t making shots).

I also think Joe is very jealous of Jamal, that he is playing next to someone who is quicker and has more offensive moves in his arsenal

niremetal

November 8th, 2009
1:28 pm

The top headline on Yahoo’s NBA page currently reads “Heat check”
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba

Ken Strickland

November 8th, 2009
2:38 pm

I don’t know what team would be stupid enough to waste time, effort and money on Allan Iverson. The same IA that’s always prided himself on being physically tough enough to play through almost any injury, has walked out on the last 2 teams he’s played for because he’s too psychologically fragile to accept the team concept. And some of you actually wanted to bring that cancerous ME FIRST mentality here.

Ken Strickland

November 8th, 2009
2:45 pm

JEJE-I don’t know about JJ being jealous, but having Crawford and/or Teague on the floor has limited the double teams and allowed him to become the assasin we’ve always wanted him to be. He’s attacking the basket instead of pounding the ball, and he’s using his size and height to his advantage in the paint. He’s also increased his rebounding numbers as well. That could be due to him playing more SF, since Woodson has used a lineup of Bibby, Crawford and JJ often.

JeJe

November 8th, 2009
3:45 pm

Iverson is one of the best pound-for-pound players of all time.

The thing that makes no sense to me is:
Did Memphis tell him if he was going to start or not BEFORE he signed the contract?

JeJe

November 8th, 2009
3:47 pm

Ken,

I agree completely. Teague has looked outstanding to me. He is not getting calls and he’s not making much, but he definitely is on the right track. So much better than Acie’s Laws ever was for us. We are going to need a lot of Crawford these next 4 games (NYK [road game], Boston, NOH, and PTL). Hopefully all the hot games he’s had so far will continue because he’s definitely on a tear.

AND DO WE HAVE A NEW BEAT WRITER OR NOT? HOW IS SEKOU NOT GOING TO WRITE A FAREWELL BLOG. THIS IS BS. WE NEED BLOGS. NOT THIS OUTDATED SACRAMENTO BLOG

Grandad

November 8th, 2009
4:55 pm

I agree wi. JeJe; Joe is jealous of Jamal. Even though Jamal has come in wi. a great attitude, or so it appears. I’m concerned whether Joe is
in for the long haul. He needs to convince, not us, but his teammates, if they are tight then it doesn’t matter what I think. However, I would very much love to see a sign that he and Jamal are on the same page, have chemistry, and are clicking when on the ct. together. Our best combo’s seem to be three guard lineups…Joe,Jamal,Bibby,Teager,and even Mo who is playing lights out in my opinion. This spreads the floor and opens the lane for our Bigs who are movers & cutters not traditional post up on the block bigs.
***One last note Jeff will be a good if not great perim. shooter in time. He was too good in college. His jumper right now is more of a set shot but wi. (valuable) experience there is no doubt he will be able to shoot effectively.

Ken Strickland

November 8th, 2009
5:17 pm

JEJE-Woodson has done some good things so far this yr, but he hasn’t done them consistently. If he wants to continue progressing as a HC, he has to understand that even HOF HC’s like PJackson and PRiley have shortcomings. However, they haven’t allowed their ego’s to get in the way of them bringing in qualified assistants with abilities and expertise to help them in their areas of weakness.

Everyone in the NBA knows PJackson is strong on dealing with players and their egos, using his bench effectively and efficiently, managing their mins and motivating and utilizing young talent. Everyone also knows when it comes to X’s and O’s and designing and implimenting a decent OFF system, he’s just as weak as Woodson, if not weaker. Recognizing this, he allowed one of his assistants to design what ended up being the triple post OFF, which he willingly implimented, and the rest is history. Woodson seems to relish being in control of everything, refuses to acknowledge his weaknesses, and ends up being a jack of all trades, master of none, and inconsistent.

If he coached the way he did against Denver on a consistent basis, this team would be much more consistent, and something to reckon with. This team’s play last night reflected the way he coached, or vice versa. You know without question teams coached by PJackson, PRiley, GSloan and GPopovich are going to be consistent in the way they play, what they do and how they’re coached, no matter who they play.

They’ve installed and instilled a style of play that’s proven successful, and they won’t change no matter what. Woodson installed an OFF system and style of play that has created uncertainty among players, fans and management. Only this yr, after not receiving another vote of confidence from the ASG, and GM RSund, has he shown a willingness to modify his style of play and OFF system to produce less reliance on shooting jumpshots and playing halfcourt OFF.

JeJe

November 8th, 2009
5:37 pm

Exactly. I would like to know how involved Larry Drew and Bob Bender (who?) actually are during the games. I would also like to see us higher a Patrick Ewing or better big man coach than freaking Tyrone Hill

Grandad

November 8th, 2009
6:17 pm

JeJe: Charles Oakley…I say again…Charles Oakley !

K.S.: Woody does not want an asst. with a dominant personality. I think
perhaps he has low self esteem as a coach. Maybe playing for
Knight does that; (tears apart your ego). Bear Bryant once said
he only wanted to hire asst.s that were smarter than he was.
(paraphrase)

KevinA

November 8th, 2009
6:25 pm

I like Bibby playing 20 min. He can play more but only if hot. Otherwise JT and JC are much quicker and create a much better flow. Playing JT should not come at the expense of Evans who has been very solid. Big Al was not rewarded for great play with touches. 4-5? Feed the big man.

If we could get one big game win, like last night, against a quality team on the road – we could make a huge mental break through. A great goal for our young team.

JeJe

November 8th, 2009
7:05 pm

We have shown we can beat any team in the NBA at home without much difficulty besides BOS, ORL, and CLE. Idk how many times we play BOS and CLE this yr but we should be able to steal a game vs. both of them at home. Also, SAS is always tough at home.

Other than that, I think we can keep it close against tough teams on the road. The games I’m worried about are against the crappy teams like CHA, NYK, NJN, MIL, PHI, who always gives us trouble when we are on the road

Ken Strickland

November 8th, 2009
8:49 pm

Last yr, we lost a number of gms because we either didn’t have an adequate closer and/or couldn’t create an adequate closing situation. JJ was always doubled and Flip was useless without the ball in his hands. This yr, Crawford and Teague have changed all of that. They are both able to penetrate, score and facilitate, which has allowed JJ to play to his strengths without constantly being double teamed.

Last yr with Bibby on the floor, teams doubled JJ and zoned Bibby, knowing he’ll shoot over the DEF 9 times out of 10 rather than penetrate. This yr, knowing one man can’t stop Teague or Crawford from getting into the lane, teams can’t commit to doubling anybody.

GRANDAD-I couldn’t agree with you more. It’s all about insecurities. That was the same thing that ended the coaching career of Dan Reeves. He was sooo insecure that he wanted to have absolute control over everything. I guess NFL owners decided they didn’t want to hire him an end up in a constant tug of war with him over having complete control. Maybe that’s why they’ve refused to give him a token call to interview for one of the many HC positions that’s come open since the Falcons fired him. He showed his extreme insecurities with his behavior, attitude and accusations towards his former assistant coach, MShanahan and former QB, JElway. I think he had simular problems with the Giants, but to a lesser degree.

You mentioned Woodson not wanting strong personalities around him. Well, I remember a few yrs ago when several of assistants wanted out and sent out feelers to other teams. Apparently some of those teams were interested and asked Woodson for permission to interview them, and he refused. I think they came to the conclusion that working UNDER a HC with so many issues, and an unwillingness to accept more than token input from them, wasn’t going to advance their careers. I noticed since that incident, nobody on his staff received as much as a nibble when their contracts expired, including Woodson.

clint

November 8th, 2009
8:56 pm

was at the game last night, what an unselfish team and a joy to watch. LeBron or one of the other big free agents should look at the tape and want to come play here. JJ is right, the defense could be better but Woody doesnt pay great attention to detail. Mo Evans continues to give a great effort on both ends of the court on a nightly basis. Much kudos to Sund for the guys he has added to this team the last two offseasons

JeJe

November 8th, 2009
8:58 pm

Sund has done a fine job.

Has anyone noticed that Mo Evans seems to make EVERY 3 he takes? I mean, his form is awful, but this guy seems to make every shot he takes lol

Grandad

November 8th, 2009
9:25 pm

JeJe: I both agree and disagree (1 pt.). When Mo shoots I am surprised when it doesn’t go in. On his form, I’ll have to study more closely but it looks fine to me (that was the 1 minor pt.). The thing Ive noticed about Mo is how strong he goes up when shooting inside. I wish Marv,Zaza, and even Al on occasion would take a lesson from him. What is Mo 6-4…6-5?

JeJe

November 8th, 2009
10:09 pm

Yeah Mo was a pretty mediocre finisher last year, but seems to have gotten better. His form isn’t awful, but looks kinda wild, where you have no idea if the shot is going in (a little bit like J-Craw). Not a Kobe-esque follow-through

clint

November 8th, 2009
11:55 pm

someone that knows more about the salary cap please enlighten me on this scenario: JJ comes off the cap and that takes us below the number. We are then free to sign someone or work a sign and trade for one of the big money guys in the 2010 class. Then do we not have the ability to pay JJ more than anyone else since he is our player. Is this a way we can get another star on this team. As i posted earlier this is an unselfish and fun team to watch but they remind me of the Danny Manning led crew that was also unselfish but needed another star come playoff time.

Grandad

November 9th, 2009
12:51 am

Clint; I would still like to believe a “Team” can beat a cllection of stars. In alot of cases stars are just a creation of someone’s
[in many cases ESPN or Charles Barkley, et al] imagination. As K.S. would probably agree AI is considered a superstar but who wants HIM ?
Pau Gasol was not really considered a Superstar but he was “the” key ingredient for the Lakers. We still need a piece as we are presently constucted. But not necessarily a SS. We need a Big with a defensive mentality. Not even a starter, just a role player, would do. But I am talking about some one that would contribute more than J.Collins.
If Jamal had been on a playoff team before he arrived, he would be more highly regarded. Probably not a SS but neither is Joe. Josh is on the verge of becoming a big-time player but I would be deliberate in tagging him with star status, so as to keep him on an even keel. Also Al has the makings of an all-star. Final word…it still comes down to TEAM.

ILL-logical

November 9th, 2009
10:14 am

Since this may be the last ajc writer’s Hawks’blog for a while, it should be known that there is trouble in dead tree print media land and it ain’t ever going to get better.
So while I would have loved to hear SS’s final thoughts here, he had to do what he had to do.Quickly.

Whomever the new person is-if ajc really want to cover this beat- they prolly won’t have the relationships that SS had so let’s give them time to get their footing. The good news is that now that SS is freed ,relatively speaking, from the fear of the ASG’s threat to cut their ajc advertising , he can be a bit more candid with his coverage of the team on nba.com

GeeMack

November 9th, 2009
10:28 am

Ken,

The Hawks are looking good. However I must say your assessment of Woody seems somewhat lopsided. Comparing Woody with coaches like PJax, GPop, PRiley, & JSloan is unfair in my opinion.

Woody has created a trademark with this team. They are solid defensively and they play extremely hard most of the time. The inconsistency we experince has more to do with inexperience than coaching.

The last 2 years we’ve witness the Lakers have their inconsistent moments regardles of their great HC, excellent offensive system, and defensive philophosy. We’ve still seen them go from one extreme to the next beat a healthy Bos & Cle. team on the road, then go home and lose to the Bobcats.

It should be no coincidence that as the player have matured so has the teams offense and defense. The guys you compare Woody to PJax, PRiley, JSloan, & GPop have all had privilege of coaching several all time greats something Woody has never had. There is know one on the current Hawks roster that would be considered an all time great now or by the end of their career based on where they are.

Woody should be commended for what he’s done. He’s guided a lost franchise back to respectability without a superstar talent. He’s done this in the midst of a fueding ownership, and an ill advised GM that passed on 2 potential HOF point guards who’s impact would have helped end the losing seasons 3 yrs ago opposed to last year.

Woody has his short comings, and I hope he addresses them, but they have not stopped this franchise from moving forward.

Ken Strickland

November 9th, 2009
10:40 am

GRANDAD-I’m with you on the AIverson sentiment. We need to add another dimension to our starting lineup at PG, because JJ is our only starter with one on one skills. We’ve already seen how our OFF dynamics change when we have at least 2 players on the court with one on one ability, like JJ with either Crawford or Teague. A starting PG that penetrates, breaks down DEF’s, and creates easy scoring opportunities for others, makes an OFF far more versatile, effective and consistent than one that just stands around the perimeter shooting long range jumpers. And let’s not talk about the added DEF benefit of being able to put pressure on the ball and not having to constantly switch, which crates so many unfavorable mismatches.

Before this season, every teams DEF strategy was to double JJ and zone Bibby. Bibby’s OFF limitations actually encouraged teams to double JJ. The arrival of 2 players with penetrating ability, Crawford and Teague, has forced teams to play JJ straight up, and he’s thriving as a result. We also need a Big coming off the bench that’s more of a DEF stopper and/or energy guy, like Birdman in Denver, or even Josh Smith. With his weight loss and new found mobility, along with his OFF skills, I think RMorris would be just as effective, if not more so, playing PF than center.

The Hawks don’t have a dominant player like KGarnett, DHoward, TDuncan or LJames, or the size of teams like Portland or the Lakers, that teams have to contend with. What we have to do to become one of the BIG BOYS is to establish an identity, and consistency, and force teams to contend with our unmatched combination of size, speed, quickness, athleticism, versatility and depth.

jlewis

November 9th, 2009
12:21 pm

Just like Phoenix, if Joe leaves, you will realize what you had when it’s gone. Also, there is a reason Jamal Crawford has been on 4 teams that wanted him gone, he is no savior.

vava74

November 9th, 2009
12:38 pm

Dang! We need a new beat writer fast! Can someone “stir the pot” and get a discussion going??

Mz. Hawkdafied

November 9th, 2009
1:02 pm

The Hawks blog brought up a good discussion on whether or not the SE division is the best division in the NBA. What do you guys think about that? Which division is the best right now?

Daniel

November 9th, 2009
1:17 pm

What’s up crew! I was on vaca for the last week and just caught scores. Hope everyone is doing well.

Mz. Hawkdafied

November 9th, 2009
1:31 pm

I am so proud of the way Josh Smith handled the interview on NBATV. He didn’t speak against his captain or discredit JJ in any way. He didn’t feed into all that stuff that NBATV was trying to hype up.

I don’t know what the deal is but it seems like somebody is trying to start some shiznick. I hope the Hawks players take the high road and not let outside influences deter them from being unified in accomplishing their goals this season.

Everyone is forgetting that JJ is human and will make mistakes. Maybe he shouldn’t have made those statements to the media and maybe he shouldn’t have. I don’t know, when I saw him make the statements it really wasn’t a big deal to me.

I do know this, the media can be very influential so JJ needs to watch his back and watch what he says from now on cause the vultures are circling. Someone is trying to sabotage this team and screw JJ in the process. Someone’s trying to turn the team against it’s captain and I’m not liking it.

Traceman

November 9th, 2009
2:19 pm

I don’t get why so many of you are ready to bench Bibby. His floor leadership and his 3 pt shooting are invaluable to this team. He is 2nd only to Al in +/- on the team and his +/- per minute is the HIGHEST on the team (other than Morris who doesn’t really count).

I’m sure that this shocks no one, but our most effective lineup thus far with regard to +/- has been Bibby, Crawford, JJ, Smoove and Al and it’s really not close.

If you look at our top 5, 5-man combinations with regard to +/-, Bibby and Al are the only players in all 5 lineups. Bottom line, when Bibby is on the floor, we win more than we lose.

Brad

November 9th, 2009
2:30 pm

Hawks ranked No. 6 in ESPN’s new power rankings (ahead of Cleveland). Not too shabby.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/powerranking?season=2010&week=2

Ken Strickland

November 9th, 2009
2:51 pm

GEEMACK-My intent wasn’t to compare Woodson to those coaches in terms of ability or accomplishments because there’s no comparison. My intent was to show that even though these HC’s are far, far more accomplished than Woodson, they’ve all demonstrated they understood they weren’t perfect, nor did they have to be in absolute control of everything. I also wanted to show that CONSISTENCY, and a willingness to adapt to and adopt what works, which is the common link among them all.

There’s no way you can claim any team that ranks 20th out of 30 teams in pts allowed, and gives up 102.1PPG, a good DEF team no matter how you spin it. And if Woodson was such a DEF minded HC, he wouldn’t have penalized and/or changed his overall DEF to accomodate playing PG MBibby, the teams worst DEF player, over 31+MPG since his arrival, especially when he had far superior DEF options. DO YOU REALLY THINK ANY ONE OF THE HC’S I MENTIONED ABOVE WOULD HAVE PENALIZED THEIR DEF AND OVERALL TEAM BY DOING THAT?

Woodson has demonstrated an inclination to force what he wants on the team, rather than doing what’s best for the overall team. That’s why he hasn’t received an endorsement from GM RSund or the ASG, or offered a contract extension. That alone should tell anyone with a clue, as well as those who continue attacking me for not singing his praises, that management agrees with my assessment that there’s something wrong with his overall coaching philosophy and approach, despite the teams 2 playoff appearances and annual increase in wins.

Traceman

November 9th, 2009
3:42 pm

Ken,

I think it is WAY to early in the season to declare that the Hawks are a poor defensive team because they currently rank 20th. Do you consider them to be a great offensive team because they currently rank 4th?

In addition, saying that Woody is “penalizing” the Hawks by playing Bibby at PG is ABSURD! This team went from being TERRIBLE before he arrived to being a legitimate playoff team after his arrival. He currently has the highest +/- per minute of ANY Hawk while the guy you want to bench him for (Teague) is 10th out of 12 guys with a NEGATIVE +/-.

I like Teague a lot and I think he has a tremendous amount of potential but he has not even come CLOSE to playing well enough to take minutes away from Bibby (or Crawford). Bibby is only playing 27.8 mpg right now and I can’t imagine that declining much if he stays healthy. We are not in development mode, we are trying to win and Bibby gives us the best chance to do that right now.

Finally, as for Woody, he is FAR from perfect but he has done a solid job so far this year. Even though we all complain about his offensive strategy/sets, we are currently 4th in scoring and 2nd in FT shooting which are both significant improvements over last year. We also won 2 out of 3 road games west of the Mississippi for the first time in forever. If he can get us back to playing defense the way we are capable of playing, we can surprise a lot of folks this year.

Grandad

November 9th, 2009
3:44 pm

K.S.; agree on all points, with pos. exception R.Morris, I like him more offensively than def. & reb. Another point about Teague and Bibby,
if Teager started and Bibs came off the bench (limiting his min.) he would be more ideally suited for the 4th qtr. wi. his exp. A 4th qtr. combo of Joe, Jamal, and Bibby @ the 1,2,3 would give Woody the trio he wants in there anyway @ the end. One wonders if Woody ever thinks of these things ahead of time the way we do (rotations) or he just subs by the seat of his pants. When I was responding to Clint, any reference to obtaining a player was a reaction to him stating that we need to add another star. I’ve said before and not to beat a dead horse but if we could steal JaVale McGee I think he would be the piece we need. He need not start at this time but could could plug the middle on those occasions when teams are eating us up inside. Last pt. Josh is a burgeoning monster. He just needs that one person (maybe its J.Smith) to mentor him. Earlier I wished for Charles Oakley on our staff.

doc

November 9th, 2009
4:09 pm

samuel, as ai is one of you bad boys you would sign in a minute goes his merry way because he cant accept his role and play team ball it is fun to see to good guys pull it together in phoenix. yup good character guys can win too in nash who you threw under the bus as dead and ultimate good guy grant hill are at the top of their division.

as far as sheed being a distraction he reformed himself under a strong gm in detroit who he respected and played well for. the reformation occurred a long time ago and he doesnt deserve that title any more than woody deserves or josh deserves the criticisms they get as the team wins.

ai, never quite got it, like some other folks that talked and under performed their way out of the league, two through minnesota. good character and practice habits will help you stay in the league and maybe get a title in the end or help others on a team, especially his coach. as an active coach i am surprised you dont acknowledge that foremost or maybe you just like bad boys. ;-)

check out the article;

http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=Ap4sTOdMjPsyY_8zkNwkwrU5nYcB?slug=ys-sunswest110909&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

doc

November 9th, 2009
4:18 pm

heh heh samuel you just flat out dead nd buried him this summer in your reviews…

Nash, meanwhile, has been, “phenomenal,” in the words of Kerr. He had 17 assists against the Wizards and is averaging 19.4 points and 11.9 assists a game. He appears to be enjoying himself on the floor again

yup over the hill wasnt it you said about nash. the guy is a baller, bottom line, great gym rat who will play until they have to pull his sneaks off him. give the guy his colors.

doc

November 9th, 2009
4:36 pm

cudos to jj player of the week. long time coming and well deserved for his body of work in this franchise, especially. testament to his coach and the surrounding players as well. when all do well, someone will get the attention they deserve. certainly his teammates performed well in spite of the lousy loss in charlotte.

Ken Strickland

November 9th, 2009
4:54 pm

DOC-is that really you? I haven’t seen this much from you in quite a while. You really illustrated the poor judgement SAMUEL has shown for sometime. He seems to judge a player or players based on his personal likes and dislikes rather than their actual talents and/or abilities.

JJ has certainly benefitted form the additions of Teague and Crawford, especially Crawford, as well as the uptempo OFF. While his PPG hasn’t increased significantly over previous yrs, his efficiency and overall impact certainly has.

doc

November 9th, 2009
5:44 pm

yup ken, it is me, season start yet? heh heh, been following my friends, all along.

just playing with samuel, another friend whether he wants it or not, and he knows it. besides it is good to see those two guys performing still and a way to put it out there even if it irks my friends a bit. both embody playing within the team concept and not always selling out to the highest bidder. those qualities arent seen too often today, good boy(churchy type) or bad boy(thugger). both play with edge and want to win especially glad to see grant hill on the court.

ken, i really think samuel has been wanting me to bite rather it be his judgment. as a coach i think he understands what coach killers can be. just saying.

go hawks, tough road trip and stole one, maybe let one get away. 500 on the road to start.

KevinA

November 9th, 2009
5:49 pm

Ken Strickland

November 9th, 2009
2:51 pm

Woodson has demonstrated an inclination to force what he wants on the team, rather than doing what’s best for the overall team.

Do we have a new Woody? Bibby’s minutes are droping. Jamal’s are going up. He is playing his bench more. We are trending to more of an offensive team instead of a defensive team. Does that look like a coach that is forceing things? Looks like he and the team are in transition.

doc

November 9th, 2009
6:22 pm

besides ken a little slow over here right now. before it was hard to get a word in edgewise.

ken, look out kevin a is pointing out something that might send chills down your back. might have to put new stripes on the old woody.

doc

November 9th, 2009
6:26 pm

FIRST!

ninth page that is. heh heh

eat your heart out ariose, if you are out from your books at all today. where is my links serving of the day?

Ken Strickland

November 9th, 2009
6:45 pm

TRACEMAN-to answer your question, YES. Right now, we aren’t a good DEF team, but we are a good OFF team. Despite it being early in the season, we have to judge a team by what it does, not what it has the potential to do. If a student has made A’s on every previous test taken, but makes an F on this test, do you record the F on this test, or an A, based on previous tests?

You can’t get better constantly living in the past. What Bibby did for us when he got here was fantastic, and started us on our way to consecutive playoff berths. But the team that he came to in the 07-08 season has matured, as well as the players, and we’ve acquired more talent. Teams recognized what he did for the team, and now know what he can’t do and have adjusted accordingly.

Why does everyone that abjects to the idea of replacing Bibby as a starter react as though I’m advocating we get rid of him? What he does for the team as a starter, he can continue doing from the bench. When we played Denver, they concentrated on attacking Bibby whenever he was in the gm because they knew he was our weakest link defensively, as does the entire NBA.

We don’t have a dominant BIG like DHOWARD, KGARNETT OR TDUNCAN, nor do we have a superstar like DWADE, KOBE, LEBRON OR PPIERCE etc. Therefore, we have to rely more on the team concept and take advantage of our abundance of speed, quickness, athleticism, versatility and depth. BIBBY HAS NONE OF THOSE ATTRIBUTES, THEREFORE HE LIMITS THE OVERALL OFF/DEF POTENTIAL OF OUR STARTING LINEUP. Since JJ is our only starter with one on one skills, and our other starters all have limited individual OFF skills, we need a starting PG that can help create easy scoring opportunities for them, and BIBBY DOESN’T DO THAT.

We need a PG with enough speed, quickness, lateral movement and aggressiveness to:

(1)pressure the ball and provide more protection for our frontline by making it more difficult for the opposition to make entry passes into the post.

(2)display enough speed, quickness and lateral movement to defend the quicker PG’s and prevent JJ from having to do so.

(3)have enough speed, quickness and lateral movement to make it more difficult for opposing PG’s to breakdown our DEF and attack our frontline.

(4)add more versatility to our OFF, and reduce our dependency on shooting longrange jumpers, by being able to penetrate and create easy scoring opportunities for others.

(5)create a consistent enough concern for the DEF to limit the double/triple teams on JJ.

(6)have the speed and quickness to get ahead of a teams’ transition DEF, after a missed shot, and going coast to coast if necessary.

(7)fight over picks and maintain position in front of the ball(PG) and eliminate the need to switch on every pick and roll, as well as subsequent mismatches.

BIBBY CAN DO NONE OF THESE THINGS, AND TO CONTINUE STARTING HIM WILL CONTINUE TO PENALIZE OUR STARTING TEAM.

KevinA

November 9th, 2009
7:02 pm

Ken,

I normally don’t do this much so don’t bite my head off. If Bibby is going to get his 20 min Don’t you think he works better with JJ? Because of his lack of mobility he fits with the first unit better? ZaZa, Evans and Joe Smith need a Crawford/Teague to break down the defenses and deliver the good pass.

If Bibby can’t be effective with the first unit why would you think he would be better with the second. I think we agree with one thing for sure. 15-20 minutes for Bibby is much better than 30-35. Bibby can be a deadly assassin in small stretches and should be used that way.

Ken Strickland

November 9th, 2009
7:06 pm

KEVANA-don’t lose sight of my focus, which is CONSISTENCY. I’m not being critical of Woodson because he hasn’t done the things I’ve been criticizing him for, but that he hasn’t done them consistently. Yes, he’s played Teague more the last 2 gms and Bibby less, but that certainly hasn’t been the case on a CONSISTENT basis. I’m factoring in the NNP(Portland) and the 5:25mins(Sacramento) he played in consecutive gms in which we really needed his talents. I JUST WANT HIM TO DO THE POSITIVE THINGS HE’S DONE BEFORE ON A CONSISTENT BASIS, THAT’S ALL. If he does that, I’ll become his one of his biggest fans once again.

KevinA

November 9th, 2009
7:21 pm

Ken,

To me the one thing Woody has always done is play his best players to much. Crawford and JT have played so well I think he is confused and dosen’t know what to do. I like the idea he is willing to find out a little more. Al and Josh are playing better so they are getting a few more touches. I think this is also part of this is Woody’s coaching.

We may want it to happen faster but Woody seems to be trending towards a bigger rotation and a more balanced attack.

On defense we only have one guard who is really good and we seem to be playing three guards more. We may have to become an offensive team to compensate. Another trend.

KevinA

November 9th, 2009
7:25 pm

Ken Strickland

November 9th, 2009
9:11 pm

KEVINA-Bibby is a scorer, an absolute assassin in the clutch, and I like him more with Crawford. Crawford’s size, quick penetrating ability and PG skill allows Bibby to play the 2, or off the ball. To me, that’s when he’s most dangerous. I like Teague with JJ. JJ is the most likely player to get doubled, which would put Teague in a 4 on 3 situation, and no team could handle his speed and quickness in a 4 on 3 situation.

I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but the lineup that’s been so effective down the stretch has featured JJ at SF, Bibby at SG and Crawford at PG. JJ and Crawford attack the basket and Bibby, the assassin, waits on the perimeter to do his long range thing. Remember, some of the same people that can’t bring themselves to accept the idea of Bibby not starting are some of the same ones that couldn’t accept us trading for Crawford and not resigning Flip. Look at how that’s turned out.

As far as our DEF, we can use our OFF to compenstate as long as we can turn it up on DEF in the 4th qtr, when it counts most.

KevinA

November 9th, 2009
10:39 pm

So you want JJ to come off the bench?

doc

November 9th, 2009
11:56 pm

well samuel, nash went off for 21 points and 20 assists tonight against philly, a plus 19 in a 4 point victory. yup, washed up just as you called it. jst a few weeks ago.

Mike is back

November 10th, 2009
8:48 am

Well I know itS late made it to page nine…but I was at the Nuggets game too….Smoove is making a lot of his detractor nervous right about now…CROW ANYONE…CRAWFORD DAZZLE THE CROWD WITH HIS SILKY SMOOTH MOOOOOOOOOOOOOVES!!!!

GREAT WIN…GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ken Strickland

November 10th, 2009
9:38 am

KEVINA-I assume you were addressing me when you stated “SO YOU WANT JJ TO COME OFF THE BENCH”. I would like to see JJ and Teague start, with Bibby and Crawford coming off the bench. That way, you have 2 combinations of solid penetrator and deadly shooter. The way things are now, with Bibby and JJ starting, we have our 2 best shooting guards starting and our 2 best penetrators on the bench. I call that duplication, and to me that’s not the most effective way to utilize their combination of talents.

As a team and as fans, we should want more from our team than to just win regular season gms. The Cavaliers won more regular season gms than any team in the NBA, and still got embarrassed in the playoffs because they didn’t address their major weakness, and they still haven’t. We can continue winning gms, and maybe even improve on last yrs win total, but we aren’t going to become a better playoff team if we don’t improve our starting PG play, both offensively and defensively. With Bibby starting, our starting lineup will continue to depend primarily on jumpshooting. If we’re not hitting our longrange jumpers, we get exactly what we got in Charlotte, a butt kicking.

Has anyone else noticed that so far, Crawford has been more effective coming off the bench than he’s been in the past as a starter? We’ve seen Bibby’s mins reduced from the low to mid 30MPG to the low 20MPG, with little effect on his overall production.

No matter how logical any of our suggestions and opinions might be, we all know Woodson is going to start Bibby as long as he’s physically able to play, no matter what the consequences.

KevinA

November 10th, 2009
10:52 am

Ken,

I am not sure if JT is seasoned enough to start but we will know after a few more games. It will be interesting to see how he handles guards like Rondo on offense and offense. One thing for sure, Jamal has opened up the door for many new player combinations.

I hope JT is mature enough or can mature fast enough to win more minutes from Woody. Ya just got to love the speed and driving ability. Doc mentioned playing under control and playing within oneself for a major team goal. This will be the biggest test for Teague. The second biggest test will be shooting with little time left on the clock. Can he shoot a decent percentage while under the gun.

No matter how logical any of our suggestions and opinions might be, we all know Woodson is going to start Bibby as long as he’s physically able to play, no matter what the consequences.

Since were couch coaching, I don’t mind Bibby starting but would like to see much shorter rotations for him and let JT play as much as possible. We have over 70 games to figure out the best rotations for the playoffs .

Traceman

November 10th, 2009
11:42 am

Ken,

We have a lot of wins and we have scored a lot of points against teams that like to put up quick shots (WAS, IND, SAC, DEN). This team has had offensive success over the last few years playing teams who play like that. POR is the only somewhat defense-minded team we have beaten thus far. Look for the offensive explosion to continue versus NY on Wednesday but I will be shocked if we come close to our PPG average versus BOS. Bottom line, our offensive and defensive stats have just as much to do with who we’ve played at this early stage of the season as anything else. When we get into to the meat of our EC schedule, I look for our PPG to go down significantly and for our opponents PPG to go down significantly as well.

Also, I appreciate that it is your OPINION that Bibby and JJ starting in the backcourt is problematic but that simply is NOT the case. The reality is that JJ and Bibby play very well together and this is CLEARLY reflected when you look at +/- stats.

We are a stellar plus 46 in the 158 minutes those 2 guys have been on the court together this season. Conversely, JJ and Teague are minus 5 in the 13 minutes they have been on the court together. Granted, that is a VERY small sample size (for JJ and Teague) but when combined with the fact that JJ and Bibby have been so great together, it certainly does not support your opinion that JJ and Teague would be a better combo than JJ and Bibby.

To go even further with the +/- stats analysis, as of today, JJ and Bibby make up the #4 ranked PG/SG combo (and the #28 ranked combo overall) in the entire NBA when it comes to +/-. The only PG/SG combos that have been better so far are Rondo and Allen, Kidd and Terry, and the the surprising Brandon Jennings and Charlie Bell.

When looking at Bibby and Teague specifically, Bibby’s Roland Rating of +5.2 is only slightly higher than Crawford’s +5.5 and it is HIGHER than JJ’s +3.1. Teague’s Roland Rating currently sits at -0.1. Again, it’s early but Bibby is playing better.

You said: “When we played Denver, they concentrated on attacking Bibby whenever he was in the gm because they knew he was our weakest link defensively, as does the entire NBA.” That is true. They DID attack Bibby. But what did it get them? We were a whopping +22 in Bibby’s 20 minutes on the floor. Conversely, we were +5 in Teague’s 16 minutes on the floor. Teague wasn’t bad but we were CLEARLY better with Bibby on the floor.

All of the things that you say our STARTING PG needs to do can be done by Teague off the bench. He doesn’t have to start to accomplish ANY of those things. What he DOES have to do however, is to prove that he can be this great defender you describe. He is FAR from being that guy at this point (as are most rookie PGs). All of Teague’s speed and quickness certainly didn’t prevent Lawson from getting to the basket against us vs DEN.

Of the 7 things you listed that our starting PG needs to be able to do, the jury is still out on whether Teague can accomplish 1, 2, 3, 5 or 7. He has proven that he can do 4 and 6 but again, he can do those things off the bench.

If we make any changes to the starting lineup (I wouldn’t even consider it because what we are doing is clearly working), it is CLEAR that change should be starting Crawford in lieu of Marvin. The lineup of Bibby, Crawford, JJ, Smoove and Horford has been our best lineup BY FAR.

You stated earlier that “Crawford and Teague” are making things easier for JJ but Teague has little, if ANYTHING to do with any improved play that JJ may be demonstrating. As stated above, Teague and JJ have only been on the court together for 13 minutes ALL SEASON and in those 13 minutes, they have not done all that well. Meanwhile, Crawford and JJ have done very well in their 108 minutes on the court together.

The reality is that JJ is going to handle the ball a LOT when he is in the game and Bibby is VERY effective playing without the ball. Teague appears to be more effective with the ball in his hands and as such, he will likely do better with the 2nd unit. As I said eariler, a MUCH stronger case can be made to start Crawford at this point than Teague but if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

Bottom line, I see Teague as our PG of the future but there is NO reason to START him over Bibby at this point. You don’t bench your veteran starting PG at the beginning of the season based on flashes of potential you have seen from a rookie WHEN THE TEAM IS WINNING. Why screw with chemistry that is working? Let the rookie EARN his PT and hopefully the starting position at some point down the road. As things stand now, Teague can provide the necessary change of pace at PG and fill in when Bibby is having an off night.

KevinA

November 10th, 2009
12:16 pm

Traceman ,

Exellent post with good detail.

KevinA

November 10th, 2009
12:24 pm

The lineup of Bibby, Crawford, JJ, Smoove and Horford has been our best lineup BY FAR.

Great lineup for the last 6 min of a game. I do think it is important to give Marvin and Evans the bulk of the minutes at the #3 spot. To do otherwise would shorten our rotation and we would get tired.

doc

November 10th, 2009
12:37 pm

traceman, good post. only want to point out the suns took it to boston IN boston and beat em up and scored points. i hope we dont challenge it to find out if we are capable of this against the best before we let THEM dictate what we do.

D ole Hoops Coach

November 10th, 2009
12:39 pm

Ken: I rarely post here-first time this year-but I have checked out the blog since Sekou was around. As someone who has been around this game a long time, I will tell you what any Coach will tell you about Point Guards. Job #1 is to take care of the ball. Bibby is one of the best around when it comes to assists vs. turnovers. The other players respect his leadership on the floor. He and JJ have obvious chemistry. Add his ability to stretch the floor with his shooting, especially late in the game, and you have the key reason the Hawks turned things around when he arrived.

Teague’s time will come. He is incredibly athletically gifted, however, he is still very much in learning mode. He needs to improve his shooting range to fit in better with the first unit. He is not ready at the moment to be the Point Guard on a contender.

doc

November 10th, 2009
1:31 pm

traceman says:

The lineup of Bibby, Crawford, JJ, Smoove and Horford has been our best lineup BY FAR.

funny, when i defended the trade and the bringing of crawford here with a comment that that very line up would be huge folks jumped my case. back then it was only conjecture so how do you argue with that, you dont you just sit back and wait.

jj’s best position is at three for this team especially with jamal in the fold, it was last year with flip here by the numbers. it is in our best interest to keep jj in at two but to move him quickly to the three. i wont be surprised to see marvin moving to the four more at times and holding his own. flexibility is critical and we have it this year. finally, i want enders not starters in my discussion of what is best for our team.

JeJe

November 10th, 2009
1:35 pm

Tomorrow’s game is exactly what we need Solo for. Our bench bigs are all extremely unathletic/too slow for this game. We will need Horford and Marvin to play major minutes at the 4 and 5, in addition to Smoove, if we are to have a shot. I said this before the CHA game, but we cannot take the Knicks for granted

JeJe

November 10th, 2009
1:37 pm

It still says Sekou is the beat writer on the lower left part of AJC.com/hawks

Nice

Traceman

November 10th, 2009
1:58 pm

Doc,

I agree that we shouldn’t let the Celtics dictate what we do. The success we had against them in the playoffs 2 years ago came when we pushed the tempo and used our youth/athleticism to our advantage. I think we should still TRY to play uptempo against them and if we can somehow get a lead against them, we could force them to play at a faster pace than they would prefer. I can’t see us beating them consistently in a halfcourt battle.

I agree with you that Bibby/Crawford/JJ/Smoove/Horford finishing games is the way to go on most nights. That lineup has proven to be awfully tough to defend. There may be nights we can’t finish with that lineup because of matchups but I rally like it so far.

I also agree with you that playing Marvin more at the 4 would be a good move. Our 2nd most effective lineup with regard to +/- has been Bibby/Crawford/JJ/Marvin/Horford. The ability of that group to spread the floor with all those great shooters has proven to be quite effective. Almost impossible to double JJ with that group on the floor because it will inevitably lead to a really good shooter getting a wide open look.

mountain_jim

November 10th, 2009
2:05 pm

Hello AJC? Anybody home? Is someone in charge of the Sports Department anymore? There has been no mention that I know of from AJC concerning Sekou’s status or possible replacement, if there will be one…

doc

November 10th, 2009
2:07 pm

trace, love the stats man used to spend time looking that stuff up but little time now. great contributions!

again i have long seen marvin becoming a poor mans sheed for a lack of a better word for it or a more powerful player than harrington. he has length, range, moves and speed to make it difficult to man up to him consistently at four and also some strength to man up to their guy. remember he has done well for himself against none other than lebron at times a 3 that is really a 4 in size. sometimes folks nit pick and go after the minor things and forget to see the positives in our players expecting all of them to be top five at their positions. you know it is not going to happen and to expect it is just flat out CRAZY. even though i dont champion marvin as the ender all the time i appreciate what he brings to the table or court.

incidentally today ….you brought it to the liars table. cudos man!

Rod from College Park

November 10th, 2009
3:05 pm

Doc,

I will agree with you concerning that lineup. I mentioned in the blog during the summer that eventually Crawford will be a starter, and it should probably be Joe to the three and Marvin to the bench. A couple of people said I was crazy, that we would be terrible defensively, but I think I was correct. Jamal is the best pure scorer on this team, and stating him will prevent the huge deficits we get in at the start of games. Besides the Denver game, Marvin has given us as close to nothing at the beginning of games, defensively or offensively. Also if you look at matching up with teams in the east, Bibby (Teague), Jamal, and Joe, match up better with Rondo, Allen, Pierce, or Williams, West and Lebron or even Orlando. While I do think Marvin can Play the 4 against some small lineups, he has no chance in the post against strong low post players at the 4 such as Garnett, Aldridge, Boozer, Bass, Duncan, Wallace, Stodamire…… He is too weak and clumsy. I personally would like to see us look to trade him straight up for Stephen Jackson. Would make our team much tougher, and would actually give us a vocal leader on the floor. I don’t think Jackson would be intimidated by Joe Johnson at all. Don’t know how the contract stuff would work, but I think a trade like that would put us in the top 2 in the east.

doc

November 10th, 2009
4:04 pm

rod, some good thoughts there guy except for jackson. not going to argue marvin and say it from the perspective of him growing to that size eventually. i just dont see jackson as bringing much to the table that we dont already have especially if you send marvin packing. though he may be clumsy to you he brings a bit of heft with him that we are lacking in so many other areas. time distribution would be challenging as would shot distribution. not enough balls on the court for jj jamal and jackson.

you may be inclined to permanently move jj to three but i doubt he is ready for that either as well. sj also has had a difficult time playing for winners, i know same problem as crawford but seems the two go about their work differently.

i also am not interested in having someone that wont back down to jj as much as blend with him to make it a more cohesive team. i think we can get there or close with what we have now. if we need a sj guy go and get stackhouse without a trade only up the payroll a bit.

Traceman

November 10th, 2009
4:06 pm

Rod, I agreed with you until you suggested we trade Marvin for Jax. I wouldn’t trade Mo for Jax. Why on earth would we want Jax here?

You call what he is doing in GS “leadership?” I can’t imagine anyone being a WORSE leader. When Nellie named him as team captain he talked about how honored he was and how seriously he took the role. Less than a year later, he has completely distanced himself from the team saying that he doesn’t feel like he is a part of the team.

He is demanding to be traded but of course he only wants to be traded where HE wants to go. When CHA showed interest, he made it clear that he didn’t want to play there and that he would try to block any attempt they made to trade for him. He wants to play in CLE with LeBron. Well heck, who DOESN’T want to play with LeBron? I’m sure most of the players in the NBA would LOVE to play with LeBron.

Jax is nothing but a 31 year old malcontent who always seems to find trouble. He is fine as long as things are good but when a little adversity comes his way, he can’t handle it. He plays hard MOST of the time but the only real success he’s had came when he rode the backs of Duncan, Robinson and Parker to the title in 02-03. You think it was a coincidence that SA let him walk after that season rather than resign him? You think it was a coincidence that he only lasted a year here? He is a cancer.

As for Marvin, just because he’s had a slow start doesn’t mean I don’t think he is extremely valuable to this team. I think we need Marvin quite a bit and he will prove to be a big part of what we do going forward. Over the last two years, he has defended guys like Pierce, LeBron and Carmelo well and we are going to need for him to continue doing that.

Actually, Marvin hasn’t been THAT bad this year. Crawford, Horford, Smoove and JJ have just been THAT good. Bibby and Marvin have sacrificed shots (and minutes) so far this year and that is not necessarily a bad thing. Crawford is such a great offensive player that it was CLEAR that someone was going to sacrifice their games a little. I am just pleased that both Bibby and Marvin are doing so without so much as a peep. You think Jax would be content being the 4th option behind JJ, Crawford and Smoove? I’d just as soon call JR Rider out of retirement.

Mel

November 10th, 2009
4:19 pm

I miss Sekou…

Ken Strickland

November 10th, 2009
4:19 pm

Like I said in my last post, all of these discussions about who should start is moot since Teague will not start as long as Woodson is the HC and Bibby is on the team and healthy.

Some of you are really bending over backwards in support of Bibby, and to make it appear Teague isn’t ready to start.

KEVINA-Why suggest we wait to see how Teague handles himself against elite PG’s like Rhondo, when you already know JJ is usually assigned to guard them because Bibby has already demonstrated he’s totally incapable of doing so. YOU WANT HIM TO REMAIN THE STARTER BECAUSE TEAGUE SUPPOSEDLY HASN’T PROVEN HE CAN DO SOMETHING BIBBY HAS PROVEN HE CAN’T DO BEYOND ANY REASONABLE DOUBT. YOU’RE REACHING FOR EXCUSES AND USING A DOUBLE STANDARD TO DO SO.

D OLE HOOP COACH-Welcome to the forum. Stretching the floor isn’t our problem. If fact, DEF’s usually come out and press us, as well as doubling JJ, which is why we usually end up on the perimeter pounding the ball and taking desperation shots trying to beat the clock. We need a PG that can attack the DEF and collapse it.

When your OFF is primarily a jumpshooting OFF, you allow the defenders to get excellent rebounding position when you shoot. That’s why even with our frontlines speed, quickness and athleticism, we don’t do well getting OFF rebounds. When your PG penetrates, it forces the DEF to collapse and defend the lane. Penetrating not only creates additional scoring options for our frontline, if the PG shoots, it allows them to get better OFF rebounding position, since their frontline will be concentrating on stopping the ball rather than getting rebounding position.

Bibby does do a good job of protecting the ball and eliminating turnovers. But when a PG spends almost all of his time on OFF at or near the 3pt line, doesn’t penetrate or create easy scoring opportunities by making interior passes to his frontline players, wouldn’t you expect a low turnover rate? Low risk, low turnovers, low reward.

TRACEMAN-you are really trying hard to justify your support for Bibby as our starting PG, and using a double stardard to do so. To justify your position you made the following statement: “OF THE 7 THINGS YOU LISTED THAT OUR STARTING PG NEEDS TO BE ABLE TO DO, THE JURY IS STILL OUT ON WHETHER TEAGUE CAN ACCOMPLISH 1,2,3,5 OR 7. HE HAS PROVEN HE CAN DO 4 AND 6 BUT AGAIN, HE CAN DO THOSE THINGS OFF THE BENCH”.

I want you to answer the following questions.

(1)IS THEIR ANY DOUBT ABOUT MIKE BIBBY’S INABILITY TO DO 1 THRU 7?

(2)CAN’T BIBBY DO WHAT HE DOES BEST OFF THE BENCH AS WELL?

A CHAIN IS NO STRONGER THAN ITS WEAKEST LINK, AND BIBBY IS OUR STARTING LINEUPS WEAKEST LINK. The most disturbing thing to me is the number of people that have bashed Marvin, JJ, Horford and Smoove, and suggested trading them to make the team better, but not Bibby. All of our starters, except Bibby, are able to contribute something on both OFF and DEF, other than shooting longrange jumpers.

TRACEMAN-the fact that Bibby and JJ play well together doesn’t change the fact that Bibby is a jumpshooter that can’t breakdown DEF’s with his penetration, is useless if he’s not hitting his jumper, doesn’t create easy scoring opportunities for his teammates, and can’t guard elite PG’s, which puts added pressure on JJ to do so.

bigdave

November 10th, 2009
4:43 pm

ESPN had a “future” power ranking today as apart of there “insider” package. here is an excerpt from a chat wrap where fans were able to chime in… my question is when is Hollinger and co. going to get off the ownership issue… if the ASG havent shown our fan base they are willing to spend then i dont know what they have to do? geesh… find another relevant argument besides, not knowing how the ownership situation will unfold, and their willingness to spend… this cat just refuses to like the Hawks…

1:40

[Comment From GMGM: ]
What about the Hawks future? Will we ever contend for a title in Hotlanta. It’s been 50 sumthing yrs already.
Tuesday November 10, 2009 1:40 GM
1:42

John Hollinger:
Bob Pettit is not walking through that door!! Sorry, got carried away … the Hawks’ big problem is the lack of star power, which is why they only ranked 12th on players despite having a lot of quality young guys. That’s going to limit their ability to get deeper in the playoffs as well, especialy since questions remain about how much management is willing to spend.

doc

November 10th, 2009
4:58 pm

trace: “I’d just as soon call JR Rider out of retirement.”

heh heh

Rod from College Park

November 10th, 2009
5:16 pm

Doc and Traceman,

We agree to disagree. I think sometimes people get caught up in what they see or read or hear and make judgemnts on players based on that. Steven Jackson is obviously doing these things to get out of Golden State. When you are a competitor, and you are put in a situation where losing is supposed to be acceptable, you will do whatever you have to do to escape. While we all think that money is the end all be all, I personally respect players who don’t want to lose. The off the field things don’t bother me, so please don’t bring those up. I would have gone in the stands in Detroit just like he did. If someone poses a threat to me in these streets, I would also not be afraid to use my gun. Traceman, you state he was a cancer in Atlanta, I don’t seem to remember that. He was the best player on the team averaging 18ppg and 4.5 rpg while shooting 34% from the three point line, and he stayed out of trouble. Better year than Marvin has ever had. I also seem to remember him being one of the key cogs on that Indiana team as well as Golden State when they made that run in the playoffs. I think one key thing that a lot of people miss about Marvin is that he poses no offensive threat. Any 3 who is aggresive playing that position on our team should be one of the top scorers on the team, because of the design of the offense. We hear Dominique every game say we need Marvin to step up. You know why? Because the offense we run leaves Marvin Williams wide open on the wing behind the three point line, and a serious scoring threat from that position would make us a serious contender this year. You are going to tell me that Stephen Jackson standing in the corner wide open behind the three point line with teams trying to recover to him is not a better option than Marvin. Please!!!!!! I think my primary difference with most of you is that I want to win NOW. I don’t care about 3 years down the line. I have a Lakers, Yankee mentality. I am sick of Atlanta teams being up and coming, and the next big thing. It never pans out. We are in a position, with one or two moves to be able to compete for a championship NOW. We can’t afford to wait 5 more years for this guy to show that he is an above average player. With Joe possibly leaving next year, it is important to protect ourselves.

Ramon

November 10th, 2009
5:25 pm

Am I the only one who sees a common trait in Atlanta, to always trade or sign for teams 3rd or 4th best player, to come here and be the number one option? Did this not happen with JJ, Harrington, Shareef, and Isaiah? I’m not against the Hawks doing whatever they can to bring in a superstar any more who is a top 5 player. That’s why I think Sund shook look into acquiring Chris Paul.

Rod from College Park

November 10th, 2009
5:28 pm

Traceman,

Marvin actually has been that bad this year. He left way to many points out there, and has not played a lick of defense, except for the Denver game. He also has not been aggresive at all, which is what the team and coach wants him to do. I personally don’t think he is a good defensive player at all, but for those that do, his defense has not been good at all this year. He has also been relegated to the bench at the end of games, which is something that I am sure was not expected at the beginning of the year.

Rod doesn't like Marvin?

November 10th, 2009
6:26 pm

Is anyone else here as shocked as I am?

Jonathan

November 10th, 2009
6:52 pm

While Rod from cp does harp on the Marvin issue too much, he does also raise valid points. Marvin has been a liability instead of an asset this year. If we really plan to contend this year, either he needs to step his game up, or we need to make a move (trade or bench). With all the open looks he gets, he should be scoring a lot more.

Ken Strickland

November 10th, 2009
6:55 pm

TRACEMAN-you used the ROLAND RATINGS to statistically make your point about Bibby vs Teague. Well, here are some stats that make an even stronger point in support of mine.

MINS PTS AST A/TO

BIBBY 27.9 9.1 3.7 2.89

TEAGUE 13.5 4.5 2.8 5.67

Playing half as many MPG, and that includes a DNP in one gm and only 5.25mins in another, Teague has put up numbers that are comparable to Bibby’s in some instances and superior in others. Take a long look at the slight .9 difference in APG Bibby has over Teague while playing half as many mins. For those of you who insist on saying Bibby’s protects the ball and has a low assist to turnover rate, take a look at Teagues A/TO ratio, which is twice as good as Bibby’s. And that’s very impressive since he consistently takes it to the basket and makes interior passes to create easy scoring opportunities for other players. His PPG is half that of Bibby’s, but playing Bibby’s 27.9 MPG, especially playing his of attacking, penetrating the lane style of ball, would give him more scoring, assist and FT opportunities, which would easily increase his PPG.

I’m a diehard fan of the Atlanta Hawks team far more than any particular Atlanta Hawks player. That allows me to take an objective view of Bibby’s assets, liabilities and overall contribution to the team as a starter and reach an unbiased determination. The same goes for Teague, or any other Hawk player. Being primarily a fan of a particular player creates a biased position and prevents you from even giving token consideration and/or acknowledgement to Bibby’s liabilities, while embellishing his few physical attributes, and his intangibles.

Traceman

November 10th, 2009
7:07 pm

Rod,

If I can’t make judgements about someone based on what I read, see or hear, what I am supposed to use in order to make those judgements? I saw Jax when he was here both on and off the court. Let’s just say that he was no angel and leave it at that.

Your support of Jax is downright hilarious. If he was so concerned about winning, why did he sign the extension and put himself “in a situation where losing is supposed to be acceptable” in the first place! He could have been an unrestricted FA and signed with the Lakers for the MLE. Instead, HE TOOK THE MONEY.

You say that you “personally respect players who don’t want to lose.” So do I and I would say that 90% of all NBA players fall into the category of players who dont want to lose. The difference between Jax and those players is that the vast majority of them maintain their professionalism and don’t act like jacka$$es when they are put into losing situations.

Saying that you would have gone into the stands like he did in DET is one thing but following that up with the statement: “If someone poses a threat to me in these streets, I would also not be afraid to use my gun” is hilarious. How can you POSSIBLY equate Jax going into the stands AT AN NBA BASKETBALL GAME with someone posing a threat to you (or him) in the streets? Jax was not about to get jacked, he was in an NBA arena in the middle of a basketball game!

As for Jax’s stats when he was here, count me as unimpressed. I feel pretty confident that Marvin could get me 18 ppg and 4.5 rbg while shooting 34% from the 3 pt line while playing with the likes of JT, Bob Sura, Chris Crawford, Jason Collier, Zeljko Rebraca, Alan Henderson, Wes Person, Mamadou N’diaye, Jacque Vaughn, Travis Hansen and rookie Boris Diaw. How that team won 28 games (6 of it’s last 10 to blow a slot at a better lotery pick) is beyond me.

He was a “key cog” in both IND and GS alright, a key cog in the troublemaker/malcontent machine. If there was trouble or negativity around, Jax might not start it but he would dang sure get involved in it.

When he was here, he was on his best behavior (and he was no angel)because he was playing on a one year deal and he was hoping we would resign him. The reason he was playing on a one year deal in the first place was because no one wanted a part of his act. He was on his best behavior in GS too…until they gave him that extension.

Jax is not the great 3 point shooter you make him out to be. He’s streaky and always has been. He shot better than the .355 percent that Marvin shot from 3 last year TWICE in his 11 year career (.360 his first year in IND and .363 his first year in GS).

You talk about wanting to win now. Jax couldn’t get GS or IND over the top in his prime, why do you think a 31 year old Jax (who is under contract until he is 34) is going to help get us over the top?

Protecting ourselves? By getting Jax, we would be KILLING ourselves. Pretty soon, he would have our very close knit locker room divided. No thanks. Getting Jax and then watching JJ leave would be worse than losing Mookie and Smitty and bringing in Rider.

Traceman

November 10th, 2009
7:26 pm

Ken,

While I appreciate the contributions that Bibby has made to the team, I certainly wouldn’t classify myself as a “Bibby fan.” We all have our favorites and if I ranked them, he probably wouldn’t be in my top 5.

That said, I am a fan of the TEAM as well and there is no question that we are better with him on the floor than we are when he is not on the floor. FAR better. The stats don’t lie.

You claim to be objective and that you can reach an unbiased determination with regard to Bibby but I don’t see that at all. The team has CLEARLY been more successful with Bibby on the floor than with Teague and the stats back it up.

Man, I LOVE watching Teage play and I look forward to seeing him for a long time to come. It certainly won’t hurt my feelings if he out plays Bibby and becomes the starting PG this year. That would likely mean that he is REALLY good as I don’t see Bibby falling off THAT much over the next couple of years. Until Teague actually has more of a positive impact on winning and losing than Bibby does though, I’ll ride with ‘ol Team Dime in the starting lineup.

Blast

November 10th, 2009
7:42 pm

Stephen Jackson??????? Get the hell outtahere!!!!!

Jax = Allen Iverson.

Damaged goods, both of them. Hawks are building a high character team. We don’t need selfish, malcontent players here.

How long we gonna go on with this Teague starting over Bibby talk? We all know it’s not gonna happen so long as Bibby can play. Why we keep harping over stuff that is beyond our control? Are we really that bored?

Can’t believe Sekou dipped on us without a goodbye. Is he really gone just like that?

Can’t believe it’s been three days since the Hawks last played. Tomorrow can’t come soon enough. I’m a basketball junkie! I need my Fix!

Go Hawks.

Clyde

November 10th, 2009
7:45 pm

Man the blog is up to 9 pages. Give up the Big Play Ray need to post a new one or something.

FIRE WOODY

Clyde

November 10th, 2009
7:46 pm

Stephen Jackson would be the second leading scorer if he was on the Hawks.

Leading scorer

November 10th, 2009
8:05 pm

He’s also the second leading scorer on this year’s Warriors.

Iverson was the second-leading scorer for the Pistons.

Isiah Rider was the leading scorer for the Hawks.

So was Stephen Jackson.

Fat lotta good that did.

KevinA

November 10th, 2009
8:41 pm

Sekou Leaving,

Many big companies have you clear your desk the day you tell them your leaving. I guessing Sekou left without having the opportunity for the farewell blog he promised.

Blast

November 10th, 2009
8:53 pm

Sekou should have put that farewell blog up just before he quitted!

correcto

November 10th, 2009
9:02 pm

Enter your comments here

KevinA

November 10th, 2009
9:11 pm

Blast,

Thats just asking for trouble. In the meantime the the nest is great. Also try hawksdawgs at peach tree hoops.

Ken Strickland

November 10th, 2009
9:13 pm

TRACEMAN-I don’t know how you, or anyone else, can say the team performs better with Bibby in the gm than Teague. 19:48mins is Bibby’s lowest MPG played and 20:03mins is Teagues highest MPG played. Bibby has started every gm while Teague has had one DNP and a 5:25min stint.

That disparity makes your statement about as subjective an opinion as one can be. Teague’s mins and playing opportunities have been very inconsistent, yet his numbers are as good, and in certain important areas, superior to Bibby’s based on the disparity in MPG. When you can accumulate 2.8APG while averaging 13.5 inconsistent MPG, compared to Bibby’s 3.7APG while playing 27.9 consistent MPG, demonstrates his superior ability to create easy scoring opportunities for his teammates.

Teague’s penetration and dish ability alone increases our OFF versatility and the overall OFF effectiveness of our frontline players. Now, don’t you think that’s more beneficial to the overall OFF than having a PG that’s primariy limited to shooting 3’s?

hawks

November 10th, 2009
9:14 pm

Sautee

November 10th, 2009
9:20 pm

Traceman,

Keep talkin’ sense. Some of us are listening.

doc

November 10th, 2009
10:06 pm

rod cool, a blog is a good place to agree to disagree … or say i told you so. ;-)

Jody

November 10th, 2009
10:22 pm

While I won’t say that Teague should start at point guard right now, I will say that I think he CLEARLY has the ability to start for this team and be an impact player right now. To stymie that ability in favor of playing a guy whose clearly on the downside of his basketball career is FOOLISH. The reality is the Hawks are not going to compete for a title this year. With that being said, it’s in their best interests to develop a guy who very well could play a big part in helping them to reach elite level status sooner rather than later.

Traceman

November 10th, 2009
11:32 pm

Ken,

I think it is pretty clear that we are better with Bibby on the floor when our top 5 lineups with regard to +/- all include Bibby. In addition, per minute, Bibby has the highest +/- on the team.
At this point in the season, all we can do is look at what has happened thus far and regardless of minutes played, the team has played better with Bibby on the floor.

Your assertion that all Bibby does is shoot 3’s is absurd. Bibby has a deadly midrange J, he understands situations, he rarely turns the ball over, he runs the pick and roll well, he consistently makes big shots and contrary to what you say, his mere presence on the floor makes doubling JJ (or Crawford) very difficult.

You assertion that Teague’s ability to penetrate and dish will increase our offensive versatility and overall effectiveness is nothing but SPECULATION at this point. You COULD be right, but you could be wrong. As things stand now, we KNOW that the lineup of Bibby, Crawford, JJ, Smoove and Horford has the 4th highest +/- of any lineup in the entire NBA. I’m sure that Bibby’s ability to catch and shoot off of JJ’s and Crawford’s creative abilities has a lot to do with that unit’s success. Teague would have to be pretty dang good to improve upon that.

This quote says it all regarding your bias against Bibby:

“TRACEMAN-the fact that Bibby and JJ play well together doesn’t change the fact that Bibby is a jumpshooter that can’t breakdown DEF’s with his penetration, is useless if he’s not hitting his jumper, doesn’t create easy scoring opportunities for his teammates, and can’t guard elite PG’s, which puts added pressure on JJ to do so.”

You acknowledge that Bibby and JJ play well together and then talk about all the things Bibby doesn’t do well. If they play well together and we win, WHO CARES about Bibby’s deficiencies?
Besides, Bibby covers up for a lot of JJ’s deficiencies as well. Bibby is a great shooter who makes shots after JJ throws him the ball with 2 seconds on the shot clock (after JJ has pounded it for 10 seconds). Bibby can be effective at PG without the ball in his hands (exactly why Roy likes playing with Blake over Miller so far). Bibby can settle the team down when JJ is struggling.

Like I said, I like Teague a lot and I see him as our PG of the future. But there is NO WAY he starts over Bibby when the team is playing so well with Bibby there. Starting Teague over Bibby would be like POR starting Bayless over Blake and Miller or the Lakers starting Farmar over Fisher.

KevinA

November 11th, 2009
2:15 am

The season is young and the sample set is still small but the Hawks seem better than last year and have more potential. We are certainly more versatile and deeper giving Woody more options.

ISO ego and jacking jumpers from the back court was my biggest concern when we signed Crawford. In my view Bibby and JJ had taken way to many shots last year. I didn’t see how signing Crawford would change that. Of course I was wrong about the impact that Jamal has made. He has been great and a welcome addition.

But my concern of balance still remains. We still take to many jumpers that come from one on one plays.

JJ and Crawford are off to a great start. Are we due for a crash? Career highs are just that. They are having career highs in FG%. Will ISO ego reign in the end with our back court? Or will we play balanced team ball and to a bigger extent get the rest of the team more involved.

Lets not forget Marvin, Evans, ZaZa and Joe Smith who are just as important over a long season. They need their touches and shot attempts in the scheme of unselfish ball movement. Being close to 30 assists is a good barometer.

We don’t win if Josh doesn’t defend. Interesting how we seem to get better ball rotation when Josh is scoring and defending. Interesting how Al and Josh have become assist machines with few turnovers. Interesting how JT and Jamal make everybody else look so slow.

We have the ability to win against anybody if egos are put aside. Look maybe egos is to tough a word, maybe style of play is better. Teams like the Nicks may allow the Hawks to make a few mistakes or at least more so than Boston but for the first time in years the Hawks control much of their destiny themselves against any team.

We still have yet to see the Hawks put it all together, and I understand these things take time. I had thought it might take till the end of next year or the year after. Adding Jamal and JT put my hopes on the fast track for this year. We have kinks and wrinkles to work out and 70 something games to do it. An exciting year, lets get-er-done.

vava74

November 11th, 2009
6:22 am

I’m 80% with Ken on this debate, my 20% reserve are justified with the fact that Bibby brings to the court experience, awareness and intangibles that Teague still lacks.

In the end, I think that this debate is fruitless since EVERYONE is happy with Teague’s talent (including Woody) and Bibby is already aware that his days as the starting PG are numbered.

I am 100% sure that he re-signed with us having been told and accepted that he will be slowly moving to the bench during this season.

As for Rod’s commentaries… well, Rod’s assertion of a player’s “winning attitude” are the number of tattoos and gun charges…

His ALL NBA team would be Jax, Iverson, Delonte, … and whoever else has a load of tattoos and has been arrested for carrying guns!!!

I don’t question their talent, however, apart from West, they are a far cry from what a real basketball player should be.

dap01

November 11th, 2009
7:56 am

Jamal and JT are what will get us to a higher level than last year. No more stagnant ball movements because of our guards. The speed and unselfessness of JT and JC are contageous. JC and JT get the big men involved like guards should.

ILL-logical

November 11th, 2009
9:36 am

Will tonight’s game be JJ(and Woodson’s- he may want to become an assistaint in New york for the pay and exposure after the ATL) first audition for starring roles on the 2010-11 Knick’s or will the progress in ball movement and sharing continue as the team approaches the Boston game?

An aside: don’t look for anything like rational behavior from the ajc, in the immortal words of Michael Ray Richardson: “The ship be sinking”.

The last few days’ discussions concerning w/not Bibby should be replaced by Teague or whether or not Marvin should be benched are interesting since they are occuring in the context of a successful season-over .500 on the road and 1.00 at home.

Eventually, changes will be made but only in the case of injury or after the mid point of the season. It is still early and we haven’t played any of our major rivals yet.

Mike is back

November 11th, 2009
9:45 am

I said it once I will say it again…why the need to rush Teague. Bibby is as GOOD as they come when it comes to running a team. Woody is doing the right thing. There are a number of rotations yet to be worked out for this team. The best thing is Teague can fill in all of them…over time.

D ole Hoops Coach was right…TEAGUE has to improve his jump shot before he can become a permanent fixture in the starting line…THE best THING he needs to be doing is paying attention to Bibby…not playing ahead of him.

You guys are tough. WE TALKING ABOUT BIBBY…MR ICE WATER UNDER PRESSURE. Yeah, he may be a step slower because of wear and tear…but he is still one of the top PGs in game. Some overlook his intangible benefits because they are more focus on his defense…thankfully even Woody is smarter than that. Teague time will come…but he is just one piece of the puzzle.

Getting minutes for reserve Bigs is just as pressing as getting Teague more minutes. That is OUR weakest link. That why I think Woody has done a great job of coaching thus far. I want be his voice box…that’s Samuel job. Lol…but as this team continues to evolve…you could hear his name MENTIONED in some COY talks.

I finally heard a positive comment about RandMo ON THE BLOG. I hope Woody keeps finding minutes for him to give him a chance to contribute to the team. YOU GET RANDMO AND COLLINS GOING TO ADD TO THE MIX…THEN THE HAWKS COULD MATCH UP WITH ANY TEAM IN THE LEAGUE.

THERE IT IS…GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ken Strickland

November 11th, 2009
11:08 am

TRACEMAN-I hope our little debate is as entertaining for you as it is for me, especially since this has become an orphan blog. I really like you demeanor and the way you present you stance.

I acknowledge the chemistry between JJ and Bibby. That chemistry is part of the reason last yrs OFF ended up in so many ISO Joe and Bibby situations and turned into a guard and perimenter oriented, jumpshooting OFF. I also acknowledge that Bibby contributes more than just shooting 3pt jumpshots, but you act like those additional attributes are unique to only Bibby.

You keep making a point of Bibby rarely turning the ball over. First of all, there are several factors you conveniently ignore that contributes to that low turnover rate.

(1)As our starting PG, he only controls the ball about half the time because JJ also runs the OFF about half the time.

(2)He rarely penetrates and dishes or makes interior passes to his frontline players.

(3)He spends the majority of the time he has the ball on the perimeter of the DEF.

(4)Because of his slow foot speed, he frequently walks the ball up and is seldom ahead of the DEF on fast break situations.

None of these are high risk situations and contribute as much to his low turnover rate as an particular ball handling skills.

You conveniently ignored the stats that I presented that showed Teague has contributed almost as many APG as Bibby in half as many mins and his ASSIST TO TURNOVER RATIO is double that of Bibby’s. By penetrating and attacking the DEF, dishing to his frontline players, getting ahead of the DEF and running fast breaks, going coast to coast on some fast break opportunities, Teague is doing a high risk, high reward activity. And yet, he still manages to almost match his APG and double his ASSIST TO TURNOVER RATIO, while playing only half of Bibby’s MPG on an inconsistent basis. WHY CONTINUE TO MAKE A BIG DEAL OF BIBBY’S LOW TURNOVER RATE WHEN TEAGUE’S TURNOVER AND ASSIST RATE, PER MINS PLAYED, IS DOUBLE THAT OF BIBBY’S? Again, you’re acting like what Bibby does, besides shooting long range jumpers, is unique to Bibby.

You made the following statement: “IF THEY PLAY WELL TOGETHER AND WE WIN, WHO CARES ABOUT BIBBY’S DEFICIENCIES? Well, the opposing DEF cares about his deficiencies. Orlando used Ilgouskas’ deficiencies in playing the pick and roll and prevented Cleveland from having a chance at playing in the finals and possibly winning an NBA title, and Bibby is our Ilgouskas. The NBA is a league the thrives on creating, exposing and exploiting matchups, and Bibby doesn’t matchup well defensively with anybody. He’s not tall, quick, fast, physical or athletic, nor does he have good footwork or lateral movement and doesn’t fight over picks well at all. He doesn’t penetrate and dish, or create easy scoring opportunities for his teammates.

YET, YOU WANT TO OVERLOOK ALL OF THE THINGS BIBBY CAN’T DO, AND IGNORE ALL OF THE THINGS TEAGUE CAN DO, WHICH IS MOST OF THE THINGS BIBBY CAN’T DO, JUST BECAUSE WE’RE WINNING GAMES. WOW! DON’T YOU THINK WE COULD CONTINUE WINNING GMS WITH A STARTING PG THAT CAN DO ALL OF THE THINGS BIBBY CAN’T DO, WITH BIBBY DOING WHAT HE CAN DO COMING OFF THE BENCH? OR, ARE YOU SAYING IF WE START TEAGUE, WE’LL AUTOMATICALLY START LOSING?

Ken Strickland

November 11th, 2009
11:45 am

NEW BLOG UP, FINALLY.

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