Greetings-
Hope all are well and enjoying another win. A few thoughts.
1) Randolph Morris looked pretty solid again. Mike Woodson always talks about how bench guys have to perform when they’re on the floor and take advantage of their minutes, and he’s done that. I don’t know how he fits into the scheme of things, but it would seem like he’s making a strong case for more time.
2) Same thing with Mo Evans. It seems like he’s trying to prove something out there. He was 4-for-4 from 3-point range Sunday. “Mo’s playing great,” Jamal Crawford said. “I told him, wherever he’s at in his head, mentally, just stay there. He’s locked in right now and he’s doing a heck of a job.”
3) I started looking last night for the last time the Hawks won three games in a row by more than 20 points. I got to the early 90’s and couldn’t find an example. I’ll keep looking, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s never happened. Even though the competition isn’t much, this is a pretty remarkable stretch of basketball we’re watching. Crawford: “We don’t care about who scores. We have so many offensive weapons. It just feels good to get a win and everybody be a part of it.”
Josh Smith: “We have a lot of players that can score the ball. I knew (before the season) that if we did it the right way, that we could do special things this season.”
4) Jeff Teague is coming into his own. He said before the game that he’s playing his game, not being deferential, not worrying about mistakes, and that’s exactly what it looks like. He said he’s shooting the floater more, which he hadn’t used since the preseason. I’m not sure why he wouldn’t – it seemed like he was choosing layups instead and was either missing or getting blocked – but it probably again goes back to being comfortable.
5) I read an interesting column on si.com from an interview with David Stern. He acknowledged the possibility down the road of legalized NBA gambling and talked about possible rules changes, such as permitting teams to play whatever defense they want, allowing offensive players to interfere with balls in the cylinder and other things.
I’m curious what rules changes you would make to make the NBA game better. I’ve long thought that going to the international trapezoidal 3-second lane and calling offensive 3 seconds would improve the game. I’ve never been a big fan of post-up basketball. Expanding the lane, I’d think, would increase movement and more face-to-the-basket play.
Some links: game story from the Star-Ledger.
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109 comments Add your comment
ILL-logical
December 15th, 2009
9:22 am
With the Braves committed to mediocrity and the Falcons unable to rise above it, the Hawks are in a great position to capture the hearts( and wallets) of Atlanta’s fickle sports fans.
A winning record with a young and talented team that has a nice blend of home grown talent and experienced NBA name brand guys is a great selling point.The key is a marketing program that will create a base of lifelong fans.
Jamal and Josh have established some very good projects with their respective foundations geared to young people.ZaZa’s popularity continues to grow and even Joe has started to go public with some of his efforts.
Now the organization has to brainstorm on how to develop a loyal fan base that will support the team through thick and thin. The success of the current team is an excellent starting point.
Daniel
December 15th, 2009
9:24 am
Ill- I like your post. Except the Braves are going to be back this season. Count on it.
Fundamentals
December 15th, 2009
9:27 am
Daniel, I was very excited to see him diving into the stands. Shows he’s finally realizing Woody doesn’t consider garbage time garbage. He’s out for every minute of every game like his career depends on it. Mainly because it does.
I hope the trend continues. He could be a really nice piece. Hopefully the progress really means something to him. I work with other people’s kids every day. It’s a hard message to get across.
We’ve got two tough games ahead w/ Memphis playing well. They’ve got a good group that’s showing some promise. A dangerous team like we used to be. They can beat anyone on any given night.
Utah will always be a tough grind, followed by Chicago. The Chicago game will definitely show us whether Woody has used the bench enough. Fatigue and let-down will be a big issue vs Chicago.
Next few should really tell us alot about our teams character.
Fundamentals
December 15th, 2009
9:37 am
I originally fell in love with Atlanta’s Air Force in the mid 80’s. Nothin can stop us, we’re Atlanta’s Air Force!
Who wouldn’t want to be Spud as a kid after watching the hometown treatment he got over on ‘Nique. That or overcoming the facial contusions he got in training camp. Both inspiring stories of overcoming adversity.
Even inspired me to read one of the few books I read in school – Rising High – a biography about Spud’s career.
terrell barron
December 15th, 2009
10:14 am
Rod, Marvin vs. Rudy Gay tomorrow night. Your dream matchup. lol!
O'Brien
December 15th, 2009
12:21 pm
Sautee,
I’m surprised Mrs. Sautee would vote for Bibby and not JJ.
ILL-logical,
I dont like Woody’s scowl on the sidelines either. Even if we are up by 20 in the 4th, he stands there and glares at the players. On DOB’s Braves blog, some bloggers refer to Soriano as MFIKY because of the scowl on his face when he comes in (IKY stands for I’ll kill you, and I’m sure everyone knows what the MF stands for). I think that name suits Woody as well.
The interesting thing is sometimes we are down big is when he sits on the bench and does nothing. I like Phil Jackson, he just sits there abs let his players play through. Rick Adelman does a lot of sitting too. That being said, as long as the Hawks keep winning, I dont care if Woody does hand stands during the game lol.
I MUS WRITE
For a guy who is 6′9″ and supposed to be athletic, Marvin gets his shot blocked a lot, even by shorter players.
Fundamentals
December 15th, 2009
1:16 pm
Marvin getting blocked is a confidence issue. He was close to breaking out again before he got sick. I expect him to be rocking the rim soon. He has the ability, just shakey on the confidence when it comes to bringing it strong to the basket at times.
Same thing applies for Teague. We know he can jam & he’s blocked some amazing shots, but early on he was getting packed right and left.
Confidence = highlights!
RLP
December 15th, 2009
1:37 pm
Concerning Marvin – There have been many here who have called for moving Marvin to the second unit and replacing him with Mo. I have always disagreed with that advocacy because I have thought that Marvin’s potential is such that it was better to leave him in the starting line up. But with the last game I am having some second thoughts. There are some definite positives with such a change.
1. Marvin is currently the 5th option on offense. I think it has also become part of his personality to defer to the others. If he were moved to the second unit and made the second option behind Jamal then it might force him to become more offensive minded.
2 Playing on the second unit you could move him inside where whatever talents he have might shine through better. If he does indeed have the wingspan of a seven footer then this move just might allow him to improve facets of his game in a better light.
3 Right now Mo is playing lights out and deserves more PT. Last year he lead the team in three point shooting percentage. Would it not be better to have the better shooting shorter guy playing on the wing?
4. Making the move would say to everyone on the team that there are no sacred cows on this team. You earn PT based on results.
Having made the argument I am confident that the coaching staff knows more than I do about what is best for the team. It is also not always a good idea to be shaking things up when the team is playing so well. But since we have another day to go before a game this is a better discussion that some of the other things we could engage in.
I MUS WRITE
December 15th, 2009
2:22 pm
Mo is every bit as effective as Marvin so I say put him in with the starters and have Crawford,Teague,Marvin and ZAZA go to work on weaker benches.
Now that JSmith is out this is the right time to give Morris sum meaningful playing time.
Another thing i thought about is playing a froint court of Smoove,Horford,&Morris….. We could use his scoring on the blocks and Josh/Al could cover him if he’s having problems on D…..
I MUS WRITE
December 15th, 2009
2:24 pm
Fundamentals……you may be right -that boi needs to go see the wizard ASAP
theZaZaguy
December 15th, 2009
2:36 pm
I think the key is Marvin’s injury. If you’ve ever had a car in a bad accident, you’ll notice that things aren’t quite right and it makes weird noises. The parts haven’t quite broken in yet. It takes months for the car to run right even if the repair is done right.
An athelete may have healed completely, but it takes 6-12 months to “break-in” and get everything moving right. I think this is the case with Marvin. Give him another 2-3 months. He’s healed and in shape, but he’s not in form. I think you will find this to be the case come March.
Fundamentals
December 15th, 2009
2:45 pm
Def agree ZaZaguy. Marvin will come along. I also like the idea of keeping Mo going as long as he’s producing. Tell Marvin his role coming back from illness will be to bring it off the bench Crawford style. If we had a 1-2 punch with Marvin & Crawford off the bench it’d be something. Mo will cool off, but I think he’s a better catch and shoot 5th option. Marvin and Crawford could punish some folks as a combo off the bench. I also like the idea of Smoove/Horford/Randmo. If they all play with energy they’d be a strong frontcourt for anyone. We just gotta get Randmo in the flow of Smoove & Horford’s help defense. They are a good tandem, but 3 on the block together could be an awesome rebounding machine. Eventually that’d be a good lineup w/ 2 quick guards hustling the perimeter.
Fundamentals
December 15th, 2009
2:50 pm
I agree Marvin will be strong if he stays injury free come playoff time. Hopefully he’ll be hitting his stride like last year. It does take time. He’s still timid driving the lane. As good as Mo is playing I’d say work him back slow in the second unit till he’s 100%.
I’d love to see Randmo/Josh/Horford in the game at the same time. I’m not suggesting by no means to start them, but try it for an end of the quarter rally or something. If Randmo could work into Josh & Al’s help defense plan they’d be an awesome trio on the block. Randmo deserves minutes now whether Joe Smith is healthy or not. He’s played well. If we deny him minutes he’ll digress.
Should be a battle down low against Memphis with Gasol, Zebo & Thabeet.
terrell barron
December 15th, 2009
2:59 pm
This time last year, when I said Morris culd be effective with a little confidence everybody laughed and wanted him outta here on the next plane, and now the same people are wanting him to get more min? Whatever. lol! And when Mo’s shot stops falling, and he starts getting killed on the defensive end, by the likes of Pierce, Lebron, and Gay(wed), theyll be cryin or Marvin. lol!
Ken Sugiura
December 15th, 2009
3:22 pm
nice take, RLP. that makes sense. to me, at least. for what it’s worth, marivn will be in the starting lineup as long as he’s OK physically on Wednesday, according to Woodson.
Nunnya – got some of your questions answered. i’ll have it up hopefully by the end of the day. got some writin’ to do.
Ken Sugiura
December 15th, 2009
3:23 pm
excuse me for getting your handle wrong. it’s nunna.
Fundamentals
December 15th, 2009
4:00 pm
Ken – Thanks for checking the blogs to really see what we’re barking about. Thanks for your coverage of our team!
rms
December 15th, 2009
4:13 pm
Ken, should we really care about RandoMO at this point? He’s in the NBA, thats what he is supposed to do, right?
JOE GET THE HELL'ON JOHNSON!
December 15th, 2009
4:27 pm
YOUR 7 FEET TALL,YOU BETTER MAKE THE BEST OF YOUR 1 MINUTE!
JOE GET THE HELL'ON JOHNSON!
December 15th, 2009
4:30 pm
AND I THOUGHT THAT R.MORRIS WAS GOING TO BE BETTER THAN DWIGHT HOWARD COMING OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL! I WAS SUPER DUMB!
Fundamentals
December 15th, 2009
4:30 pm
You two must’ve not watched how we got picked apart down low last year when Horford was hobbling. Every piece and every bit of progress is valuable insurance for our team! Every slot on our bench is critical!
bigdave
December 15th, 2009
5:55 pm
if the Heat were smart they’d put Wade on the block…
funny thing is some of you actually think he’s a leader…pff…haha…
http://blogs.herald.com/miami_heat/2009/12/wades-silence-speaks-volumes.html
O'Brien
December 15th, 2009
6:44 pm
The main issue with Mo Evans being in the starting lineup is who would defend against the teams that have big SF’s? Although he seems built, Mo Evans is only 6′5 and does not have the height (in my opinion, he is better off as a backup SG).
And I dont want JJ having to guard the other team’s SF from the start, because that would tire him out. I think Marvin could be very effective coming off the bench (as mentioned, he would be our #2 option off the bench). But Mo’ Evans is not big enough to play SF consistently.
(If I’m the Hawks, I would hate to be paying Marvin over $7 mil to be a bench player. And knowing Woody, he will not make a change, no matter how inconsistent Marvin has been).
For the record, I have not been impressed with Marvin this year (even with his 15 rebound game).
Rufus1
December 15th, 2009
6:49 pm
MO Evans
Do We really want Mo(6′5) to have to defend 6′9 Rudy Gay, Lebron, Pierce and Turgolu consistently? I agree he is playing well, but does his value diminish because he come off the bench. Does it matter if he scores 15pts as a starter or a reserve? Isn’t it better for him to be the 2nd option as a reserve, rather than the 5 option as a starter. I AM NOT DEFENING MARVIN(6′9 240lbs), I AM DEFENDING THE LINE-UP. Marvin is the starter, because he is the best defensive and offensive option at the 3. We already have a slow PG and an undersized center…do we really want to get smaller? Would we have won more games if Mo was starting?
I THINK THE LINE-UP IS FINE, BEACUSE WE ARE WINING.
Astro Joe
December 15th, 2009
7:22 pm
No need to change the starting line-up during a winning streak. When Marvin returns, sticjk him back with the starters.
Sautee
December 15th, 2009
7:35 pm
O’Brien,
I was dumbfounded when she said that. I THINK that she has noticed Joe ignoring the frontcourt when he ISO’s, and bases some of her opinion on that, as she loves Josh and Horford. Plus, she has liked Bibby since the Arizona days.
At least she (unlike many women I know) doesn’t base who she likes on uniform color.
RLP,
about this: “You earn PT based on results.”
In THEORY, yeah, unless you are Joe Johnson. Woody NEVER seems to pull Joe for anything, regardless if he’s 5-21.
The Hater Eliminator
December 15th, 2009
9:10 pm
JOE GET THE HELL’ON JOHNSON!,
You are being delirious.
Joe J is a magnificent NBA player, and we really need him on this team.
And Randolph did a great job in these few games that the starters rested on the bench.
Whoever said that Mo should start over Marvin, I disagree on as well because Marvin is doing good with the starting position, but Mo Evans gets way to many fouls.
Lets go ATL HAWKS!!!
Lets do it the right way this season.
O'Brien
December 15th, 2009
9:38 pm
Watching NBA Coast to Coast on ESPN, they are drooling over the 20-4 Boston Celtics. I was thinking how ironic it is that we probably match up best with the Celtics.
And I think Scott Brooks and the Thunder have the potential to be like the Hawks from a few years ago. They’ve gone 20-62, followed by 23-59, and so far this year, they have gone 12-11. All they need now is one big free agent signing (like a JJ was for us) to take that next step (Kevin Durant is a beast, poor Blazers).
Ken Sugiura
December 15th, 2009
10:01 pm
rms and joe – obviously, if he’s getting paid as much as he is, Morris and every other NBA player should be playing as hard as possible whenever they’re on the floor. But, obviously, in the NBA, as well as your and my lines of work, i think we can safely say that that’s not the case.
I don’t think what I wrote is praising Morris for playing hard. (maybe it is; i’ll have to take a look at it) It’s just explaining why he’s playing better. but i’d have to say he’s to be credited for figuring it out. not everyone does.
RLP
December 15th, 2009
10:23 pm
The thing about the Celtics that strikes me is their won loss record on the road so far this season. They started the year out on the road against Cleveland and beat them. They are 12-1 on the road so far this year. Since we know how hard it has been for the Hawks to win on the road we should really appreciate the job they have done so far. There are only 10 ten teams in all of the NBA that have winning records on the road. I think the Celtics must be considered the best team in the East. Also remember that they won the title two years ago. Last year was a fluke for them because or the injury to KG. Just because we defeated them once in Boston this year I am not convinced that we should hope to draw them in the second round.
And because the Lakers are only playing their sixth road game of the year I do not think we really have a good read on how good they will be this year. Let’s wait until we have a little more information about how they fare on the road before we make a judgment on them this year even though the pickup of Ron Artest was a critical break for them. If I were a betting man right now I would have my money on these two teams.
Astro Joe
December 15th, 2009
10:36 pm
Sautee, how often does any head coach yank his leading scorer when they are having a bad game? If nothing else, they can serve as a decoy, since chances are, the opposing team will continue to focus their defensive efforts against that top scorer.
For all of the criticism of Joe, you would think that dude was an insufferable ball hog. When in reality, the team has had 5-6 players who score in double figures over most of his tenure with the Hawks. With a finite number of offensive possessions per game, that simply means that no one player is dominating the shot attempts like those teams that have only 3-4 guys putting up double-digit points. Sure, Joe sometimes feels the need to “be the man” at the expense of his team, but is there a number one scorer who doesn’t make that same mistake? Again, familiarity breeds contempt… we admire other team’s players because we are likely exposed to more highlights of those guys then anything else. Joe has made the All-Star team 3 consecutive years not because his style is appealing to fans but because coaches respect his overall game. And with our ensemble cast approach, it is doubtful any of our guys will ever have enough of the spotlight to garner a starting vote from the fans.
MannyT
December 15th, 2009
11:31 pm
Rufus1, Rufus1, Rufus1…you get it. I co-sign it!
Marvin’s primary job on this squad is to get in the way of the premiere SF talent in the NBA.
Astro, you get Woody ball. JJ & Woody are attached at the contractual hip. They are Siamese (financial) twins…even though JJ will get the better end of the $$$. Joe will not come out of any game that helps Woody seal another win. At least not this season.
I think the next 2 games will give us a good read on where this team is. Memphis is on the rise and Utah is always tough. I’ll enjoy seeing them live.
BWAF
Melvin
December 15th, 2009
11:52 pm
Rufus1, cosign your 6:49 post. Excellent summary of Marvin value to this team…
I MUS WRITE
December 16th, 2009
12:07 am
Terrell- Come on Man, Morris was stealing money last year just like Speedy- He didnt deserve minutes- welcome to the party,we all said he could be effective before training camp 08,but i imagine its hard to move let alone get minutes when ur playing with an extra thiry pounds.
There are’nt to many people that can stop Lebron Gay or pierce for a whole game so…….Mo will cool off but you act like Marvin has been setting the world on fire -I Believe he was averaging like 9pts 5rebs.Jus say’n ride the hot hand
Samuel
December 16th, 2009
12:28 am
Ken,
thanks for the “half-ass_d” piece on the Woody situation. I guess something is better than nothing. Woody and JJ are free agents and Rick Sund and the ASG are playing hardball huh?
I think it could backfire on all of us.
What if: ASG and Rick decides to let Woody walk. Memphis scoops him up.
JJ from Arkansas, right next door with plenty of cap space. Move OJ to PG.
OJ
JJ
Rudy Gay
Zac Randolph
Gasol
Atlanta hires Mark Jackson or Avery Johnson and the team totally comes apart, Memphis makes the playoffs and takes the eventual Champion Lakers to 7 games. HUUUMMMMM!!!!!
Woody=COY
terrell barron
December 16th, 2009
8:06 am
Imus, you’d be a little timid out there too if you were Randolph and you knew that if you made a mistake, offensively or defensively, that you’d get the stare down and then get pulled immediately. Woody installs no confidence in young players whatsoever.
terrell barron
December 16th, 2009
8:13 am
And Samuel, JJ to Memphis? Please! And the only GM dumb enough to hire Woody to coach a YOUNG TEAM that needs to RUN THE FLOOR would be Billy Knight. He’d be a horrible hire for Memphis. Just horrible! Maybe Detroit or San Antonio(post-Pop), but Memphis? I dont think so. And btw, give Avery or Jackson 6 years with this group, and we’d be a better team,imo. Teague would be much more developed by now also. Probably be starting over Bibby by now.
Daniel
December 16th, 2009
8:40 am
terrell- Teague would be more developed by now? What? We are 22 games into his first season. And over the last 3 games his minutes have gone up and his game is improving. You were kidding right? You do know he has only been in the league for this season?
O'Brien
December 16th, 2009
10:01 am
Samuel,
The Hawks are on pace for 60/61 wins. Assuming they win over 50 games, win a first round series, and are competitive in the second round, I see no reason why the ASG would not give Woody an extension at the end of the playoffs.
In your scenario, you asked what happens if the ASG and Sund let Woody walk. I could ask what happens if the Hawks get swept in the second round?
All Woody has to do is keep winning, and his contract extension will come.
Rod from College Park
December 16th, 2009
10:49 am
terrell barron
The Marvin vs. Rudy Gay matchup is a no brainer. I will be willing to bet you anything that it ends up being the Joe vs. Rudy Gay matchup. Anytime we play a premier forward, Joe ends up checking them anyway. I am personally in favor of starting Mo Evans, and bringing Marvin off the bench. The funny thing to me is the people that say he will all of a sudden become this great scoring threat if he comes off the bench. Guess what. He is not better than most of the guys coming off the bench for most teams anyway. He is not a great offensive or defensive player, and is basically a standstill jump shooter. His greatest asset he brings to this Hawks team is rebounding. Any of those great 3’s such as Granger, Pierce, Melo, Gay…. Joe will end up defending them in crunch time. Remember how a lot of you argued with me and told me Marvin was our best man to man defender (LOL). Oh, I know, lets give hime a couple more years to develop. He is still young. He is still recovering from his injury. Woodson takes him out when he gets hot. We will need him in the playoffs…..LOL. You guys kill me. So if he comes off the bench, he will be able to dribble better. Will he be able to drive without falling or getting his shot blocked? Will he be able to hit a wide open (no one guards him) shot better? Will he become more aggresive when someone actually guards him? Will he hustle more? Will he actually try to stop someone from scoring at the rim? Will he be able to post up smaller players and score consistently? What has he ever done in the playoffs? Last year nothing. The year before nothing. Chills was the X factor not Marvin. As I continue to tell you guys, please don’t hold your breath waiting on Marvin. I wish no harm to any of you.
Ken Strickland
December 16th, 2009
11:43 am
TERRELL BARRON-See, there you go again. Your 8:13am post totally said everything I wanted to say, and you did a much better job than I probably would have done as well. I believe having either AJohnson or MJackson as our HC over the last 5yrs+ would have allowed us to resolved our still existing PG situation, since both excelled at the position. Woodson was strickly a perimeter oriented player during his playing career and he seems to want his team to reflect that.
Both Avery and Mark were PG’s that understood the advantages of penetrating and playing inside out basketball, which I believe they would have this team reflect. Avery got Dallas, a team that played little DEF and was almost totally perimeter oriented and considered extremely soft, to the NBA finals by making them play DEF and become more physical and aggressive. Imagine what he could have done, or could do, with a far quicker, faster, more physical and athletic team like ours.
I guarantee you, with either as our HC, either CPaul or DWilliams would be our starting PG, or ALaw would have been developed into a solid PG.
RUFUS1-Bravo, not much can be added to your comments.
I mentioned on the previous blog how obvious it was that Sund has a much higher expectation for this team, based on his accessment of its talent and ability, than Woodys supporters seem to have. It should be just as obvious he’s looking for more than just annual increases in wins and playoff appearances. What he’s looking for from Woodson will take the entire season to evaluate, because it’s already obvious this team will finish the season with a winning record and make the playoffs.
Woodson has already demonstrated he can coach and direct a winning team and make the playoffs annually. What Sund wants to know is can he get our young players to continue developing, because the improvement of this team at this point will be determined by it’s continued ORGANIC GROWTH, not continued FA acquisitions. He wants to know if this team is growing and improving primarily because of Woodson or inspite of him. There’s absolutely no doubt Woodson has had a positive impact and influence on the overall development of the Hawks, but to what extent, and is he capable of doing more at this juncture.
We all know he made a concerted effort to make JJ an Allstar, but how long have we been expecting and predicting Smoove would reach that level? What about Marvins obvious OFF regression, although he’s definitely made drastic improvements defensively. And what has Woodson noticably done, particularly when it comes to adjusting the OFF over the last 5yrs, to accomodate Smoove’s improvement in certain areas, that would get him to the Allstar level?
If Woodson continues to coach and push this team for the rest of the season the way he’s done the last 4gms, he’ll get everything he wants and everyone will end up being happy in the end, especially me. I’m about the team, not the HC, unless the HC is hindering the team.
GOOD LUCK TONIGHT MY HIGH FLYING HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I MUS WRITE
December 16th, 2009
11:49 am
Samuel- Thats a lot of what if’s my friend, That line up would’nt be as good as you think-CHEMISTRY. Mayo,Gay,Zbo are all 20 point scorers who need the ball in their hands to maximize their game. JJ taking shots away from the yungnz and doing his ISO Ball poundidng thing would be a problem. U see what happened to AI….
Whass up Rod-u make some intresting points- Marvin has had 4 years to grow up and become a player and he is mediocre at best,I had no expectations for him coming into the season. Hit a few jumpers,rebound and try to slow his man down some. This guy will never be a go to guy -EVA…Going back to last year I wanted Mo starting then. If Marvin came off the bench right now he would be a 2nd or 3rd option blending in like the chamellion that he is
Sautee
December 16th, 2009
12:01 pm
Astro Joe,
Somehow, you seemingly thought my target was JJ. It was not. I responded to RLP’s notion of “earning PT by results” and thought it was way too broad. Joe was my example, but not the target I was aiming for. Your post verifies this. Not all players need to “earn” playing time (though I agree with RLP’s larger point that we’d have a better league if it were so).
The example of Joe remaining on the court in a poor shooting game was my caveat to the statement being overly broad. But there was no hidden anti-JJ agenda here. I think Joe has, for the most part, toned down the pounding and shared the ball better than any previous year, and it’s no coincidence that our W-L record reflects that.
Samuel,
I thought you were a Hawks fan. What’s all this Memphis BS?
Rod from College Park
December 16th, 2009
12:20 pm
Ken Strickland,
“What about Marvins obvious OFF regression, although he’s definitely made drastic improvements defensively.”
May I please ask what drastic improvements you are referring to? Maybe you are speaking about from the time he came into the league to now? I hope so. I would not call it drastic. Nothing about his game has been drastic except maybe 3 point shooting.
Daniel
December 16th, 2009
12:40 pm
Ken- I can’t believe that you actually think that Mark Jackson or Avery Johnson would already have Deron Williams or Chris Paul. Last time I checked both were doing TV and neither is a GM. But, if you have the ability to see the future (an alternate time streams) could you please let us know where we should be investing our money?!
I usually don’t share your opinions Ken, but I do in general respect it. That statement, however, may be the least valuable point you have ever made.
Heck, I’ll go so far as to say that if the Hawks would have drafted Jordan, traded for Pippen and had Phil Jackson as their coach, we would have already won 6 championships in the 90’s.
O'Brien
December 16th, 2009
12:52 pm
Daniel,
To piggy back on what Ken might be thinking, Avery and Jackson are former PG’s, and they were not known for their size and shooting, so he is speculating that they would not have shared the same opinion that Woody had about Paul and DWill.
If I’m not mistaken, Woody implied that Paul was too short (I dont remember why he didnt like DWill). Sure, other GM’s had Marvin ranked one or two on their boards, but how many of those GM’s needed a PG the way the Hawks did? That being said, you’re right. We can’t change the past, and we can’t predict the future.
Rod,
I think Marvin’s defense has improved. It’s not great, but he defends his position well, something which is hard to quantify.
However, in crunch time, it is JJ (sometimes even Josh) that ends up on the premier SF. And with Crawford now on board, Marvin might not even be in the game (which also facilitates JJ playing SF).
Overall, I have been very disappointed with Marvin. As a senior in High School, he averaged 28.7 pts, 15.5 rebs, and 5 blocks per game. What has happened to all that promise/potential? This is his 5th season, and he is still talking about trying to be agrressive.
Rufus1
December 16th, 2009
1:34 pm
Amazing
It is amazing how people seem to forget this is the 1st year Josh Smith is starting to live up to his potential(6 Years) and how bad he looked last year at times(1st year of his NEW CONTRACT). Yes, Josh was more aggressive than Marvin in year 5(Taking 3’s, arguing with refs, missing free throws, turning over the ball, running his own offense, and getting benched by the coach). Then something happen in his 6Th year…maturity. Something I never thought he would get under Woody, but I was wrong. He is a better decision maker, under more control and has finally figured out what his strengths are….But it took 6 years under Woody.
I am not saying that in year 6 Marvin is going to turn into an All-star, but I am at least going to give the same amount of time in Woody’s system, I gave Josh.
PS..Don’t forget how frustrated alot of you guys were with Josh last year.(except the Josh lovers)
PS JOSH LOVER..Please out all of the drastic improvements Josh made from year 4 to 5……………….I will be waiting.
terrell barron
December 16th, 2009
2:20 pm
Preach Rufus, preach!
Big Ump
December 16th, 2009
2:38 pm
Grandad
On your post at 12:00 am you talked about bloggers being critical of players. That’s true with other bloggers including you. But I challenge you you to find anything I ever said abot a player since I been posting.. I wasn’t going to address this, but I know If I pass then you probably add something else I had never said before.
Grandad I’m always a team man not like others claim to be.So when you accuse someone,please make sure you have your facts right. Also you said you call’em like you see it, it look like you call what you thought you saw or what you want to see. Granddad have a good and holidays.
Big Ump
December 16th, 2009
2:43 pm
Daniel that was funny. But you so right.