Hawks at Suns, AKA Stoudemire’s Still With Suns
Phoenix– There’s no doubt the Hawks caught a break on Wednesday when the Clippers traded away half their team and Baron Davis decided his back was too sore to play. Props to the Hawks for handling their business, but they will get no such break tonight.
After what seemed like months of speculation, the Suns didn’t trade Amar’e Stoudemire before the deadline. He talked with Suns brass over dinner last night and says he has no hard feelings.
So the Suns are at full strength except for Leandro Barbosa (wrist). They are also trying to hang onto a playoff spot in the Western Conference. No doubt they also remember this (dang that was my first game as beat guy and it seems like a year ago.)
The Hawks have to know what’s coming.
“We can’t come in here thinking it’s going to be like it was the other night,” Woody said.
– The Hawks want Zydrunas Ilgauskas. A lot still has to fall in place for that to happen. First, Ilgauskas has to be bought out. He’s not playing for the Wizards tonight, a sign that he will get his wish.
Once that happens, Z (don’t make me spell it anymore) somehow has to decide he doesn’t want to return to the Cavaliers, who drafted him 14 years ago and are tops in the Eastern Conference. If Z surprises everyone and passes on the Cavs, he then has to decide he wants to play for the Hawks.
And if that happens, it will mean less playing time for the Hawks’ current Z, Zaza. He said he wants burn like all guys do but he’s a pro and so he’d be cool with the another Z around.
“I know ‘Z’ personally,” Zaza said. “He’s a great guy, a good person. Everyone knows what he can do. He’s been in the league a long time. If the (Hawks) organization thinks that’s the right thing and it will help us, that’s fine with me.”
– More ASG drama this week. The AJC’s Kristi E. Schwartz reports that Bruce Levenson thinks Steve Belkin is evil. And Belkin must pay $2 million by Thursday to keep his stake in ASG, which he plans to do.
The most interesting part to me, because I’m not into drama, is that Schwartz reports “court documents say the Hawks and Thrashers have lost more than $174 million since the 2002-03 season, including $50 million in the past two years alone.”
That’s something to remember if the Hawks must decide whether to pay J.J. max money this summer.
– Talk amongst yourselves, Hawks fans.
MC
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332 comments Add your comment
Big Ray
February 19th, 2010
10:59 pm
Suns on a run. We’re in trouble.
Ole Hawk's Fan
February 19th, 2010
10:59 pm
Gotta make those free throws. No ball movement on offense……….too much dribbling. It’s JJ time to ISO!
Blast
February 19th, 2010
10:59 pm
Hawks, you have to win this game!
Where Is Jeff
February 19th, 2010
11:00 pm
only way any player gets better in this league is with consistent playing time, this whole season has been a setback for Teague, not sayin he is the answer but right now we just don’t know, and when he gets in he doesnt get to run the team, he basically brings it up and gives it to crawford
bigdave
February 19th, 2010
11:01 pm
i cant believe Steve Nash’s stat line… is that a season worse?
Najeh Davenpoop
February 19th, 2010
11:01 pm
In other news, apparently Yahoo thinks the Grizzlies changed their logo to Shaq’s face…
Big Ray
February 19th, 2010
11:01 pm
Good timeout by Woody. Did I just say that?
Astro Joe
February 19th, 2010
11:02 pm
So no matter how bad a youngster performs in practice, he should get consistent playing time? No matter how poorly he picks up on strategies, throw him out there to facilitate the offense?
bigdave
February 19th, 2010
11:03 pm
i know Jamal is 100lbs. but does he ever even try to box out?
Najeh Davenpoop
February 19th, 2010
11:03 pm
Another brick for Jamal. Lou Amundson, of all people, gets an offensive board and a putback on the other end. The offensive boards are just killing the Hawks. This one’s slipping away.
Hoops
February 19th, 2010
11:03 pm
Can somebody block out???
Mac-Town'z Finest 478
February 19th, 2010
11:03 pm
Just look at Woodson’s ISO offense. You have Josh Smith attempting to play out of his game, trying to go between the legs and crossing over people during a crucial point in the 4th quarter, resulting in a wild shot and 2 back the other way. Not to mention the momentum. This team looks too clueless in the 4th too many times.
Where Is Jeff
February 19th, 2010
11:03 pm
GO TO THE BASKET GUYS
Hoops
February 19th, 2010
11:04 pm
We need to sub. This group is not working well together.
Where Is Jeff
February 19th, 2010
11:05 pm
WOW 4 in a row
Sam from da Swats
February 19th, 2010
11:05 pm
Here we go with the scoring droughts. This is what really hurts us. Amidst everything else that may be a weakness, this is what the Hawks need to work on. These damn scoring droughts.
Astro Joe
February 19th, 2010
11:05 pm
I hate it when we get killed on our defensive boards.
J.J.M.
February 19th, 2010
11:05 pm
this game is over
richbrave
February 19th, 2010
11:05 pm
richbrave
February 19th, 2010
11:00 pm
Astro Joe
February 19th, 2010
8:37 am
I like McGuire, he’s a very strong defender who would have been a huge upgrade over Mo in terms of defending bigger SFs behind Marvin. And he is also a great rebounder at the SF position.
Me too JOE. He never got too much of a shot. I think his weakness from my personal observation was being a little slow a-foot, and not particularly quick hands. But a solid role player in my book. His board work could be first class.
But tonight I don’t miss him at all. Or ILGAUSKAS, GOODEN, JAMISON, BUTLER, STEVENSON or HAYWOOD.
WIZ bamboozle the NUGGETS with a line-up the entire fourth of JAMES SINGLETON, JOSH HOWARD, AL THORNTON, NICK YOUNG and EARL BOYKINS. The energy and defense were tremendous. The WIZ are going to lose out on the lottery at this rate. And earlier ‘DRAY BLATCHE and JaVALE McGEE showed everyone why they will be keepers in WIZARDS uni’s.
bigdave
February 19th, 2010
11:06 pm
Dragic is a hell of a pg
Mac-Town'z Finest 478
February 19th, 2010
11:06 pm
If we cant stop the Suns backup Center “Louis Amundson” at crucial junctures in the 4th Quarter of a game, I’m going to hate to see our post players against the Cavs nd Magic in the playoffs.
BONE
February 19th, 2010
11:06 pm
I think this game is over
Where Is Jeff
February 19th, 2010
11:06 pm
ok, time to finish this game strong, they don’t play defense, go at them, don’t settle for jumpshots
Melvin
February 19th, 2010
11:06 pm
Horford missing free throws. I wonder if he’s tired may have cross Woody’s mind….
bigdave
February 19th, 2010
11:07 pm
predictable.
BONE
February 19th, 2010
11:07 pm
Yep, good night guys I’m not watchin this no more.
Hoops
February 19th, 2010
11:07 pm
This is a bad defensive group together!
Where Is Jeff
February 19th, 2010
11:07 pm
its over when scrubs are having their way with starters
Ole Hawk's Fan
February 19th, 2010
11:07 pm
Turn out the lights……………………
Mac-Town'z Finest 478
February 19th, 2010
11:08 pm
What’s that? Teams actually running offensive sets and having players cutting to the basket results in points??? No way.
bigdave
February 19th, 2010
11:08 pm
Bibby w/ 36 min?
niremetal
February 19th, 2010
11:08 pm
Hey Woody,
The Phoenix freaking Suns are holding your team to 38% shooting and there is no spacing whatsoever. Still don’t give a sh!t about the offense?
buick59
February 19th, 2010
11:09 pm
fun to watch a team that knows how to run an offense. Hawks are lazy bunch of hot dogs. Hot dogs don’t win championships. Going nowhere.
SUND
February 19th, 2010
11:09 pm
I’m completely content with this core.
Big Ray
February 19th, 2010
11:09 pm
That’s what you call letting your young pg learn from his mistakes. Dragic committs a shot clock violation. Comes back and makes a great pass, which led to a foul on our center.
I wonder, did Dragic “earn” the playing time in practice, or is his coach just a fool for playing him?
Blast
February 19th, 2010
11:10 pm
This game is just about over. Hawks have missed on a lot of of opportunities. This was the hardest game on this road trip. Hawks hsve to come out refocused. Only good thing is Orlando lost tonight.
Najeh Davenpoop
February 19th, 2010
11:10 pm
“No matter how poorly he picks up on strategies, throw him out there to facilitate the offense?”
No, throw him out there so he can learn from his mistakes and improve. Like I’ve pointed out before, good teams — even championship teams — do this all the time and live with the rookie mistakes so that it will benefit them in the future. Rajon Rondo, Ty Lawson, Goran Dragic, George Hill, JJ Barea… all of these players got steadily increasing playing time early in their careers on good teams and have shown marked improvement, without costing their teams victories. And I only named point guards. I didn’t even get to the other positions.
Of course Teague is going to make mistakes if he plays. But the status quo on Teague camp is somehow unwilling to tolerate mistakes by Teague and yet completely willing to tolerate multiple mistakes by Bibby and Crawford. That part makes no sense to me. In three years Teague is the most likely player to remain on this roster.
tjhook
February 19th, 2010
11:10 pm
going back to the Ilgauskaus deal, I think he should consider going to the Spurs. Clearly they need some post help and he would get all the time playing he would ever want.
buick59
February 19th, 2010
11:10 pm
Bibby really needs to hang it up.
Big Ray
February 19th, 2010
11:10 pm
Meanwhile there is no efficiency whatsoever to our offense.
Bibby turns the ball over. Hey look, Dragic is still in the game. Gentry MUST be an idiot.
Melvin
February 19th, 2010
11:11 pm
Hawks legs look shot. They are a step slow in every facet of the game right now…
Astro Joe
February 19th, 2010
11:11 pm
richbrave, good for you guys. And I saw that Al Thornton got his first assist of the season… no not as a Wizard, but as an NBA player.. this season. (Just kidding, but the youngster is a black-hole).
Oh well, Hawks are having, what is it again, oh yeah, a bad shooting quarter.
And it would have been nice of Joe Smith got some run in the 3rd quarter. Maybe even Zaza. Woody’s habit of not playing certain guys in the 2nd half hurts when we’re on the road.
richbrave
February 19th, 2010
11:12 pm
Big Ray
February 19th, 2010
10:25 pm
To me it’s not about single-covering Howard. It’s about stopping all those shooters when he starts going off. Howard doesn’t beat teams. His teammates do. Dude rarely gets 30 points, and often doesn’t get that close. He’ll get plenty of rebounds and block lots of shots.
But he can also get into foul trouble. We can’t cover him one on one and not have him post wonderful stats. The question is, can we stop the penetrators and shooters? That’s what Dallas is doing, and it’s why Washington stopped them twice this year.
On the money RAY. They would play HOWARD straight up with HAYWOOD until SUPERMAN would score twice in a row, then the defense would rotate over in help defense until HOWARD would become frustrated, usually after two or three plays in succession. The WIZ would then revert to their normal defense and stop the penetration. This they did both games throughout. It worked to perfection.
niremetal
February 19th, 2010
11:12 pm
Boy, did Crawford get away with a poor defensive play there…
Big Ray
February 19th, 2010
11:12 pm
Another no call leads to another momentum boost for the other team. Great.
Najeh Davenpoop
February 19th, 2010
11:13 pm
Also, your statement implying that Teague can’t pick up on strategies assumes that the Hawks have a strategy. Woodson has all but admitted that they don’t, at least not on offense.
bigdave
February 19th, 2010
11:13 pm
them boys tiiiired…
buick59
February 19th, 2010
11:13 pm
prediction: they will lose 1st round either to Raptors or Bulls.
iREPATL
February 19th, 2010
11:13 pm
SO NOW BIBBY WANTS TO DRIVE LIKE TONY PARKER…
Melvin
February 19th, 2010
11:14 pm
My gosh, Amare comes back in the game at the 4 min mark of the 4th qtr. You think he will have fresh legs