Spurs at Atlanta Hawks: Win and They Are In (Game is at 8)
So the Hawks can clinch a playoff berth with a victory against the Spurs tonight. Before you say “So what?” remember from whence the Hawks came.
“It wasn’t even pro basketball,” J.J. said of his early days with the Hawks.
Clearly the Hawks have higher aspirations than just making the playoffs. Still, making it official means something.
“It definitely does,” Josh Smith said. “When you go from the bottom up you appreciate the moments of winning.”
“That’s what makes it so special,” J.J. said, “knowing what you had to go through to get to this point.”
“It would be fantastic,” Woody said of clinching tonight. “It’s what we all push for. The first three years we wasn’t playing for nothing. Well, I can’t say that third year–we had a legit shot to make it but we had a lot of injuries. We finally made it in the fourth year, and now here we are.”
Then there is Jamal Crawford, whose losing goes back even further than the Hawks. Jamal asked Bibby how long he was in the league before he made the playoffs.
“Three,” Bibby said.
“Imagine 10,” Jamal said.
Jamal said he “always had faith” he’d make the postseason one day, if only because each season is a fresh start. He thought he had a chance in 2004-05 with the Knicks but they faltered in the final three months of the season and Crawford struggled with injuries. He also thought it might happen in 2006-07 but the Knicks were eliminated in the final week of the season.
Now (unless he’s really cursed or something) Jamal will finally make it.
“I’m going to reflect but not celebrate,” he said. “It’s been a long time coming.”
– I took a look at East teams Nos. 5 through 8 for my Sunday notes and briefly examined why the Hawks may or may not want to face each opponent.
Smoove said he’s not doing the same because those teams are closely bunched in the standings. If the Hawks remain fourth behind Boston (which would get the tiebreak over the Hawks due to winning the Atlantic Division) it’s looking like they’d get Milwaukee in the first round. If they finish third and the Bucks stay hot, it could be Miami, Charlotte or Toronto.
“It’s so crazy down at five through eight, you don’t know who you are going to play,” he said. “So we’ll just see how it plays out. Everybody is right behind each other.”
– I also wrote a story about the Hawks raising premium season ticket prices by nearly 50 percent next year. Today I got the following email and it made me think back to this post from hawksdawgs at Peachtree Hoops.
Interesting article on the Hawks attendance. I want to tell you why I think they can’t draw with a decent team. First many people, like me, who can afford to go live north of the city and I went to a recent Hawks game with Cleveland and it took me over an hour to drive from Johns Creek. Traffic was horrible that time of day. Marta is no better. The trains don’t run often enough, you have to change trains and they are always dirty and crowded. And to top it all off , I went to a basketball game and a Rap concert broke out. Every time out, half time and in between all I heard was rap. And they even introduced all the Atl Rappers sitting in their prime seats during one timeout. Never Again. Horrible traffic and they cater to the Rap crowd. They can have it.
I won’t respond to the bulk of his comments, but I feel I must defend Marta. I ride it all the time because I hate driving and I’ve found it to be safe, reliable and clean. I’m still trying to figure out why some people in the city hate on it so much.
– Remember, the game is at 8 tonight. Apparently some fans missed the numerous notices from the Hawks about the time change for the Feb. 26 game vs. Dallas.
MC
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512 comments Add your comment
Dawgie Fan
March 21st, 2010
8:54 pm
Watching Woody coach against Pops is like watching those avatar people and their bow and arrows against the tanks and machine guns of the earth people.
james
March 21st, 2010
8:54 pm
Why didnt Woody try and get Crawford matched up against Roger Mason . We are not going to beat the Spurs in a halfcourt game . Shouldve stayed quicker on the perimeter and looked to push the ball.
J.J.M.
March 21st, 2010
8:55 pm
lmao@Dawgie Fan
Clyde
March 21st, 2010
8:56 pm
Is anyone watching the local broadcast of this game? I needed a break from Nique.
FIRE WOODY
northcyde
March 21st, 2010
8:57 pm
JJ already with 11 shot attempts. He already sees what is going on. He may need to go for 30 in this game, even if he has to take 30 shots. The Spurs don’t have to double Horford or Smoove because they don’t respect their offensive game. So it’s going to come down to JJ and eventually Crawford to keep us in it.
This is almost exactly how the January game went.
Ree Roe
March 21st, 2010
8:57 pm
Were clearly out of our comfort zone & we’re getting pushed around. Josh & Al look uncomfortable on both sides of the ball. Let’s pick it up Hawks
-REEticulate it for Roe!!!
VenomSpitter
March 21st, 2010
8:57 pm
Marvin is outplaying Josh and Al. How often can u say that lol
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
March 21st, 2010
8:57 pm
lets get it down to a manageable 5-6 pt game by the half plz
Jody
March 21st, 2010
8:57 pm
VenomSpitter,
I hear what you’re saying and so do the Hawks obviously. If they didn’t, they would not have been trying to sign Big Z so aggressively. I love Al Horford and think he’s a major piece for this team going forward. However, this team does need more size and we’ll see if that’s finally addressed in the offseason.
Sautee
March 21st, 2010
8:57 pm
“In the end, it’s all about people making the Hawks an ENTERTAINMENT PRIORITY. If folks aren’t willing to do that, they’ll always be able to come up with excuses for not attending games.”
You’re either not going to Hawk games because 1) you’re not really a fan of the team . . . 2) you’re not willing to make the Hawks an entertainment priority for you and/or your family . . . or 3) your racial prejudices keep you from going.”
“That’s all it is.”
“All of that other stuff is just pure crap.”
ONLY if you can actually AFFORD to go. For those who cannot, your remarks are a slap in the face.
You can afford to travel far and go to several games a year.
THAT is rich to some of us. And you are condescending to those who may not be as fortunate as you.
J.J.M.
March 21st, 2010
8:58 pm
lol duncan got fouled
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
March 21st, 2010
8:58 pm
lol that boy Marvin is playin tonight…I wish duck would step up like this more often
northcyde
March 21st, 2010
8:58 pm
Good job Marvin. Those are the shots he has to knock down. He’s the x-factor when it comes playoff time, because he’s the one that will be open.
Blast
March 21st, 2010
8:59 pm
Marvin! 2 quick buckets gets it down to 6!
Spurs needs to stop arguing about non calls and play ball! Josh was fouled on that last drive too, but no call.
Cannon
March 21st, 2010
8:59 pm
Can someone tell Smoove that we pay Bibby,JJ,and Jamal big money to run the offense. What is with him running the ball up totally ruining the sync of our offense?
Big Ray
March 21st, 2010
8:59 pm
We have to play better defense, it will help spark our offense.
Horford is getting a lesson from one of the best big men to ever play the game. And I’m making no excuses for him, but it is what it is. Horford has to work harder and smarter, he’s going against one of the hardest-working, smartest players in the game, PERIOD.
But he can’t do it alone. The TEAM is losing.
Why is Joe 4 for 11, Smith 1 for 8, and Crawford 1 for 5? Those are our top three offensive production guys.
The Spurs are everything we aren’t and want to be: highly disciplined and highly focused.
Spread the blame for that one where you will, but that’s the truth of it. I’m glad this is just one game, one matchup, on one night.
MAD-DONNA
March 21st, 2010
8:59 pm
Josh Smith is the worst pg in the NBA!
Clyde
March 21st, 2010
9:00 pm
The only way Horford can score tonight is by going to the free throw line.
FIRE WOODY
Big Ray
March 21st, 2010
9:01 pm
Can someone tell Smoove that we pay Bibby,JJ,and Jamal big money to run the offense. What is with him running the ball up totally ruining the sync of our offense?
What sync? Call me back when Smoove actually turns the ball over, eh?
VenomSpitter
March 21st, 2010
9:02 pm
OMG Marvin.
bigdave
March 21st, 2010
9:02 pm
Marvin looking like a pro…
Big Ray
March 21st, 2010
9:02 pm
Great to see Marvin stepping it up. Nobody else is…
VenomSpitter
March 21st, 2010
9:02 pm
Finally Josh makes a great play
Taylor
March 21st, 2010
9:02 pm
smoooveeee
Blast
March 21st, 2010
9:03 pm
Josh Smith! Nasty alley-oop from Joe!
Big Ray
March 21st, 2010
9:04 pm
Yeah, Josh is definitely messing up the sync of our offense. His 4 assists, when compared to the ONE our pg has, is definitely proof of that. Sometimes this blog is the best comedy show in town, I swear….
Sautee ,
There is nothing like the taste of one’s own words. Not that I’d know what that is like….
VenomSpitter
March 21st, 2010
9:04 pm
Damn Manu is killin the hawks
VenomSpitter
March 21st, 2010
9:04 pm
WTF @ Marvin lol
Taylor
March 21st, 2010
9:04 pm
Duck almost died
J.J.M.
March 21st, 2010
9:04 pm
is duncan really that could that we have to double?
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
March 21st, 2010
9:05 pm
If Marvin would only play this hard and confident all the time…maybe we can see the player we thought we drafted.
J.J.M.
March 21st, 2010
9:05 pm
good^
bigdave
March 21st, 2010
9:05 pm
MAAAAAAAAAAAAAARVIN!
Melvin
March 21st, 2010
9:05 pm
Can the Hawks get a foul call?????????
Big Ray
March 21st, 2010
9:05 pm
I’d complain more about JJ’s shooting, but I seem to recall a game a couple nights ago…and many more beyond that…when he came back in the second half from horrid first half shooting.
And his assists are HUGE right now.
joBjo
March 21st, 2010
9:05 pm
Marvin is da man.
VenomSpitter
March 21st, 2010
9:06 pm
Man if Marvin played this way all the time I would Marry a Goose. forget a duck.
Blast
March 21st, 2010
9:06 pm
San Antonio getting aggitated at the non-calls! Lol! Hawks have had to live with that for years!
northcyde
March 21st, 2010
9:06 pm
Sautee . . it’s all about how and where you choose to spend your entertainment dollar . . and how committed you’re really are about seeing this team.
If going to the game is your objective, the Hawks have plenty of $20 and $30 seats in that arena. I usually don’t spend more than $60 on a ticket going to a Hawks game.
If I was a college student in ATL, and I really wanted to go to a Hawks game, I’m preparing in advance when to go. So if it’s November, and I wanted to attend a game in December, I’m saving up some money to make that happen.
That’s commitment.
If my approach about this subject is condescending . . good. It’s meant to be. People in ATL need to stop making excuses about seeing Hawk games.
If you can’t afford to go, that’s one thing. But if you can go, but come up with excuses NOT to go, that’s a totally different animal.
*************
As for the game, I LOVE the effort of Marvin Williams. With basically the entire team struggling to score, he’s really elevated his game tonight and is playing with a lot of energy and confidence.
Cannon
March 21st, 2010
9:07 pm
@Big Ray Josh is a great passer when posted-up. Not while trying to run the point.
james
March 21st, 2010
9:07 pm
thank you for speeding the game up .Sometimes it makes you wonder what we are thinking trying to play a slow tempo with these old slow teams
Big Ray
March 21st, 2010
9:07 pm
Mac Town ,
We’ll never see the player that Billy Knight thought he was drafting, but we may yet see a guy who was one of our most consistent players in ‘07 and ‘08. That guy, I’d be glad to see. I don’t need him to be a superstar anymore, just a steady 13/14 ppg and 6 rpg guy who hits the open shots. I’d be cool with that.
joBjo
March 21st, 2010
9:07 pm
that looked like a charge on Dunkman
VenomSpitter
March 21st, 2010
9:08 pm
Marvin is in the duck zone
Melvin
March 21st, 2010
9:09 pm
Marvin is balling out of control in this 1st half….
joBjo
March 21st, 2010
9:09 pm
lol @ Venom
Blast
March 21st, 2010
9:09 pm
Let’s go, Hawks! Let’s go, Hawks! Let’s go, Hawks!!!!!!
Big Ray
March 21st, 2010
9:09 pm
Cannon ,
I agree. He’s also a great passer at the top of the key if he’s not telegraphing where he’s going with the pass. And there is a difference between running the point and trying to make a play.
How’s our point guard doing? I’ll say this: he’s hitting his shots.
Part of our offense depends on Smoove passing the ball. Same with JJ. We don’t have a pg who is a big assist guy.
Big Ray
March 21st, 2010
9:10 pm
lol @ Venom
J.J.M.
March 21st, 2010
9:10 pm
lmao@duck zone