Atlanta Hawks: On Magic Tricks and Josh’s Jumpers
Nice write-up by Ken S. today on the Hawks’ issues stopping Dwight Howard and the Magic. Also a compelling counterpoint at Hoopinion (thanks to commenter GMAN013 for pointing it out) stating that the Hawks’ problems against the Magic have “less to do with defensive game plans than Atlanta’s complete and utter inability to score against the Magic.”
Josh Smith shooting from where he's most effective. (Curtis Compton, ccompton@ajc.com)
But instead of adding my two cents to those takes, I’m going back to something I wrote about on Monday and have been trying to get my head around since. Why does Smoove continue to take jump shots when he’s only making them at a 37 percent clip at 28.3 effective field-goal percentage? Emailer Aaron, citing Hoopdata.com, broke it down even further: “Josh Smith is shooting 28.5% (28% after the Bucks game) on jumpshots in the 16-23 feet range. His career 3 pt% is 26.6%, meaning the decision to take long 2pt jumpshots over 3pt shots has cost the Hawks 21 points this season.”
Clearly Josh is just not good at shooting jumpers. Apparently everyone but Josh can see that he should stop taking them. How can he say he doesn’t notice when fans groan as soon as he catches the ball on the perimeter and looks at the basket. Heck, they dang near yell at him when he starts his windup. Why would he think “it will get better” when it’s not? How can he say he takes jumpers because they are available when the reason they are available is because opponents want him to shoot them? They get a double bonus because he’s very likely to miss and he’s nowhere near the rim for the rebound.
Then again, how can I be asking all these questions about a guy who’s been the most consistent Hawks performer all season? (Though I noticed Al lately has overtaken Josh to lead the Hawks in both on-court, off-court influence and adjusted plus-minus.) Honestly, I felt kind of jerky asking Josh why he takes jumpers. It felt like nitpicking at what might be the only consistent, glaring negative in his game this season. But because it’s so glaring and consistent I had to find out his thinking on the subject but instead of clearing things up it only confused me more.
Woody doesn’t really harp on the issue when I ask him about it. At first Smoove said Woody tells him to drive to the basket “all the time” but then added he doesn’t get on him too much “because he knows I play hard at both ends.” And I understand that but it’s got to be hard watching plays like that 20-footer he missed when the Hawks trailed San Antonio 101-97 the other night. Are decisions like that going to cost the Hawks in close playoff games?
I don’t understand why Josh keeps shooting jumpers but maybe it’s as simple as the more everyone thinks he can’t the more he thinks he can.
“I’m a confident player,” he said. “I believe in myself, not what somebody else believes in me.”
At this point, the Hawks might just need to hope Josh watches film again this summer and decides on his own he needs to quit taking those long jump shots.
– Ken S. has the game tonight.
MC
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559 comments Add your comment
Taylor
March 24th, 2010
7:46 pm
Magic just playing with the Hawks
Hawk n the Ham
March 24th, 2010
7:46 pm
HAWKS FANS…MAKE SOME NOISE!!!!
Hawk n the Ham
March 24th, 2010
7:46 pm
HAWKS FANS…MAKE SOME NOISE!!!!
bigdave
March 24th, 2010
7:46 pm
look at these bench bums…
why are they playing…?
Jay Dubu
March 24th, 2010
7:46 pm
Is the Hawks’ bench performing as well as the stats indicate. They’ve outscored the Hawks’ starters 13 – 10.
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
March 24th, 2010
7:46 pm
I thought his name was pronounced like “Pee-et-Trus”
rathbun is callin dude “Pee-Truce” and Nique called him “Peaches”
Ree Roe
March 24th, 2010
7:47 pm
Tie game! Way to battle back Hawks. Iso-Mo with 10 pts in the first half
-REElated to Roe!!!
bigdave
March 24th, 2010
7:47 pm
looks like “ballers” to me to Ray.. but what do we know…??
bigdave
March 24th, 2010
7:47 pm
lol @ Mac Town…
Big Ray
March 24th, 2010
7:48 pm
Well how about that.
We actually ATTACK Orlando, and suddenly it’s like they can’t stop us. The reward, as KevinA so succinctly put it earlier, is open jumpers for guys like Mo Evans.
By the way, where are the guys who wanted Evans out of here earlier in the season?
Getting Gortat into foul trouble was brilliant. Now who will Orlando turn to when Dwight needs some rest or gets into foul trouble himself?
Sleepy
March 24th, 2010
7:49 pm
The Hawks bench playing like hey this aint nothing but the magic lets go
the Hawks starters are playing like ooohhhh did you see Dwights muscles they are sooooo large
bigdave
March 24th, 2010
7:49 pm
and Nique doesnt even have our southern drawl like that…
talking bout some Pea…chus…
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
March 24th, 2010
7:49 pm
Vince still got it…amazing
Big Ray
March 24th, 2010
7:49 pm
I hope this can continue when our starters come back in. I’m sure they can do as much or more damage as our reserves have done.
Hope our bench is not rewarded with being stuck on the bench in the second half…
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
March 24th, 2010
7:50 pm
lmao Marvin….ABUSED
VenomSpitter
March 24th, 2010
7:50 pm
Damn Duck got the rejected
Big Ray
March 24th, 2010
7:50 pm
Unless of course, the starters are absolutely smokin’ hot.
northcyde
March 24th, 2010
7:50 pm
LOL @ all of those missed jumpshots. But as soon as Dwight went to the bench, the game immeadiately changed.
2nd unit playing well . . . and thabk God for Mo Evans. He temporarily prevented this game from becoming an early TKO for the Magic
Big Ray
March 24th, 2010
7:50 pm
‘Nique is hopeless……
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
March 24th, 2010
7:50 pm
pee truce
VenomSpitter
March 24th, 2010
7:50 pm
Now duck gets ran over LOL. Quack Quack
VenomSpitter
March 24th, 2010
7:51 pm
Why take teague out??????????????????????
Sleepy
March 24th, 2010
7:51 pm
why are we doubling ? Howard has two fouls………. let Zaza flop
jmarable
March 24th, 2010
7:52 pm
O MAC TOWN THATS SOME FUNNY STUFF U JUST SAID, IM LAUGHING MY BUTT OFF DUDE CAUSE U RIGHT.
Mr. Turnip-Green Jeans
March 24th, 2010
7:53 pm
Hope we pull this off tonight. I’m getting liquored-up in advance, just in case.
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
March 24th, 2010
7:53 pm
you heard that…thats the first time I’ve heard somebody say that…..Rathbun and Nique WILDIN….
Jody
March 24th, 2010
7:53 pm
Now that Horford’s at the four, it seems he’s having an easier time getting a shot up on the rim and he just scored on a nice jump hook over Brandon Bass.
rob
March 24th, 2010
7:53 pm
Foxsports.com on the power rankings said Marvin is useless when he isnt scoring. look at our ranking
KevinA
March 24th, 2010
7:54 pm
Solution against Orlando? Play ZaZa. Puts either Al or josh at the 4. Attack with the 4 spot.
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
March 24th, 2010
7:54 pm
Mr. Turnip-Green Jeans….Sparks 8.0% of FOUR LOKO?
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
March 24th, 2010
7:55 pm
or*
Big Ray
March 24th, 2010
7:55 pm
Horford goes right at Howard with the hook shot. Keep it up. Get him back in foul trouble.
VenomSpitter
March 24th, 2010
7:56 pm
Damn Joe that was ugly
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
March 24th, 2010
7:57 pm
settle down and get a good shot
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
March 24th, 2010
7:57 pm
Joe was lazy and didnt go after the loose ball on that one..
bigdave
March 24th, 2010
7:58 pm
organist playing Pastor Troy “We Ready”…
VenomSpitter
March 24th, 2010
7:58 pm
Marvin should be thanking zaza for that pass
Sleepy
March 24th, 2010
7:58 pm
JJ comes in and kills the flow almost immediately
Big Ray
March 24th, 2010
7:58 pm
Horford gets blocked, but still hustles to get the ball back, tries to tap it to Joe, who stands there and watches the whole thing. That pissed me off.
Great drive and dish by Pachulia.
Taylor
March 24th, 2010
7:58 pm
ugh not bibby
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
March 24th, 2010
7:58 pm
Doubling Dwight = that happens….or open 3 nailed
VenomSpitter
March 24th, 2010
7:58 pm
As soon as Bibby comes in he gets torched LOL
VenomSpitter
March 24th, 2010
7:59 pm
I thought Pee Truss was doin some church dance lol
bigdave
March 24th, 2010
7:59 pm
awww… peeeaachuus..
O'Brien
March 24th, 2010
8:00 pm
Ray,
I suggested trading Evans for a more legit backup SF, because Mo is small. But he has been playing great tonight.
And why bring Bibby back in the game when our defense was playing well with Teague in the game?
Big Ray
March 24th, 2010
8:00 pm
Can’t say I’m sorry to see Pietrus go to the bench. He defends Joe and Marvin rather well, and Joe is having a slow game as it is.
BONE
March 24th, 2010
8:01 pm
looooooooooool tht ni66 petrus was crip walkin
Big Ray
March 24th, 2010
8:02 pm
O’brien ,
I can understand that. I’ve felt that Mo is a backup SG who can play SF in a pinch. I’m talking about people who said he was just plain awful. I don’t expect them to speak up about it now.
Having said that, we could still use a legit backup SF, but we’ll have to wait for next season on that one.
o.O-Mac-Town -Macon, Georgia- Westsider-O.o
March 24th, 2010
8:02 pm
LMAO!!!!
VenomSpitter
March 24th, 2010
8:02 pm
Bibby should not be in the game