Atlanta Hawks Squawks: Hawks 105, Wizards 95
Washington– The Hawks never really did lock down on D. That might sound harsh considering the Wizards scored 17 in the final quarter but they missed a few open shots from my perspective. At one point I looked out there and Jamal seemed to be the only guy really getting after it defensively.
– But the Hawks pulled out a road win over a hot team (hey, hot by Washington’s standard), and that’s got to be the bottom line no matter how they looked doing it. The Hawks play a tough game at Milwaukee on Monday and carrying an eight-game road losing streak into the playoffs would have been a big burden.
– The Hawks improved to 6-8 in road games since the All-Star break when they have a lead or tie in the final period. “We’ve played well enough on the road to win but little things have been hurting us,” Woody said. “Tonight we buckled down when we had to. That’s how we did it early in the year. We’ve got to get back to that heading into the playoffs.”
– Crawford’s 28 points included 13 after halftime. The Wiz was up 64-58 when Jamal scored 11 points over the final seven minutes of the period to tie it at 78-78. Without that burst, the Hawks might have been in trouble.
– “It just felt like we were in a rut,” he said. “That’s understandable because we are on a back-to-back and we got in late. We were looking for any kind of energy, so I tried to energize us a little bit.”
– When Washington got within 97-90 with four minutes to play, it felt eerily familiar. This is when the Hawks would start taking bad shots, throwing the ball away, missing free throws, leaving 3-point shooters open . . .
– Instead, Zaza scored, Jamal converted his ninth four-point play and the Hawks put the Wizards away. “It feels good to finally close out a game on the road,” Crawford said. “We weren’t getting blown out. We’ve been right there but we haven’t been closing out games. We tightened it up when we needed to.”
– Let’s not pretend the Hawks played anything close to acceptable D when a poor offensive team shoots 57 percent through three quarters. Just for one example, I was shaking my head when the Hawks just watched Mike Miller stand at the 3-point line and launch away. He’s been known to hit a few.
– But from a confidence standpoint the Hawks needed this one after all the late collapses. “It was important for us to close out the game the way we know we can,” Al said. “We got stops when we needed to.”
– “It’s been frustrating to watch,” J.J. said. “For some reason we don’t seem to have the same enthusiasm or burst of energy (on the road) as we do at home. That’s something we’ve got to work on, now. We are 80 games into the season.”
– That brace on J.J.’s thumb is a bit bulky, so I figured it might cause problems with his shot. He’s insisted it won’t since he he only uses that portion of his hand for resting the ball and releases with his fingertips. Guess he’s right: 8 for 14 from the field, 20 points in 34 minutes.
– “The thumb is still really sore,” he said. “Toward the end of the season everyone gets a little banged up. We are trying to position ourselves to make some noise in the playoffs.”
– Zaza has been very good lately. When his hip flared up at Charlotte I thought that might be the start of a nagging thing like in the past. So it’s a good sign that he keeps pushing through it.
– “Zaza is coming around,” Al said. “That’s been a big help. The last couple of games he’s been able to close out games. That’s a luxury that will come in handy in the playoffs.”
– Jamal, Zaza and Mo give the Hawks a legit eight-deep rotation. It’s less certain after those three, though I continue to believe Joe Smith will give them something in the playoffs.
– The Celtics beat the Bucks to stay within a game of the Hawks.
MC
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
139 comments Add your comment
VenomSpitter
April 11th, 2010
3:19 pm
drmaryb Hakeem didn’t win any rings in the 80s dummy.
Just stop becuz u are embarrassing yourself.
gusman354
April 11th, 2010
3:21 pm
MIAMI THE BEST CITY IN THA WOLRLD AND D-WADE AND KING JAMES THA BEST PLEYAS IN THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD
cdog
April 11th, 2010
3:25 pm
greg, show me a perfect coach, one who has no faults and i will show one or someone who is in a fantasy world.remember all of the coaches before woodson.no one criticized them as harshly as they do woodson and none of them has an nba championship they gain while coaching in atlanta. what’s the sad part about it woodson is winning.no coach in no sports has won every game they coached.you act as though woodson is suppose to win every game he coaches, not going to happen and no other coach is going to win every game.yes we can always find fault when someone loses . it just that when you have a targeted dislike for a person, you tend to find fault even when its not there and when there is no need to.because of him being an african american, many is cricizing him for that main reason, no denying it, thats the reason for the criticism.well, to be fair if you want to do that, none of the current head coaches for the current pro atlanta teams should have a job now because they all have plenty of faults only they are not criticized wrongfully like woodson because he is an african american.you say he should be fired because of what he does in the playoffs, at least he makes to the playoffs.that can’t be said for the other atlanta head coaches.instead of cricizing the team, get behind them and cheer them on or just plainly, don’t bother to follow them.plain and simple.show me a perfect coach and i’ll show you one who is not part of our earth
drmaryb
April 11th, 2010
3:26 pm
JT0
Is playing the most difficult position to learn in the NBA. College is not like the NBA. The talent level is so much greater. There aren’t that many CP3’s out there, those guys are rare.
Give him some seasoning he’ll be fine one day real soon. Be patient like we were with Josh!
drmaryb
April 11th, 2010
3:35 pm
Spitt!
Again you miss the ENTIRE point, so you resort to niti-picking. You & your little friends
Don’t have enough brains combined to embarrass me? Laughable. You failed to mentio Calvin Murphy at all? Do you even know who he is & how old he is?
Do you really believe Josh was of age when these cats played & won.
Suggestion: when you see my name? Please keep scrollin’. My posts are too
Intelligent for you to comprehend! Later.
Oh & I will do the same for your posts too – moving forward!
Peace!
gusman354
April 11th, 2010
3:59 pm
HAWKS YOU CAN RUN BUT YOU CAN’T HIDE D-WADE IS COMING NEXT BE READY FOR D-DAY.
drmaryb
April 11th, 2010
4:01 pm
cdog
Thank God! someone on here who doesn’t have a roasted peanut for a brain.
Sometimes, It seems like we are talking to people’s kids on here, (13 year olds) who should not be on-line talking with grown folks. When, I was growing up, we were not allowed to jump into grow-folks conversations! These kids now are off the chain and out of control!
i love all your posts. You give the good, the bad and the ugly. It is all relevant. Our team can do a ton of things better – but, we ARE moving in the right direction. That’s what I am so happy about.
I also like stability at the HC position, as long as we see things moving forward? We should stay with our coach so that we have some continuity and stability. Especially, with the owner-ship group in so much turmoil.
Let’s make a pact to stop schooling the simpletons. Do like Mr. Woodson and sit their azzes on the end of the bench.
Oh well, I have to go to church now and pray for us all! We all need prayers – right?
You feel me?
drmaryb
April 11th, 2010
4:09 pm
drmaryb
April 11th, 2010
2:24 pm
“Josh wasn’t even BORN when these Houston Greats PLAYED!”
BTW, that was the original statement that got the un-intended idiot started.
My statement & it is 100% accurate. Josh was not born when they first played in the NBA!
i’m done, later!
cp
April 11th, 2010
4:26 pm
Nah drmaryb he did it on his own. I just found the blog talking about it…
http://www.ajc.com/blogs/content/shared-blogs/ajc/hawks/entries/2007/06/25/dreaming.html?cxntfid=blogs_hawks
If that doesnt work ill just copy n paste the old blog.
AJC > Sports > Hawks > Blog > Archives > 2007 > June > 25 > Entry
DREAMing!
By Sekou K Smith | Monday, June 25, 2007, 01:45 AM
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Our entire focus seems to be on Thursday night’s draft, as it should be. Al Horford and Mike Conley Jr. are making their stops through town today (workouts that will be reported on by ya boy Blog Z – yeah, after a few weeks of craziness he’s back – in this space and in the paper a little later), giving us all a little more to think about before we head into the final hours before draft night.
I don’t know about you, but I can’t remember being this anxious about any draft. I mean, we’ve always got our own ideas about what might happen. But seriously, I can’t remember stressing my brain like this in regards to a draft in years. It’s probably not healthy to have gotten this wrapped up in something we’ll have no control over … whatever, that’s never stopped anyone before.
But while we’ve been eyeballing these workouts, rumors and all other things draft, guys already under contract have been putting in work. Folks have picked on Josh Smith around here (and elsewhere) for his attitude and other perceived shortcomings. And he’s wisely ignoring his haters and going about the business of improving his game. He’s been in Houston going through NBA summer school with Hakeem “The Dream” Olajuwon as his sensei (me thinks young fella will have a few new post moves to unleash the next time we see him in game action). Smith is also working with Calvin Murphy to refine his outside game (we can only hope that pirated copies of this workout footage finds its way to youtube). And Smith is doing it all on his own, not at the behest of the Hawks or anyone else (which I think speaks volumes about how serious he is taking his development).
He’s without a doubt the Hawks’ most pressing offseason issue (draft included), because his immediate future will impact the Hawks’ bottom line (financially and in the win-loss column in 2007-08) more than anyone not named Joe Johnson. That’s why it is so important that he do exactly what he’s been doing with his summer. Players that don’t come back with a new wrinkle to their game from one season to the next will get abused by the guys that do.
After we finish up the draft and move into the free agency/summer league phase of the offseason, I’m planning on finding my way into at least one of these summer school sessions in Houston with a larger story planned on the “Under Construction” portion of Smith’s fourth year progression (he’s working with arguably the league’s greatest low-post technician of all time people). I’m also trying to dig up information on other guys, too. Because I know he’s not the only Hawk in the lab. Other guys are putting in the work as well.
And that’s one of the reasons why I have to temper my energy and enthusiasm regarding the draft. I think it’s natural for us all to get carried away with the this stuff since we roughly a month after the draft lottery to work ourselves into a frenzy regarding these prospects. Guys like Smith, though, will have to do the heavy lifting next season if the Hawks have any chance of ending their playoff drought at eight years.
I’m not suggesting we ignore the next 72 hours of draft hysteria. Not even close. I’m only suggesting that we try and put this stuff in its proper perspective. All that preaching aside, make sure you come back here Monday evening for my thoughts on Horford and Conley (hey, I’m not crazy. I know the draft pays the bills this time of year).
cp
April 11th, 2010
4:32 pm
lol@some of the comments a lot of us made on that old blog. I know some of us really had it wrong on that draft. A lot of people wanted YI, a lot of Conley supporters too. Some cat even said Solo would be better than Horford if he bulked up lol.
TigerWoods
April 11th, 2010
4:56 pm
i had to take time off playing to answer JeJe, he is the lowest human being around this site.
i have a wood in my hand that i like to take to his head.
How can you put in every post Fire Woody? If there is a post police, they should get rid of you for the most uncreative, unimaginitive, unhealthy posts.
Yep may be we should get somebody who runs away from Hawks to coach them. Or somebody who keeps losing in other places. Or somebody we offered job tyo before and was too chicken to take it. My Wooden friend has done exactly what is needed to get the most out of the birds.
ok i have to run back to playing and putting, but just wanted to say Je Je is stupid. Don’t pay no attention to his boring same same posts.
drmaryb
April 11th, 2010
5:06 pm
CP
Great Job on that post. I wasn’t sure, so I do stand corrected. I like the fact that Josh is a Student of his game. Many college students aren’t even that knowledgeable about their own played sport.
When Lenny Wilkens coached the US Olympic Team (I believe), I remember SHAQ asking,
“Coach did you play?” LOL! I still can’t believe Lenny was on the All GREAT 50 Best Players Team?
But as we now know he was inducted into THE HALL of FAME as both a Player & Coach!
southcyde
April 11th, 2010
5:08 pm
northcyde
“That’s IT!
Coach Woody & Staff & Nique set that up for him intially because he was so RAW he had no foot work & couldn’t dribble a ball. Remember? No College?”
Got anymore lies you want to tell us?
Nique's Revenge
April 11th, 2010
5:30 pm
quieeeeeeeeet about coach deadwood
the hawks are 50+ wins DESPITE him, not because of him
now if the hawks just ignore him in the playoffs, we can make it to round 3
Nique's Revenge
April 11th, 2010
5:32 pm
and while you brought up BROKE lenny wilkens, see my previous about how he helped torpedo the best hawks season ever 1993-94 by throwing Nique in the toilet!
yeahhhhhhhhhh TRUTH fo ya
Big Ump
April 11th, 2010
6:09 pm
drmaryb
Great post at 2:09PM. i would love to see how they try to spin it.
Grandad
April 11th, 2010
6:32 pm
Here goes:
drmaryb:
With all due respect, why do you defend Wdsn so vociferously?
I am obviously on the same side of the fence with the “pea brains”
as you say. [I hope you read my dissertation yesterday AM/prev.blog]
southcyde:
why, did they set him up with someone else, rather than coach him ‘up’
themselves?
Wdsn/Josh – corollary: beginning their 1st yr./ until 2010.
*Wdsn-rookie coach
*Josh-rookie
*W-has been slow to improve or change
*J-ditto
*W-Will not win COY
*J-Did not make all-stars
*W-supposedly a def. coach
*J-excells on def.
*W-continues to make same mistakes [just has more talent]
*J-continues to make same mistakes [**5th yr. still launching('3's')
**[Josh beginning to wean himself]
W-stubborn, mule headed, conservative, unimaginative, uninspired,
inept, jaded, obtuse, singular, worn, sensitive, and hackneyed.
J-stubborn [referees] sorry, I got on a roll with Wdsn’s virtues.
***NEXT TIME I DO A COROLLARY…i’M GONNA DO A ['W'] & a ['W'].
I bet I get to use ‘obtuse’ again.
Grandad
April 11th, 2010
6:39 pm
drmaryb: [or - 'Grandaughter']
I don’t recall Mr Wilkins coaching the olympics.
I was gonna make a joke about Wdsn coaching the
“special olympics”, but that would have been rude.
clarkekent
April 11th, 2010
6:42 pm
There is a lot of people clamoring that woody is doing a good job. That is to be debated. I believe he is adequate. Woodson is supposed to be a defensive coach but the team is not a defensive team. Has the team gotten better; sure they have; In spite of Woodson. He still hasn’t taught Joe Johnson to catch and shoot. He catches and dribbles for 15 secs. He should be shooting coming off those 2 screens set for him but he doesn’t. Coaching – team not responding or listening to you. The trade for Bibby helped and the trade for Crawford was brilliant. Woodson had nothing to do with that. Without Crawford this year this team would have lost 6-8 more games …meaning we would be no better than the Heat. Coaching should win you 8-10 games a year. Talent and scheduling should win or lose you the rest. Can you name a game where Woodson’s great coaching has won this team a game? Or a game where he drew up a play that won the game. (And if you consider ISO’s plays a play please don’t respond). Pick and pops for Al Horford should be a play ran with regularity with Joe, Bibby or Crawford. Every player should have a play drawn up for them. Even Marvin. Woodson’s play book: Every play is a ISO play: josh ISO post-up (left box), Al ISO post-up (right box), Crawford ISO (at the top of the three) and the all famous ISO-JOE(anywhere/ anytime he wants) Woodson also plays his starters the entire second half. Jamal and maybe ZaZa will play in the second half. Teague, Joe Smith and Mo Evans (who has been playing a little more lately) will not see the floor. And if the game is close he will play the starters the entire 4th qrt. I could go on but way … he should be replaced but wont because the team improves there winning total every year. But this young team has players that have improved as well. Normal player improvement accounts for a lot. And don’t say “replace with who?” because there are a least 3-5 guys on TV right now that can replace him
b.j.
April 11th, 2010
6:59 pm
lenney wilkiins did coach the olympics 96 summer games HERE IN ATLANTA,some of you so called hawks fan should know this no disrespect grandpa but alot of coachs set up meetings with with young players to meet older players ewing only job for the magic is to develop howards game more,kobe worked with the dream over this summer and grep pop the coach of the spurs is already setting up summer sessions with his rookie dwajn blair with charels barkely, u guys can say what u want but woodys a good coach any time u can take a group of core players that once only won 13 games and bring theam along to 50 thats really good no better yet great you cant argue with his numbers!!!
Ken Strickland
April 11th, 2010
7:13 pm
I’m really pleased that we got this win, because the Wizards really handed this one to us by selfdestructing down the stretch, like we have a tendacy to do. Even though we’ve won the last 2 gms against weak teams, we’ve needed spectacular efforts from JCrawford to get it done.
During our recent struggles, I’ve noticed Woodson trying to utilize some strategy, as far as trying to match players to certain situations, but it’s an obvious struggle for him. He’ll send players in to get certain things done, but only with 40secs of less remaining. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. He needs to get over his personal issues with certain players and start using that strategy before we come close to losing a lead.
During the playoffs, I can see it’s going to be the starting 5 plus Zaza and Crawford, with MEvans and JoSmith getting cameo mins between them. If we can’t matchup with these 7 players, that’s just too bad for us. I can’t foresee any type of lineup experimentation or adjustment, since Woodson wouldn’t even try anything like that during the regular season.
We’d better hope that Bibby, JJ, Horford, Smoove and Crawford are hitting on all cylinders, especially from the outside. And we will have to get more from Marvin if we intend to have a chance of getting out of the 1st rd, no matter which of the 3 teams we draw.We’d better get our act together for the last 2gms, or we’ll limp into the playoffs lacking confidence and dragging a boat load of unresolved issues with us.
lewis
April 11th, 2010
7:32 pm
yeah, the most unfortunate thing about the Woodson only using 7 players in the playoffs situation is at point guard. I’m not sure what’s up with Bibby, but he limps when he runs. I know he recently had that ingrown toenail situation, but it seems like he’s been limping all year. He’s still a solid shooter, but I think he’s too big of a defensive liability.
I know Teague is a rook, but Woodson needs to figure out how to use him to his advantage. He’s quick as lightning and can tire an opposing team’s defense. Bibby gets blown by most guards in the league, Teague, despite fouling a lot, can at least get a body on the quicker pg’s.
Hard to believe it, Bibby and Crawford are both 31, and when Bibby plays like he usually does, getting taken out never to return if we need to score, Crawford gets tired. At least utilize Teague’s youth. Is it Teage? Or teague?
How great would Andre Miller have been for the Hawks?
i’m bored today…
thomas22
April 11th, 2010
7:44 pm
For All You Hawks/Coach Woodson Haters:
Team History:
YEAR W L
2009-2010 51 29
2008-2009 47 35
2007-2008 37 45
2006-2007 30 52
2005-2006 26 56
2004-2005 13 69
** Even with our current “woes” you have to admit “not bad” for the past 5 years……..
Ken Strickland
April 11th, 2010
8:11 pm
DRMARYB-you made the following statement: “we ARE moving in the right direction. That’s what I am so happy about.”
About 11gms ago, Woodson said we were in the hunt for the 2nd seed and the division title. Since that statement, we’ve managed to go 6-5. Our scoring over those 11gms has been reduced to 96.4PPG and our points allowed has been 94.1. We’ve managed to score 100 pts or more only 4 times in those 11gms.
At one point, before the Allstar break, we were leading the entire NBA in PT’s in the paint, fastbreak pts, FG%, OFF rebounding, and was in the top 5 in total REB’s and scoring(107PPG). We’re a far far cry from those days now. ARE YOU SURE WE’RE HEADING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION, BECAUSE THE WAY WE’RE STRUGGLING TO WIN GMS AGAINST INFERIOR COMPETITION, WE’RE HEADED FOR A 1ST RD ELIMINATION. I hope that’s not the direction you were referring too.
kwooden1
April 11th, 2010
8:13 pm
gusman354 Welcome Back. Looks like you guy’s have got things going. If you guys win out you might have to face the Celtics, but if the war must continue it must!
GO HAWKS!!
Blast
April 11th, 2010
8:19 pm
Would prefer to see Bulls face Cavs in ths 1st round, than Toronto. Bulls will put up a much more better fight. Great win for Chicago.
VenomSpitter
April 11th, 2010
8:25 pm
If the Hawks played consistently (especially on the road) then I would have no problem with the Hawks playing the Heat.
Clyde
April 11th, 2010
8:30 pm
FIRE WOODY
SWAT Native
April 11th, 2010
8:31 pm
I can’t wait for the regular season to end and the playoffs to start, just like the Hawks. I think they’ve been bored for the last few weeks and that’s why they have been playing down to the level of competition. If they can hold the 3-seed, they have done more then most people expected already. Remember, early in the season people kept saying that they haven’t done enough to reach the level of the “Big Three”. But, they have proved folks wrong. As I said earlier in the season, they have made it a “Big Four” and have a chance to be the 3-seed which a lot of people didn’t expect.
I know it’s a dangerous game to play, but I believe they will elevate their game for the playoffs like they did against the Celtics a couple of years ago. I actually hope that the Hawks don’t get Milwaukee, because I think they may take them lightly and play down to them. I hope they get a hot team in the first round that will force them to play at a higher level.
I think that this year’s playoff will be a good measuring stick to see how far they have come and what they need to add to get to the championship level. I can’t wait.
clarkekent
April 11th, 2010
8:32 pm
YEAR W L
2009-2010 51 29
2008-2009 47 35
2007-2008 37 45
2006-2007 30 52
2005-2006 26 56
2004-2005 13 69
** Even with our current “woes” you have to admit “not bad” for the past 5 years……..
=================================================
2004-05 team was ripped up … wont judge him on that year: the 2 Joshes arrived
2005-06 added Marvin & Salim and Joe Johnson – Joe is worth 8-10 wins
2006-07 bad draft – drafted caddice parker’s boyfriend – won 4 more games – I guess he really coached them up that year! Sarcsim!
2007-08 added Bibby at the end of the year… helped win a few extra games at years end
2008-09 added Horford – full year with Bibby and Horford 10 game improvement.
2009-10 added Teague and Crawford – Craw is worth 6-8 games by himself
My point is the players made the improvement NOT the COACH.
SWAT Native
April 11th, 2010
8:33 pm
…and, I agree with Blast that I would love to see the Bulls play the Cavs rather than Toronto. And for those that keep saying “Fire Woody” -based on what?
The Truth
April 11th, 2010
9:00 pm
I will say this for Woody; I expected him to be his usual self and make no real-time game adjustments but when he replaced Josh with Zaza in the 4th quarter (after Josh was getting abused by Blatche) I was encouraged. Maybe he is beginning to read these nasty memos he’s been getting from these blogs. As I watched the effect of our bigger lineup solution to counter the Wizard’s size mismatch, I also notice more consistency from the Hawks with fewer turnovers late in the game. At least for this game, with Zaza @ center and Al @ the 4, it was as if Zaza (when playing well) gave the Hawks a steadier hand during a crunch moment of the game as well as upgrade our interior defensive. We stop the offense-assault administered by the Wizards because Blatche became inconsistent consequently we stretched the lead and won the game. I’m not sure if this coaching decision was developed by Woody or an accident but nonetheless it earned him the coaching move of the game. For that, Woody earned a very rare game-ball from the Truth along with Crawford. Perhaps this will be a repeated configuration in the playoff. We shall see.
Nique's Revenge
April 11th, 2010
9:07 pm
draft picks and good trades the past 5 years /= woody skill
that is DOES NOT EQUAL
next u will say mike brown is great but not because of lebron? woody is at best average. but not a championship coach. and we don’t have a championship superstar to get us there, either.
hopefully we can hustle and get past the heat maybe in less than 7 games this time, then 2nd and 3rd round opposing stars will have some terrible games we can steal.
O'Brien
April 11th, 2010
9:12 pm
Ken S,
In the playoffs, I think Woody will go with a regular 8 man rotation. The starters, along with Crawford, ZaZa and Mo Evans (he will get some PT over Marvin). Joe Smith and Teague will get cameo minutes.
However, in the playoffs, most teams shorten their rotation anyway, so I dont have a problem with Woody going with his 8 top guys. What I will have a problem with, is if the regulars are struggling, and he just leaves them out there and hope they turn it around. Or if he makes no adjustment.
I just hope we stay healthy, and play defense.
drmaryb,
I think the Hawks have regressed down the stretch. I dont know if its because teams have figured them out, or is it just because our guys have lost focus (especially on the defensive end), or if our guys are tired. Regardless of the reason, there will be no excuses come playoff time.
As for playoff opponents Hawks are 1-3 against Miami, 1-1 against Milwaukee, and 2-2 against Charlotte (with most of our wins coming at home). But we do have homecourt advantage in the first round, so regardless of who we play, I expect the Hawks to advance. And my preference is Milwaukee
drmaryb
April 11th, 2010
9:13 pm
Grand-Daddy
(My Man)
I Love & Respect your opinions because you make many valid points about Mr. Woodson & more importantly you do it with class & intelligent arguements & most importantly with out Vitriol & Venom. You are an effectifecommunicator & you do ot with CLASS not AZZ.
Mike is Back
April 11th, 2010
9:33 pm
MC, Great Stuff…I hope people stop worry about the Heat long enough to remember THAT everybody and tha moma thought the same the last year. THE H WITH WHAT EVERYBODY THINKS ABOUT HAWKS CHANCES AGAINST THE HEAT. This is our team…if we don’t think the Hawks can beat the Heat…then why should anyone else.
Jez…we got the home court advantage…what else you want. I agree the Heat will a very difficult match up…but this is the playoff…there’s no crying in the playoff…its win are go home baby. I will be there with the rest of regulars…urging our home team on to victory. It is worth noting that the Heat has been getting fat on the bottom feeders of the league. I like us at three…every one of those Cleveland games has been very competitive…that was not the case with Orlando.
Wow, the Hawks win the game…Woody deploys a different strategy in the fourth quarters, goes with a different line, and leaves Josh on the bench…yet THE SAME negative diatribe…go figure.
@ Ken, how long, and how many times has the Hawks franchise had 51 wins? BTW, did you happen to catch the Stinger Mike Glen post game response to the question of whether he thought Woody was capable of leading the Hawks to championship…he said that Woody was a student of the game, I bet he want be on your Christmas list. lol
GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Grandad
April 11th, 2010
9:34 pm
drmaryb: Thanks sweetheart.
b.j. – I forgooten more than I ever knew in the 1st place.
I never said “he didn’t”, only, “I don’t recall”.
Hawks & Lenny fan. Didn’t agree with trading ‘Nique’.
Grandad
April 11th, 2010
9:40 pm
Dang blog – I know I typed:
“I have forgotten”
unless I forgoot;
In which case, I oomitted ‘have’ & made up a new woord ‘forgooten’.
drmaryb
April 11th, 2010
9:44 pm
Mike is Back!
&I for one am glad as hell!
drmaryb
April 11th, 2010
10:01 pm
Mr. THOMAS22
Great Job on bringing some heat to this blog! How can anyone spin Mr. Woodson’s Track Record?
Go Figure.
UGA
April 11th, 2010
10:01 pm
If I’m the Bucks right now, I rest some players and take the loss tomorrow and to Boston hoping Miami would win at least 1 more game. I would think they would much rather play us than Boston, who they lost to at home without KG playing.
Plus I hope this happens for the Hawks sake.
northcyde
April 11th, 2010
11:34 pm
Question:
Name the coaches in the NBA that you believe have done a better job than Woody THIS YEAR.
Clyde
April 11th, 2010
11:35 pm
^^^^^^^^^^^ Scott Brooks
FIRE WOODY
Nique's Revenge
April 11th, 2010
11:44 pm
all other nba coaches > woody
Nique's Revenge
April 11th, 2010
11:48 pm
oh and woody u don’t give the opposing team’s players dap and hugs before the game. at least keep your lovefest out of the public and fans’ view
Clyde
April 12th, 2010
12:10 am
Scott Skiles too northcyde. The Bucks are 5th in the east without Micheal Redd. Imagine the job Woody would have done without JJ. They also start a rookie point guard and their top offensive player came half way into the season.
FIRE WOODY
clarkekent
April 12th, 2010
12:25 am
northcyde
coach’s names as requested:
nate mcmillan, larry brown, scott skiles, rick adelman, scott brooks..
could have thrown in:
greg pop – spurs played without tony parker, manu and timmy
jerry sloan – D. Will, KGB and booz went down for long strecthes
mike d’antoni – out coach woodson every time ….it was the knicks
Grandad
April 12th, 2010
12:55 am
northcyde:
Rick Adelman
Scott Brooks
D’Antoni
Pop
P. Jackson
John Kuester
Scott Skiles
Sloan
George Karl
Alvin Gentry
Van Gundy
Lionel Hollins
Larry Brown
Doc/lost to us 4 x’s, so no.
Carlisle, Nah.
McMillan…?…nah.
13 – sound about right.
I gave him the ben. of the doubt./last [3].
northcyde
April 12th, 2010
1:01 am
Mike is Back . . . deep down, people know the real deal.
As of right now, this is the 5th most successful team in ATLANTA HAWK HISTORY. We need one win to tie for 4th all time . . and 2 wins to have sole possession of 4th.
People can act like we’re supposed to be “elite” and have 60 wins, but if you were to pull up an old blog before the season started, I GUARANTEE YOU that most people expected the Hawks ( record wise ) to be right around what they are right now. And I’d make a wager that the “Woody haters” didn’t expect this team to improve any, even with the addition of Crawford.
This team, Woody, nor the players are nowhere near the “troubled” bunch that people make them out to be. What you see with the Hawks, is the natural progression that most teams go through, when they learn how to be a winner. ( at least those teams who don’t try to buy a Championship ).
This year’s Hawks team seemed to beat every inferior team that they faced last year, but had problems against the good teams. This year’s Hawks team has a winning record vs teams with a .500 or better record, but have lost 10 games to under .500 teams ( mainly on the road ). And part of the reason for that, is that the inferior teams at home now look at the Hawks as an upper echelon team.
Remember what KG and the rest of the Boston players said about the Hawks after we beat them the first game this year in Atlanta?
“The Hawks play us real hard for some reason”.
Well duh . . . they were considered to be an elite team, and no one around here has forgotten that playoff series.
Have any of you noticed that since the beginning of the year, just about every inferior opponent treat the Hawks as a BIG GAME? No one looks at us as an automatic win anymore.
NO ONE.
That doesn’t excuse the 4th quarter meltdowns. And that’s the other part of becoming a winner . . learning to play as a favorite. Even last year, people overlooked us at times. Now that the shoe is on the other foot, we’ve tended to do the same thing. Next, year, if they bring everyone back ( including JJ and Woody ), you’ll see the Hawks play more consistent against bad teams on the road. They know what to expect now.
So far, this has been a milestone year for the Hawks. Now it’s PLAYOFF TIME!!!
Congrats to the entire team and the organization.
Grandad
April 12th, 2010
1:08 am
Follow up: [reasons why I had others ahead of him] Wdsn.
Talented team [Hawks] good record but:
* virtually no inj.
* core has been together a good long time.
* best player in contract yr.
* only marginal improvement (reg. season) 47 -50?
* team upgraded off-season
* good bench [his fault for uninspired use thereof]
* break out yr. for Josh
* All-star yr. for Al
* Jamal > Flip
* Great start…wobbling[hanging on/choose metaphor]across finish line.
* Play-offs / his fate to be determined?