Atlanta Hawks Squawks: Hawks 104, Bucks 96
Milwaukee– I told Smoove I thought this was the Hawks’ best road effort since they won at Utah way back on Feb. 22. He thought about it for a few seconds before agreeing. “Probably so, all-around. We pretty much led the whole game. Even though they went on a run in the second half, we didn’t bend. We kept fighting. We kept with our game plan and used our advantages.”
– And, what do you know, one of those advantages was stout defense. The Hawks were active and energetic from the jump. I don’t recall seeing many lulls. The Bucks stayed in it by making tough shots and scoring off some loose ball scrambles. They didn’t stay in it because of lax rotations, half-hearted closeouts or any of the other lapses we’ve seen from the Hawks lately.
– “Everything was solid from beginning to end,” Woody said. “We are going to need that the rest of the way. We’ll face Cleveland on Wednesday and then we’ve got to get ready for the playoffs.”
– It’s hard to find anything the Hawks did poorly. The 12 turnovers, I suppose, but look at some of the other numbers: 53 percent shooting, 52 points in the paint, six players in double figures scoring, 19 of 27 from the line, 48-34 advantage on the boards, 11 blocked shots, 39 percent shooting by the Bucks . . . you get the idea.
– The added bonus for the Hawks is everything that happened in this game sends a message to the Bucks, who pretty much gave the Hawks their best Bogut-less shot and couldn’t get a lead after the first quarter.
– “I think the focus was a little different tonight considering that it’s a potential matchup in the playoffs,” J.J. said. “Knowing we had this game and one more left, we wanted to go out with a bang and go into the postseason with some momentum.”
– J.J. was excellent. It’s not just that he scored 31 points, it’s that he hung back in the fourth and let others do their thing. He took just three shots in the fourth, only one of them in Iso. The hand doesn’t appear to be an issue so far. “He was solid tonight,” Woody said. “He shot it well and was probing the defense. He did a good job of knowing when he needed to make plays.”
– And how about Zaza? Al gets into foul trouble and the Hawks don’t skip a beat because Zaza scored, he rebounded, he kicked out for open jumpers, he was tough around the basket. “Zaza did a great job coming in,” Al said. “He came in and did what needed to be done.”
– With Crawford out Woody told Rook’ before the game he needed something from him. He got it. “He can stay in front of Jennings and Ridnour and all of those guards,” Al said. “That works to our advantage.”
– “Rook controlled the game for a little bit,” Woody said. “He made a few mistakes but a lot of that was guys not being ready for him delivering the ball”
– Mo was solid as well. Bibby (seven rebounds!) was good. Al had a double-double despite playing just 25 minutes. Marvin was aggressive. See a trend here? “Everybody who played tonight contributed to the win,” Woody said.
– Smoove had six blocks. The Bucks’ guards thought they could go at him when he switched off to them. They were wrong. “They had their bigs switching on onto our smalls and taking advantage of that was difficult for us,” Scott Skiles said.
– The Hawks led from 4:20 in the first quarter. When the Bucks made their inevitable run to cut a 12-point lead to 89-87 the Hawks scored on five of their next six possessions.
– Look how many high-percentage shots the Hawks got during that stretch, too: Marvin slashed through the lane for a basket, Al converted a 3-point play, Al made an open jump shot, Marvin scored on a layup and J.J. made two free throws.
– That was game over. “We executed down the stretch,” Woody said. “It was a hard-fought victory for our team. (The Bucks) are playing for something as well.”
– The Hawks showed how they were in control in the first quarter. Al worked on Kurt Thomas in the post, and J.J. got to the basket. Once the Bucks focused on those two, Bibby shook free for open jump shots and made three straight 3-pointers.
– The Hawks moved 1 ½ games ahead of idle Boston. The Hawks would clinch the third seed if the Celtics lose at Chicago on Tuesday. If Boston wins, the Hawks would need to beat Cleveland at Philips Arena on Wednesday (edit: unless the Celtics also lose to Milwaukee in their finale) to finish ahead of the Celtics.
– “I don’t know if LeBron is going to play or not but it don’t matter,” Woody said. “We’ve been good at home this year and we need a win.”
– I’m out, Hawks fans.
MC
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103 comments Add your comment
Jody
April 13th, 2010
10:00 am
The Cavs don’t want to play the Celtics in round 2. I have a feeling LeBron and Shaq will play in the season finale.
Astro Joe
April 13th, 2010
10:02 am
I personally don’t care about national exposure but for those who do… a Hawks-Bucks match-up will surely be relegated to NBA-TV as it offers virtually ZERO national appeal. Celtics vs. Wade is a far more attractive series to feature on TNT/ESPN.
lewis
April 13th, 2010
10:07 am
they usually figure out tv stuff a year in advance so i’m not sure, but I hope its not on NBA Tv. if its on NBA TV, i can’t watch it on league pass.
Jody
April 13th, 2010
10:10 am
Let’s go Bulls tonight! We need this win.
Section 303
April 13th, 2010
10:11 am
JeJe, a lot of people (including myself) mentioned that the Pistons were dealing with injuries when they beat the Hawks. A lot of people, now, are mentioning that the Bucks have to play without Bogut. So, I think you are trying a little too hard to have your self fullfilling prophecy be true. Your assessment is just totally wrong.
Stat Man
April 13th, 2010
10:13 am
So how big is getting the #3 seed???
Follow me here:
Forget whatever it does regarding the first round matchup. Realizing that you have to play one series (game) at a time – the Hawks should not be concentrating on anything but the big picture, which is, at minimum, the Conference Finals.
Now then – Round 2: Getting the #3 means getting Orlando in round 2 instead of Cleveland. No easy task, but who would you rather play? Additionally, the hopes of the 7 upsetting the 2 are far greater than the 8 upsetting the 1 and should the 7 over the 2 happen – we get home court in Round 2.
From there, Boston played Cleveland even this year 2-2, so a Boston upset in that series should not be dismissed. That happens, then we would have home court in the Conference Finals.
Again, nothing easy about this road, but it’s all certainly within the realm of reasonability.
Now then, fall to the #4 – get to play Cleveland in Round 2 and I don’t think I need to convince anybody that path is 100 times tougher!
So hopefully (a) da Bulls win tonight – and remember, they are fighting to be the #8 seed, so they WANT/NEED to win, resulting in (b) the Hawks-Cavs game tomorrow will feature a ton of bench players to give the starters/Crawford extra time to rest up for the weekend!
lewis
April 13th, 2010
10:18 am
horford needs to call up joakim and tell him to win so we can rest our starters tomorrow.
Gwinnett Fred
April 13th, 2010
10:20 am
What Stat Man said….
jg
April 13th, 2010
10:21 am
Great win last night and actually a fun game to watch. We played well in all areas except two. We had trouble in-bounding the ball late in the game and our free throw shooting wasn’t pretty. The free throw percentage has to pick up starting now!
I heard Mo Evans pregame statement as well–calling the Hawks an under-achieving 50-plus win team. I agree–while I think the team gives it their all 95 percent of the time–I think the under-achieving part is that they need to be more consistent. They should have about 8 to 10 more wins with this club. Just doing those basic fundamental things like boxing out, making ft’s and playing smart would have put this team around 58-59 wins.
The good thing about that is Mo is right–we’re really good to still be able to say that we’ve won this many games and still the team knows they can still and will get better.
Let’s go Hawks–this in my opinion is the best Hawk team I’ve ever seen. I started watching them in the early 80’s…Loved John Drew, Roundfield, Hawes, McMillan, Armond Hill and Fast Eddie Johnson then but this year’s group is better. Really loved the ‘Nique teams of the late 80’s but this team is better and the early 90’s teams of S. Smith, Blaylock, Laettner and Motumbo were pretty stout as well–but still not better than this year’s team. Now this group just needs to take it to another level and beyond–get to the Conference Finals–win that–than let’s jump it up against one of those Western Conference teams that are SO GREAT–and see who wins it all. We’re definitely capable of winning the whole thing THIS YEAR!!!!!!!!!!!
O'Brien
April 13th, 2010
10:47 am
I missed the pregame comments. Mo Evans called the Hawks an underachieving 50 win team?
Really? Wow. Shouldn’t he be happy and content that the Hawks have their best record in years? After all, 50+ wins is a major milestone for these Hawks, and they have a chance at the 3rd seed? Shouldn’t Mo be voting for Woody for COY?
After all, thats how some have suggested us fans/bloggers should feel, just because we think the Hawks have underachieved this year…so I’m glad to know that Mo Evans feels the same way I do.
SWAT Native
April 13th, 2010
10:52 am
Stat Man,
Wouldn’t it be wild for the Hawks to play the Celtics in the Eastern Conference finals with home court advantage?
Astro Joe
April 13th, 2010
10:56 am
lewis, they figure out regular season television schedules in advance but the playoff series aren’t decided until the last minute. That is one of the reasons teams don’t know when they will actually start the playoffs next week… because the networks will weigh-in on help the NBA schedule the games based on selling advertising time. And frankly, I can’t imagine that TNT/ESPN will choose the Hawks/Bucks vs. the other Eastern Conference series.
Ken Strickland
April 13th, 2010
11:00 am
As far as I’m concerned, the playoffs start tomorrow. We have to address tomorrows gm againt Cleveland as though it’s the 1st gm of the 1st rd of the playoffs. All of the issues some of us have with certain players and Woodson go out the window now. We have to go into battle with what we’ve got, like it or not, and it’s going to take the efforts of Woodson and each player to get us where we need to be in this yrs playoffs.
The playoffs are like the start of a new season, and I’m hoping we start this new season off the way we started this regular season off, and that’s KICKING ASS AND TAKING NAMES. GOOOOOOO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ree Roe
April 13th, 2010
11:29 am
@ Astro, I agree. We’ll probably be the first game on Sat on NBA TV or the midday game on ESPN on Sun if we play MIL, but that’s fine. As long as we win, the national exposure will come
-REEal Roe!!!
GeeMack
April 13th, 2010
12:09 pm
When are the Hawks going to start hating some teams, and stop being nice guys.
The only team we seem to dislike is the Celtics, but it’s the Cavs & Magic that disrespect the Hawks most.
I’ve never heard a Hawks player say they dislike the Cavs or the Magic.
However I’ve heard the Magic, and Celtics say the don’t like the Cavs, and vice versa.
The only way the Hawks will compete with those teams is start disliking them. The Cavs swept the regular season & Playoffs last year and 3-0 against us this year.
Time to grow a sack Hawks and act like you belong on the floor with these guys.
GeeMack
April 13th, 2010
12:16 pm
Why in the world are teams resting starter when they get 6 months off during the summer.
The only 2 teams that should be resting player are the Lakers and the Magic. They are the only teams that played for the championship.
I thinks fans should get 1/2 off the ticket price when a superstar sit out, and it not related to injury.
GeeMack
April 13th, 2010
12:18 pm
Stat Man
Orlando and Cleland are on a mission no way they allow lesser seeded teams to beat them in the first or second.
Samuel
April 13th, 2010
12:26 pm
O’brien,
I agree that certain teams have players that negate the effect of the switching more than others but that’s what we play so it’s kinda hard to change now. Like a 3-4 team switching to a 4-3 against certain opponents in football. You do what you do and let the chips fall where they may.
I don’t think we’ll have to worry about the Bobcats or the Spurs from here on out. As for Orlando. If we can play them like we did our last game, we could pull an upset. Cleveland, I don’t have much faith in us beating them. We have no answer for LaBron or Shaq.
JeJe
April 13th, 2010
12:53 pm
Section 303, you have no idea what you’re talking about. People act like injuries hold this team back when we lose. Our level of effort and chemistry when Joe is out is pathetic and we don’t win games without him
Mel
April 13th, 2010
12:57 pm
I think the Bobcats play the Magic well. Correct me if I’m worng, but didn’t CHA take the season series from ORL?
Should be a good series, hopefully a long one.
Section 303
April 13th, 2010
1:09 pm
JeJe, are you saying that the Hawks effort/chemistry is pathetic without Joe? Or, are you quoting the imanginary people in your mind? Just want to know…trying to hit a moving target here.
JeJe
April 13th, 2010
1:12 pm
I can’t believe more people don’t call out Bibby for being overweight.
The guy does NOT use his size to his advantage at all on the court.
1) He cannot post up players a la Baron Davis. B.Diddy uses his SIZE to post up SMALLER players. Bibby doesn’t do this
2) Because he is so big, he is too slow and immobile to GUARD other players. Seriously, someone faces him up, takes one dribble, and Bibby looks like the damn Statue of Liberty after the player has taken one dribble –> !@#$ing joke
So can someone tell me why Bibby feels the need to be so big?
JeJe
April 13th, 2010
1:17 pm
Section 303,
If you really sit up there, you can’t even see the games because all the idiots that sit in those seats are the casual Atlanta folks who know nothing about this team. So STFU and go bother someone else.
Wabe
April 13th, 2010
1:43 pm
Upper-level seats aren’t bad at all.
Najeh Davenpoop
April 13th, 2010
1:43 pm
“If you really sit up there, you can’t even see the games because all the idiots that sit in those seats are the casual Atlanta folks who know nothing about this team. So STFU and go bother someone else.”
This is hands down the dumbest comment I have seen on this blog. I sit in the upper seats all the time, where people actually know what teams are playing. I sat in the lower level for the March 24 game against the Magic, and everyone around me spent more time updating their Facebook statuses than watching the game. I’d be surprised if most of them even remember who won, let alone Josh Smith’s putback dunk.
Marcus
April 13th, 2010
1:58 pm
didn’t see pre-game Mo interview; agree with sentiments: Looking back over the season W/L record, probably 5-6 more wins at a min. and maybe 10 Ws if the same game-long defensive effort and 4Q offensive ball movement/shot selection shown last nite were exuded in those Ls (argument could be made that we should have had an undefeated month of March). That said, this year has been both rewarding (moreso) and frustrating (less so but too frequent for our tastes
) …. on to the playoffs
terrell
April 13th, 2010
2:07 pm
Same ole Hawks. We all know they can beat anyone, and lose to anybody. Nothing new here.
Rick
April 13th, 2010
2:14 pm
LOL. Section 303 is BEHIND the basket.
terrell
April 13th, 2010
2:19 pm
If we get the 3rd seed, we’ll have Milwaukee in rd 1, and Orlando in rd 2. If we play like the ATLANTA HAWKS, and not that other team that we like to trot out there every now and then, this could be our best chance at the Eastern Conference finals, Ever! We might lose JJ this summer? Crawford maybe? Someone might get injured next year? Never know. Some players play for years and never make it out of the 1st rd, much less the Conference Finals. Better make the best of it this year guys. Might not ever happen again. Good luck! Go Hawks.
Mike is Back
April 13th, 2010
2:22 pm
Astro Joe , great point on the other marquee match-ups in the east…they are far more intriguing than the Hawks/Bucks…however, that could be a good thing. The Hawks can fly under the radar, and be absolved of the added pressure of living up to all the ESPN and TNT hype in the first round. Once they make it to the second round, they will have all the exposure they want…and then some. Heck, maybe Jon Barry will scoff at us in the Orlando series like did last year…that should generate some buzzzzzzz….I still like Woody’s response to his theatrics…that was classic. lol
The Hawks are such a entertaining team to watch when they are getting after it on defense…we will get some burn before it’s all said and done. THE BIGGEST THING IS THE FANS NEED TO COME OUT IN DROVES and support this team…no media outlet likes broadcasting a games with a bunch of empty seats. This is the playoff …we need to tighten that up…Usually, the stars come out and make their present felt for the playoff. It should be a lot fun…I’M EXCITED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Section 303
April 13th, 2010
2:25 pm
JeJe, I do sit there. Sat up there for the past 6 years, actually. Can see just fine.
“STFU”..nice. You burned me.
Mike is Back
April 13th, 2010
2:29 pm
I should put a disclaimer on my previous blog. My previous blog is contingent upon the Hawks locking down the third seed, and both the Hawks and Orlando advancing to the second round. Of course we know anything can happen in the playoff…I don’t want to get to far ahead of myself. lol
GeeMack
April 13th, 2010
2:31 pm
Who pissed JeJe off today?
Section 303
April 13th, 2010
2:46 pm
Mike is Back, agree…people need to get to Philips this weekend. I am worried they won’t, though. The last three playoff series have been against star power teams (Boston, Miami, Cleveland). Will people come out for a series against the Bucks? Also, looks like traffic will be an issue and you know no one wants to get caught in the Freaknik (sp?) activities that are going to be going on downtown.
Atlanta’s best team is about to start a playoff run! The fans need to come out.
Mike is Back
April 13th, 2010
3:25 pm
Section 303, I will hear ya bro. You make a valet point about the Hawks playing the Bucks…usually the stars come out to see stars. It is time for these same stars to come out and support the Hawks…regardless of their opponent. Traffic will be a huge issue…usually I park in the parking deck…but now I’m starting to have second thoughts…it may behoove me to go with Marta…its smarter. lol
See ya @ the game dawg…GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
mark
April 13th, 2010
3:33 pm
i suppose if you look hard enough you can always find fault, the hawks played a good game. they didn’t take advantage of the marvin williams luke ridnour matchup with about five minutes left and the the game still up for grabs. still all and all a good win.
northcyde
April 13th, 2010
3:36 pm
Nobody is coming to ATL for Freaknik. I hope people PLEASE don’t believe the hype surrounding that “so-called” event. The “promoter” of the event isn’t anywhere near official. He’s misleading a lot of people on Facebook and Twitter, simply trying to make some money at the clubs.
There is absolutely NO BUZZ about that event. Those kids have no idea what Freaknik was about anyway, outside of that silly cartoon T-Pain created last month.
Mike is Back
April 13th, 2010
3:39 pm
GeeMack, you mean JeJe wasn’t pissed all them other times…WTF. lol
CRYSTAL BALD HEAD
April 13th, 2010
3:39 pm
so the hawks lose to Lebron again get the 4th seed and get knocked out in the first round by the heat that sound about right to everbody ? a 50 + win season right down the chute.
you heard it here first
GeeMack
April 13th, 2010
3:39 pm
Enter your comments here
northcyde
April 13th, 2010
3:41 pm
And it will be predictable if people didn’t show up for the Bucks playoff series. That’s just the way Atlanta is. We need the fans to show up vs the “lesser” playoff teams, just like we need them against the more popular teams.
But it wouldn’t surprise to see 14 – 15,000 in the building for Game 1 . . and that would be a shame. I hope we get more at the game than that. Game 2 though . . on a Monday or Tuesday, may be the most embarrassing. ATL fans, show up to at least one of these games. Don’t make the Hawks look bad on national TV for not showing up to the games ( like you do the Braves sometimes when they make the playoffs )
rusty
April 13th, 2010
3:45 pm
teague will bring a lot to the table. right now i think that he has wings & stays in front of any point guard in the nba .with him in the lineup we dont need to play the stupid switching defense.he can get into the lane anytime he wants to, he can break down defenses,he is a good passer in the interior. he will finish better with experiance. he brings us a more uptempo game which i love for this team. woody has done nothing for him or his confidence. jj has been shooting the ball lately way better than he ever had before. i always thought that jj iso play not only has hurt the team but also himself. he is so much better when he plays within the team. lately most teams havent been double & triple teaming him,but when playoff time comes they will,then i want to see how well he will play & shoot. it took woody a long time to figure out that he coulnt play the second string together but to keep a couple of the first unit in with them. as moe said this team has under achieved, always felt this & always felt it was woodys fault.,iso offense,switching defense,poor substitutions & a complete lack of flexability.he doesnt bring much to the table & if i was a sub on this team i would hate him.
drmaryb
April 13th, 2010
3:49 pm
Najeh
What up man! Thanks for that link to the tix. Also the ATDHE.net to the ustream! You always have the best stuff on here.
Great arguments always great points.
Ken Strickland
April 13th, 2010
3:54 pm
OBRIEN-As a player who’s been in the thick of everything that has and hasn’t been said or done by both the players and the HC, he should know better than any of us fans what this team should have accomplished. He’s been present at every practice, team meeting, halftime, huddle, bus and plane ride, and has heard virtually every comment that’s been made to HC MWoodson, and by him.
With Woodson being in a contract yr, you haven’t heard a single word uttered by a single player that remotely suggests they think he’s doing a good job coaching this team at this stage of it’s development. However, we’ve certainly heard players complain about the team underachieving. I don’t think you will find any player who’ll say Woodson is a bad coach, because he isn’t.
He’s just not good enough to effectively coach this team at this stage of its development and give it what’s needed to progress beyond its current stage of development. Our starting lineup has been together for almost 3yrs, and 4 of our starting 5 have been together for 5yrs. Yet, we consistently hear Woodson use the excuse that they’re still immature. If after 4-5yrs of playing together, a HC is still claiming the same players are immature, THAT FALLS ON HIM.
Nacho
April 13th, 2010
4:07 pm
Teague can push the ball. Bibby can no longer push, he actually pulls back. The Hawks can only grow to the next level by having a fast guard like Teague. He can also play defense. Woody speaks of defense, yet he love Bibby who is a great shooter but a woeful defender.
Astro Joe
April 13th, 2010
4:21 pm
Strickland, did Evans say that Woody has under-achieved? I thought the comment was about “the team”. If, as an example, players are not paying attention to the details of team defense (as reported fairly recently… like yesterday), then is that on the coach or a group of 20-something players who are smelling themselves? Could a team under-perform for reasons that are related to the players as well as the coach? If a player under-performs, is that exclusively the coach’s fault? Are players responsible for anything other than tying their own shoes?
Maybe Evans recognizes the “potential” of the team and is stating that the team (including the coach) still has room to improve. I doubt that anyone would disagree with that sentiment. It is a great place to be… 50+ wins with upside. Better than 35+ wins and wishful thinking (where we were) or 50+ wins and hoping for one last run (this year’s Celtics).
section117lady
April 13th, 2010
4:26 pm
Good game last night. I too hope people come out this weekend. But how stupid can you mbe to criticize someone who is supporting their team. I am fortunate to be able to have the season tickets that I have but one more voice in Phillips is GREAT.
Now being in proximity to the bench that I am, I have to admit I am not a Woody fan,he is full of himself and sadly the guys do not really focus on what he says. Craw and Joe Smith and Bibby get more undivided attention than Woody’s scribble scrabble (college grad haters LOL) on his play board. I think he is a good coach that has hit his ceiling. Go Hawks see you this weekend
Tom
April 13th, 2010
5:04 pm
Nice to see the Hawks beat up on JeJe’s Bucks last night.
Go HAWKS!!
JeJe
April 13th, 2010
5:15 pm
I can’t believe more people don’t call out Bibby for being overweight.
The guy does NOT use his size to his advantage at all on the court.
1) He cannot post up players a la Baron Davis. B.Diddy uses his SIZE to post up SMALLER players. Bibby doesn’t do this
2) Because he is so big, he is too slow and immobile to GUARD other players. Seriously, someone faces him up, takes one dribble, and Bibby looks like the damn Statue of Liberty after the player has taken one dribble –> !@#$ing joke
So can someone tell me why Bibby feels the need to be so big?
JeJe
April 13th, 2010
5:44 pm
Teague can get in the lane but never shoots because he’s too timid
FIRE WOODY