Atlanta Hawks at Bucks Game 6: It’s Not Over
It wasn't too long ago the Hawks were in control of this series. Can they get it back?
So we know the reasons to doubt the Hawks can win tonight. But I keep seeing comments on this blog and hearing people on talk radio expressing a strange sense that they believe the Hawks will win tonight. They qualify their statements to say there are so many logical reasons for them not to feel that way but some kind of hunch tells them the Hawks will do it. The Hawks have been known to be unpredictable.
It’s not out of the question, of course. This is especially true if you still believe the Hawks, when playing to their full potential, are a better team than the Bucks. When the AJC’s Jeff Schultz cornered ASG’s Michael Gearon Jr. , the co-owner made the point that this was the overwhelming view after the Hawks won Games 1 and 2. Now the emotions have swung the other way, which happens in the playoffs. Combine those sentiments with the Hawks’ problems on the road, the Game 5 meltdown, the pressure they are feeling, etc. and it’s not hard to see why there is widespread pessimism that the Hawks can pull it off.
Still, if you try it’s also possible to spin some of what happened on Wednesday into positives. Will J.J., Jamal and Bibby all have terrible shooting nights at the same time again? J.J. probably isn’t going to foul out again since he’s hardly ever done so in his career. It’s doubtful Josh will have to miss minutes because of a busted eye (though I guess you never know with Kurt Thomas out there).
And then there’s the psychology of tonight’s game. No doubt the Hawks are under tremendous pressure to win but what about the Bucks? They don’t have to win tonight but I can’t think they’d be eager to return to Philips since even they know they were fortunate to win Game 5. It’s easy to say it would be no big deal for the Bucks if they end up losing this series because they’ve already fared better than most anyone expected. But now that they are on the verge of springing a major upset while tonight enjoying what has been a tremendous home court advantage, they don’t want to turn back.
Even TNT talking head Charles Barkley, who has ripped the Hawks for their half court offense and players’ attitudes, took up that line of thinking (props to the AJC’s Ken Sugiura for bringing it to my attention).
“The Hawks have a chance,” Barkley said. “This is going to be a very difficult game for Milwaukee. This is the first time that they have the monkey on their back. They have been playing with house money the first five games of the series. When this series started no one thought they could win without Bogut. Then they win the first game and they get somewhat back into it.”
– Super commenter Niremetal emailed in response to yesterday’s blog post on the Hawks’ need for a ‘Zo-like presence:
“Do you think it’s possible to simply bring someone in who commands that kind of respect? I suspect that at least some part of the respect that Zo had stemmed from the fact that he’d been around Miami before, and knew both the coach and a couple of his teammates pretty well. The Hawks’ core has been together for 3 years now. Do you think that if a guy like Haslem or Grant Hill came in, he would get the ear of his teammates like that? I mean, Flip Saunders got tuned out by his players in Detroit. If long-time teammates can tune out a coach, I’d imagine they could tune out a player.”
Niremetal makes a great point. In fact, when ‘Zo was with the Nets in 2004-05, reports out of New Jersey suggested the established Nets players didn’t buy into his leadership style. But the Nets were a different situation than the Hawks. When Zo joined the Nets they were a veteran group that had already been to the Finals. So I could see where Nets players didn’t necessarily appreciate Zo coming in and telling them they needed better focus no matter how hard he worked
It’s also true Zo already had major cred within the Heat organization when he re-joined the team, and his close relationship with Pat Riley also didn’t hurt his standing. It could be that a Zo-like presence on the Hawks could upset the chemistry, which has been pretty good in general (with the notable exception of the bickering we’ve seen when things have been tight in this series).
But how could the Hawks shun a hardened vet who joins the team? The Hawks are a veteran team in the sense that they now have guys who’ve been around but, barring an unexpected run over the next couple weeks, what have they done in the postseason? Not say the Hawks haven’t earned some respect but so far they certainly haven’t made their name in the playoffs. This doesn’t mean the Hawks’ core guys wouldn’t chafe at an accomplished, outspoken guy with a forceful personality coming in as an outsider but it does mean they’d have less of a basis to complain.
–Have fun, Hawks fans.
MC
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657 comments Add your comment
Darren Collison
April 30th, 2010
5:33 pm
That Teague guy ain’t got nothing on me. All-NBA Rookie team. Tell Rick I said thanks for not drafting me!
bigdave
April 30th, 2010
5:39 pm
PTI.. both journalist predict Hawks lose..
Wilbon:
(with smirk) “watch Atlanta too there the kinda team that will go win on the road and lose at home.”
Kornheiser:
“you hate them…”
Wilbon:
“yea i do.”
ant banks
April 30th, 2010
5:39 pm
i hope that the hawks lose the series. there play is embarassin’ and this team needs to be shaken up!!! woody needs to, losin’ this series will surely do that!! let jj walk, he has no heart, at all!!!
TK
April 30th, 2010
5:42 pm
Larry: i think you are right about Wade staying. i think if joe goes anywhere he will end up in washington.—
another note:
I personally like to see joe play when he ie ACTUALLY playing ball and i wish something would happen to make him stay. But i know the hawks cant be successful if behind the scenes garbage continues to toom over the team… all in all i think the hawks had a great regular season but we all know that the hawks may very well be 4-5 years away frim a championship… i love the hawks but we need more then just solid home play. tight knit teams win on the road. we are far from that
northcyde
April 30th, 2010
5:47 pm
JJ or Crawford . . . it’s time for the SUPERNOVA performance that all star players have on the road.
Do NOT let this game get out of hand. And if you have a chance to extend a lead with a few dagger 3 pointers, then don’t hesitate to take those shots.
So if one of you have a chance to SUPERNOVA tonight, then by all means seize the opportunity to do so.
terrell
April 30th, 2010
5:49 pm
Well said Najeh, at 4:44 pm.
Ree Roe
April 30th, 2010
5:52 pm
I’m a diehard fan, but my hope in this motley crew of terrible coaches, petulant wannabe All Stars, boring superstars & draft busts has been vanquished. Hawks will lose spectacularly & the demolition can begin.
-REEticulate it for Roe!!!
terrell
April 30th, 2010
5:54 pm
If we cant win IN MILWAUKEE, we wont win IN ORLANDO. I’m glad we lost game 5, because in order to advance against good teams, YOU MUST BE ABLE TO WIN ON THE ROAD. We have our chance in an hour or so.
Bugiardo
April 30th, 2010
5:55 pm
I have a cousin in Little Rock who informed me that some club in Little Rock is passing out flyers about a party next week that has “Special Guest: Atlanta Hawks star Joe Johnson” on it.
How could JJ have agreed to this already unless he already knew he would be available to attend??
Hmmm, darn that NBA.
Is Stern’s office in Vegas???
O'Brien
April 30th, 2010
5:58 pm
MC,
when Josh left the game with a busted eye, the hawks went on their big run.
I remember Nique saying hawks need to stick with the group on the court.
Najeh,
I think horford can develop into that player. However, with the way this team is constructed, they look up to JJ (including woody), so I think horford’s youth holds him back.
HeavyPetter
April 30th, 2010
5:58 pm
I assume their will be ample deer fear in Georgia tonite.
And that was a cheap shot on my Kurt Thomas. You’re just that Josh Smith is a P.ussy.
HeavyPetter
April 30th, 2010
5:58 pm
You’re just that mad Josh Smith is a P.ussy.
bigdave
April 30th, 2010
5:59 pm
hate to inform u folk.. but promoters will put ur face on a flyer if it will pack a venue..
terrell
April 30th, 2010
6:00 pm
Ree Roe, I take it you dont like this team. lol!
Baldwin County
April 30th, 2010
6:01 pm
outside of metro ATL, we’ve already been “fearing the deer” for decades. They always run across the road getting hit and F#$KING up someone’s car.
sleepy
April 30th, 2010
6:01 pm
O’brien you beat me to it about us actually taking control of the game defensively especially regarding Jennings and going on a nice little run when Josh left.
northcyde
April 30th, 2010
6:04 pm
And what I’ll say to you Ree Roe, is that if we DO make it to the 2nd Round, don’t act like you’re “down” with the Hawks all of a sudden.
That goes for ANY OF YOU BANDWAGGONERS!!!
If you jump off the bandwagon now, don’t hop your butts back on the wagon if we win these next 2 games.
I don’t give a damn how you feel about the coach, the players, or our situation in general. If you hop off the Hawks bandwagon now, DON’T HOP YOUR ARSES BACK ON!!
YOU DO NOT ROOT AGAINST YOUR TEAM UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES !!!!
TK
April 30th, 2010
6:12 pm
i dont think its a matter of us hopping off the bandwagon. moreso evaluating the road we are traveling on… i know me personally i PRAY the hawks WIN. alot of us just are reviewing what it will take to do so and the likelyhood of it actually happening. im still going to pop a beer sit in my chair infront of my bigscreen and cuss the refs for calls against my team and loose balls going to the bucks… i pray the hawks will win but will the team NOT let us down like they did the last 2 seasons? we will see.. if they do im still with the hawks but forget me showing respect for certain players and or the coaching staff after 3 season busts
JoBjo
April 30th, 2010
6:29 pm
this is the biggest Hawks game I can think of since Nique and Bird had their shoot out. Hawks don’t have many big games.
This is a BIG GAME.
Go Hawks!
bigdave
April 30th, 2010
6:30 pm
“YOU DO NOT ROOT AGAINST YOUR TEAM UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES !!!”
ill drink to that..
terrell
April 30th, 2010
6:32 pm
Shoulda picked up Marcus Camby. And I think it’s time for a trade. Too many damn forwards. Doubt we can find a taker for Marvin(possibly after his game 5 performance), so we’ll probably have to move Smith. I like Josh Smith, but I dont know if he’ll ever get IT. Plus he’s the only player that could land us a baller. Lets bring Chills back, and trade Marvin ,Smith, and Bibby for Granger, Earl Watson and Hibbert. lol!
Teague/JJ/Granger/Horford/Hibbert
Watson/Crawford/Chills/draft pick/Zaza
Might as well get some trade talk going. lol!
bigdave
April 30th, 2010
6:33 pm
they might as well pull out the red 285 jerseys and end those woes as well…
JeJe
April 30th, 2010
6:34 pm
FIRE WOODY
TK
April 30th, 2010
6:36 pm
I honestly dont think Joe will stay if they dont make it to the second round AND win a couple
TK
April 30th, 2010
6:38 pm
shoot they might need a ring to keep him… he been in the mix in the talk of team changes.
bigdave
April 30th, 2010
6:40 pm
Joe rolls a big number tonight..
northcyde
April 30th, 2010
6:47 pm
I’m just gonna say it like dude did on Dr. Dre’s – The Chronic – on the song “The Day the ****** Took Over”
********
“Now I’m gonna say this and end mine . . .
If you ain’t down . . for the Atlanta Hawks here
in the NBA, period, point blank
If you ain’t down . . for the players and fans that suffered through losing seasons and ish . .
Homie you need to step your punk arse to the side . .
And let us Hawk lovers . . and real fans . . step in
and let US PUT A FOOT . . IN A DEER’S ARSE !!!
(( chanting ))
break em off some
break em off some
break em off some
break em off some
bigdave
April 30th, 2010
6:49 pm
Woody feels from a defensive standpoint each team is doing whatever they can to keep the other team from scoring..
hmm.. disagree with that..
he says in the first two games the Hawks were really solid. ha, no sh..t
i guess thats whats until Skiles adjusted.
look forward to us doing the same things scheme wise tonight folks.. the pick and roll is murder, yet he thinks were doing all we can defensively. ok.. we must be preeetty bad playing straight up man, bellying up on the screen and roll or trapping it.
VenomSpitter
April 30th, 2010
7:00 pm
Here goes the destruction of the hawks
bigdave
April 30th, 2010
7:01 pm
lets get itttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt!
N-Trigue
April 30th, 2010
7:02 pm
Lol on Josh tellin Woody to shut the #a!# up!!! He prolly was saying sum dumb shh that no one wanted to hear anymore! Let’s go Hawks its not over!! Kil the Deer!!! F PETA!!!lol
kirkinga
April 30th, 2010
7:02 pm
The truth is that Woody was effectively fired when he did not receive an extension. Coach Woodson was on borrowed time from the get go and the real surprise here is that his official termination will come in May rather than this past Winter.
It is also true that many desired to see him fired. It is possible to be sad for our the team’s early exit while at the same time find a sense of relief, even comfort if Mike Woodson is no longer coaching the team.
I have to wonder if Rick Sund is really the guy you want calling the shots at this juncture? If you believe Coach Woodson should not have been coaching this team, then it is hard to explain why the man who made the decision to keep him should escape intense scrutiny.
Parvati
April 30th, 2010
7:06 pm
I guess Mark Bradley got fed up with seeing the Hacks… sorry, I mean Hawks… crapping all over the court.
If you have any poo, now is the time to fling it.
bigdave
April 30th, 2010
7:07 pm
the national anthem..
so easy a cave man can do it..
northcyde
April 30th, 2010
7:08 pm
( tossing Venom into the Gulf of Mexico in that oil . . and lighting him on FIRE )
if you jump off, don’t jump back on
Hawk Fan
April 30th, 2010
7:09 pm
Game 7 here we come, Just got my tix and can’t wait for gm 7 at philips!
F**k the Buck
bigdave
April 30th, 2010
7:09 pm
F**K THE BUCK!
Sautee
April 30th, 2010
7:10 pm
northcyde,
Tell me who is rooting for them to lose?
I Haven’t seen a soul say anything about that (except for the stray Buck fans).
JoBjo
April 30th, 2010
7:11 pm
how can they steal the tap when we got it in the first place?
Melvin
April 30th, 2010
7:12 pm
I dont like the fact that Bennett Salvatore is calling our game.
bigdave
April 30th, 2010
7:12 pm
good move Josh..
VenomSpitter
April 30th, 2010
7:13 pm
Hawks getting outhustled again lol
VenomSpitter
April 30th, 2010
7:14 pm
why dont we play full court press to disrupt and frustrate em
bigdave
April 30th, 2010
7:14 pm
thats fine.. let Delfino play off the dribble..
no switching..
bigdave
April 30th, 2010
7:15 pm
not switching and trapping the pick and roll.. like it..
bigdave
April 30th, 2010
7:16 pm
aint gone be that easy tonight Scott..
sam'l
April 30th, 2010
7:16 pm
Is winning all that important? Or does it corrupt the soul? Will ponder til tipoff.
drmaryb
April 30th, 2010
7:18 pm
Looks like two heavy weights going toe to toe. Measured play on both sides!
Joe needs to take score 32 pts. J-Quick 26 pts. Marvin 15 pts. Al 12 pts & 18 rebs.
JM
April 30th, 2010
7:18 pm
Joe can’t dribble.
VenomSpitter
April 30th, 2010
7:19 pm
LOL @ Marv