Atlanta Hawks: The defense tests
L.D. is pushing them on D, too. (AP Photo)
You might have noticed a lot of the talk from Hawks camp has been about offense. Two reasons for that, both having to do with circumstance.
For one, my access to practices has been limited. When I’ve been let in to watch the sessions the Hawks usually have been working on offense. So it follows that most of my dispatches have been about offense.
More than that, L.D. has spent the majority of practice time installing his complicated offensive system. But don’t t fret: L.D. knows tough defense is what makes true contenders. When the Hawks huddled up at the end of practice Thursday, he delivered this message to the team:
“Defense is what is going to carry us through the season. I’m not concerned about what we do offensively. The focus of the preseason is going to be defense. We are going to look at numbers like [defensive] field-goal percentage and the whole defensive realm. That is what is going to take us to another level. We have the athleticism, size, speed, and quickness to be a top-echelon defensive team.”
While teaching the offense has been a priority, L.D. said the Hawks have had defensive periods of at least one hour at the start of every practice. That work includes individual drills and also work on situations.
“That’s important because the tendency for a lot of players when they are drilling, they will do the drill but as soon as put them in game-like situations they have a tendency to forget or they are not as sharp,” he said in an interview. “Because now you are changing ends and it is forcing them to think about other things as well, and the tendency is to not be as sharp. We are stopping them and pointing the things out and watching a lot of tape to show them the mistakes.”
That’s the kind of work that should improve Atlanta’s defensive awareness, especially in transition. If L.D. can get the Hawks to truly buy into a culture of maximum defensive effort and toughness while also making them less predictable on offense, the Hawks might have a chance to be a better team even with essentially the same personnel.
Hey, it’s October. Nothing has gone wrong yet. This is the time for optimism, right?
L.D. said he would track defensive statistics throughout the season and give the players constant reports. The “hustle board” will include deflections and charging fouls drawn–the Hawks were last in the league in the latter category last season.
“My challenge to them is going to be defensively every night,” L.D. said. “We already have some numbers in mind where we want to be compared to last year. That is going to me a primary focus every night we step on the floor. [The 'hustle' numbers] gives us a gauge whether we are being active and making defensive plays. Because I think that is going to be the staple of who we are going to be.”
No GM love
You have to look pretty deep into the NBA.com’s annual survey of general managers to find the Hawks represented. The team didn’t get any votes to win the Southeast Division (not that it should) and none of its players earned superlatives (those are some tough lists to crack).
Smoove was on the “also receiving votes” list for players who best defend the passing lanes. JC2 was among those ARV for rookie most likely to be a “sleeper” success.
J.J. received at least one vote for “most underrated player acquisition” but, confusingly, he’s the only guy on the list who didn’t change teams. And GMs were not allowed to vote for their own team or personnel so, no, that wasn’t Rick Sund’s vote.
Al vs. Noah
Al’s friend and former Gators teammate Joakim Noah agreed to a five-year, $60 million extension with Chicago that also includes bonuses.
Noah’s deal gives some sense of what Al might expect for an extension with the Hawks. Statistically Noah and Horford are comparable players, though Al is younger by more than a year and has proven more durable. The Bulls are more flush with cash than the Hawks but so goes the price of keeping young talent.
Horford said he talked to Noah before his extension was official and was happy to see him get his deal. Does Al think he will be next in line?
“We’ll see,” he said.
Nov. 1 is the deadline.
Two debuts
L.D. has been around the league for a long time as a player and assistant coach but this will be a new experience for him at Philips tonight. It’s just an exhibition, but it’s his first time in the head coach’s chair.
Does he have any feelings on that?
“I just want to see everything that we have put in,” he said. “I am anxious to see how we can do it against an opponent. I know I have been waiting for this moment for a long time. But somebody asked me this question last night about having butterflies. I just told them, ‘I think I am too old to have butterflies.’
“I am more anxious and excited than anything. If I came in with a group of new guys for the first time, maybe there would be more anxiety. But we have been together for a while.”
This is my seventh season covering the league, but I am curious to see what the Hawks are about, too.
It’s all new for JC2, who is hyped to play his first NBA game, exhibition or not.
“I’m definitely looking forward to getting out there and play with the team on the real floor and just have a good time,” he said.
Crawford said a couple friends wold be there tonight to watch but that his family will wait for the Hawks to play in his native Detroit Monday.
Out of sight, sound
No TV or Radio for the game tonight, but you can follow my updates on Twitter.
MC
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215 comments Add your comment
Marcus
October 7th, 2010
10:59 am
Wow. so we won’t get to see any footage of the new-look Hawks, not even NBATV?
sigh
Such is the life of a Hawks (Falcons, Braves, sometimes Thrasher) fan. I am still waiting word on when ESPN – ATL.com will make its debut
Marcus
October 7th, 2010
11:00 am
First. Mo Evans, gimme dat jersey.
SteveW
October 7th, 2010
11:00 am
Great post MC – keep up the good work. Can’t wait to see the D either.
Marcus
October 7th, 2010
11:02 am
forgot the ATL Dream …. Hope the Braves make to the WS, Falcons make it the SB, and Hawks make it the NBA Finals to get us a trophy and put pressure on thew webmasters at “the worldwide network” ….. LOL
SteveW
October 7th, 2010
11:02 am
I certainly agree we have the talent to be a top echelon defensive team.
truthspitter
October 7th, 2010
11:10 am
hi
dstdeelite
October 7th, 2010
11:30 am
Finally some talk about defense. Yay!! In late game situations, they were totally burned on the defensive end. Good D has a lot to do with effort. The only person that I know on this team who will step in and take a charge is Smoove. Even though he doesn’t get a lot of the calls, the effort is there.
dap01
October 7th, 2010
11:33 am
It is nice to have a head coach that has something to contribute. He has a clue. Woodson spoke of repeated generalities that really meant nothing.
We have an offense and a defensive plan. Wow, how refreshing.
HoosierHawk
October 7th, 2010
11:38 am
really…. no coverage of teh game? im assuming there will be gamecast though?
Samuel
October 7th, 2010
11:43 am
“Defense is what is going to carry us through the season. I’m not concerned about what we do offensively.
While teaching the offense has been a priority, L.D. said the Hawks have had defensive periods of at least one hour at the start of every practice.
Not too convincing to me. “At least one hour”. So some days it was less than an hour and the remainder spent on offense. That sounded like an obligatory statement to me. He sounds like the perfect “Anti-Woody” for you guys.
SteveW, I hate to bust your bubble but 5:30 is definitely not “world class” in the mile. That time would not even crack the top 10 in the “Girls” High school Class 5A State Championships. JJ maybe World class in Basketball but not running.
HoosierHawk
October 7th, 2010
11:49 am
Not that it is pertinent to real basketball, more so just to analysts not giving the Hawks any love this year, Marvin is rated a 66 in NBA 2K11 game, and Teague is a 63. Wow. They rate mo evans> marvin!
Rev in Tampa
October 7th, 2010
11:50 am
Coach Drew said, “We have the athleticism, size, speed, and quickness to be a top-echelon defensive team.” – Sounds just like Ken Strickland.
“J.J. received at least one vote for “most underrated player acquisition” but, confusingly, he’s the only guy on the list who didn’t change teams. ” – I have contended the whole off-season that JJ signing was the most important ‘aquisition’ they could have made. Its not as sexy as bringing in a new marquee player, but more important for the Hawks continued success
Good article, MC! D-Fence!!!
Rev in Tampa
October 7th, 2010
12:09 pm
Samuel, I am surprised by your post. The distrust, the distortions, the leaping assumptions…
LD said that defense is his priority, plain & simple. Why don’t you believe him?
“At least one hour” means that they spend an hour or more every day on defense. Where did you get that they spent less than an hour on some days?
You said that Drew is making an “obligatory statement” about defense. I would say spending “at least an hour” at the beginning at practice is prioritizing defense. As a coach you want to do your most important teaching at the beginning of practice while their minds are not distracted by their fatigue. Also, Samuel, are you asserting that all that stuff Drew said about tracking defensive and hustle statistics was made up for the newspaper?
Astro Joe
October 7th, 2010
12:11 pm
between the high number of back-to-back games, the motion offense and the likely foul trouble that comes with aggressively trying to draw offensive fouls, the bench will have plenty of opportunity to earn their paychecks this coming season. I guess asking them to get in position to draw offensive fouls first requires getting back quickly on defense in the transition game… so that is good. But I am not a big fan of having our guys standing their looking to draw offensive fouls. I’d much rather the get back and try to stop dribble penetration before giving up their bodies to a possible foul (or injury). But again, without getting caught up in specifics, getting back and in position to defend is the primary focus (I’m guessing).
Samuel
October 7th, 2010
12:28 pm
Basically, the entire preseason has been about the new and improved offense. I don’t think I made that up. Check the headlines. The only mention of defense is what we won’t do. (Switch) and an occasional mention of “holding players accountable”. Right?
Rev in Tampa
October 7th, 2010
12:31 pm
Samuel,
The Hawks just started actual practices a couple of weeks ago. Before practices started there was nothing to do but talk. And the press has not been privy to the beginning of practice when they practice defense… as MC just explained.
STEEL(Formerly VenomSpitter)
October 7th, 2010
12:44 pm
LD>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>WOODY in everyway except talking in cirlces
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
12:54 pm
@MC, Ask Drew if he has Lester Conner working with Bibby on his lateral quickness.
SMH, did you read that Bibby article? If you can’t play D then you shouldn’t start. Even Steve Nash can guard a stop sign….unlike Bibby. Let’s also not forget that dude can barely dribble anymore. Nobody’s RUSHING Teague to do anything, YOU JUST SUCK BIBBSTER. I’m just stating facts here man. Westbrook, Collison, Holiday, Rose, Rondo, Brooks, Billups etc. Etc. will all eat Bibby for breakfast this season LIKE THEY’VE BEEN DOING….FREAKING Jordan Farmar Gave Bibby the business last season. Jordan Farmar?
I WONDER which one of the guards Didn’t finish the mile in LD’s required time Hmmm? I can take an educated guess though. First name Cheeseburger last name Bibby.
I.MUS WRITE
October 7th, 2010
1:01 pm
Why is the open practice on sunday during the falcons game -talk about poor planning. I usually go but I’ll pass this year.
Predictions-Bibby will start game 1 at pg
Marvin will still be clumbsy and timid
Etan and zaza will be thrown blows by December
JJ will be complaining soon about a better offense that doesnt allow him to shine as much
Good Luck guys -its gonna be a long season
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
1:04 pm
I bet all Bibby did this off-season was shoot wide-open jumpers in an empty gym just like last off-season. No cardio, No defensive drills, no ball handling drills, Just jump-shots and cheeseburgers. PROVE ME WRONG!
Even Derrick Fisher works on his total skillset in the off-season STILL. The footage is on NBA.com man. I’m tired of this. I hope LD knows what he’s doing., because there are some VERY fast, VERY strong, and VERY young guards (John Wall AKA Mini Lebron) out there getting premium PT while Teague watches Bibby waddle down the court with the ball like he’s marvin. He can’t even dribble in a straight line anymore man! Somebody get a clue!
I’m done.
vava74
October 7th, 2010
1:04 pm
Rev,
How can you be surprised at Samuel’s post? He was chanting Woody for COY all the time around here.
For him Woody with his “low turnovers, ISO offense” and our gimmick “switching D” was the best coach around… all “orchestrated” in notoriously loose and low demand practices.
The Truth
October 7th, 2010
1:07 pm
From the previous blog:
Ken this comment about Dwight:
“TRUTH-None of us knows what he’s worked on this off season”
LOL after I showed you a video clip with him being trained by Hakeem Olajuwon, you say that? What is it that you did not see or don’t want to believe from the video; is it that you don’t believe that was really Howard or Hakeem making the video production perhaps? Or maybe you don’t believe that Howard actually took those shoots? Man, like any faithful fan, I hope the best for the Hawks this upcoming season but I will not be blinded by false beliefs whether they are positive or not, false or unsubstantiated assertions or related claims; the video speaks for itself. You know this reminds me of a Richard Pryor standup joke he did some years ago that went something like thing:
An unfaithful husband was caught by his wife nude in their bed cheating with another woman. The man jumps up, puts his clothes on and said to his wife: Are you going to believe your lying eyes or what I’m about to tell you. You didn’t see anything. The faithful wife was so blindly in love with her husband she actually agreed with him; HONEY, I BELIEVE YOU, I DIDN’T SEE ANYTHING. So, the woman being so entangled in her emotions for her man, she yielded to even what her naked eyes told her.
I hope you got my drift with this. After the game tonight maybe the conversation can shift from fantasy basketball to what we shall see with our own naked eyes. Some fans however may still be so entangled in their past feelings and emotions that the reality of what is on display may be insignificant to them.
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
1:07 pm
“I’m just trying to get better every day. I’m working hard. Trying to do everything I didn’t do last year and get better, Teague told HOOPSWORLD during media day. “I’m working on jump shot, defense and getting stronger so I can come back and shock some people that didn’t get an opportunity to see me last year. Hopefully I can prove some people wrong and do some things they didn’t get to see last year,” said Teague.
Read more NBA news and insight: http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=17536#ixzz11h4eGRiO
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
1:13 pm
@ STEEL Cosign 12:44 pm post
cp
October 7th, 2010
1:14 pm
I see Woodrows number one fan is missing him. MC specifically stated why he hasn’t wrote much about the defense yet Woodrow’s number 1 guy still found a way to over look it. You just have to love that…. Hopefully the guys buy into what LD wants done defensively because as stated the Hawks have the athletes to get it done.. Sucks that it wont be any footage of the game.
O'Brien
October 7th, 2010
1:17 pm
Samuel,
I understand the skepticism. But woody had 6 years. This is LD’s first as HC. At least wait until we are 20 games in (a quarter of the season) before u overly criticize his methods.
AJ,
I understand your point, but Charges are a good thing. One guy might get beat at times, but one way his teamates can pick him up is to draw a charge on his guy. Maybe we can get some called on LeBrat.
I do share ur concern about injury and foul trouble though.
vava74
October 7th, 2010
1:22 pm
The Truth,
Howard is notorious for not using his summer to improve his skills but to do movies and non basketball related stuff.
He worked out a less than a week with Hakeem. Yes, it should make a difference and he should improve as a consequence of that workout but it will not be significant if he does not put a continuous effort.
STEEL(Formerly VenomSpitter)
October 7th, 2010
1:26 pm
Everybody the game is gonna be coming on channelsurfing.net at 7:00
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
1:30 pm
YESS!!! ‘preciate that STEEL.
Gray Mule
October 7th, 2010
1:31 pm
So, people assume that the old coach and the new coach are exactly alike. These are the same people who would look at a female and say,
“All women are alike.” Or, if it’s a woman, she would say, “All men are alike..”
Why are we to assume that nothing will change? And, this is before any one has even watched them play their first pre-season game.
If the Hawks are not immediately successful, although it’s pre-season,
listen for the critics as they come out of the woodwork, blasting everything.
Gray Mule
Section 303
October 7th, 2010
1:47 pm
I am looking forward to the game tonight.
I wanted to see Pope Sy. Is he out for tonight’s game? My list of who I most want to see tonight:
1. Sy
2. Jordan Crawford
3. Thomas and Powell
josh
October 7th, 2010
1:50 pm
i was at that season preview with ld and sund – he mentioned that hes too old to have butterflies, but instead has gnats, lol. but yeah, im super interested to see how everything plays out. it’s one thing to have a plan, but how effective it is can only be tested by opposition. we shall see tonight!
and yeah, thanks MC, always a good read.
truthspitter
October 7th, 2010
2:00 pm
JJ is the leader and ran the best mile on first day 5:30. Teague came in 2nd at 6 minutes. Zaza came in third. What a shame Marvin can’t be 1st in anything other than highest picked on team
The Truth
October 7th, 2010
2:05 pm
shoots = shots (dam keyboard, time for an upgrade)
i_am_soulstar
October 7th, 2010
2:15 pm
Alright! Steel, you’re a lifesaver.
Astro Joe
October 7th, 2010
2:26 pm
Section 303, I don’t think Sy has been healthy since he arrived from France. You will likely find him in the Speedy Claxton chair tonight (and the next night, and the next night…)
Section 303
October 7th, 2010
2:47 pm
Astro Joe, I hope that is not true. Though, even if Sy is hurt forever, he still is no Speedy. Speedy robbed the organization blind. And, I still say he knew he was hurt when he signed the deal. Should have run that guy out of town on a rail.
slim
October 7th, 2010
2:49 pm
what does that headline mean?
The Truth
October 7th, 2010
2:50 pm
One thing about Sy vs. Speedy Claxton, the rip-off (if it is one), won’t be as great. Purely speculation on my part, but the NBA demands on a player like Sy with his limited background during training could cause a much slower progress. Would it be a surprise if it took him the whole season to just properly condition his body?
Astro Joe
October 7th, 2010
2:51 pm
OB, if Drew is tracking their success at drawing offensive fouls, then he is also measuring their effort to get back and defend in transition. I absolutely applaud that aspect of the tactic. Taking charges and flopping? No, thanks.
Astro Joe
October 7th, 2010
3:04 pm
I wasn’t equating Speedy to Sy. I was just pointing out the chair where the “too injured to practice or play” sit. And we all remember where Mr. Claxton sat for 3 LOOONNNGGG years. Assuming that Mo recovers well from his summer surgery, Sy should get a lot of time in the NBDL this season.
BBgenie
October 7th, 2010
3:20 pm
Let’s see what kind of Toughness the Hawks will bring to the court. Will Collins get a good look? Will we see Al play some(4)? How will the Fans react to Joe Johnson??????? Can Smooth become the team leader we need on the floor? See you there!!!!
Guido
October 7th, 2010
3:34 pm
NBATV on October 21 – 22 is suppose to broadcast Hawks real live training camp and other behind the scenes stuff.
northcyde
October 7th, 2010
3:44 pm
Key matchup I’ll be looking at:
Jeff Teague vs Acie Law
It will be interesting to see these 2 go up against each other. If not for the Jamal trade, this could’ve very well have been our depth cart at PG last year.
Samuel
October 7th, 2010
4:18 pm
Barcelona looks good against the Lakers right now. Lakers are playing as hard as they can with their starters and Barcelona hanging tough. I’m impressed.
Samuel
October 7th, 2010
4:18 pm
Rubio sucks!!
northcyde
October 7th, 2010
4:54 pm
BB . . if even one fan boo JJ in a friggin preseason game, they should never come back to Philips ever again. I remember a NFL preseason game in Nashville, in which Titan fans were booing Vince Young a little for a horrible performance.
LOL . . what kind of psychos boo the home team in a preseason game?
Astro Joe
October 7th, 2010
4:56 pm
Samuel, did you get my email?
Grandad
October 7th, 2010
4:59 pm
Samuel
HS girls are not lugging 240 lbs around the track
on a 6-8 frame either.
For a man his size…..that’s haulin’ ass!
Ken Strickland
October 7th, 2010
5:07 pm
TRUTH-If you’ll recall, JSmoove also spent an off season or 2 working with Hakeem. But once the season started, we saw him all but abandon most of what he’d learned. It’s extremely difficult for anyone to instinctively incorporate something they’ve only worked on one off season with a tutor.
I’m not worried about DHoward. The Magic are little more than a jump shooting team, specifically a 3pt shooting team. Take that away, and they can be had. There’s no way DHoward, with his limited OFF skills, can carry a team offensively for an extended period of time without help.
If you put constant DEF pressure on their PG’s, which Bibby couldn’t do, and keep them out of the lane, you’ll limit a lot of the lob dunks Dwight usually gets against us. Again, you’ve got to get rid of this old mentality that says we have to stop the other team by trying to match up to them and what they’re doing. Under LDrew, we’ll now force teams to contend with us and what we’re doing.
It certainly appears we have a lot of cry babies, whiners and negative minded individuals liberally sprinkled among our fans. Some of them are so seriously short sighted and negative minded, if another team, like the Bulls, is faced with the same issues as the Hawks, such as a new HC, new OFF/DEF, players buying into the HC and his systems, these extremely narrow minded fans can only see the Hawks being affected by these issues. WHERE’S THE LOGIC?
It’s like those who say we’re UNDERSIZED with 6′10 AHorford at C, yet some of these same complainers made pleas for us to sign 6′10″ AStaudemire or 6′10″ AJefferson so we could move 6′10″ AHorford to PF.
AGAIN, WHERE’S THE LOGIC?
The so called UNDERSIZED Hawks, with a so called UNDERSIZED All Star C, managed to finish ahead of all of the bigger, or so called NORMAL SIZED teams. I’ll take having a so called UNDERSIZED team with 53 wins and the #3 seed, over having a bigger center and/or team that can’t measure up to those accomplishments.
MC-Since the gm won’t be broadcast, why not give us a detailed run down of the gm tomorrow. You know what most of us want to know, and that’s the progress of 1-JTeague, 2-MWilliams, JoCrawford, JPowell, MBibby, JCollins and EThomas. We also want to know how well the players executed the motion OFF, and man DEF.
s, or oversized Eastern Conference teams.
Ramon
October 7th, 2010
5:54 pm
@ Ken, I think I have to disagree with you some. The reason we didn’t see much of Josh’s workouts with Hakeem and Calvin Murphy pay off much was Woody rarely put him on the lower block. The few times that Josh was on the block he did do quite well there, and shot a high percentage. His running left hook has had some good success. That’s why Grandad mentioned about Horford and Smoove trading positions on offense. Having Smoove on the block, with Al being at the elbow for the pop.
Ramon
October 7th, 2010
5:57 pm
@ Ken, but I do agree with you on the Howard situation. The best way to be Orlando is to not double him. If Howard goes off for 48 points, that’s a lot better than giving up 14 3pointers to the perimeter guys. Also, I would rather see the Hawks ATTACK Howard on offense in the first quarter. If Howard has ten blocks in the first quarter with 2 or 3 fouls, you win. Sure the ten blocks may make Sportscenter. But for the rest of the game you have Howard thinking about his foul situation before reacting to the drive.
Previewing the Atlanta Hawks Preseason Opener | Hawk Tawk
October 7th, 2010
6:16 pm
[...] having the number 3 offense last season, Drew says the defense will carry the team. [AJC Hawks [...]
Michael Cunningham
October 7th, 2010
6:35 pm
@Hmmm:” @MC, Ask Drew if he has Lester Conner working with Bibby on his lateral quickness.”
not sure what can be done about old age. but i will say Bibby was one of the fastest guys in many of the sprints i saw.
Michael Cunningham
October 7th, 2010
6:36 pm
“MC-Since the gm won’t be broadcast, why not give us a detailed run down of the gm tomorrow.”
don’t i always, TV or no TV? it will be posted tonight.
northcyde
October 7th, 2010
6:55 pm
LOL @ people downplayng JJ’s mile time. The only people running sub 6 minute miles, regardless of age, are the ones who either train to run that distance, or athletes who run 3 to 5 miles periodically.
I would bet money that if MC asked JJ about his offseason training, part of it would include distance running. So when Drew asks the team to bust out a timed mile run in the first few days of training camp, JJ runs it with ease and leads the team.
It’s just another instance of JJ leading by example.
But the questions that people should be asking are these:
1) Why/How did Smoove and Horford let a much bigger Zaza beat them in the mile?
2) Is Zaza a better conditioned athlete than both of our new captains?
3) Did the new captains not care enough to set the example that JJ set, so they took the mile run easy and did the bare minimum to complete it?
There’s a very big reason as to why JJ is still one of the captains on this team, other than his huge contract.
Samuel
October 7th, 2010
7:00 pm
AJ, no I didn’t, Which address did you send it to?
Samuel
October 7th, 2010
7:03 pm
Granddad. He’s also 6′8″, so weight is relative. No excuse. Again, 5:30 is not that great, sorry. 30 years ago maybe but not nowadays.
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
7:06 pm
Running a mile is tricky, They probably burnt themselves out by sprinting the first quater mile at full speed (after thet anyone would be finished…it’snot 100 meters lol). It’s all about pace-setting with those long runs. You have to know when to turn it on and be able to sustain a pretty decent speed the whole way through.
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
7:08 pm
I imagine Smoove probably got out of the gate the fastest and then flamed out lol.
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
7:10 pm
Thanks for the update MC. Bibby is pretty decent running forward, it’s that backpeddaling thats his problem. Just not his thing. I would hope that some amount of training in that area would help him a little.
Melvin
October 7th, 2010
7:14 pm
Ha,ha.. Smoove scored the 1st basket of the game..
STEEL(Formerly VenomSpitter)
October 7th, 2010
7:15 pm
Damn it’s still not showing
Melvin
October 7th, 2010
7:15 pm
Marvin 1st shot, blocked…lol
Samuel
October 7th, 2010
7:15 pm
I see Bibby started. Fire LD. LOL!!
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
7:19 pm
when I was in HS I had to run the mile in PE and I got a 7 flat. I joined the track team later that year and after that, my time got down into the low 5’s. If they specialized in running, they would all have amazing times. I was originally dissapointed at my 7 flat the first time because I hooped all the time. It’s just not the same thing.
Melvin
October 7th, 2010
7:19 pm
STEEL, i think we are out of luck tonight…
STEEL(Formerly VenomSpitter)
October 7th, 2010
7:19 pm
Ahhhhhhhh Dammit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Grandad
October 7th, 2010
7:24 pm
Samuel
“lugging 240 lbs around the track on a 6-8 frame either”
I did mention his hgt.
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
7:26 pm
This Sucks
cp
October 7th, 2010
7:28 pm
Is the game going to come on or not. It keeps saying check back in a few moments.
DP
October 7th, 2010
7:29 pm
HOW IS EVERYBODY WATCHING THE GAME??
IS THERE A WEBSITE OR SOMETHING I CAN GO TO???
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
7:32 pm
I found a link to the game here: http://www.rajangan.net/
but the required plug-in is not compatible with my computer configuration
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
7:32 pm
I don’t think it is. I’m watching the Celtics and nets instead. When I refreshed the page the ATL-GRIZZ like was gone. Guess they took it down.
cp
October 7th, 2010
7:33 pm
Now they have removed it from the options so no luck for us.
cheeseburgerless collins
October 7th, 2010
7:45 pm
gay box score: http://www.nba.com/games/20101007/MEMATL/gameinfo.html#nbaGIboxscore
slim
October 7th, 2010
7:50 pm
audio league pass is not working either. bummer.
Najeh Davenpoop
October 7th, 2010
7:53 pm
Over 50% shooting, an assist for nearly every made basket, Teague playing significant minutes, outrebounding the other team nearly 2 to 1, and holding the other team to 31% shooting: good. Missing nearly half your free throws and turning it over 6 times already: bad.
Najeh Davenpoop
October 7th, 2010
7:57 pm
Also, nice to see Acie Law getting some burn with Memphis. I hope he finds a way to stick on that roster.
slim
October 7th, 2010
7:59 pm
how can you see Acie? Najeh? you at the game? got a link to the game?
Samuel
October 7th, 2010
8:02 pm
6′8″ means your legs are longer and you are much stronger. No excuses!!
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
8:04 pm
Yahoo Box Score
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/boxscore;_ylt=Aql_n6g12NX4rj4_mP0BUgq8vLYF?gid=2010100701
Astro Joe
October 7th, 2010
8:06 pm
Samuel, torchlight advertising…. is that right?
Najeh Davenpoop
October 7th, 2010
8:09 pm
I meant “see” as in “see on the box score”, sorry. I can’t see the game any better than y’all can.
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
8:10 pm
Bibby 11min 0pts, 1ast, 1stl
Teague 9min 7pts, 1reb, 1stl, 1ast
mario
October 7th, 2010
8:13 pm
I agree with Marcus earlier comments….Braves WS, Falcons SB and the Hawks, not saying I am not confident in this team, but hopefully we are one of the teams looking at carmelo, if so Finals…….also I am eagerly awaiting ESPNATL.COM as well….
vava74
October 7th, 2010
8:19 pm
I dedicate this to Mr. Marvin Williams:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xos2MnVxe-c
Please check this out!!!!
Astro Joe
October 7th, 2010
8:20 pm
Who’s teaching free throw shooting these days?
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
8:21 pm
54 – 33 Hawks at the half.
They took care of business. J-Teague with 10pts
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
8:23 pm
we’d be up by 30pts if we could hit more than half of our FT’s (13-25 Smoove was one of the culprits)
BrittishAnger
October 7th, 2010
8:23 pm
Defense is on the up and up, now if we could only make some free throws….GO HAWKS!!!
STEEL(Formerly VenomSpitter)
October 7th, 2010
8:24 pm
I see 7 people have 2 asts. There sharing the ball.
Rev in Tampa
October 7th, 2010
8:26 pm
Who’s teaching free throw shooting these days? – Mark Price
BrittishAnger
October 7th, 2010
8:28 pm
I guess with a defense this tough and an offense this efficient (when Marvin is your high man, that’s efficiency), maybe free throws don’t need to be a positive (somewhere in the locker room, Josh Smith just felt his heart jump, and he doesn’t know why)….
Rev in Tampa
October 7th, 2010
8:34 pm
vava, you are right. Marvin is having a good game. So far everything the Hawks are validating everything that LD is preaching offensively and defensively. But, of course, the nay-sayers will say its only Memphis…
STEEL(Formerly VenomSpitter)
October 7th, 2010
8:37 pm
LD>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Woody the Woodpecker
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
8:38 pm
Bibby better pick up the pace if he wants to keep his spot in the starting lineup *evil laugh*
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
8:40 pm
Teague is on a mission. If he keeps this up he’ll finish with about 20pts in 24 minutes. That’s production.
Najeh Davenpoop
October 7th, 2010
8:45 pm
13/25 free throws… damn.
northcyde
October 7th, 2010
8:46 pm
Pretty much the perfect 1st half.
- 15 assist on 19 FGs ( despite 10 turnovers and 4 to’s from JJ )
- Teague playing a flawless 1st half
- Marvin leading scorer ( 11 pts ) and has shot 5 FTs
- Held Griz to under 35% FG
- Hawks shot 25 FTs ( reminiscent of the 2006 – 07 Hawks )
- Jason Collins 3 – 3 FG ( had 6 pts in 4 minutes, something he probably has never done in his life )
Other than all of the missed FTs, Bibby being invisible, and Jordan not getting it going yet, it was damn near a perfect half.
STEEL(Formerly VenomSpitter)
October 7th, 2010
8:47 pm
Gotta work on those FTs
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
8:48 pm
- Marvin leading scorer AND leading rebounder AND tied for lead in assist. (as of 8:00 to go in the 3rd)
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
8:48 pm
Of course, Marvin has also clocked the most minutes. Even still those are good numbers.
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
8:50 pm
Any word on why Jamal Crawford and Etan Thomas are not seeing any playing time?
Any word on where Jordan Crawford’s shot is hiding at?
Melvin
October 7th, 2010
8:51 pm
Bibby has played 15mins and hasn’t attempted a shot yet…WOW
Najeh Davenpoop
October 7th, 2010
8:52 pm
So is Jamal just not playing in preseason at all, or is he injured?
Najeh Davenpoop
October 7th, 2010
8:53 pm
Never mind, just saw the tweet.
Najeh Davenpoop
October 7th, 2010
8:54 pm
Nice to see that Marvin hit a 3… he’s going to have to do more of that with Teague on the floor this year in order to stretch the defense.
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
8:55 pm
See this is why Zaza isn’t a starter. Three fouls in one quater? Collins enters the game for him.
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
8:56 pm
Well, that solves the Jamal Crawford mystery. But why is Etan not getting any playing time? Is he hurt, too?
It’s nice to see both Marvin and Teague have good games. GO HAWKS!
Trent
October 7th, 2010
8:56 pm
Big Al didn’t start in the second half, yet all of the other Hawks starters resumed play as usual. I wonder if the Hawks are still resting his ankle or if it is still bothering him. Aside from that, the Hawks are looking pretty good. I noticed their defense has degraded a bit in the second half without Al in the lineup.
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
8:59 pm
Grizz mounting a comeback. utscring us 20-9 this quater. Umm Maybe Al should come back in the game? LOL
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
9:01 pm
Ethan Thomas enters for Jason Collins…man our bigs suck without Horfrd. Powell just got ripped by Rudy gay smh.
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
9:01 pm
OK. It looks like Etan has finally entered the game. Two mysteries down, one to go.
Roy
October 7th, 2010
9:02 pm
Wow, the Hawks are getting abused in the third quarter. This is unreal, they basically blew their entire lead in less than 1 quarter. The Hawks bench is really starting to hurt them lol.
Ken Strickland
October 7th, 2010
9:03 pm
If the Hawks keep producing at this rate, it will provide a tremendous confidence builder for the players, and their belief in LDrew’s motion OFF and man DEF. As the players become more familiar with the OFF, they will make it more efficient and productive.
While I agree with the opinions about us needing to make our FT’s, I’m very, very excited about the fact we’ve attempted 25 by the half. That’s attacking the basket, which will go a long way towards neutralizing an injury prone player like DHoward.
I see the motion OFF much like I see the Falcons no huddle OFF. It’s a change of pace, and it puts tremendous pressure on the DEF. Can you imagine Shaq and JOneal trying to keep up with any of our Bigs in the motion OFF? Even PGasol and ABynum will have difficulty with it.
Look, I know it’s early, and this is only our first exhibition gm, but I have to say, I TOLD YOU SO, HA HA.
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
9:03 pm
WOW the Griz came all the way back. 62-63 hawks. This is sad.
Roy
October 7th, 2010
9:04 pm
Outscored by 22 points in only 8 minutes. Unbelievable…
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
9:05 pm
Most of the comeback happend wth the starters in the game also. Zaza got abused and we’re turning the ball over way too much.
Roy
October 7th, 2010
9:05 pm
Lol, make that outscored by 24 and counting. The Hawks really need to get their starters back in game if they want to stop the bleeding.
Roy
October 7th, 2010
9:06 pm
By starters, I meant Horford. Most of our back-up bigs are scrubs. Horford holds down the paint pretty well though.
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
9:07 pm
Josh is playing SF now with Powell and E-Thomas in the lineup. Teague & JC2at guards. Grizz up 66-63
BrittishAnger
October 7th, 2010
9:07 pm
…and Jordan’s on the board at 2:12 left in the third….
Ramon
October 7th, 2010
9:08 pm
The Lakers just lost today to a team that’s not even in the NBA. THE LAKERS!! And you guys are tripping about the Grizzlies coming back with their starters against the bench? Wow..lol
Samuel
October 7th, 2010
9:08 pm
Looks like LD in Zen Master “East”. Let em play through it. LOL!! If this was Woody you guys would be screeming bloody murder. I’m sure KS will spin it though. LOL!!
BrittishAnger
October 7th, 2010
9:08 pm
…mark that, 2:30…..
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
9:08 pm
The Grizzlies have kept 3 starters on the floor for the entire 3rd quarter. On the other hand, for most of the 3rd quarter, the Hawks have only had one of their starters in the floor. So, yeah, the Grizzlies “core” versus our “scrubs” … what else do you expect?
Rashard
October 7th, 2010
9:09 pm
This sort of reminds me of the old “4th quarter meltdowns” during the Woodson era. However, this is a 3rd quarter meltdown, instead. I can’t blame the starters fully though. It looks like the coaching staff is messing around experimenting with different line-ups that clearly aren’t working
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
9:10 pm
Maybe if Bibby had scored some points…
Samuel
October 7th, 2010
9:11 pm
Looks like JC2 needs to develop a conscious. 1-6 and 0-4 from 3pt range. LOL!!
Rashard
October 7th, 2010
9:11 pm
Even though Memphis has played a more starters in the second half, I’m still a bit shocked at how bad the bench is. The starters are going to have to play inflated minutes during the season if this keeps up.
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
9:12 pm
I forgot with no Pape Sy or Mo Evans, we don’t have a backup SF tonight. I doubt the J-Smoove at SF experiment will work.
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
9:14 pm
Keep in mind two of our key bench players (Jamal and Mo) are not even playing in this game. So, it’s not like is the “best of our bench” vs. their starters. It is mainly our scrubs versus mainly their starters.
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
9:15 pm
75-72 Grizz at end of 3rd.
Roy
October 7th, 2010
9:16 pm
I can’t believe that the Hawks gave up 42 points in the third quarter after only allowing 33 points in the entire first half.
kwooden1
October 7th, 2010
9:16 pm
Hate to lose a lead, but the bench needs the work. Really wish I could see this game!
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
9:17 pm
We were outsocred 42 – 18 in the 3rd QTR. MY Goodness! Still only down by 3pts though.
Samuel
October 7th, 2010
9:18 pm
5 min on D and 2 hrs 55min on the motion offense. LOL!!
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
9:18 pm
Now it looks like it is our starters (-Horford) vs. their bench … time to bring the blow out back!
Roy
October 7th, 2010
9:19 pm
Looks like the Hawks are putting most of the starters back in for the fourth quarter. Looks like Big Al is done for the night. He hasn’t played at all in the second half, so I’m assuming they are still letting his ankle recover. Lets see how the starters + tonight’s foul machine (Zaza) do against the Grizzlies.
Melvin
October 7th, 2010
9:21 pm
why play the starters heavy mins in a preseason game? The 1st preseason game at that…
Roy
October 7th, 2010
9:21 pm
Josh and Joe both have 5 turnovers tonight. Things are getting a bit sloppy…
Roy
October 7th, 2010
9:23 pm
Melvin, in most cases, I would agree about not playing the starters heavy minutes in the preseason. However, in this case, this would be a great time to get the guys used to running the new offense and practicing defensive schemes with the typical lineups that we’ll see during the regular season. They don’t have to play heavy minutes, but at least 20 minutes for each starter sounds good.
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
9:25 pm
All starters except for Al already have 20+ minutes each.
BTW, Josh just got hurt … it doesn’t look like anything too serious, though.
Astro Joe
October 7th, 2010
9:26 pm
Roy, they are beyond 20 minutes already… Josh is pushing 30 already.
Roy
October 7th, 2010
9:29 pm
Yeah, I like the way minutes have been managed so far, but I don’t like some of the line-ups that have been out there. I understand that it’s preseason and the Hawks are shorthanded in terms of players tonight, but I just wanted to bring that up. I don’t really see any advantage to playing Josh at the 3 in most cases. He will hurt you more on defense at the 3 than he will help you on offense at the 3.
By the way, the 4th quarter thus far has basically been the Hawks starters (- Horford) vs. the memphis bench, and things have been pretty even. I think it’s safe to say that the Hawks are a lot better both offensively and defensively with Al on the floor.
Melvin
October 7th, 2010
9:30 pm
Roy,
J from A post is the reason why you do want your main guys play heavy mins in the preseason…
Roy
October 7th, 2010
9:30 pm
Astro Joe, I wasn’t saying that they weren’t getting enough minutes. I was just answering a question/comment about how many minutes I would like to see the starters play in the preseason.
Roy
October 7th, 2010
9:31 pm
Melvin,
I agree, but I don’t think 20 minutes would be categorized as “heavy minutes” by any means. That’s basically 5 minutes per quarter.
Melvin
October 7th, 2010
9:39 pm
Roy,
I would say 20mins max with no playing in the 4th qtr for your starters. Marvin has log more than 30mins and still playing. Thanks to at the ASG, the Hawks do not have many invitees into training camp. Not too many options for LD…
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
9:43 pm
We took the lead, Marvin got ripped then we lost the lead. 3min to go do four points. Lets see what we’ve got
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
9:46 pm
Josh took five stitches to his right hand
Rashard
October 7th, 2010
9:46 pm
The ending to this game should be interesting, considering both teams are using scrub lineups for the most part.
SteveW
October 7th, 2010
9:47 pm
Al’s had an ankle injury, so I’m sure he’s just resting it. Same with Jamal’s back injury. Some Observations:
The Griz’s starting 5 is good! Yeah, I know we smoked them, but Gasol, Randoph, and Gay are a quality frontline. And Mayo and Conley aren’t bad in the backcourt either. Thabeet may turnout to be a good ball player also. Don’t see much of a bench beyond him though.
Teague belongs.
JC2 needs some work, but with Mo’ and Jamal out, this is good for him.
Everything else about what you’d expect. No real surprises, except maybe Collins may help a little more than thought – he may beat out Etan for that coveted 3rd Center position. About the Griz’s – I don’t see the Griz’s being a pushover this year by any means.
Can’t wait to see what we look like when Jamal, Mo’, and Al are full strength.
P.S. All of you summer bloggers that kept wanting to trade for Randolph – good idea – good ballplayer.
SteveW
October 7th, 2010
9:50 pm
Melvin – we actually have 17 guys in camp – but with Sy, Jamal, and Mo’ out, kind of hurts our minutes for the 3 spot. We can’t even bring in Jamal and move JJ up – JC2 yes, but not Jamal.
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
9:50 pm
All tied up w/ 30 second left.
O'Brien
October 7th, 2010
9:51 pm
We suck at FT? Bring back mark Price lol.
MC,
I look forward to your summary, and LD’s comments.
drmaryb (*_*)
October 7th, 2010
9:52 pm
Play by Play!
Hey fellas, thanks for the live game action posted.
Nice to follow the action when not able to PC-Sit tonight.
Good stuff going on. Looks like THU, OCT 7, 2010 will use all
of his weapons this season.
How does THU, OCT 7, 2010 look in the 1st chair? Comfortable?
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
9:52 pm
Overtime anyone?
Najeh Davenpoop
October 7th, 2010
9:54 pm
36 minutes is way too much for a starter to be playing in preseason, even if he is the weak link in the starting lineup.
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
9:54 pm
Marvin finishes regulation with a double/double 18 points 10 rebounds 3 assist 1 steal 1 turnover … not too shabby.
J from the A
October 7th, 2010
9:55 pm
Teague looked good, too, finishing regulation w/ 18 points, 6 assists, 2 steals, 3 turnovers
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
9:59 pm
Getting our doors blown off in OT right now.
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
10:00 pm
101 – 108
Melvin
October 7th, 2010
10:00 pm
SteveW,
Good point on the injuries. However their are some teams with more than 17 on their camp roster…
Najeh Davenpoop
October 7th, 2010
10:01 pm
Solid line for Acie.
SteveW
October 7th, 2010
10:04 pm
O’Brien – my post exactly – are we sure we should have released Mark Price? Game would have been over if we could hit some foul shots. 60%? Bad – Griz’s 31-34, 91.2% – very good.
Najeh – maybe LD thinks Marvin needed the PT? Or is it just #’s with no Sy, Mo’, and Jamal? Maybe trying to teach him leadership playing with the 2nd team.
Najeh Davenpoop
October 7th, 2010
10:04 pm
On another note, why do they even have overtime in preseason?
kwooden1
October 7th, 2010
10:06 pm
Najeh, Good Question??
drmaryb (*_*)
October 7th, 2010
10:11 pm
Sounds like Teague and Marvin are ready to go!
Remember, Marvin is the only name I saw on our trading
block, so he has to start stringing together more games like
this.
If he can put up consistent double-doubles?
Ill take 10 & 10 all day from him!
Like Barkley said, “You can not win w/o the ball!”
Melvin
October 7th, 2010
10:17 pm
Law may have scored a career high on the Hawks….lol, Karma…
O'Brien
October 7th, 2010
10:19 pm
Law had 19 and 5. Pretty good numbers. but then again, Teague had 20 and 6, so that was a wash.
It will be interesting to hear LD’s take about how we give up 42 points in the third quarter, after we gave up only 33 points in the first half.
kwooden1
October 7th, 2010
10:20 pm
Looks like Acie is showing out. I’m happy for him, even if it’s against us.
drmaryb (*_*)
October 7th, 2010
10:21 pm
Get Buckets!
Looks like the Hawks will again have no issues with scoring.
The Defense is where I will be cautiously optimistic & watching
with my ole’ eagle eyes!
Too many points allowed tonite – no excuses!
STEEL(Formerly VenomSpitter)
October 7th, 2010
10:24 pm
I bet Acie was like “Yea I hope that punk Woody saw me”
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
10:27 pm
Good Game. At least we didn’t loose to FC Barcelona. LOL
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
10:28 pm
Bibby Had 2 points in 22 minutes.
Yarn
October 7th, 2010
10:31 pm
How boring!
drmaryb (*_*)
October 7th, 2010
10:31 pm
Bibby apparently was not looking for his shot.
Nothing to prove there, we all know he can score.
Yarn
October 7th, 2010
10:33 pm
Does anybody really care?
Yarn
October 7th, 2010
10:35 pm
There is a basket weaving contest on espn if you guys want to switch over.
drmaryb (*_*)
October 7th, 2010
10:35 pm
northcyde!
Are you at the arena in Memphis tonite?
I thought so, tell us what you saw?
Yarn
October 7th, 2010
10:36 pm
Tell her Im not interested
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
10:39 pm
drmaryb (*_*) , You don’t think Teague has a good chance to unseat Bibby? Maybe not, but LD didn’t say the competition was over yet. I’m cautiously optimistc.
Hmmm
October 7th, 2010
10:41 pm
Did y’all see this?
http://dimemag.com/2010/10/whos-better-al-horford-or-joakim-noah/
Yarn
October 7th, 2010
10:42 pm
Theres only 2 people on this site who the f k is yall?
Melvin
October 7th, 2010
10:42 pm
1st half highlights from tonight’s game…
http://www.nba.com/video/games/hawks/2010/10/07/0011000017_mem_atl_play4.nba/index.html
Grandad
October 7th, 2010
10:46 pm
No other choice @ the [3]. (but Marv)
Even flexible parts:
*Joe & *Josh / LD didn’t ewant to put them back in.
Really wish Paps could’ve played.
Melvin
October 7th, 2010
10:50 pm
Hmmm,
The funny thing about your dime magazine link is, there’s a poster name Joe’s Mama that suggested he would take Al over Noah. And we around this blog know that Joe’s Mama is another handle for a particular blogger thats currently on MC’s banned list…LOL
truthspitter
October 7th, 2010
10:53 pm
42 PTS allowed in a quarter. Larry Drew’s disregard to defense showing already
Grandad
October 7th, 2010
10:56 pm
Projections: (hypothesis)
Al = 16 & 12 + 1 blk
Josh = 18 & 8 + 2 blcks, 2 stls, 4 asst.
Marv = 13 & 8 + (35% 3pt)
Would this be satisfactory from our starting front line?
Rev in Tampa
October 7th, 2010
10:57 pm
11 PTS allowed in a quarter. Larry Drew’s emphasis on defense showing already
Grandad
October 7th, 2010
11:07 pm
truthspitter
Who was on the floor during the 3rd?
Rev in Tampa
October 7th, 2010
11:11 pm
Grandad, its a shame that one quarter by our scrubs are going to drown out all the positives from the first half. I’m with Ken. This is going to be a very exciting year in Atl.
truthspitter
October 7th, 2010
11:18 pm
Who was in the game in the 3rd?
northcyde
October 7th, 2010
11:20 pm
No ma’am @ drmaryb. I’ll be in the arena on Opening Night when the Hawks go to Memphis.
MC’s write-up on tonight’s game should be interesting. We saw the good and the bad tonight. The one bright spot is definitely Teague. He more than held his own tonight, even though Acie took over the game at the end of the 4th and into OT with his FT shooting.
SteveW
October 7th, 2010
11:21 pm
Grandad – a comment and a question – Those stats would be waaay below the stats for Memphis’ frontline. Something to think about.
And where is Al going to get 12 boards from? He hasn’t busted 10 per game yet in a seasonal average, and hasn’t really improved in that category for a couple of years.
About Acie – dudes per was 16.2 last season. I still think he’s got a shot to be an average NBA PG (or maybe slightly above avg.). Or at least a solid #2.
cp
October 7th, 2010
11:21 pm
Looks like Teague wants that starting position. I have been saying all summer that it wasn’t Teague that I was worried about but our scrub bigs on the bench. Teague will be fine but I still don’t like our bigs on the bench…I see the Woodrow lovers are in full force tonight.I don’t think acquiring Dampier would be a bad idea. Our bench bigs are terrible.
Grandad
October 7th, 2010
11:22 pm
Rev in Tampa
The naysayers won’t drown out all the positives.
truthspitter is to our blog
-as-
Michael Savage is to right wing talk radio.
northcyde
October 7th, 2010
11:24 pm
When you go to ESPN and look at the play-by-play . . it was Zaza and Josh Powell that kind of sparked that long run the Griz went on. Too many fouls and turnovers committed by those two in that quarter.
truthspitter
October 7th, 2010
11:30 pm
Who else was in there with them northcyde?
drmaryb (*_*)
October 7th, 2010
11:33 pm
SteveW asked:
“And where is Al going to get 12 boards from? He hasn’t busted 10 per game yet in a seasonal average, and hasn’t really improved in that category for a couple of years.”
SteveW great question there. Maybe he can grab a few extra
defensive boards by not switching out on perimeter guards on
the old gimmicky defense. I know they will still have to switch
some though. Also, SteveW I hop he can grab an offensive rebound here
and there.
Al was actually teetering around 10 boards per night anyways.
But, we shall see. I hope to see a lot of hustle plays from
these guys too. They’re paid enough to hustle – right?
drmaryb (*_*)
October 7th, 2010
11:35 pm
Coach Drew wil prolly take a look at his direct deposit
statements and say – damn!
“What’s Goin’ On?
-Marvin Gaye-
Yall MF’s better hustle! LOL!
Samuel
October 7th, 2010
11:39 pm
truthspitter
Who was on the floor during the 3rd?
That outstanding bench we got that will allow us to go 12 deep. Yea right. Looks like “Duck” might replace our “Max” contract stud on the All Star team this year. All that running around for 10 points. How long before JJ starts bitching and moaning?
Memphis played last night you know.
drmaryb (*_*)
October 7th, 2010
11:46 pm
Samuel,
Calm down baby, it’s going to be aiight.
This was a practice game – that’s all.
Film study tape.
Instructional video.
O'Brien
October 7th, 2010
11:47 pm
Samuel,
Now is the time to evaluate the bencch. I think the starters will be fine, but he needs to know what the bench is capable of.
Plus Jordan went 5-15, and Jamal didnt play
JeJe
October 7th, 2010
11:48 pm
MC, great updates.
Question: How do Marvin and Bibby look? These are the 2 most important players (maybe besides Teague) in terms of this team moving forward. Does Marvin care? Is he in shape? Can he make those jumpshots now? Is he shooting 3s again?
truthspitter
October 7th, 2010
11:52 pm
Seriously people are overreacting. Teague looked like Chris Paul last preseason and Jamal Crawford look like he was on his last league. So, I must say that preseason means nothing
truthspitter
October 8th, 2010
12:05 am
Braves suck. They gave the game away by swinging and manure in the dirt, choking chumps. I look forward to watching our Hawks all season choke away 20 pt leads at home
Grandad
October 8th, 2010
12:39 am
truthspitter
How did you like that call @ 2nd?
Pitchin’ was great!
For you to lambast the Braves for tonights game
after the way lincecum pitched …..
shows you know as little about baseball as
I do about “horse-doeuvres”.
Seriously – what about that call?
By the way I’m actually an expert on horse-doeuvres.
Rev in Georgia
October 8th, 2010
12:40 am
Grandad is to this site what Gilligan is to the professor…. a babbling idiot. This aint your site idiot. it belongs to all of us. Not just your controlling posterior.
Grandad
October 8th, 2010
12:49 am
SteveW -&- Mary Ellen
They ain’t gonna come from anywhere,
he’s gotta go get ‘em!
[Al = 12 boards]
* I hope you noticed the *Word* (hypothesis)
That was not a prediction !!!
By the way;
Al, Josh & Marv:
* those #’s total 45 & 28.
* Zaza = 5-7 & 4-5
* All the rest = gravy
That’s not bad for a frontline whose Alpha Dawg is a guard.
Remember I was posing a hypothetical.
What if?
Grandad
October 8th, 2010
12:53 am
* All the rest = gravy:
[Meaning - Etan, Cottage Cheese, -&- Josh #2]
Grandad
October 8th, 2010
12:56 am
Rev in Georgia
Thank you sir.
Your point is well taken.
The names have been changed to protect the innocent!
KevinM
October 8th, 2010
10:26 am
I disagree because I think the preseason means everything for the players on this bench.
You’ve got a roster with starters who will all get 32-35+mintes/game with the exception of Bibby/Teague.
Behind that, you’ve got scraps to choose from to get some playing time. Don’t expect any consistency from guys who get less than 10 min/game. And did Collins get a rebound in his 6 min?
If anybody is scrapping for minutes IMO, its going to be given to Josh Powell first. I dont’ think Zaza has a quality game for 27 min.
I would think in these types of games, you are looking for some consistency. Guys are getting used to playing with each other. One game won’t determine how good this team is, and Memphis had its highs and lows too.
And no excuse for missing free throws, whether we have a coach for it or not. I don’t give that to Dwight Howard either, and he shot over 800 last year.
Well, something to build upon, and while everyone wants to see JC2, but we already know what JC2 is….a hired gun.