Milwaukee Bucks at Atlanta Hawks: Bucks looking for ‘true nature’
Remember when everyone said the Bucks might overtake the Hawks this season? Maybe it still happens but Milwaukee is 3-5 and couldn’t find much offense until shooting 53 percent to beat the Knicks 107-80 last night.
Michael Hunt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel thinks that was “the first real hint of their true nature,” just in time for the Hawks:
How long does it, or should it, take for an NBA team to disclose its real identity?
“I wouldn’t want to put a time frame on it,” Bucks coach Scott Skiles said. “I don’t know what the true nature of the team would be yet.”
For this group, it wouldn’t be the bricklayers who were 30th out of 30 teams in scoring and 29th in shooting percentage on the way to a 2-5 start, with seven of the nine in the rotation missing more than six of every 10 shots taken.
But Skiles noted the Bucks are ahead of his schedule defensively. Defense, of course, is what made the Bucks a tough out for the Hawks in the East semis last spring even without Bogut, a capable post defender.
Tonight will be a good chance to see how Atlanta’s new offensive approach works against a rugged defensive team. It worked pretty well against Orlando but Milwaukee plays a different style.
“They are a dangerous team,” L.D. said. “It’s just a matter of time before they get it clicking. It’s going to be a physical game. I told our guys, the first words out of my mouth were ‘playoff intensity.’ Skiles’ teams in the past have always been physical teams, so we have to be prepared for a physical game.”
Not his policy
L.D. said he’s not married to the strategy of keeping Al on the bench when he gets two fouls in the first half. It’s just sort of worked out that way.
“What has happened with that, Al has gotten two fouls, but the team had been playing well,” Drew said. “They were in a little bit of a rhythm. Had it been the other way around, I would have put him back in. I had sent him back to the scorer’s table in the second quarter [at Orlando], but I pulled him back because the team had started to get in a rhythm and a flow.”
So L.D said it’s not necessarily going to be something he does all of the time. In fact, he said he’d like to leave Al and the other starters out there in those situations so they can get accustomed to it.
“I want our guys to learn to play with two fouls,” he said. “I don’t want guys to think every time they get two fouls, they are coming out the game.”
Injury report
Mo participated in the shootaround today and is set for a full-contact practice tomorrow. If all goes well he could return to play Friday against Utah.
Marvin also participated in shootaround and was “moving very well,” Drew said, but he’s not expected to practice tomorrow.
Drew said the lineup shuffling necessary due to the lack of small forwards has been “OK” but he’s playing Josh and J.J. more minutes than he’d like. Joe has played 40-plus in five of the last six games. Smoove hasn’t played quite as many minutes but L.D. notes the rotation out of whack because when Joe goes he has to leave Josh in until Joe returns
Another possibility broached by L.D.: playing Teague, Bibby and Jamal together to “buy some time,” though L.D. said the Hawks would have to play zone defense with that lineup to avoid being hurt by post-ups.
“We’ve been piecing it together,” Drew said.
Carlos Delfino is out for the Bucks.
MC
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270 comments Add your comment
Von
November 10th, 2010
9:06 pm
What the heck is Scott Skiles trying to prove? The game is almost over and his team has a huge lead, yet he decides to put his starters back in. Is he really that worried about our bench scrubs going on a 20-0 run and winning the game in a few minutes?
kaminari
November 10th, 2010
9:07 pm
The Hawks haven’t beaten a decent team yet. I hope they pull it together soon.
~~MAC-ToWN~~ (Area Code 478 Westside Macon)
November 10th, 2010
9:07 pm
I just want to hear Drew’s post game remarks
Najeh Davenpoop
November 10th, 2010
9:08 pm
Oh yeah, and you can’t complain about spotty home attendance when you lay down and die in a game like this.
JeJe
November 10th, 2010
9:08 pm
LOL @ ANNOUNCERS ACTING LIKE EVERY LOSS IS A MORAL VICTORY. WTF IS THIS – A 20 WIN TEAM? OH WAIT I SAID THIS SAME THING 2 DAYS AGO
bigdave
November 10th, 2010
9:09 pm
im not sure how Jeff can help us in a starter role b/c he still hasnt proven he can hit an outside shot… and by design our pg needs to be able to do that.
Loserville USA
November 10th, 2010
9:09 pm
Should have left the starters out there to take the entire beating. Many of the guys are inconsistent, lazy prima donnas.
Wabe
November 10th, 2010
9:09 pm
Drew has to find a way to get this kid JC2 some minutes.
Teague’s solid when he’s playing fearless.
He plays too timid/passive when he’s nervous.
Jeff Newman
November 10th, 2010
9:09 pm
how many hawks fans were in house to witness this??? answer: all 5 thousand of them!! hahahahhahahhahhahahhahhhahahhahahhahahhahaha
Big Ray
November 10th, 2010
9:10 pm
Northcyde ,
Somehow I knew you couldn’t resist throwing the bottle of hatorade at Teague, LOL. I really did have to laugh at that one.
Dude has to learn to play with the starters. He’s still thinking “pecking order.” Everybody in the world can tell him to do otherwise. But until the guy gets it himself , it won’t matter who says what. He just has to get there. Or NOT.
He runs the second unit just fine if he’s not out there with Jamal, who won’t exhort him to do something himself. You know Jamal….give him the ball and he’s gonna do something with it, plain and simple. He’s a hired gunslinger.
What I find ironic is that Jordan Crawford is a gunslinger too (with passing ability and desire, that is), and Teague has zero issues playing with him .
~~MAC-ToWN~~ (Area Code 478 Westside Macon)
November 10th, 2010
9:10 pm
LOL!!!! @ Pachulia
get him out off this team
Najeh Davenpoop
November 10th, 2010
9:10 pm
“What I find ironic is that Jordan Crawford is a gunslinger too (with passing ability and desire, that is), and Teague has zero issues playing with him .”
Yeah, it’s all mental.
Najeh Davenpoop
November 10th, 2010
9:11 pm
When Zaza is your leading scorer, it’s a pretty safe bet that the game didn’t go all that well.
JeJe
November 10th, 2010
9:11 pm
EVERYONE RAVED AFTER THE ORLANDO GAME ABOUT HOW THIS TEAM IS TURNING THE CORNER….BESIDES ME
YEAH WHERE ARE U ALL U OPTIMISTS NOW? TIME TO ADMIT THE TRUTH – THIS TEAM IS A FRAUD
Najeh Davenpoop
November 10th, 2010
9:12 pm
Even the boos from the fans sounded half hearted.
JeJe
November 10th, 2010
9:12 pm
JO-CRAW PUT UP NUMBERS AGAINST SCRUBS
STFU WITH THIS “JO CRAW NEEDS MORE MINUTES”
DUDE IS RAW AS HELL AND IS NOT ROTATION MATERIAL
Hawks v Bucks
November 10th, 2010
9:13 pm
having the starters sitting on the bench like they’re getting a well deserved rest is just embarrassing, they’re the ones who created that mess … should have put them back in there for the final minute
O'Brien
November 10th, 2010
9:14 pm
Najeh,
With Brandon Roy not 100%, its possible Portland might take the JC1 for Pryzbilla and Fernandez deal.
Collins is a better defender than ZaZa, so maybe LD needs to give him some of ZaZa’s minutes. I think we need a more physical backup center than ZaZa.
Where is the ZaZa from game 1? Or was his play because Randolph and Gasol didnt play?
Wabe,
Agreed. JC2 needs minutes. If he plays well, that gives us trade options for jamal (who I think we should have traded over the offseason for a wing or for frontcourt help).
JeJe
November 10th, 2010
9:14 pm
“So, while we’re in here having a “misery” party, does anybody think maybe we should have signed another wing player, perhaps another point guard, or maybe not sold picks for “cash”?”
yes I’VE SAID THIS FOR WEEKS
WE SHOULD HAVE SIGNED JERRY STACKHOUSE. NOT CROUTON THOMAS
lewis
November 10th, 2010
9:15 pm
nash trade sounding good right about now
Najeh Davenpoop
November 10th, 2010
9:15 pm
“STFU WITH THIS “JO CRAW NEEDS MORE MINUTES”
DUDE IS RAW AS HELL AND IS NOT ROTATION MATERIAL”
Probably, but he is good enough that he deserves minutes somewhere. If not with the Hawks, he deserves to get minutes in the D-League. Having a guy sit on the bench and watch is no way to develop him, as Teague and Acie Law can prove.
Wabe
November 10th, 2010
9:15 pm
JeJe,
JC2 can ball.
Period. Doesn’t matter if it’s in garbage time. If you run sets for the kid and free him up, he can get you buckets.
He’s also got some decent court vision.
BTW, you say the Hawks are garbage as it is, so it shouldn’t be hard to find minutes for him. He has to outplay a bunch of scrubs…right?
O'Brien
November 10th, 2010
9:17 pm
Meanwhile, Jazz lead Orlando by 2 in the fourth quarter (after trailing by 18 earlier in the game).
Last night, they trailed Miami by 22, and came back and won. Wow.
Jazz are on a 24-4 run. Wow
terrell
November 10th, 2010
9:18 pm
Our bench just isnt deep enough to have 2 out of the top 8 players out. It’s starting to show.
JeJe
November 10th, 2010
9:20 pm
“BTW, you say the Hawks are garbage as it is, so it shouldn’t be hard to find minutes for him. He has to outplay a bunch of scrubs…right?”
THEY ARE SLIGHTLY BETTER SCRUBS
THE BENCH CAN BE SUMMED UP AS THIS: IF ZAZA PLAYS WELL, IT’S GREAT. IF HE STRUGGLES, THE BENCH SUCKS
SEASON ALREADY FEELS OVER TO ME.
LOSING AT HOME TO A STRUGGLING TEAM ON 2ND OF B2B
WOW
AND THIS IS 2 DAYS AFTER OUR “AMAZING” EFFORT VS ORLANDO AND ALMOST BEATING THE CRAFTY PHOENIX SUNS
WTF ARE U DOING LARRY DREW?
FIRE DREW
FIRE SUND
JeJe
November 10th, 2010
9:24 pm
Van Exel’s only job is to pump up Teague. WTF did he do the last 8-9 games?
FIRE VAN EXEL
CLYDE WHERE U AT?
JeJe
November 10th, 2010
9:24 pm
EVERYONE CALM DOWN. WE HAD INJURIES. IF MARVIN HAD PLAYED TONGIHT, WE WOULD’VE WON… U KNOW…SINCE MARVIN IS AN ALL STAR
LOL!!!!!!!
FIRE SUND
Bailey
November 10th, 2010
9:26 pm
The Hawks are plummeting down the standings as of late. I don’t get it, how can people have no pride whatsoever. It’s like no one on the team outside of Al Horford has any problem with getting blown out. The Bucks made some tough shots tonight, but more than anything, the Hawks, in conjunction with L.D.’s decisions gave this game away.
The Bucks really didn’t make any big adjustments on defense during the game, but the Hawks decided to go away from everything that worked, meanwhile L.D. decided to bench everyone who gave the team a chance at the worst of times.
What are the repercussions of this? A post-game interview where L.D. or someone in the staff mentions that the effort wasn’t there? A quote saying that the Hawks will “look at film”, a line from L.D. saying that he is working on instilling that “defensive mindset” into the team. The thing that annoys me the most is that no matter how good one or two of our guys are playing, someone on the perimeter almost always seems to ruin things, or if by some miracle the opposing team does not find a way to exploit our perimeter D, our bench bigs lay an egg and throw the game.
Something needs to change, because obviously the mentality hasn’t changed. Anyone can look good against the timberwolves, but when you get blown out by a team that shouldn’t even make the playoffs it shows that you are doing something wrong.
Big Ray
November 10th, 2010
9:26 pm
For those screaming about the bench….you’re right. But you’re only about half right.
Take a look at the line by the starters. See anything you’re in love with?
Exactly.
bigdave
November 10th, 2010
9:27 pm
“i gotta find a better substitution pattern”
LD
Big Ray
November 10th, 2010
9:28 pm
And as usual, we’re throwing darts at our favorite targets….
Enough of this sky is falling nonsense. Tell me that when we’re below .500 or something. I’m out…
bigdave
November 10th, 2010
9:29 pm
“gotta find better combinations to use to sustain.. im not getting it done”
LD
Big Ray
November 10th, 2010
9:29 pm
Bigdave ,
Better for him to be thinking about a better substitution patter after only 9 games. I remember a coach who wouldn’t even consider the notion until the 5th game of the first round of the playoffs….
superiorblogman
November 10th, 2010
9:30 pm
Al is so so soft that is just getting annoying. Blow this piece of shi… squad up and move them out of KKK land.
Big Ray
November 10th, 2010
9:31 pm
Hard to do without certain resources.
Woody had that problem too, though I questioned the use of some of his resources. Again, better to hear that early on, when facing adversity.
As I recall, Hawks enjoyed good health last season. Sund gave Drew the same roster minus a part or two substituted for some other parts. And guess who let Sund do it?
kwooden1
November 10th, 2010
9:31 pm
I don’t have much so say! I’m glad I missed this game. This team better get into the gym and find out what is the problem. They have to find a way to play better defensive and execute their offensive!
GO HAWKS!!
Loserville USA
November 10th, 2010
9:31 pm
Good luck Drew. Prima donas are hard to deal with.
bigdave
November 10th, 2010
9:31 pm
he’s repeated that using different verbiage @ least 5 times.. even said maybe he’s playing guys too many minutes..
doesnt sound like he has any of that Woodson in him where he says he has to change something yet falls victim to the same thing..
Wabe
November 10th, 2010
9:32 pm
Just a suggestion, you can laugh if you want, but just a thought.
Shake things up.
I know it’s early, so experimenting a bit wouldn’t be out of the realm here.
Give JT0 the nod as the starter with the 1st unit. This isn’t to reward the kid for anything, nor is it a knock on Bibby. But, balance things out. Give Teague the opportunity to run with the starters, and add another reliable plug into the bench with Bibby. Bibby could provide some stability, and another offensive option off the bench.
The knock on this, and I already know it’s coming, the defense. Bibby + Crawford paired with horrid frontcourt play will kill the Hawks defensively. I get that.
But, again, it wouldn’t hurt to shake things up a bit and experiment.
Just a thought. Probably a lousy one, but one I’d at play with if I was 9 games into the season looking to bring stability to the 2nd unit.
O'Brien
November 10th, 2010
9:32 pm
bigdave,
I wish LD would have called out the bench, but instead he chose to fall on the sword.
LD “Thats 3 straight games where we start off good, but once I start making subs, we are dead in the water. Maybe I need to find better substitution patterns, or better combinations.” .
No. Maybe the bench needs to play better. or maybe he didnt say it because that would be an indictment on Rick Sund (his boss) for not upgrading the bench.
That being said, maybe missing Marvin and Mo throws his substitutions off.
bigdave
November 10th, 2010
9:32 pm
Big Ray..
oh.. you remember that guy too..
lol. smh.
Loserville USA
November 10th, 2010
9:33 pm
Who cares what Zaza has to say.
Get prima donnas like Smith out there to act like men. That’ll be the day.
Wabe
November 10th, 2010
9:35 pm
Again, I know we’re talking hoops…
But, Ravens/Falcons tomorrow.
So damn happy we got that to fall back on seeing how the Hawks are on a skid.
O'Brien
November 10th, 2010
9:35 pm
Wabe,
If Bibby plays with Jamal, then the Hawks have to let marvin play with them to help out defensively.
But even if teague plays with the starters, i think he will still defer to JJ. That is what he needs to get out of his head.
When JC2 is out there, he doesnt defer to anybody. he is firing away. We need some of that from Teague
O'Brien
November 10th, 2010
9:37 pm
Man, watching Deron Williams and CP3 do what they do, it still burns that we passed on them.
Here we are talking about an aging Bibby, and a not aggressive enough Teague.
BTW, Jazz come from 22 down in Miami, and win. And tonight, they come from 18 down in Orlando, and win.
Thanks BK and Woody. Thanks.
Wabe
November 10th, 2010
9:39 pm
Point taken OB.
The suggestion wasn’t really to get more out of JT0. The 2nd unit has looked pretty disoriented. They’ve struggled offensively, and have been horrid defensively.
I know the adjustment I’m suggesting wouldn’t do anything to help defensively. But, Bibby’s a vet, and he could keep the offense in tact. Right now, it seems we’re stalling offensively – relying on JC2 alone to make shots. At the same time, defensively, we’re getting washed.
Not sure if it’d work.
Something I wouldn’t mind seeing though.
Melvin
November 10th, 2010
9:39 pm
Oh well, at least Orlando loss tonight to a team thanks playing 2nd game of back to back…
Ray
November 10th, 2010
9:40 pm
I’m glad that he benched the starting line-up because they didn’t play with heart tonight. It’s like they get up for the big teams, but don’t take the scrub teams seriously. Well they did in the first 6 games.
Then again can’t call the bucks scrubs anymore because they’ve made the playoffs, but I’m liking Teague and JC2 more and more.
Still it’s toooooooooooooo early in the season to call out anyone Miami just lost to Utah if I believe, and that’s a team they should be dismantling. Boston has lost to Cleveland and Dallas. So what does that make of them?
Plus not only did Miami lose to Utah they’ve lost to Boston and the Hornets so what does that say about them? Please remember there are 82 games in one season we’ve only played 9 so far. We’ve won 6 of them and lost only 3.
Jorge
November 10th, 2010
9:41 pm
I’m starting to have second thoughts on how valuable Jamal Crawford is. He’s obviously not the most efficient scorer, and while he does do some impressive things offensively and has a knack for making tough shots and scoring in a variety of ways, does his lack of defensive ability hurt you more than his offense helps you. He is capable of giving you around 20 points a night if you give him 15-20 shots, but he is also capable of giving up 20 or so points a night to whoever he is guarding. Clearly, the Hawks biggest problems are still perimeter defense and frontline depth. Jamal does not help either of those issues and sometimes contributes to the offense bogging down in this “new system”. Sometimes when I’m watching these games, I wonder: is there a worse perimeter defender than Jamal Crawford? Bibby perhaps?
In Bibby’s case, we are sort of stuck with him since Teague has yet to become anything close to a reliable starter on the court, and he’s the only true point guard that the team has. On one positive note, Bibby is still a deadly spot up shooter most of the time and he doesn’t hog the ball by any means, so offensively he doesn’t hurt you when he’s on the court at all. As we all know though, he simply doesn’t have the tools to be a solid perimeter defender anymore. At least he looks like he’s trying sometimes though, and he’s smart enough to take fouls that don’t result in an and-1 or an easy basket when he knows he’s about to be blown by on defense. Jamal, on the other hand, not only is missing the physical tools to be a solid defender, he also seems like he sort of stops trying when his shots are not falling or he’s not getting the ball. For 10 mil/year, that is not acceptable.
This makes me wonder if trading Jamal might actually be a good move. We could not only unload some money, but we might be able to finally solve our defensive issues on the perimeter. There are obviously teams out there who want and need what Jamal brings.
Aside from that, I’d like to talk about our bench bigs. For the minimum salary, Powell is not a bad choice. He’s serviceable offensively and requires some defensive attention, not to mention that he has the physical ability to be a solid defender. He’s not the most effective rebounder, but for the price he’s a good guy to keep. Zaza, on the other hand, is vastly overpaid for what he gives you. This guy is one of the most inconsistent big men in the league. You never know what he’s going to give you on either end. For his size, he struggles more than marvin used to to finish at the rim. He’s typically pretty consistent in terms of rebounding, but that’s about it, and for what he’s being paid, that’s not acceptable. I think it may be time to part ways with our excess baggage on the team.
-
bigdave
November 10th, 2010
9:41 pm
O’brien..
begs the question of what changes he will make.. but no matter how he shakes it up, its still like trying to make a $1 out of 15 cents..