Atlanta Hawks: Jamal Crawford’s ‘instant offense’ on slow drip
Jamal is finding it tougher to attack this season. (AP Photo)
First, Jamal wanted me to pass along a message to my blog people: He reads all of your comments and he still loves you all. Killin’ em with kindness, I guess.
With that out of the way, it’s been clear that the instant offensive jolt Jamal regularly provided under Woody has gone missing at times as L.D. moves to a more structured approach. Jamal is an instinctive scorer, adept at having the ball in his hands and attacking off the dribble, and now he’s being asked to play off the ball and set the table more often.
The Hawks have found more offensive balance than they’ve had in the past with L.D.’s approach. But for Jamal it’s meant a move away from the comfort zone he enjoyed last season.
“I think it’s some adjusting for him,” L.D. said. “Because he is such a good one-on-one players, I am trying to put him in more situations where he is running a lot more pick-and-rolls. I sat him down and told him he is playing very unselfishly, and he is making plays and getting the ball to his teammates. And he is showing to be a willing passer.
“When he and Joe play like that, I think that makes us a better ball club. Now teams can’t key in on individual guys to play one-on-one and they’ve got their defense set.”
After a spike in Jamal’s shooting percentage last season, it’s slipped back down to his career mark (though he was quick to note that with such a small sample size, a few good shooting games would pull it back up). His true shooting percentage hasn’t dipped as much because he’s taking and making more free throws. Jamal is taking about four less shots per game so far (though his attempts per minutes played are actually up from 2.2 to 2.9), his assist percentage is up slightly and his turnovers rate is up significantly.
I’d argue that, based on observation, Jamal also has shown more willingness to defend; he said L.D. told him the same thing. It’s not reflected by the on-court/off-court numbers (or by his lackluster effort against Dallas Saturday, though he was hardly alone among the guards) and I’m not saying he’s suddenly locking anyone down. But I’ve seen him more often aggressively fight through screens, keep his energy up throughout possessions and make up ground to challenge shooters.
What I haven’t seen much is the 2009-10, instant offense version of Jamal, and that’s something the Hawks could use as their bench continues to sag against better competition.
“I have got to put him in more opportunities where he gets more shots because he is a shotmaker,” L.D. said. “I’ve already sat him down and told him that. But he’s adjusting well. As I told him, he’s a guy coming off the bench that I need the instant offense, but I also need good decision-making. He has shown that he is committed to that.”
MC
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376 comments Add your comment
JeJe
November 22nd, 2010
10:36 pm
BENCH MARVIN WILLIAMS.
I AM SORRY, GUYS.
I DON’T CARE IF I AM THE MOST HATED PERSON HERE — THIS GUY FLAT OUT SUCKS. HE HAS NO DESIRE TO BE GOOD. HE ONLY HAS A HALF-DECENT GAME IF HE GETS CALLED OUT. HE HAS NO HEART. HE IS A FRAIL STIFF WITH NO UPPER BODY STRENGTH.
I CAN NAME 6 PLAYERS ON OUR BENCH BETTER THAN MARVIN WILLIAMS. HE WOULD NOT START ON ANY OTHER TEAM. WE COULD’VE TRADED THIS GUY IN A PACKAGE FOR MONTA FREAKING ELLIS OR MO/SHAQ, BUT SUND, THE GENIUS HE IS, HESITATED ON BOTH.
START COLLINS HORFORD AND SMOOVE, ESPECIALLY WHEN THERE’S SOMEONE LIKE SHAQ IN THERE. COLLINS AT LEAST TRIES. MARVIN IS AN AWKWARD STIFF WITH NO DESIRE TO HELP THIS TEAM WIN. WE BET AGAINST OURSELVES GIVING HIM THAT EGREGIOUS CONTRACT
GOD DAMNIT
JeJe
November 22nd, 2010
10:38 pm
I’M DONE DEFENDING DREW TOO. HE MIGHT USE BENCH PLAYERS MORE THAN WOODY DID, BUT HE STILL HAS NOT TINKERED WITH THE STARTING LINEUP. DOMINIQUE SAID IT’S TOO EARLY TO CHANGE THE STARTING LINEUP – HOW SO? WE’VE LOST 5 FREAKING HOME GAMES. WHY THE HELL DIDN’T TEAGUE PLAY IN THE 4TH? HE WAS DOING GOOD THINGS IN THE 1ST HALF.
1) THIS TEAM IS TOLD NOT TO PLAY DEFENSE APPARENTLY
2) PLAYERS WHO PLAY WELL GET REWARDED BY BEING BENCHED
WTF IS THIS GARBAGE. U DONT HAVE TO WAVE A MAGIC WAND IN THE AIR TO SEE THE PROBLEMS WITH THIS TEAM. LARRY DREW WAKE UP AND START GETTING EMOTIONAL DURING GAMES. DON’T BE THAT STOIC BAFFOON
bigdave
November 22nd, 2010
10:40 pm
i think LD was eludeding to somehting a bit deeper than a lack of energy..
he was speaking more to mentality. as in we’re dealing with a group that is less driven by hardware more so the lifestyle..
hence, “could care less if the fans show up or not” im still gonna pick up this game check..
SWAT Native
November 22nd, 2010
10:44 pm
Ted Turner did attend the game, but he left before I did. I doubt if he made it to halftime. I should have followed his lead.
O'Brien
November 22nd, 2010
10:44 pm
AJ,
Co-sign. he saw the same thing for 6 years under Woody. Why did he think all of a sudden, the players would stop folding like lawn chairs?
northcyde
November 22nd, 2010
10:44 pm
Astro . . the same people that say that the regular season doesn’t matter, are the same people that want to believe that the former coach was mainly at fault, and that his philosophies were greatly flawed.
And because we get blown out in the 2nd rd, everything else is supposed to be moot.
Right now, we’re a team that can’t even survive an injury to Marvin, or anybody else in the rotation. Even if someone like Teague went down, it’ll probably kill us
JeJe
November 22nd, 2010
10:45 pm
THE HAWKS WILL DO EXACTLY AS NORTHCYDE PREDICTED:
THERE WILL BE A PLAYERS-ONLY MEETING TOMORROW. THE TEAM WILL REBOUND AND DEFEAT THE ATROCIOUS NEW JERSEY NETS AND THE OTHER SCRUB TEAMS WE PLAY ON THE SCHEDULE. THEN OUR ARROGANT GM WILL PROCLAIM HOW WE ARE A TOP 4 TEAM IN THE EAST.
THEN WE WILL GET ASSAULTED IN DECEMBER. OUR SCHEDULE IS BRUTAL
Ray
November 22nd, 2010
10:45 pm
I have to agree where was Teague I could have swore the guy was playing great for a hot min in that lst half. Sh** he and Jordan Crawford looked like the only one’s that tried tonight maybe even Powell and Collins too.
Marvin and JC1 plus Thomas are on the first ship out of here. If you guys are reading this GTFO of ATL seriously. You guys play with no heart only for money it seems I know college kids who’d be willing to take your spot right now, and probably play 100X better than you guys right now.
All right I’m going to stop my rant as you can tell I’m very upset with the way things are right now.
Oh yeah the starting spots are up for grabs except Josh and Horford probably Bibby as well.
JC2 should get a chance to start and Collins should just start regardless doesn’t even matter anymore.
JeJe
November 22nd, 2010
10:47 pm
CAN WE JUST GO BACK TO OLD BLOG COMMENT FORMAT, BUT HAVE AN OPTION FOR ALL POSTS ON ONE PAGE?
JeJe
November 22nd, 2010
10:49 pm
DOES JOE JOHNSON GET A FREE PASS? HE’S MAKING HIS PERFORMANCES VS. ORLANDO AND CLEVELAND THE LAST 2 YEARS IN THE PLAYOFFS LOOK LIKE MVP SHOWINGS
WAKE UP AND STOP STEALING OUR MONEY. 120M MY @$$
Brad
November 22nd, 2010
10:50 pm
Let’s not forget about Joe in all of this. He has not only been playing poorly on the offensive end, but he has been playing some ATROCIOUS defense. Isn’t he supposed to be a good defender?
O'Brien
November 22nd, 2010
10:51 pm
Ken S,
First of all, I hope things are going well where the health is concerned.
But secondly, I would like to hear your take on what we have seen from these players so far.
Wabe
November 22nd, 2010
10:51 pm
Atlanta
Spirit
Group
Must
Go
Ray
November 22nd, 2010
10:55 pm
According some of bloggers over at ESPN about this game it doesn’t look so well for some of the players.
Be ready for change coming soon VERY soon. I’m not talking about just trades, but line-up changes. LD needs to start making these players recognize who their dealing with.
Brad
November 22nd, 2010
10:58 pm
Ray do you have a link or quotes?
Astro Joe
November 22nd, 2010
11:01 pm
bigdave, maybe I’m expecting too much from a guy who was “Uncle Larry” fpr 6 years, but more than knowing the mechanics of a motion offense or the way to defend your man without switching, LD is supposed to know the pulse of this group of players. At least the main guys who have been here for 4+ years. If he doesn’t have a grasp of the inner workings of this group, then what was the reason for hiring an insider vs. Dwayne Casey or someone else who could force a cultural change in a more meaningful way than “Uncle Larry”?
JeJe
November 22nd, 2010
11:01 pm
FEELS LIKE THE SEASON IS ALREADY OVER. THIS MONTH WE WERE SUPPOSED TO LOSE 2 GAMES MAX
O'Brien
November 22nd, 2010
11:07 pm
Ray,
If I was LD, I would start tomorrow’s game with all bench players:
teague, Jordan,Mo,Powell, and Etan.
I would let them play the first 5 minutes to send a message to the starters that their lack of energy, lack of focus etc., will not be tolerated.
JeJe
November 22nd, 2010
11:09 pm
i agree, O’BRIEN BECAUSE THATS WHAT GREAT COACHES LIKE POPOVICH WOULD DO. THE GUY TOOK OUT DEROZAN AFTER 1 PLAY FOR LEAVING A GUY OPEN FOR A 3
JD
November 22nd, 2010
11:11 pm
NO Discipline + NO Defense = No Damn Good. Until they figure this out, they’re going to stink up this whole town.
doc
November 22nd, 2010
11:12 pm
well looking forward to the next blog with comments by MC and a northcyde obit.
JeJe
November 22nd, 2010
11:12 pm
HORFORD SAYS PLAYERS ARE MAKING EXCUSES. WHAT EXCUSES ARE BEING MADE?
JeJe
November 22nd, 2010
11:19 pm
IF WE HAD STARTED COLLINS AND SMOOVE HAD NOT ALLOWED GARNETT TO GET THE BALL 5 FEET FROM THE HOOP EVERY TIME, I’M SURE IT WOULD’VE BEEN CLOSER.
NATE > OUR BENCH LOLOLOL
DELONTE >> OUR BENCH
terrell
November 22nd, 2010
11:41 pm
I like Horford too, but Josh Smith has been the ONLY consistent player this year from the Hawks. You never know what your going to get from anybody else. PERIOD!
kwooden1
November 22nd, 2010
11:55 pm
We can only hope that this is a wakeup call for this team to get their act together. They don’t really understand that all 5 guys have to rebound and their a jumpshooting team that has to make shots.
What I saw in the Dallas game was a team that struggles to get key defensive rebounds and make good offensive decisions under pressure.
Publix
November 23rd, 2010
12:31 am
Boy oh Boy, are we in some deep mess??????
We need to start changing our mentality. This team has been toghether for 4 years now, and we haven’t don anything but make it to the playoffs. NOW is the time to make the change. Here is what we need to do. SUND, please read……
Trade Jamal, Smove, and Zaza to Huston for Brooks, Battier, and Cortney Lee.
Then you trade Bibby and Marvin to Dallas for Haywood and Beaubois
Now you look like something.
PG- Brooks/Teague
SG- JJ/Lee/JC2
SF- Battier/Evans
PF- Horford/Powell
C- Haywood/Collins/Thomas
SUND, JUST DO IT. All the salaries work out I already did your homework.