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Atlanta Hawks at Bucks: Jordan Crawford could be next for D-League

8:01 pm December 27, 2010, by Michael Cunningham

Milwaukee– Pape Sy is off to Utah to play in the D-League. It’s possible Jordan Crawford will join him at some point.

“There has been some talk about it,” L.D. said. “We are certainly going to keep our options open with our young guys, putting them in situations where they can get some playing time instead of practicing every day and just being with the team. I would rather them be somewhere playing, where they are learning, where they can get some experience.”

L.D had one of his ongoing shot-selection chats with Smoove today. Josh lately has failed to make long jump shots at a respectable rate and it was particularly glaring with Atlanta’s relative lack of a post presence at New Orleans last night. Said L.D.:

“I am definitely going to stay with it. As I told him this morning through our breakfast and walkthrough, we have got to get established early inside. We don’t want to come out jacking shots up and he has done that the last couple of games. I have brought it to his attention we have got to be more mindful that we do have to get established early in the paint. I don’t mind jump shots but we’ve got to establish inside, then out. Especially him, he is a guy we rely on to be effective in the post. I am going to go to him and I expect him to deliver down there, not to settle for being on the perimeter, people playing five feet off of him, and then he’s jacking it up.”
No Drew Gooden (foot) for the Bucks. Brandon Jennings is out after foot surgery but Earl Boykins and Keyon Dooling are capable of dancing through Atlanta’s pick-and-roll D. You know, sort of like they did last time, when Milwaukee’s bench beat down the Hawks. “They still have capable guards,” L.D. said. “Both Dooling and Boykins have really done well for them since Jennings has been out. Our game up there when they beat us it was Boykins and Dooling, to me, who changed the game.”
L.D. is using the Twin lineup tonight. Marvin heads to the bench. “We recognize the fact that Al at the five, going against Bogut he gives up too much sizewise and strengthwise,” Drew said.
Frank Madden at Brew Hoop offers an Al/Bogut comparison:

Horford and Andrew Bogut are both making pretty compelling cases to back up Dwight Howard on the Eastern Conference all-star squad, but I’m not sure there will be room for both of them–especially with Amare Stoudemire seeing lots of small-ball center action in New York. Bogut has a clear edge on the defensive end, blocking three times as many shots (2.90 bpg vs. 0.91) and rebounding at a higher rate as well (11.4 rpg vs. 9.6), while Horford wins going away on the offensive end. The former Florida man is averaging 19.8 pts/40 on 60.7% true shooting and turns it over on just 8.0% of possessions, while Bogut is putting up 16.1 pts/40 on just 52.1% with an 11.4% turnover rate.

What’s perhaps most impressive about Horford’s game is how much damage he does on the perimeter. He’s doubled the number of long jumpers he takes (from 2.2 to 4.5/game) while converting at an incredible 59% clip (85/145), best in the league among players with more than 35 attempts from that range. He’s especially dangerous in pick & roll situations, ranking 6th in the league with 1.23 points per possession and making 63% of his shots–much of it on pick/pop action. In contrast, Bogut takes twice as many shots/game at the rim but has only taken eight shots outside of 10 feet all season (including three end-of-quarter Hail Marys), missing each and every one of them.

Michael Cunningham

133 comments Add your comment

SteveW

December 27th, 2010
10:18 pm

Man we have a brutal schedule coming up with that West Coast swing thru Jan. 5th, then we get a little break.

Allen

December 27th, 2010
10:19 pm

drmaryb,

I think you are misunderstanding what I’m saying, or maybe I was a little bit unclear in my last posts. The Bucks are not a better team than the Hawks, but I do think that they have a better offensive strategy than the Hawks. They also play better team basketball and have a better coach. The main issue for the Bucks is that they have inferior talent when compared with most NBA teams, but their principles and play styles are very sound. Even though Bogut has not been converting on all of those post-up opportunities, I love the fact that the Bucks make it a point to play inside, and start their attack in the post. I don’t think a lot of people realize how much it disrupts the opposing team’s defense when you attack inside and cause them to collapse. The point is that a post-up attempt within 5-10 ft. of the basket is much more of a high percentage shot than a 15-20 ft. jumper, unless you have Al’s effectiveness from midrange. For the most part though, you are not going to hit 50% or more of your jump shots, whereas you are likely to hit 50+% of your shots from inside, and when teams start to collapse into the paint to stop you inside, it opens up a lot of things on the perimeter for your shooters.

The Bucks obviously have a subpar record, but I’m under the impression that if they had the talent on their roster that the Hawks have, they would be a pretty darn good team.

As far as Bogut is concerned, he probably takes more shots than he should, especially tonight, and I would argue that Horford is a superior player, but I like the fact that the Bucks really utilize their bigs as much as they can. I would like to see the Hawks utilize their big men more, especially in the post. Josh needs some work on his offensive game, but he’s still fairly effective there. Al is already pretty darn effective in the post, and I hope he continues to improve there as well.

SteveW

December 27th, 2010
10:22 pm

Hope LD keeps playing Teague. He and JJ had the best +/- tonight.

Collins 12 Boards in 30+ minutes and shut Bogut down in the 2nd half!

Al 18 and 12 – about average.

Good win Hawks! Lets go Falcons!

P.S. JJ struggled offensively in the 2nd half again. And Josh hoisted up to many 3’s and misses 0-3.

Najeh Davenpoop

December 27th, 2010
10:23 pm

“Teague once again has more blocks than Josh. Where has Josh’s shotblocking gone? Only averaging 1.6 per game for the month of Dec.”

This has more to do with moving him away from the hoop and playing him at SF than it does with anything about his physical condition. I don’t think he is any less explosive now than he was a few years ago. He just spends too much time away from the hoop as a SF.

Good win for the Hawks. Milwaukee is really, really disjointed though with an injured Jennings and no more Ridnour. Not having a point guard on that team really shows.

I will say this though — moving Smoove to SF hurts his production big time, but it seems to help everyone else. Marvin is more aggressive off the bench, Horford gets easier opportunities on offense, and Collins takes over the responsibility of playing physically down low.

SteveW

December 27th, 2010
10:23 pm

I wonder if Skiles will be on the hot seat? I remember last year they heated up after Jan. 1st, and had won like 13 in a row when Bogut went down.

Bailey

December 27th, 2010
10:24 pm

Solid game for the Hawks. This was the type of night where it seemed like the Hawks really shot the lights out, but as an additional positive, the defense was pretty effective overall. The Hawks didn’t let the Bucks play their style completely and they did a pretty good job of locking down the paint and forcing tough shots inside. There were some defensive collapses here and there, but overall, the defense was pretty good. The Hawks also did a nice job on the glass tonight.

I have to tip my hat to Al Horford in this one, he played very well on both ends, and was strong on the glass. I’m glad that the team made a solid effort to go to him more in the second half, and down the stretch. The team plays much better when he’s involved on the offensive end. Also, nice job by Collins tonight on the defensive end and on the glass, and I really liked what I saw from Teague and even Marvin. Marvin is starting to play like a bonafide starter, and not just a guy filling a hole in the starting lineup. Teague seems to be gaining confidence as well. I hope that L.D. continues to give him minutes.

SteveW

December 27th, 2010
10:25 pm

Najeh – I hope your correct. It just seems even when we’re not playing big, Josh doesn’t have the blocks or hops like he used to. But maybe he’ll come around. He’s certainly not a natural 3 it looks to me.

SteveW

December 27th, 2010
10:26 pm

I still say Collins on Bogut is the story of the Night

SteveW

December 27th, 2010
10:30 pm

We out rebounded the Bucks 47-33, Wow!

hawkfan

December 27th, 2010
10:31 pm

after seeing this game I believe we need to play teague more than bibby, no way bibby blocks that shot that teague did b/c bibby will not run that much and get that high to block but let the big man get his shot, plus our team ran more with teague in the game and fastened the pace of the game

Melvin

December 27th, 2010
10:33 pm

bigdave,

Hawks shot lights out in the 1st half to take a 15pt lead. They cool off a little in the 2nd half but had enough offense to with hold the Bucks off. Balance scoring tonight. Seem like every guy had their own stretch of good plays at some point in the game…

Bailey

December 27th, 2010
10:33 pm

SteveW,

It’s not a huge issue if Josh isn’t blocking a lot of shots, as long as he’s still playing strong, solid defense. I like to see lots of blocks on the stat sheet for the Hawks, but great defense isn’t just measured by blocks and steals. If we are preventing the other team from scoring and contesting shots, as well as forcing tough shots and rebounding, then we aren’t losing much on the defensive end without blocks. But, as far as Josh playing at the 3, it is probably less likely that he will get as many blocks anyway, since he’ll be spending a lot of time on the perimeter, and given his size advantage at that position, it’s unlikely that many opponents he’s guarding will try to attack him in the post or try to get by him knowing that he has great shot blocking ability. So, when you are mostly contesting jump shots, like most players do at the 3, you aren’t that likely to get blocks unless they are on the break or on help defense when someone attacks the rim and your man is not standing wide open from beyond the arc. At any rate, I can’t say that the lack of blocks is really Josh’s fault entirely. He’s just playing a different style at the 3.

Ron

December 27th, 2010
10:37 pm

SteveW,

Collins did a nice job defending Bogut, but Bogut has never really been a huge issue for the team. Al has always done a very good job defending him in the past. At any rate, it’s an added bonus that Horford is probably more energized late in games and gets easier looks on the offensive end when he doesn’t have to spend all of his time matched up on Bogut, so I see where you are coming from.

JeJe

December 27th, 2010
10:44 pm

LOL @ the Collins haters.

He was one of our best players tonight.

12 rebounds – yeah awful rebounder!

BRING MARVIN OFF THE BENCH.

EVEN IF COLLINS HAS A MISMATCH, BRING DUCK OFF BENCH

Jody

December 27th, 2010
10:58 pm

JeJe,

Agreed. The Hawks don’t win this game without Collins. In the first game, Collins didn’t play a lot of minutes and the Hawks played with their usual undersized lineup and got killed on the boards. Tonight, Collins starts and plays significant minutes and the Hawks outrebound the Bucks and win the game. Not a coincidence.

drmaryb (*_*)

December 27th, 2010
10:58 pm

Hawks 20-12
Bucks. 12-17

Allen! Where You? You were hugging Bogus-Bogut Nads all night and called our HC an idiot! How’s all that talk working for you now?

Bogut got body slammed and all his shots looked short!
Alligator Arms?

drmaryb (*_*)

December 27th, 2010
11:09 pm

Better Defense beats Any Offense! See Hawks & Falcons!
Abraham intercepts Brees!

SteveW

December 27th, 2010
11:45 pm

Horford MRI for tomorrow. Uh oh, hope our 2nd best player doesn’t go down.

JeJe

December 27th, 2010
11:55 pm

This team is FAR deeper when Duck comes off bench.

When Collins starts, it stretches our rotation.

Just imagine if Damien had played Mo’s minutes tonight (WHY DOES DAMIEN NOT PLAY ANYMORE? WHY DOES MO PLAY?)

We should’ve won this game by 25 points

Same with all these other weaker teams we struggle putting away

Bailey

December 28th, 2010
12:02 am

I really hope that that Horford’s hand injury is nothing major and not anything that requires surgery. We really need Al out there as much as possible. He’s the backbone of the team in my opinion, and our rotation of bigs would be pretty unbalanced without him.

JeJe

December 28th, 2010
12:05 am

We need Marvin coming off the bench with Jamal.

He Jamal and Teague looked incredible tonight. We didn’t even see Powell either

Jason Collins NEEDS to start vs. any non-uptempo team. I understand him not starting vs. a GSW, but teams like Portland, Milwaukee, NJN, Houstonn, Dallas, etc., he MUST start

It is worth starting Collins at the 5 to see Duck come off the bench.

We need Duck playing ANGRY

Ben G.

December 28th, 2010
12:08 am

JeJe,

I agree 100% that our rotation is better with Marvin coming off of the bench. With Marvin coming off the bench, our starting lineups is one of the bigger and more physical lineups in the league, with a lot of mismatch problems. It might make our team a bit slower having Collins in the lineup, but considering that L.D. doesn’t have the Hawks playing a very uptempo game anyway, that’s not much of an issue. Smoove is not as productive at the 3 either, but with a deeper rotation of bigs, we can mix and match with him at the 4 and Horford at the 5 whenever it is advantageous and not lose a beat.

Also, our bench is a lot more productive offensively with Marvin and he gets to use his abilities more when playing with the second unit, since he’s basically the second option in that lineup. Defensively, our second unit is much better with Marvin on it, as well. The only real issue is that Marvin might not be cool with coming off of the bench for the long term.

At any rate, the million dollar question is, like you said, why does Mo Evans play so many minutes when we have Damien now? Defensively, Damien is obviously the better player, and offensively, he can’t be much worse than Mo is. I’d like to hear L.D.’s take on that. Maybe he doesn’t feel like Damien knows the system well enough.

JeJe

December 28th, 2010
12:15 am

Marvin DOES NOT like coming off the bench, as stated in a blog last week.

Bringing him off the bench reduces his minutes (he’s not fully healthy) and keeps him MOTIVATED and ANGRY

When Marvin is playing like this, we are tough to beat (still have no idea how he scores 18 and we lost to freaking New Orleans last night who lost to MINNESOTA tonight).

TRADE BIBBY

slimjr

December 28th, 2010
12:26 am

LD Send Josh to the D-league to learn an offensive game while your at it dude….

JeJe

December 28th, 2010
12:27 am

hey always have a scapegoat when we lose in the Playoffs and can then keep core next year since they hate spending money.

WE HAD INJURIES VS. CLEVELAND AND GOT KILLED IN 4 IN 2009
WE WERE HEALTHY VS. ORLANDO THIS YEAR AND GOT KILLED WORSE THAN ANY TEAM HAS IN NBA HISTORY

WHY DOES NO ONE TALK ABOUT THE CLEVELAND SERIES? WE HAVE NO IMPROVED IN THE LAST 2 YEARS. WE HAVE GOTTEN WORSE.

I AM THE ONLY PERSON WHO MENTIONS THE CLEVELAND SERIES. PEOPLE ACT LIKE ORLANDO WAS THE ONLY TIME THIS TEAM HAS GOTTEN KILLED.

SUND NEVER ACKNOWLEDGES WE GOT SWEPT 2 YEARS IN A ROW – ONLY ORLANDO

FIRE SUNDASG’s #1 goal is for someone on the team to always be injured. That way, they always have a scapegoat when we lose in the Playoffs and can then keep core next year since they hate spending money.

WE HAD INJURIES VS. CLEVELAND AND GOT KILLED IN 4 IN 2009
WE WERE HEALTHY VS. ORLANDO THIS YEAR AND GOT KILLED WORSE THAN ANY TEAM HAS IN NBA HISTORY

WHY DOES NO ONE TALK ABOUT THE CLEVELAND SERIES? WE HAVE NO IMPROVED IN THE LAST 2 YEARS. WE HAVE GOTTEN WORSE.

I AM THE ONLY PERSON WHO MENTIONS THE CLEVELAND SERIES. PEOPLE ACT LIKE ORLANDO WAS THE ONLY TIME THIS TEAM HAS GOTTEN KILLED.

SUND NEVER ACKNOWLEDGES WE GOT SWEPT 2 YEARS IN A ROW – ONLY ORLANDO

FIRE SUND.

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JeJe

December 27th, 2010
8:06 pm

NAJEH, THAT PROVES MY POINT. WE WERE WORSE LAST YEAR THAN THE YEAR BEFORE IN THE PLAYOFFS.

AND WE ARE WORSE NOW THAN IN ANY OF THE 2 YEARS

FIRE SUND

ASG YOU GUYS BLOW

JeJe

December 28th, 2010
12:29 am

ASG’s #1 goal is for someone on the team to always be injured. That way, they always have a scapegoat when we lose in the Playoffs and can then keep core next year since they hate spending money.