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Hawks 108, Pacers 93

12:55 am January 9, 2011, by Ken Sugiura

Greetings, all-

Pretty solid effort for the Hawks, particularly after the half.

- Hawks had 36 baskets and 27 came on assists. It’s not their highest percent of assisted baskets, but it’s close. I asked Larry Drew Saturday morning what statistics were important to him, and the one thing he mentioned was assists, as it helps him gauge how the ball movement is. He sounds very encouraged by what he’s seeing, not surprisingly.

Drew: “I think in watching Joe and watching Al and Josh and all those guys, it seems like they’re stating to really pick up what were trying to do and they’re having fun with it.”

I thought it was a pretty sharp game for them, passing-wise. Joe Johnson had some good touch passes to set up Mike Bibby, and there were several out of the post to spot-up shooters.

- Drew said he had concerns about the team not having its legs after coming back off the road. I seem to remember hearing the same thing recently, that the first game at home after a road trip is often kind of difficult. Energy can be lacking, etc. I don’t quite fully understand the reasoning – I guess maybe you’re still weary from the travel – but his concerns were founded. He said the team was winded early and he had to challenge players at halftime. He said the team was “clearly being outran” in the first half.

They took control after the half. It helps, I imagine, that the team that they had to take control from was the Pacers, who are a pretty weak bunch, although they certainly frustrated the Hawks.

- Josh Smith on playing Tyler Hansbrough: “Psycho T, isn’t that what they call him? You definitely have to match his intensity. He’s definitely a hard-nosed, hard-working player. You’ve just got to keep your eye on him every possession.”

- Drew on mismatches (including Smith-Hansbrough): “I thought we did a good job of that tonight. Our first couple wins against Indiana, we did the exact same thing, just went to some of the matchup problems, and if they didn’t come down, we scored. If they did, we got the ball out and made them pay.”

- Johnson: “I thought we came out pretty aggressive, but we got a little lackadaisical there in the first half and really let them back in it. It happens, but in the second half we pulled away.”

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81 comments Add your comment

KevinM

January 10th, 2011
9:25 am

Diego, interesting, but Curry isn’t a PG and you aren’t bringing him off the bench. Prince puts Marvin on the bench, but not sure about any defense from Biedrins either.
It might take JC1 or Smoove to get us a frontline PG and/or a big man.

O'Brien

January 10th, 2011
10:14 am

On the season, Nash is 117-129 (91%) from the FT line, in 33 mpg. Bibby, on the other hand, is 23-37 (62%) from the FT line, in 30 mpg.

So although Nash doesn’t shoot the 3 like Bibby, he is penetrating, he is getting fouled, and he’s making his foul shots.

Both play bad defense, and their assist to turnover ratio is close. But Nash is a HOF PG who would excite the fan base, and I think he would excite the players (even if they don’t say it loud), because Nash would get everybody easier shots.

Melvin,

If we trade Jamal for Nash, then Bibby would be needed to run the bench unit.

Jamillion

January 10th, 2011
10:24 am

Diego that by far is the most absurd trade i’ve seen yet. Why give up two of our best three players for trash? Don’t understand the logic and we still don’t receive a pg in the deal.

Jamillion

January 10th, 2011
10:28 am

And i would try my best to keep jamal. Hell good teams get better by keeping good players.Give them marvin like they wanted

terrell

January 10th, 2011
10:37 am

Melo and Billups headed to NJ.

terrell

January 10th, 2011
10:40 am

Correction:
Melo, Billups, and Richard Hamilton headed to NJ.
Favors, Devin Harris to Denver
Petro, Troy Murphy to Detroit

terrell

January 10th, 2011
10:44 am

And Harris will be moved by Denver. Possibly back to Dallas.

terrell

January 10th, 2011
10:59 am

Perhaps we can send Marvin and Teague to Denver for Harris?

Boooo!

January 10th, 2011
11:01 am

Are you PPL High? O.O

We have the expiring contracts to land DEVIN HARRIS!!!

Why are you still talking about Bibby/Nash!

Bibby, Mo, and Etan To denver for Harris

Get er’Done Rick Sund!

Earn your Paycheck!

Boooo!

January 10th, 2011
11:05 am

Nene For Marvin after that? It could work since damien is a better defender (for LeBoob). I would definetly start Nene alongside Horf and Smoove. Nene is only 6-10 but he is bigger/stronger than Horf and has a nice array of post moves. He could be that consistant inside scoring presence that we desperately need.

terrell

January 10th, 2011
11:13 am

Boooo, I dont really want to move Jamal though. Thats why I gave them Marvin. He can replace Melo.

Boooo!

January 10th, 2011
11:13 am

Of couse if we land Nene for Marvin, that probably permanetly pushes Smoove into wing duty because of all the frontcourt bodies. The good news is that all of these moves will result in Boston and Orlando no longer being real threats to us on the peremeter (Rondo/Nelson) OR in the paint(Big Baby/O’neal x 2/Perkins/KG/Harangody).

terrell

January 10th, 2011
11:14 am

Its not a done deal yet though. Billups wants to stay in Denver and will request a buyout if moved.

terrell

January 10th, 2011
11:16 am

Sund is probably out building a snow man while all of this is going on. Get yo azz on the phone.

Boooo!

January 10th, 2011
11:16 am

terrell, I dont think we need to give up jamal in order for the numbers to work in the Harris deal. I dont think Denver would mind either since J.R Smith is baisically a poor mans jamal and they’ve been trying to move him for over a year now.

Boooo!

January 10th, 2011
11:18 am

Why chauncey? WHY!

Boooo!

January 10th, 2011
11:20 am

“Sund is probably out building a snow man while all of this is going on. Get yo azz on the phone.”

Co-sign

terrell

January 10th, 2011
11:43 am

So what expirings were you referring to do we have to go after Harris, if Jamal’s not included? I thought Mo and Jamal were the only two we had.

terrell

January 10th, 2011
11:45 am

Coorection:
So what expirings were you referring to, if we were to go after Harris, if Jamal’s not included?

terrell

January 10th, 2011
11:46 am

Correction:
Ah, you know what I mean. lol!

STRETCH

January 10th, 2011
12:07 pm

TERRELL, YOUR 11:16 WAS HILARIOUS!!!

Boooo!

January 10th, 2011
12:11 pm

terrell, LOL. I just meant Mo, Etan, and Bibby for Harrris. Bibby comes off the books next season but DEN can probably move him to a team that needs a PG….like Minnesota or LA.

ryan

January 10th, 2011
12:20 pm

I wounder if Billups might be a deal breaker i still think Mello will end up as a Knick I wish the Hawks could get in that trade and get Billups .

O'Brien

January 10th, 2011
12:37 pm

Guys,

Although Bibby has played well for us, I dont think he has much trade value until next year when his contract is expiring.

And nobody wants Etan (dude has played 18 minutes all season). Mo might be movable because his $2.5 mil is expiring.

But what Rick would like us to forget, is that the Hawks have a $3 mil TPE from the Chills trade. So the Hawks can trade for a player in that price range, if the other team is looking to cut costs.

Ken Strickland

January 10th, 2011
3:16 pm

NAJEH-You’re right, Jamal isn’t a PG, but he has enough PG skills to be very effective in our OFF system, which doesn’t require true PG skills. I’m certain you’ll agree that Bibby is a true PG, even though he seldom penetrates, doesn’t break down DEF’s or create easy scoring opportunities, especially inside the lane.

Yet, you feel he can’t effectively run the OFF as a PG, even though he can do everything Bibby does, and all of the things he doesn’t do. Our ability to score has been a far bigger strength than our ability to defend, especially on the perimeter. With SNash at PG, the Suns have been a prolific scoring machine, but their lack of DEF, especially perimeter DEF, has been their undoing.

Why try to coverup our perimeter DEF problems by trading valuable assets for an OFF minded 37 yr old PG that’s an worse defender than Bibby? While we’ve understandibly been rather inconsistent offensively, due to injuries to key players, we’ve proven our ability to score pts. However, we’ve consistently struggled with defending quick, fast athletic PG’s since Bibby’s arrival.

STRETCH

January 10th, 2011
3:24 pm

Sund needs to make a move or they are gonna do like they did the last few seasons. Slow and inevitable death.

Ken Strickland

January 10th, 2011
3:46 pm

RAMON-Can’t argue with you assessment on SNash. However, he doesn’t have the skills to overcome our perimeter defensive issues. And can’t you say the same thing about Bibby, when his shot isn’t falling? Jamal can certainly do more than shoot jumpers. Haven’t you seen him penetrate and break down DEF’s, especially recently? When JJ and Jamal are playing together, have you noticed teams don’t double JJ whenever he touches the ball, like they did when Jamal was out?

He forces DEF’s to play straightup, and he certainly makes them think twice about playing zone. SNash is better at generating assists, but Jamal is better at shooting, scoring, and almost everything else. I don’t like the idea of entering the 2nd half of the season becoming totally reliant offensively on a 37yr old PG that plays absolutely NO DEF.

What we need most is a younger PG that plays DEF, penetrates, and brings consistency to our overall OFF production. TJ Ford, who’s in the final yr of his contract, would be a better option for the Hawks than Nash.

Ken Strickland

January 10th, 2011
3:58 pm

I also forgot to mention that MConley, who’s a restricted FA, is also in the final yr of his contract, and would provide an excellent solution to our PG issues.

O'Brien

January 10th, 2011
4:08 pm

Ken S,

If I’m not mistaken, Memphis signed Conley to an extension, so he is no longer available.

If Bibby’s shot is not falling, he is almost useless. If Nash’s shot is not falling, he can still give you 10 assists.

If Jamal’s shot is not falling, he is still going to shoot it 15 times (although he will give you 3 assists), and he will still take a fair amount of bad shots for someone whose shot is not falling.

Ken Strickland

January 10th, 2011
6:23 pm

OBRIEN-If Memphis has resigned Conley, then they made a good move. When all is said and done, I doubt if the Hawks will even make an attempt to acquire SNash. Money is still a big issue with the ASG. If they won’t even enter discussions about resigning a player as productive and versatile as Jamal, I don’t see them getting on the hook to acquire SNash.

I just don’t see how anyone can think anything we try to do, other than replace Bibby as our primary PG, can give us a better chance in the playoffs. In the playoffs, the ability to play DEF, especially perimeter DEF, and the ability to attack DEF’s, is what makes a team successful. With Bibby as our primary PG, we’ve already seen during previous playoffs how much of a negative impact his limitations and liabilities have had.

However, Bibby can be a real asset coming off the bench in critical playoff situations when we need pts.

jason

January 10th, 2011
6:57 pm

we all know that atlanta is 2 cheap to trade for someone who could help win us a title

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