Atlanta Hawks: Quietly making their case for respect

FIRE SUND

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I feel like i see this exact same blog every year.

The last 2 years we were the 4 and 3 seeds and players talked about how they were glad they were under the radar

blah blah blah

CHoke in 2nd round this year (if we get there) for sure if we are 4 seed, maybe win a game or 2 against Miami, depending on if Duck is healthy

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Bibby, JJ, Carmelo, JSmoove, Horford

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MC: Will any Hawks be named to the ALL STAR game?

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Anyone who is anyone makes the playoffs in the NBA – the regular season just barely counts. I love the Hawks, but they gotta do something in the playoffs besides fold up the tent to a tougher opponent. It is time to quit yapping about potential and it’s time to put up or shut up. Folks, we do not need Carmelo – we need a point guard that can play defense and breakdown the other team’s defense. When your power forward has a better chance of staying with the other team’s point guard than our own point – there is a serious problem heading into the playoffs regardless of how well he shoots spot up jumpers.

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I think you could make a pretty solid argument that the Heat as constructed today will have a difficult time reaching the ECF let alone the NBA Finals. And yet they have garnered a lot of the media oxygen in the conference simply because a bunch of twits in Bristol, Cantconnectthedots deemed them worthy of the attention.

Their storyline is interesting, but does anyone seriously look at them as championship material at this point in time?

As for the Hawks, they should use the lack of attention/respect as motivation and just play their butts off.

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Fnatastic effort especially after Horford went down with the ankle injury. Mo stepped up big time for us, and we need more bench production out of him and hopefully Marvin when he comes back and not just Jamal in order to compete with the “elite” teams, and in order to be considered an ELITE team. GO HAWKS!!!

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Glad to see Joe Max playing good ball…Drew still is playing guys out of position..Al at C..Jamal at backup pg?..and not playing his young guys…but the Hawks are taking advantage of a string of bad teams..that is what a good team does…..

HWJ
“Marvin well don’t get me started on Marvin.”

I will for you, When he comes back the Hawks should free this man and get the ball in his hand often…When Joe was hurt Marvin showed everyone why the Bucks had to think very hard about that #1 pick….

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It was not a bad pick…. How can you say that? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2005_NBA_Draft

1.Bogut
2. Marvin
3. deron williams
4.cp3
5. raymond felton

Not to mention Bynum went 10th overall. Awful pick… Do you know what holds this team back a point guard…. there is a chance all three of those pgs will be all-stars this year. Marvin is a sixth man on a good team, and fifth starter on any other team. Hell I would take an aging Grant Hill or CJ Miles from Utah over him.

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Marvin was chosen before two hall-of-fame caliber point guards. He wasn’t a bad pick; he was a godawful pick.

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Respect..

I don’t need no stinking respect….I just need wins!

28-15 13games over .500…14-9 on the road, 2nd best road record in the NBA. Just keep doing what you do.

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MC, the Hawks are already in 4th slot, they are a half game back of the Bulls for the 3rd seed. Despite not having #24 on the floor the past two weeks, that is damn good, in my book, even better than last year! Rick Sund, find someone to take Marvin, please, heck I’ll even trade him for Acie Law IV!!!

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I don’t question the fact that Marvin was not a good pick for us but how can all these dimwicks around here forget that if we had selected Paul or Deron our record would have (probably) improved quicker and all subsequent picks and trades would be different.

Namely, we would not have Horford.

With this I sm not saying that I prefer to have Al over Paul or Deron. I’m not even giving an opinion on the matter.

Simply, it’s not a matter of swapping Marvin for any of those two guys.

It just isn’t.

So shut the F**K up with all that “oh we just need a PG… Oh if we had selected Paul or Deron over Marvin!”

It’s the past and you:

A) can’t change it;
B) even if you did, you would not be able to “pick and chose” what you wanted to modify and what you wanted to keep.

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I do think that Denver would have to think about an offer of Marvin Williams, Jamal Crawford, and a 1st round pick for Carmelo Anthony. Jamal has an expiring contract that gives them the money to go after young talent with next year, or as another trade piece to a contender this year for young talent. Marvin Williams could be a major building piece for a young team. A first rounder could always help with the rebuilding process. Three to four young players for a player with an expiring contract, that cannot be resigned has to be thought about.
As far as the Hawks, it makes them a much tougher matchup in the playoffs. As constructed the Hawks are a very good team that has NO CHANCE of winning the East. They would be giving up a lot of the future to “go for it” this year.
It would be very exciting!

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This team is different…..they are well coached and unselfish.If I were the top teams in the East,I would be a little concerned.Let’s just see how things play out,but I do see a major difference in this team and it had nothing to do with the won lost record

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Vava

My problem is that they act like Marvin has no value to this team. Josh said his legs were “like jelly going against those screens”…He shot 4-20 when he had to do Marvin’s jobs, because it is hard to hit a jump shot with no legs…after guarding a 260lbs Monster of man.

If his only job was to guard players like LBJ, so Josh could rome the paint rebounding and shot blocking, it would be enough, because that makes the Hawks a better defensive team. Marvin does that every night and doesn’t complain.

The Hawks give-up 7.4 less points a game when he plays, probably because it keeps Josh near the paint…So he can rebound and block more shots.

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Is anybody out there watching? Much less of the stand-around offense thanks to LD, a dramatically improved road record, road wins over some of the leagues best teams, a much improved bench over last season, a developing defensive-minded back-up PG — there’s no way we fold in the playoffs like we did last year. Not that we can contend, but we are definitely moving in the right direction.

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From the previous blog;

“I forgot to mention the excellent coaching job that was done by LDrew, especially a move he made in the 4th quarter. They were double teaming JJ whenever he touched the ball, and he put JoCrawford in the gm, which forced them to back off. Teams know his potential, and what he’s capable of doing.” Ken Strickland .

Do you really think Miami would not double JJ because Jordan was in the game, and they know his potential? Jordan, the rookie, who has played sporadic all year?

imo, LD put him in to see if he could provide a spark.

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Did J. Smoove just say they are trying to figure out a way to play together??????/ How long has the core been together????? 3 or 4 years!!!!! Is he kidding me?????

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Michael, I agree. The Hawks cannot complain about any lack of respect. It will take more than a January 19th win to forget them quitting against the Magic (and, they did quit).

I loved the win last night and hated how ESPN just focused on the Heat. I understand it, though. If the Hawks want respect, they need to go get it. The memories of the Magic series are not going away anytime soon. Not for me, at least.

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The headline on ESPN.com said Miami plays with injured Bosh, lose to Hawks in OT. Then it goes on to say about all the points Wade and LaBron made. Watching the game. when Josh was checking Bron, he shut him down. James did not go off until Joe started checking him. Also, Teague needs burn!!!!!!

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Now that NJN have backed out of talks with Denver for Melo. what should the Hawks offer NJN or Denver to get the services of Harris or Billups?

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could JAVARRIS CRITTENDON help us? is he healthy or on any team?

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Is Billy Donovan the king of big men? Who produces more big men than him now? He’s the new John Thompson

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They were calling some crazy fouls on the Hawks especially when LeBron went to the hole. Bibby got called on two fouls…but I did not understand why he jumped instead of taking a charge.

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brandon roy OUT with double knee surgery. gred oden OUT with knee surgery. chris paul has KNEE ISSUES. marvin may not be such a bad pick after all. i would much rather have him now than brandon roy now and cp3 could break down any minute…

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58% for Horford’s mid range percentage actually seems kind of low. If you had asked me I would have said he was converting somewhere around 65% of them. Either way, dude is unstoppable from mid range.

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I see where the Hawks are coming from when they say they don’t mind flying under the radar cause I think they want that feeling of people to doubt them so they can show up and show out and then think to themselves yeah it’s a rap to all that doubted them. LET’S GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!

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NJN will probably not be interesting in trades with Hawks because they want star power when they move to NYC. The Hawks will not trade JJ, Al or Josh for anything that NJN has. Next, Denver still wants to move Billups to make way the NC point guard. Maybe Marvin, MO, and 1st pick, they get a decent SF, cap space, and 1st pick, this is probably the best offer they will get.
Phoenix will not move Nash without Jamal as the prized piece of the deal. Unfortunately, the Hawks will not have any chance to resign Jamal without moving Marvin.

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Marvin Duck Williams for Candice Parker yesterday….

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it was a terrible #2 Lottery Pick!
Hey Marvina keep your big a@@ on the bench.. Good look…And the Hawks are 9-1 since your backside gave out……………………………………………………………….

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The Hawks will have to win the East or make it through the playoffs to an ECF to gain the national media respect…They have accomplished neither in 20 plus years!!!

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As I am writing this the Hawks are getting some help! The 76ers have taken the magic into overtime, , the Pistons are beating the Celtics, and the Rockets are beating the Knicks.

Talking about “Elite” teams seems kind of strange in the East. The Celtics are old will they be elite? The Heat have the superstars but can they meld? Chicago has surpassed the Hawks record-wise but do they have the needed experience. The Magic also tore up their roster and need to meld together. And the Knicks are coming on but have hit a bad patch. I think the East has five teams (excluding the Knicks) that are in a contest. Until proven otherwise I think the Celtics are “elite”. The Heat and the Magic have the potential to become “elite” because of their super star(s). The other teams, Hawks included are questionable. To me the most promising thing the Hawks have done is to hire LD as the coach. The team has soon signs of continuing the “incremental” change that has been discussed a lot on this blog. Twin, MW, Bibby, JJ, Al and Smooth are all better this year than last year because of “incremental improvement or better coaching or just working harder in the off season. I am more hopeful of a good playoff result than last year which is ultimately how this team will be judged.

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What’s going on in Portland? it is being reported that Camby needs arthroscopic surgery on his knee. Ouch.

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O’Brien,

drmaryb commented on the bad luck with the Portland big men earlier today. I think she called Portland the “graveyard of blown-out knees” or something like that.

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This blog is getting lame with these Marvin Williams attacks, did the guy not start getting hot before he went down…oh wait this blog is on him because he got injured, as if that never happens.

The Draft isn’t always going to go your way, some of ya’ll need to understand Marvin won’t reach this potential you all hoped he was going to, but you also need to understand he is an important part to this team regardless of where we have gone with his absence.

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About the author of Al being underrated, i’m cool with that, but his article is flawed, when was the last time Al was double teamed in the post? lol, they play him straight up, only JJ gets the double team on this team.

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Jlewis, Josh gets doubled team on the post a lot.

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http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=4jtron2

Atlanta gets:
M. Okur
C.J. Miles

Utah gets:
M. Williams
Zaza
and J. Powell

Utah gets:
M. Williams
J. Powell

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About Al, I think the advanced stat-heads get a little ahead of themselves about Al because the advanced stats look at him very favorably (Bret LaGree from Hoopinion referred to him as a “superstar” yesterday on Daily Dime Live) but there is no doubt he is one of the league’s most efficient offensive big men regardless of whether he is at PF or C. The one thing he doesn’t do at an All Star level, to me, is play with his back to the basket in the low post. He’s good with his back to the basket but not a go-to option. If he develops a low post move that is as unstoppable as his mid range jumper he will be at the level his offensive stats indicate.

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Najeh, also Crittenton can’t shoot, so LD wouldn’t play him anyway lol.

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is there an atlanta dream blog open for these loud mouth women on this blog to go to so men can discuss basketball?

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Teague can shoot, and LD won’t play him, so that’s not his sole criteria. I do wish I knew about the Teague thing.

And Jordan Crawford went in because he dunked on LeBron in the viral video, plain and simple. Head game by LD. I liked it, good move.

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rusty

I know your ma’ma done tucked you in, but if I ever hear you talk
bad about the ladies again on this blog…I’m comin’ over to your
school tomorrow and get you out of ISS and then I’m gonna spank
your bottom.
I know your PE teacher, and I’ll ask him to have you run some X-tra
laps, then he won’t let you play dodge-ball either.
After that I’ll ask the lunchroom ladies [real nice like]
to make sure you don’t get any dessert.
So, behave yourself.

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The way that they claim to be putting this team together is ignorant and flawed. I have never seen a so-called elite team go and get a rookie PG and claim that he is going to push them to championship status. It’s almost impossible for a rookie to make a bunch of veteran all-stars and borderline all-stars fall in line. Teague was set up to fail, the Hawks need a veteran starting PG that the guys will respect.

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drmaryb (*_*) = proof of the IQ gap.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IQ_and_the_Wealth_of_Nations

notice those nations at the bottom and those at the top.

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Adults like drmary b arguing with kids and stooping to their level, absolutely pathetic.

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Next game vs. Hornets is telling. It is easy to get up for a Heat team. How about proving you can defend your own home court. This team lost it to a middle of the road team like Houston. They have lost at home to Jazz and Suns. Until you can prove consistency at home, against average to good teams and convince fans, don’t talk about respect. Prove it to me.

Any team in the league gets up to play Heat. Show me you can beat a team that is trying hard like you, a team that will fight tooth and nail, then come back and tell me you are not soft. We’ll see tomorrow night.

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not really, they beat teams when they were short handed. they can’t beat miami when they are healthy also boston, chicago, and orlando. fans are being decieved by their performance.rick sund needs to improve the team so they can compete in the playoffs with the good teams.

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The Falcons played 9 teams with under .500 records! That horrific lost in the 2nd round of the playoffs confirmed what the national media new. The Falcons are pretenders not contenders. Throw that 13-3 record out the window..

The Hawks lost in similar fashion last season. A major beat down in the 2nd round of the playoffs..So throw the 53 wins out the window!! This team wont get the respect they are seeking from the media until they march very deep into the playoffs and make their first EVER CHAMPIONSHIP appearance. Maybe next century? 2111???? By that time Captain Kirk will be roaming the Galaxy in the Starship Enterprise!!!

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“I don’t get it! Hate on Marvin and love on Teague?”

it was a terrible #2 lottery pick!
Marvina was drafted as a #2 lottery pick ahead of two future HOF(CP3 & DWILL) and he rode the bench in college!! Teague was not even close to a lottery pick so there….

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Grand-Daddy!

Sick ‘Em! LOL! I’m just playing with the kids, having some fun!

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“This team overall, is just too inconsistent. Is consistency too much to ask for?”

Good question for Sund…
FYI,”inconsistent” has been the Hawks trademark for the past 20 years dude…

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@ O’Brien: I partially agree with your 7:48 am post. The “column” by MC was a left handed compliment to Josh at best but in fact was an indictment of the other players defensive efforts as well as LD’s coaching ability. Come on, he can’t get consistent effort from ASA and Max Joe?

Reegarding your second point, josh has been the most consistent defensive Hawk’s player over the last 7 years which is an indictment of the organization. For all of his faults-and the main one is immaturity- Josh has been the one constant over the last seven years of a regime composed of a large number of people who frankly didn’t/ don’t know much about basketball. Couple that with the financial limitations and the social climate in the metro area and it is remarkable that he is still here and improving as a player.

Having said all of that, I hope that the kid doesn’t end up as the Andruw Jones of the Hawks: a ton of talent that seemed to be headed to the HOF and then BAM! A journeyman albeit a very rich one.
PS. Hope that the local media doesn’t turn ASA into the Matty Ice of the Hawks.

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can we just trade marvin for a tree rollins type of center and be done with it? we dont need much more than that and make him young.

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“Mookie is probably the most underrated PG that the HAWKS has had…Dude could penetrate and dish the rock…they were a potent combination. ”

Mookie could also shoot the rock as good as Mike Bibby and lightning quick!! He was the BEST PG who put a Hawks uniform! Hands down……

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Marvin has to read these post because it seems it lit a fire under him and he was aggressive. The Tree Rollins type center we already almost have in Twin, except he does not score as much (sad because Tree averaged no more than 10 a game) and not even close to blocking shots the way he did. I say fill the seats and trade for Melo. The Highlight Factory will be sold out every night!

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Looks like Lil’ Wayne is mad at Lebron and D-Wade LMAO!

From Rollingstone.com:

In the upcoming issue of Rolling Stone, Wayne expressed his discontent with LeBron James and Dwyane Wade’s lack of acknowledgment of his presence at the Miami Heat home games.

“Them ni**as never speak to a ni**a,” Lil Wayne said. “They don’t chunk me the deuce or nothing. Ni**a spent all that money on them f**king tickets…Come holla at me. We sit right by them little b**ch a** ni**as. At least come ask me why I’m not rooting for you.”

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The Hawks have won 28 games so far, 21 of those wins have come against teams with losing records (smh). That is what you refer to by mentioning “quietly making a case for respect”.

Unacceptable.

There is something to be said for consistently beating teams that arent very good, but at the same time, the idea that beating those teams garners the Hawks any time of respect for doing so means that even Atlanta’s own fans dont expect much. This writer included.

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@slimjr man you aint taking no hostages LOL. But I agree do you remember when we had Mookie and Mutombo. We went into Chicago and beat Jordan and the gang. If we can find a similar point and center we would be a beast.

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“But I agree do you remember when we had Mookie and Mutombo. We went into Chicago and beat Jordan and the gang. If we can find a similar point and center we would be a beast.”

@dukester
Wow! Thanks for the memories. I almost forgot about that run! Mookie could out smoke and out play just about all the pg’s today. He would school these dudes…His defense was second to none at the point of attack(perimeter). He would get in their jock at half court. This present configuration of players ain’t got a clue how to D up.. That’s why the Hawks get smoked in the playoffs. They are a pathetic 10-18 the past three playoffs..Losing by 20+ a game on the road..Throw out the regular season cause they fixin to get punished!!
Can’t fool us SUND!!!

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There are only 15 teams in the league with winning records…We have only played 14 games against them.

Miami 2-5 against the best in the East…1 win came when the Hawks didn’t have Joe. Any excuse you can make for the Heat you can make for the Hawks.

I believe the Bulls are 7-11 against winning teams.

The Magic have a worse record than the Hawks.

There is only one “Elite” team in the East…One, not 4 or 5….ONE! BOSTON

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@Rufus1 – of the 15 games lost this year 10 (66%) have been against teams with winning records.

Of the 39 remaining games, 22 of them are against teams with winning records.

The Hawks will continue to lose 66 percent of games against winning teams (barring no major injuries) which will have them losing about 14 of the 22 games,

The Hawks will continue to win 66 percent of games against losing teams (barring any major injuries to the Hawks) which will have them losing approx. 6 of those 17 games.

Using that math the Hawks barely make 50 wins and considering you dont have the leadership, point gaurd play, or low post defense to beat any good teams, you are correct the Hawks do suck.

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@Hawksgoingbackward you are the man!!!!!

Some of the people on this blog are drinking to much of Sund punch….LOL

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@Rufus – the Bulls may be 7-11 against teams with winning records but thats still better than the Hawks at 5-10.

The hawks have 1 game better record than Orlando who has played 22 teams with winning records compared to the Hawks who have only played 15 teams with a winning record. If this was the BCS (which im proud its not) the Magic would ranked higher than the Hawks are.

I wonder where you are gonna be when the Hawks barely get past the first round and get pounded in the second and all thats left just like the past 3 years are less excuses.

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I counted only 14 teams with winning records. Only Boston in the East has a winning record against other clubs with winning records. (13-5). SA, Dallas, NO and Oklahoma all have winning records. Atlanta is tied for fewest wins (5) and only played 14 games against teams with winning records, so the remaining schedule is going to be a lot tougher. How can you expect this team to be better when the only change you made was to add Josh Powell and Damien Wilkins and have Twin lose weight. EVERY team in the East made at least one major change : Shaq – Boston: NY Amare: Chicago Boozer: Miami the big three and Orlando several.

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Hawksgoingbackward

How many years did it take the Bulls to get past Detroit, 2 maybe 3 years..

How long did it take Detroit to get past Boston, 2 maybe 3 years..

This will be our 3rd year trying to get out of the 2nd round…I believe in continuity.

In the past 2 years Lebron has made it, Wade hasn’t made it and the Bulls haven’t made….So why are you showing them love. You are complianing about a 53 win team that has lost in the 2nd round for 2 straight years!

Chicago….really? The National media has pulled a “Jedi mind trick” on you. They haven’t won a playoff series in like 8 years, so to give them any credit is crazy.

We have made the 2nd round for 2 straight years…can the Bulls say that, NO! Call me when they can.

I have nothing to say about the Magic except, I think this year will be different.

DO ME FAVOR…STOP GIVE THE REST OF THEM TEAMS IN THIS LEAGUE THE CREDIT THE MAGIC EARNED THE PLAYOFFS LAST YEAR…AND WE LOST OUR BEST PLAYER FOR NINE GAME…ASK DALLAS AND THE HEAT ABOUT LOSING YOU BEST PLAYER

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ag

We made one major change….our head coach! The real problem. The Hawks have never lost a game because of talent.

This years we have already beat the Magic twice and the Heat once on the road, because of coaching.

We have the 2nd best road record in the NBA and have won 5 in a row on the road…14-9 on the road, 14-6 at home.

We won’t lose more than 10 games at home this year. 21 home games left and 18 road games.

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“Atlanta is tied for fewest wins (5) and only played 14 games against teams with winning records, so the remaining schedule is going to be a lot tougher”

Get ready Hawks Fans to jump off the Bus. Quote from the famous Charles Barkley “Don’t break your ankles while you jump off the bus!” He gave this quote while on the air with the local radio personalities “THE TWO LIVE STEWS” a few weeks ago referencing the Hawks…

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Charles Barkley
Thought Woody was a Good coach..Enough said.

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If the Hawks have another terrible performance in the playoffs then they will continue to get no respect. Winning a bunch of games in the regular season is nice and all but its about what you do in the playoffs. Until the Hawks actually win when it counts they will continue to be seen as a nice team that cant win when it matters most……

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slimjr,

what you are advocating is “pulling the trigger” just for the sake of pulling the trigger. you want to be excited with a signing, any signing, since that will bring you hope that “things will improve”.

but, what do you expect – realistically – to get in a trade?

99,9% of the trade ideas around here are purely delusional and or childish exercises.

last year and over the summer everyone was drolling about Haywood. Just look at his numbers this year after he signed what he was looking for (a fat contract).

and that is just one example.

you guys simply don’t get it, you just either only look at box scores or perpetually complain without analyzing fairly what we have and what we up against.

Shaq did not want to come here, he wanted a truck load of cash and as soon as he got it his weight would baloon and he would be on the injured list for most of the year. then, in the playoffs, he would demand to play and to receive the touches he thought he still deserves and when we would – again – crash and burn, he would blame others whilst having his pockets full.

I would also like to see the hawks get to the ECF, win the East and ultimately the title and I am also dissatisfied with the fact that we were humiliated by the Magic in the 2nd round – the loss against CLE was a different matter since we had Marvin, Al playing hurt and JJ had also a bad ankle – but I make my assessments within the realm of what is real and concrete and not what you guys imagine can be done whilst playing NBA2K11.

The present configuration is still a work in progress and we have seen already several areas of our play improve, including being a better match up against ORL (with the same personnel, but better utilized), a reasonably encouraging match up against BOS (second game) and a very encouraging match up against MIA (who’s personnel configuration without a quality PG and without a dominant C makes them somewhat accessible).

We have 2 games against the Bulls within the next 4 weeks or so and I am not at all convinced that we do not have the personnel to beat them. Let’s wait and see.

Yes, we have not been winning consistently against playoff teams, but we have competed to the end is almost every single game.

When we lost against Dallas and SA both teams we torching everyone, and SA still is. OKC has been on the rise and we competed, … come on! It’s not like we lost by 20 and were never in those games.

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@vava74
I give you that. The Hawks have been competing but they tend to struggle against the sub .500 teams then once in a while surprise you like the Miami win.. The fans are getting restless with a franchise that have never competed in a Championship and have not been to the ECF in 23 long a@@ years..Its a sign of frustration on these blogs.. That’s all…

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@ag – Lou Hudson was was 2 guard / forward.

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Hoop – Hoop – Hooray!

Mike is Back! And, I for one am glad!

Yeah Mike, you remember Ed Gray? He reminds me of Salim Stoudamire. Too small for a SG and not a true PG either. Notice, I never mention Danny Boy Manning! Uggh! What was up with his bottom lip? I imagined he dribbled in his sleep too! Manning was the most hated Hawk of all time! And, we all know why that was! (Wink Wink!)

Back then the league had a lot of heavy drinkers. Alcoholism, wasn’t considered a disease back then as it is now. Rod Strickland, Kenny “Jet” Smith just to name a few. But, the players from the 80’s were very skilled in the games Fundamentals. Like “Smitty’s” Top Ten Plays under The Rim segment on NBA TV.

Players could actually shoot that mid-range jumper, set screens, move w/o the ball, defend, rebound, box-out and hit the three. Those were the good ole’ days!
Those guys played for pride.

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Rufus1
I am glad Woody is out of here and the new coach does make a few bold moves (not starting Marvin a couple of games) pulling Josh, and putting in JCII in the crunch, but I am not sold on this guy. Watching Teague against Boston was a thing of beauty. Now, he comes in shoots on shot and misses and his a$$ in on the bench. Yet, Crawford and Joe stink it up, but are still on the court. I guess we will never agree with all the coaching moves, but is this team really better than last season?

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I still say if management wants to fill the Phillips, they have to make a BIG trade. Trade Marvin while he is on the rise. I hate to see Crawford go but it is truly business. Throw in a couple of pick…see what sticks.

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Taken from the ‘Numbers Game’ article on NBA website.

“At the bottom of the list is Atlanta’s Josh Powell. The Hawks have been 17.3 points per 100 possessions better with Powell on the bench than with him on the floor.”

“Defensively, the biggest difference-maker is Atlanta’s Jason Collins. The Hawks allow 14.1 points per 100 possessions fewer with Collins on the floor.”

I’m going to skip the Powell part and go straight into Collin’s defense, this just shows how much better a team we could be with a TRUE big on our team, if we acquired a true big, and a quality penetrating PG, I truthfully think we are those two things away from becoming championship contenders.

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@slimjr I think Sam Dalembert is as close to Mutombo that we can get right now. DRMARYB has been harassing me saying Dalembert is lazy. She wanted to sign Dampier I didnt have a problem with but looking at him the other night that guy is washed up. At least Dalembert can block shots and rebound.

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Mike is Back!

Hey Mike, you remember Vin Baker? An awesome player who suffered from depression and alcoholism. I really admired his game.

I became a fan when a date took me to a game in 1986 at the old hole in the ground – The Omni. Mane, that arena was built like a toilet bowl wasn’t it?
The cheap seats were high in the rafters, but were at street level. Seemed like the Hawks played in the basement of the building. That was wild!

I started off watching Kevin Willis, (I saw Kevin in Target here in Atlanta last week) we spoke, he looks great. Very thin and dressed very neat, a dress shirt and denim pants with sketcher sneakers. I recognized him right away, because he is so tall! Kevin was very polite and gracious, he was alone. But, Nique’,
John Battle, Spud, Tree Rollins, Antoine Carr and of course Doc Rivers.

That was a very professional team for the Hawks! Nique’ always threw parties down at the Hotels in the city. We girls always went, we always saw Nique and the stars who were in town, like the Pistons. Nobody was tripping, it was just old school 80’s – Keepin’ it Real! Can’t do that now, these women will slip something in your drink and next thing you know – you’re married!

See Carmen Electra and Dennis Rodman! LOL!

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you could certainly throw Shawn Kemp in the same mold as Baker. Very talented but needed the bottle. The older Hawks of the late 70’s and early 80’s battled coke. I guess that is why the NBA really never has reunions. John Drew, Eddie Johnson, Terry Furlow, etc…

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Dukester

Don’t twist my words, they are all on the record! I said back in the Summer, I lobbied hard for Shaq, to no avail. Daimpeer was the only Center left on the market. We got Etan Thomas instead. That ship had sailed.

I clearly said I didn’t want Daimpeer once we got Etan. Why keep talking about a Center, when the greater need is PG now and Al said, “I will go to war with what I got!”

Yall really need to STOP beating dead horses and living in the past! I told you yesterday, we didn’t get a Center last Summer and were NOT gonna’ get one
now! Are you retarded? I told you Centers don’t grow on trees and everybody and his Mother need one!

Meanwhile PG’s are available: I like Nash and Billups! But, with the Melo deal finally dead, Billups might not be available now. Rafer Alston I heard is in China and I guess Devin Harris could help. But Big Centers are a rare commodity and a freak of nature! Good Luck with finding one Dukester!
______________________

I really done with that topic!

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Hoopinion reporting No Al or Marvin for atleast 2 more games

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A thought for today:

There are 3 groups of NBA fans:

The group 1 fans support their teams with very low expectation of making the playoffs. These loyal fans desires are limited to winning the highest lottery pick and selecting the next dominating and future franchise player in the upcoming draft. Though they know their chances of a playoff berth are unobtainable, nonetheless, they are at peace with just supporting their team and enjoying the games.

The group 2 fans support their team with a higher expectation of making the playoff but are reluctant and apprehensive about their chances of a serious championship run. These are the most troubled but intriguing fans with perhaps the widest range of mixed emotions about the prospects of their team. The emotion could range from an outcry to sell the team or blowing-up the roster to unrealistic dreams of being amongst the elite. These dreams are often supported with claims from loyal fans of their team being the “dark-horse” favorite or the next “Cinderella” story of the playoff. Unlike the Cinderella story, however, the dream ends in disappointment which fuels a continuous frustration loop within in fan-base. These fans are the must tormented because of the illusion of a playoff run that always ends nowhere.

The group 3 fans support their team with the highest expectation of not only making the playoff with a top seed but are very bullish about their chances of winning the championship. These fans also feels the most bullish about the ownership of their team spending whatever is necessary in acquiring the cream of the crop in roster and coaching talent. Unfortunately however, because there can only be one champion, the group 3 fans that lose in the playoff are perhaps the most disappointed and most humiliated fans compared to all groups. This is because their emotional fall was the greatest relative to their bullish outlook.

So while group 1 and 2 fans no doubt envy the group 3 fans, they certainly don’t envy the playoff losers of this group. Just think, after each championship is decided, we tend to be more preoccupied with the winners and less concern with what the losers are feeling. Our only memories of the losers of the finals are likely the goats of the final. On the other hand, the big emotional price that’s paid from losing in the finals may be something equally overlooked by fans of group 1 and 2. Can they handle “The Truth”? As the world wide of sports coined it, thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.

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Mon Jun 21 2010 06:25am EDT

Dalembert on block for two years?

By Mark J. Miller

Samuel Dalembert is no longer a member of the Philadelphia 76ers now that he’s been traded to the Sacramento Kings for center Spencer Hawes and swingman Andres Nocioni.

(notes)

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The front office in Philadelphia has got to be pretty happy about finally being able to move Dalembert. The Philadelphia Inquirer reports that the gang there had been trying to move Dalembert for two years, but couldn’t find the right deal for him.

“The guy did not like basketball. He showed up late, didn’t work on improving his game, and took every opportunity to stay away from the practice court,” the Inquirer opines.

Follow Yahoo! Sports on Twitter at @markjmill.

Source: Philadelphia Inquirer

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The Hawks wont do anything in the Playoffs, like always. None of this even matters.

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Sammy Dalembert Is Parting Ways With Team Canada

July 17, 2008 @ 7:49 am › Chris

Screw Team USA, Team Canada is where all the action is, and where all the controversy ensues.  Seems Sammy Dalembert, the Sixers super-duper center, has left Team Canada.  Or was he told to leave by the coach?  We report, you decide:

It is unclear whether Canadian coach Leo Rautins gave the 76ers’ starting center marching orders or whether Dalembert left on his own. But after Canada beat Korea in Athens, Greece, yesterday without Dalembert, Rautins told the media: “He’s not on the team. I’ll leave it at that.”

Rautins, who could not be reached for comment, went on to say, “Everyone who is here wants to be here and wants to be on this team.”

Whoa!  Passive-aggressive much?!  I half expect Rautins to come out and write a book called ‘If I threw Sammy off the team’ where he waxes poetically about how much Sammy sucks and how lazy he is and how he hates his guts.  Sheesh.  Who’s Canada got left?  Steven Nash ain’t on the team, and Dalembert was the only NBA player left.

Gold medal time?

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Vava,

You post like you have all the answers (LOL). I’ve already proved you wrong once, and some of these statements are absurd. I’ll try to discredit most of them. You are also the guy who tries to continually bash Jamal for some crazy reason, but want to keep trying to give credit to Marvin Willliams. That alone makes you a joke in my eyes. You do realize what Jamal’s role on this team is right? It is to be instant offense off the bench. To be a Vinny Johnson type player. Nobody talks about Vinnie Johnson not being a good defender, or turning the ball over, they talk about him being an assasin of the bench. Taking all things into consideration, I would venture to say that Jamal has done over an above what we brought him here to do.

“you complain about Marvin, but what would happen if we replaced him with a me first type of guy?
would there be enough shots for everyone?”

Me first type of guys become that way based on the teams they are on. KG, Pierce, Allen, Lebron, Wade…. were all at one time me first type of guys when they were on bad teams. Many guys have the ability to adjust their games based on the talent around them. Joe is our star player, and he has obviously shown that he has the ability to adjust his game, so I’m sure he would have no problem adjusting. It would actually help him by taking the pressure and double and triple teams away. Every player that takes the most shots on his team is not a me first guy. Did you ever think about the fact that most of those guys are taking those all those shots because the coach runs plays for them to take those shots.

“isn’t our problem right now that with the emergence of Al as an offensive player we should see Josh limit his shots from outside and bang inside more?”

No. That is not our problem. Josh should not limit his shots for Al. Al is is good midrange jump shooter. He is not a dominant post player. He does not create his own shots. Most of his shots come from within the offense. He ain’t no Karl Malone. For everything Josh does for this team, he deserves to take shots when he is open, like it or not.

“SA won several championships with players who sacrificed their shots for the sake of the team.
Every team needs a utility player, a guy who contributes in different ways depending on what the team needs and the coach directs.”

No one on SA safriced shots. They played in a system. The system dictates the shots, not the players. It also helps to have a real coach who holds players accountable. Do you honestly think Pop would have allowed Marvin Williams to start for 5 years? I saw how he treated Jefferson (a much better player than Marvin) last year, and I can say with a great deal of certainty that if Marvin performed in SA, like he did in Atlanta, he might not be in the league right now. If Pop screamed at Marvin the way he did at Jefferson, Marvin might start crying.

“Bowen was that guy for SA. Marvin could become that guy for us. A good defensive player who knocks a few shots, rebounds a bit and changes his role from game to game.”

Marvin ain’t no Bruce Bowen my friend. He might have more physical tools, but you can’t buy heart, courage and desire. Those things are not for sale. Bowen would fight the Kobe’s and Reggie Miller’s of the NBA. Marvin would not. It’s that simple.

“or do you think that we would function as a team if we replaced Marvin for Granger?”

Many here and around the league say that we don’t function well as a team now. If we replaced Marvin with Granger we probably would be one of the best teams in the east. Granger is a better defender, better offensive player, rebounds at the same rate, and would keep teams from doubling Joe Johnson. No team would ever leave Danny Granger standing alone in the corner like they do Marvin. The game would be much easier for every player on our team. Let me let you in on a little secret. It’s much harder to score and shoot a high percentage from the floor, when you are the guy teams gameplan against defensively. If Granger got the same looks on this team as Marvin does, (Wide open shots, and guards checking him) ain’t no telling what he would be able to do. He also would never fall down on a fast break with Jameer Nelson and Brandon Jennings the only player between him and the rim. The biggest thing a guy like Granger would give us is a guy who is able to break hi man down off the dribble, get to the rim and finish, which no one on this team does well except Jamal.

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The Bulls are discussing whether Anthony would give them a better chance to win an NBA title, according to a league source. They might also wait to see if Denver’s price drops closer to the Feb. 24 trade deadline and the Nuggets will accept a package of Luol Deng, Taj Gibson and first-round picks.

Arlington Heights Daily Herald

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The Nets have expressed interest in several of the Grizzlies’ pieces, with one source believing that the team will target Zach Randolph and O.J. Mayo. New Jersey wants to make a trade, especially involving Murphy, but they’re not going to take on long, bad contracts that limit their options in the future. The team is interested in young talent and expiring contracts that would help the team improve in the short-term and make sense financially in the long-term.

HoopsWorld

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DMB, you are on your A-game today! Reminiscing of so-so great Hawks of the past….man, that Eddie Johnson jumper always looked good to me….today’s teams wouldn’t let him on the team….he was a fav.

And I am in your camp on one comment: I wanted the Big Shamrock here as well! They had my $$ had that happened…when stubborn Sund didn’t even acknowledge interest and instead brought in Etan, talk about deflating!

And Rufus1, what you said: “There is only one “Elite” team in the East…One, not 4 or 5….ONE! BOSTON”

Nothing else needs to be said…and since that is the case, why in the name of Ken Norman are you gonna let Boston get Shaq and add him as a weapon against your fight to succeed in the playoffs! The Big Cookie is on his salad and fruit diet now and gearing up for the run in the spring for the ring! Sund gets my bonehead award…and when Shaq hits us with 13/11 again…..right now, we are 0-2 against the East Elite.

Mookie Blaylock is a top Hawk PG in history for one simple reason: He has won a couple of games in the 2nd round of the playoffs!

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Watch the highlights of Game 2 versus the Celtics on NBA.com and watch Marvin back away from any contact in the paint vs. their 3rd stringer, Erden!

Gotta do better than that sir!

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The Xman? Oh yeah…and did you know that Anthony Mason Jr tried out for the Heat this year out of St.Johns? Time is a flyin’!

And Kenny Norman was here, DMB, it says 3 years…no way! It was more like 3 years with a uniform, and 3 without…..he sat way more than he played…he got credit for 216 games in 3 years as a Hawk…the best dressed Hawk on the bench night-in, night-out. He reminded me of big Doug Edwards, who took over for Norman at that bench slot as a 1st round pick in ‘93…check out his wiki: 54 games in 2 years as a Hawk..

Edwards gained his nickname “Doughboy” while playing in Vancouver as a result of his soft play on the court, and supposed infatuation with the local Tim Hortons doughnut chain. On September 10, 2008, Frank Martin announced the addition of Edwards to his coaching staff at Kansas State University. Where are they now, huh?

Mookie and EJ…good stuff.

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““You are not a Jedi yet!”
@ Dept. Of Unintended Irony

LOL! Hey take it easy on the George Wallace Jr( Jedi Falcon). He’s just pissed off that his Idol MATTY ICE Melted down last week. Guys like him haven’t had their Jesus moment yet but its coming. It may take a lifetime but its coming just ask George Wallace who legend has it on his death bed saw the light! And had a changed heart before he transitioned over………Good for him..

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KevinM

Dang! I forgot about Doug Edwards! He had the calf issue, thinking back, I think he had “Compartment Syndrome”, some serious stuff. I was so sick of seeing him on that bench!

You remember drafting: Adam Keefe? OMG! I almost threw up! He ended up playing for Utah Jazz for like 4 years, he was only here from ‘92 to ‘93. What a wasted pick for the Hawks!

Plastic Man! Stacey Augmon from UNLV was a fantastic and smooth defender for us too. Loved him with Mookie! Best defense Hawks ever played. Smitty was underrated too, he was a nice defender with them stiff knees! He gave a ton of effort and tht pet move on the baseline with the head fake and roll to the baseline. You knew it was coming, but it froze you everytime.

Grant Long choking Duane Ferrell – OMG! A street brawl! LOL! Grant had the best pump-fake I ever saw in my life! Pump and roll to the basket, great rebounder. I wish Josh and Marvin would Pump Fake more! Those are the Fundamentals these kids don’t have anymore. It’s the little things that make a BIG difference. Doing things the right way, the first time is what my Mother always preached to my brother and me..

Oh Well!

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Man “PLASTIC Man” could run circles around Marvin and he was not even a lottery pick if memory serves correctly. Shoot I’ll take Stacey over Marvin right now……Wow…..Hawks have a long tradition of blowing/wasting picks.. You guys remember Priest Lauderdale?? A 7′4″ giant who was supposed to make some noise someday…What ever happened to him???

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Marvin for Danny Granger yesterday!

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Plastic man reminds me a lot of Marvin also. He actually was our SF after Nique left, and we all were very disappointed. I cannot believe you all are saying how great of a shooter Mookie was. His shot was terrible. Look at the numbers I posted earlier.

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Don’t forget, Mookie’s OFF started to fall apart immediately after the 3pt line was moved.

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Lookinng at the Hawk history in drafting, Marvin is not looking that bad: (these are all first round picks)Roy Marble ‘89 #23: Rumeal Robinson ‘90 #10; Doug Edwards ‘93 #15; Priest Lauderdale ‘96 #28; Ed Gray ‘97 #22; Cal Bowdler ‘99 #17; DaMarr Johnson ‘00 #6; Sheldon Williams ‘06 #5; Acie Law ‘07 #11

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Ed Gray could score when given the chance.

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“Lookinng at the Hawk history in drafting, Marvin is not looking that bad: (these are all first round picks)Roy Marble ‘89 #23: Rumeal Robinson ‘90 #10; Doug Edwards ‘93 #15; Priest Lauderdale ‘96 #28; Ed Gray ‘97 #22; Cal Bowdler ‘99 #17; DaMarr Johnson ‘00 #6; Sheldon Williams ‘06 #5; Acie Law ‘07 #11″

Just Flat out Brutal!! Don’t forget the great #6 pick Josh Childress in 04….

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prediction: Hawks will probably get eliminated in the 1st round…

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We are doing ok so far. I would like to see a trade though, doesn’t neccessarily have to be a big one, but for example:

Marvin and Zaza + next year’s draft pick to Dallas for Pavlovic and Haywood. Pavlovic played decent back with Cleveland and Haywood would give us a valid C.

Not too much I think, but enough to make us better THIS YEAR!

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The Hawks are not relevant in the NBA. They will be disposed of quickly in the playoffs. Until they get a real go to guy there will be no opportunity for any playoff success. I just tell the truth, don’t let anyone convince you that they have a remote chance of success.

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Wow, you really must be related to Mookie!!! I will admit he may be the best PG the Hawks ever have, but again look at the numbers… career 40% fg… Like Strickland said, when they moved the 3pt line back, his shooting % got worse. He did play great defense and would take you to the hole. Doc was a floor general, but he could score when needed. He may have been the fourth scoring option (Wilkins, Willis, Whittman/Battle/Theus), but was great at what he did. Eddie Johnson was a flat out scorer and complimented John Drew. Mookie by default was the second option behind Smith because those Hawks just could not produce much offense (Mutumbo, Henderson, Long,Corbin)

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Ken, forgot to mention trade by Denver. You know they are going to make a trade because Anthony said he will not resign with them. Billips is also involved because it clears cap space. They are clearly playing for the future as they are attempting to acquire picks and players.

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@ag – you are just about the only person besides slimjr (who seems a bit wacky at times) on this site who has made consistent sense (that ive read anyway).

I have been a big believer that the Hawks lost a significant part of that game attending fanbase when Joe Johnson disrespected them (me included) and then they rubbed it in by signing him to the richest NBA contract without so much as even making the man apologize. The fact that he didnt apologize goes to show he truly doesnt care but he “represents” the Hawks. That is something I cant stand for.

Ive been relegated to rooting against what used to be my favorite team just to prove the point that Joke Johnson isnt worth the contract extension and with him we will never truly compete in the playoffs.

Add to the fact that Woodson and Drew were always so scared to lose their jobs they would never truly consider playing a rookie or inexperienced point guard like Teague because it would mean less wins upfront but would certainly bolster the future. Instead retreading the tires on Mike Bibby year after year after year.

This organization has no leadership from the front office, to the highest paid player. That is why it will never accomplish anything, I personally believe that the ownership knows not to expect much from this team, it just wants to “look” the part of an uscending team because this organization has been so consistently inept in the past.

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Marvin has stepped up when others have been injured. But what have you seen to suggest that Marvin can be a #1 scoring option for a 50 win team?

In my opinion, Marvin is the example of a really good backup QB who can fill in for a few games when your starter goes down.

But if he becomes the starter, then teams will game-plan for him, double team him, and put their best defender on him. If that was to happen, I dont think Marvin could put up JJ’s numbers.

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OBRIEN-To be honest, while JJ is our #1 scoring option, it’s by default. Jamal is the closest thing we have a player like Kobe, LeBron, DWade, Dwight, or any of the elite PG’s in the league, that can take over a gm or carry the team for sustained periods.

What we do have is a collection of very capable #2 scoring options. If Bibby or Drew made the effort to consistently include Marvin in the OFF, maybe as our #3 scoring option, we’d get more consistent and efficient OFF production from him than we’re getting from Smoove. Also, if Marvin was a #1 option in an OFF desiged to give him volumn touches, we’d see more performances like the one’s we’ve seen him have in front of his hometown fans in Seattle.

Whenever he’s been featured in the OFF, whether it’s due to the loss of a key scoring option, or playing in his home city, he’s produced across the board. Whenever the situation no longer exists, he conviently falls back into his #5 scoring option roll. Marvin, Bibby and Horford are the only Hawks that don’t try to force shots.

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To beat the Heat on the road and then to come home and lose by 41 to New Orleans Is disturbing!

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