Atlanta Hawks: They should soon be whole again
Al returned to practice today. Marvin was cleared for contact (though there was no contact today). J.J. (knee) and Smoove (knee) sat out, but since the former finished the game Saturday at Charlotte after he banged his knee and the latter played Saturday after he was dinged on Friday they both should be good to go.
“For the most part, I think everybody is going to be OK,” L.D. said. “Should have everybody back tomorrow.”
It’s been a minute since he could say that. The regular starters (Bibby, J.J., Marvin, Smoove and Al) have been available at the same for just 21 games (19 games as the starting unit and the two games when Marvin came off the bench). It hasn’t happened since Dec. 29. Add super sub Jamal to the mix and the Hawks have had their top six available for just 15 games.
So how are the injured guys feeling?
Al: “It’s getting there. I was able to do pretty much the whole practice. It looks good for Wednesday.”
Joe: “It’s still a little sore today so I just wanted to get treatment today and take advantage of these few days off. I don’t know what happened [on the play]. I thought my knee hit the floor during the play. I don’t really remember. I know it just got banged.”
Marvin: “I feel good. I haven’t had any pain probably in a week now. I am starting to get my strength back, my conditioning is coming back. I am excited.”
Smoove, smart vet that he is, used a J.J. screen in the locker room to shake us media types and slipped off into the players’ area. The Hawks said Josh suffered a hyperextended knee against the Hornets. He seemed to walking without much trouble.
Josh Powell practiced today, too, after L.D. suspended him for the Charlotte game. No word on the details of their conversation following the New Orleans game. Players were surprised to learn on the team plane that Powell wouldn’t be making the trip.
L.D. said that’s the end of it: “Everything is back to normal. It is not one of those situations of making it a prolonged thing. There is no grudges. I’ve still got to coach him; he’s still my player. We will go back to business as usual. I think that’s the way you handle it, the way you deal with it.”
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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144 comments Add your comment
Westurd
January 24th, 2011
4:59 pm
only losers call first
Westurd
January 24th, 2011
4:59 pm
….first
Westurd
January 24th, 2011
5:00 pm
Any word on their mental strength getting healthier and stronger? I think we need them to start getting mentally tough to go with their physicality.
ILL-Logical
January 24th, 2011
5:01 pm
MC: Thanks for the update. Was there any discussion of what the starting line up be Wednesday?
Ra'mon
January 24th, 2011
5:14 pm
Great post MC.
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January 24th, 2011
5:22 pm
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ToeKnee
January 24th, 2011
5:23 pm
Pretty sure Powell was convinced to come here (and I realize how funny it is that we had to work to get him) with the promise of playing time. Even though he rarely played well, LD kept going to him, while everyone watching kept wondering why. He has somewhat recently (past few weeks) taken him out of the rotation and the team has played well. I think Powell most likely confronted Drew about his decreased playing time, and that lead to the suspension. What do yall think?
Michael Cunningham
January 24th, 2011
5:25 pm
@ILL_Logical: “Was there any discussion of what the starting line up be Wednesday?”
L.D.: “That first game, I thought the lineup we did use wasn’t as effective as our big lineup. We elected to go with the big last time at their place. Will we start that way? I haven’t made a decision yet but I’m sure at some point we will get to to that lineup.”
steve brown
January 24th, 2011
5:28 pm
I’m finding it hard to keep my level of support for the Hawks and the Thrashers after finding out what lying dirt bags the owners are. Why should we care anymore?
Elite Vince
January 24th, 2011
5:32 pm
Now if we can have the big line up permanently and Super subs Jamal joined by Marvin off the bench. I think our future will be so bright we might need shades.
lewis
January 24th, 2011
5:33 pm
If haha pachulia could hit a layup, this team would be a contender
JeJe
January 24th, 2011
5:42 pm
Some QBs played a season with one leg.
Marvin has missed 4 weeks with a bruised back. LOL
Rufus1
January 24th, 2011
5:45 pm
MC I would like you to ask LD if he thinks JC2 could transition to a PG in the NBA…(In the Bibby mold).
I think in LD’s mind JC2 is the future PG for his offense.
Jase
January 24th, 2011
5:48 pm
Go get Nash
Michael Cunningham
January 24th, 2011
5:52 pm
@Rufus1: “MC I would like you to ask LD if he thinks JC2 could transition to a PG in the NBA…(In the Bibby mold).”
asked him this before. he quickly said no. says JC2 is strictly a 2.
bigdave
January 24th, 2011
5:59 pm
“I haven’t had any pain probably in a week ”
Marvin G. Williams.
tbhawksfan
January 24th, 2011
6:11 pm
Best first to Westurd. Nice to get everyone together. A game or two to get back in sync and a streak…
The Truth
January 24th, 2011
6:23 pm
Joe: “It’s still a little sore today so I just wanted to get treatment today and take advantage of these few days off. I don’t know what happened [on the play]. I thought my knee hit the floor during the play. I don’t really remember. I know it just got banged.”
Joe watching the play in slow-mo, exactly you got kicked in the knee by your defender on the way down. The injured knee never made much contact with the floor.
The Truth
January 24th, 2011
6:26 pm
Marvin: “I feel good. I haven’t had any pain probably in a week now. I am starting to get my strength back, my conditioning is coming back. I am excited.”
These back injuries are nothing to play with, asked Jamal.
Sautee
January 24th, 2011
6:41 pm
From the last blog:
SteveW,
If Larry Brown is such a PG killer, then wtf explains Chauncey Billups, who blossomed under Larry Brown from a journeyman PG to a solid All-Pro?
And did he “ruin” Allen Iverson at Philly?
How about Mark Jackson in Indiana? Did Brown “kill” his career?
Larry Brown as PG killer is a hugely wrong characterization, IMO. If you want to say that his system failed to bring out the best in Felton and Augustine, ok, I’ll buy that. But look at the PGs this man has coached. No way has he been a PG killer.
You are not giving the coaches nearly enough credit for any improvements and ALL of the blame for the players’ faults.
But if Teague could play anywhere CLOSE to Billups, Iverson, or Mark Jackson, then I don’t think you’d see LD “holding him back”. Most of what’s holding Teague back is within himself.
SteveW
January 24th, 2011
6:54 pm
Sautee if you have read the entirety of all of my comment, you know that I said he only kills PG’s that need developing, but he uses the stars. Let me give you a couple of quotes from Wiki:
Quote 1, “In 2005, Allen Iverson, who frequently clashed with Brown in Philadelphia,…”
So there is your Iverson thing.
Quote 2, “Despite Brown’s prowess in coaching and handling different egos and personalities, Brown has often been questioned for not playing rookies. He is also known for being hard on his point guards.”
Sound familiar? Ask LD.
Sautee, you said, “Most of what’s holding Teague back is within himself.”
I just strongly disagree with that statement. And occasionally 2 folks disagree, and only time will tell. But I’m sure I’m correct.
vava74
January 24th, 2011
6:56 pm
Sautee,
If you don’t mind my two grains of salt in your conversation with stevebrown:
LBrown is known… no, he is notorious, for getting on all PGs’ grills to the point of both parties having mutual death wishes.
All because he was a PG back on his playing days and his habit to demand that everyone, independently of their physical and/or technical characteristics play according to his mold.
Also, a few more commentaries to your post:
Billups blossomed under Carlisle. LB merely finished the job.
Iverson was shifted to the SG slot. The PG slot was occupied almost exclusively by Snow.
Mark Jackson was a veteran, LB’s fame is mostly true with younger less proven and less established PGs.
SteveW
January 24th, 2011
7:03 pm
Sautee – I Co-sign what Vava74 said.
And LD has the same gene
SteveW
January 24th, 2011
7:15 pm
Big Ray – It’s called stats. Teague in college shot the trey much better than Jordan Crawford (44.1% to 39.1%), and he spent the off season working with Conner on his trey.
This is what Larry Drew said on Oct 25th about Jeff Teague according to AJC,
“Drew said Teague “was playing like a man on a mission” before the injury…”
“Drew said. “When he is aggressive and when he is attacking and he is not thinking about what he is supposed to be doing out there, he is much more effective than what he has shown the last couple of games.”
This is LD. He was the 1st one to camp as a rookie. Worked on his D and jumpshooting this off season. Went to Summer League. Has kept a great attitude. What more do you want from the kid?
How to develop Jeff Teague, say “Jeff, you are playing Chris Paul tonight. You will get 5-6 minutes in the 1st half, and 3 in the 2nd. In those minutes, I want you to become Chris Paul’s worst nightmare. I want you to bite his kneecaps off (proverbially speaking of course). I want you to attack him, and make him have nightmares about Jeff Teague. He’s yours.” This
Gives Jeff confidence against the best in the game.
Gives his teammates confidence in Jeff
Awakens his inner Dog
And helps the team, because with his athleticism he can’t fail.
Or you can play head games with him, and hope for the best…
SteveW
January 24th, 2011
7:17 pm
Do that every night with Jeff, and he has a purpose in life, gives Bibby some rest, and makes life harder for the other team.
Bird
January 24th, 2011
7:22 pm
Laugh out loud @Westurd..
Bird
January 24th, 2011
7:23 pm
JC2 needs more burn.
O'Brien
January 24th, 2011
7:24 pm
@Rufus1: “MC I would like you to ask LD if he thinks JC2 could transition to a PG in the NBA…(In the Bibby mold).”
asked him this before. he quickly said no. says JC2 is strictly a 2..
I’m sure LD thinks Jamal is strictly a SG, but that hasnt stopped him from using Jamal as our backup PG.
O'Brien
January 24th, 2011
7:30 pm
To add to the Larry Brown discussion, the PGs that he had were high draft picks.
Iverson was drafted #1, Billups drafted #3, DJ Augustin drafted #9.
Teague was drafted #19, and he was the 7th PG taken. Clearly, the raw talent is not there and will need ot be developed.
Melvin
January 24th, 2011
7:45 pm
Watching TMac put in work against the Magic. 14pts, 3rebs, 2ast, 2stl all in the first quarter. I would have prefer to have him on the Hawks than Wilkins (and I like Wilkins). Heck, over Mo and Ethan as well…
honest_abe
January 24th, 2011
7:57 pm
it was during the first matchup against milwaukee when the hawks got off to a fast start and i remember seeing teague doing this asinine little jig on the sideline… it was at that moment i realized this kid isn’t ready to play significant minutes in the nba. you have to be a mature, leader type to run the pg spot.
teague keeps making stupid mental errors and that’s why you’re seeing his minutes diminishing.
the last play i saw him run, he was tryin to pass the ball past halfcourt to call a timeout and he gets ripped and the other team scored. those kinds of plays don’t have to do with confidence as much as someone who is focused and ready to play.
i_am_soulstar
January 24th, 2011
8:06 pm
Finally. Can we go streaking now??? (And I don’t mean running naked thru the quad.) Hell, I’ll be ecstatic if we pull out the next 3 against Bucks, Knicks, Mavs.
Sautee
January 24th, 2011
8:08 pm
Good points, all who responded to my post.
Najeh Davenpoop
January 24th, 2011
8:26 pm
“i remember seeing teague doing this asinine little jig on the sideline… it was at that moment i realized this kid isn’t ready to play significant minutes in the nba. you have to be a mature, leader type to run the pg spot. ”
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pry6Cp0kSO0
Just saying…
Blast
January 24th, 2011
8:42 pm
Don’t understand the fascination with Teague. I Like him, but dude just is not ready! Take time from Bibby? That is laughable. How many bigs three’s has Bibby made this season to put Hawks over the top? And Bibby’s defense is not as bad as people make it out to be. When Hawks beat Miami, no one can say Mike hurt the team on defense. Mike sets the best screen on the team, on both ends of the floor. Jeff cannot shoot, he is undecisive, his floaters often gets blocked, he turns the ball over…need I go on?
Jeff Teague is not ready to lead a team like Hawks yet. So those guys that wants to see him play, better not hold your breath, or you might never breathe again.
Can’t wait to see the full squad back again!
JoJo the Godfather
January 24th, 2011
9:12 pm
SteveW…keep in mind the # of 3’s each player attempted in his last year in college as well…Jordan had double the 3-pt attempts of Teague and managed to shoot 39% compared to 44%…To me, Jordan is the better shooter & scorer…Teague has the better handle and is quicker…Hopefully, they’ll be side by side on the second unit next year.
Jae Evolution
January 24th, 2011
9:35 pm
Orlando is about to drop one at home to the Pistons, which will have us tied with them for fourth spot in the East.
Jae Evolution
January 24th, 2011
9:37 pm
I am absolutely baffled at how the Bulls have maintained such a strong record with such a bad roster and their two best bigs out for so long…they are starting to make me believers and I haven’t even seen their full roster at work yet.
Melvin
January 24th, 2011
9:38 pm
The Pistons beat the Magic in Orlando, easily at that… Now how does the Pistons lost look on the Hawks schedule now…
honest_abe
January 24th, 2011
9:38 pm
everyone dances, celebrates pregame…. not everyone does a riverboat tap dance during a game….
just sayin
Melvin
January 24th, 2011
9:57 pm
Jae, I’m watching the Bulls game now. Derrick Rose is just a beast. He carries that team on his back. The ball is in his hands the majority of the time for the Bulls and he seem to make all the right plays for at the right time…
Najeh Davenpoop
January 24th, 2011
9:58 pm
Thanks to the Pistons, the Hawks are tied with the Magic for 4th again.
Najeh Davenpoop
January 24th, 2011
9:59 pm
The Bulls are doing so well in part because they are the best defensive team in the league, and they have done it without Joakim Noah for a big portion of the season. I have to think Tom Thibodeau is one of the main reasons for that.
Blast
January 24th, 2011
10:02 pm
And need I add that Mike has been getting to the rim more often this season? You all want a point guard? We got one! His name is Mike Bibby, 3rd in the league in 3 point %! Get off your ass! Mike is not as bad as you all make him out to be.
I did not see you newbies on this blog when Hawks were winning 13 games a season! You all weren’t here when Hawks won 37 games and made the playoffs for the first time in 10 years. That was the year Bibby was traded for by the way.
Hawks lost in a rare game to NO, and folks exploded with craziness. Folks who had never posted before showed up en-masse and allowed the vitriol to flow! Lawd have mercy! You would think the world had come to an end! Where are those posters now that Hawks won at Charlotte, and are tied with Miami and LA for best road win at 15? Hawks broke several records last year, and has broken or even up their road win record this year in 13 years.
Fake posters slash fake Hawks fans that only show up at bad times, waiting like carrion vultures to strike at the lame and weak, and then spew negative thoughts and bile. Get the f!ck outta here! Your comments are not needed or appreciated. You just holding up blog space.
Hawks are what they are, man. One of the few rare teams that has made the playoffs in 3 years, win 50+ games and still be under luxury tax. I love the fact that they have been making progress. Yeah, playoffs has been disappointing, but what do you expect from a team that has only been there twice in years and was playing Woody’s iso offense? Hawks are nowhere next to being one of the best teams in the league. They are on the cusp of elite, but they don’t have the entire personnel to make it there yet. I predict right now that Hawks will get into the 2nd round and either win it, or make it competitive.
i_am_soulstar
January 24th, 2011
10:15 pm
We own the tiebreaker over the Magic, but many of you know that already.
Rufus1
January 24th, 2011
10:15 pm
@Jae Evolution
Don’t start believing in the Bulls just yet…
DRose has basically become Iverson, he has to work very hard to score in their offense and like Joe the previous years he might be worn out when the playoffs come.
They very few shooters, no bench and only 3 legit offensive weapons(Rose, Boozer and Deng) … no team in the playoffs will let DRose beat, so is Boozer and Deng enough?
They don’t take a night off because the have to prove they belong in the elite of the east and DRose wants to be MVP…
I want the Hawks to be healthy and rested when the playoffs come.
Blast
January 24th, 2011
10:19 pm
Orlando is not the same team they were last year. Last year, they blew the Hawks out of the water. Swept Hawks in the regular season, blew them out in the playoffs, now Hawks are tied with them for 4th in the East, with a 2-1 game advantage. Anymore slippage from Magic and Hawks takes over.
Orlando is not expected to slip. Hawks are. So if Orlando slips and Hawks win, hey, cudos to the last man standing.
Goodnight, y’all.
O'Brien
January 24th, 2011
10:22 pm
“When Hawks beat Miami, no one can say Mike hurt the team on defense.” Blast .
That is because Miami’s PGs are Carlos Arroyo and Mario Chalmers.
But if Bibby goes up against Rose in Chicago, Jameer in Orlando, Rondo in Boston, maybe even Felton in NY (and those are teams the hawks might meet in the first round of the playoffs), there is a very strong probability that Bibby would be exploited, and the team would have to try and pick up his slack.
Ramon
January 24th, 2011
10:33 pm
Guys, here is a question I have. This off season, would it be foolish of the Hawks to pursue K. Perkins? Would offering Perkins a deal of 4 years-$32 mil be a terrible idea? Boston window past this season is basically closed, especially with Rivers up in the air. While Perkins is coming off a knee injury, he was a player who used his head and his size more so than athleticism to do what he does. By all accounts, K. Perkins is the best defensive C in the league not name Dwight. Would a starting line up that features Joe, Josh, Al, Perkins, not be one of the best defensive lineups in the league? Josh is allowed to go into the off season and come into training camp knowing he will be the starting SF. There for he’s able to work more on his handle this off season and less on bulking up.
O'Brien
January 24th, 2011
10:38 pm
Ramon,
Hawks will be over the cap, so we cannot get Perkins unless there is a sign and trade.
And even if we could get him, I dont see the ASG going into the luxury tax for Perkins.
O'Brien
January 24th, 2011
10:43 pm
Usually, you would expect a young player’s PT to increase as the season goes on. But for Teague, his PT is getting smaller and smaller.
Oct: 14 mpg, November: 13 mpg, Dec: 12 mpg, Jan: 8.5 mpg
Blast
January 24th, 2011
10:44 pm
O’Brien,
Hawks have not played Bulls this year, so we can’t judge that matchup yet. They are 2-1 versus Magic, and Nelson didn’t do squat except jack up jumpers that didn’t go in. We are 0-1 versus Boston, and the Celts caught us when Hawks were still transitioning, not playing very well, and Boston playing great.
Hawks have beaten NY once, and way both teams are playing so far, I expect Hawks to sweep NY if they meet in the playoffs.
niremetal
January 24th, 2011
10:48 pm
According to Newsday, we’ve begun preliminary talks about acquiring Melo:
http://mobile.newsday.com/inf/infomo;JSESSIONID=42CD924C55747822C540.3027?site=newsday&view=sports_item&feed:a=newsday_5min&feed:c=sports&feed:i=1.2625123&nopaging=1
I wonder if the source for this story is the same source that started the Josh-for-Amare rumor a couple years back. For those who don’t remember, the source on that rumor was one of the most frequently-used sources in sports – Mr. Thin Air.
There is no way they would simply accept an expiring contract like Jamal’s in exchange for Melo straight-up because Melo’s contract is expiring too, and there’s no reason they would prefer Jamal’s expiring contract to Melo’s. So the way I see it, there are two tacks Denver could be taking:
1) The “Blow It Up and Start from Scratch” Option: Package Melo with the long-term contracts of Nene, Harrington, and/or Billups, taking back nothing but expirings.
2) The “Rebuild on the Fly” Option: Get a star player back in exchange for Melo; or
If it’s #1, we’re no help because the only expiring deals we have are Jamal, Mo, and a few minimum-salary guys. We can’t cobble together nearly enough expirings to cover salaries of both Melo and 1 or more of the Nugs’ longer-term guys.
If it’s #2, we have a shot, but it’s a slim one, IMHO. The only “star-level” piece we and would be willing to trade (ie not Al) that I could fathom the Nuggets having an interest in (not JJ) is Josh. I won’t pretend to predict how that type of trade offer would be viewed by Denver. But it seems to me that Josh-for-Melo would have to be the core of any trade.
———————————
MC – you hearing anything?
niremetal
January 24th, 2011
10:51 pm
For what it’s worth, I’m 50/50 on whether I’d prefer Melo to Josh as a fit for this roster on paper. But in practice, I think we need a major-league shock to the system to jolt the team out of its bad habits. Josh-for-Melo would certainly provide that jolt.
Ramon
January 24th, 2011
10:56 pm
Niremetal, the problem is with Josh for Melo is you trade your best defensive player (in a conference based on defense) for a wing who defense is worse than Marvin’s.
Blast
January 24th, 2011
10:58 pm
Nire,
Much as I respect your views, Melo ain’t coming to the ATL.
But then, stranger things have been known to happen in the NBA.
From Denver, though, I would prefer to pry away Nene. Not because he is better than Melo, but simply because he fills a better need, we can keep Josh, and Melo only wants to play in NY anyway.
Ramon
January 24th, 2011
10:59 pm
O’Brien, you’re right. but I think this off season, Bibby’s contract will be quite easy to move because it will be expiring. The loss of JC1, Mo, and Bibby leaves room for partial of the salary. And trading away the guaranteed salary of a 1st round pick would do the same also. I would rather pay $8 mil to Perkins than 8-9 for JC1 (and I understand the Bird rule).
niremetal
January 24th, 2011
11:01 pm
Blast,
I agree the trade is highly unlikely. I only even mentioned it because it was mentioned in a news source.
Ramon,
I think if we got a deal centered on Melo-for-Josh, we’d go to the “big lineup” permanently and move Marvin to the bench. It obviously doesn’t solve our defensive issues on the perimeter. We’d just have to bank that Melo’s offensive contributions would outweigh that.
SteveW
January 24th, 2011
11:06 pm
Call me stupid (many have) but I wouldn’t include Josh, JJ, or Al in any ‘Melo deal. Maybe Jamal, Marvin, and a couple of 1st picks, maybe even Teague or Crawford 2, but that’s about it. And that’s only if he agreed to the extension.
Without the extension, Jamal, JC2 or Teague, and a 1st pick is about it. Maybe not even a 1st pick
Ok, don’t call me stupid!
SteveW
January 24th, 2011
11:09 pm
Josh ‘Melo rumor probably like the Josh Tayshaun Prince rumor in November – Detroit fans wishful thinking!
They also had a Jamal and Teague for Prince and Bynum rumor floating around also.
SteveW
January 24th, 2011
11:15 pm
Have the Hornets been on a roll or what? ATL and San Antonio beat down in epic fashion (131 pts combined by ATL and the Spurs), now they take out the Thunder for their 9th win in a row. Who would have thunk it?
Blast
January 24th, 2011
11:20 pm
Gotta to be very impressed with them Hornets, huh? They are taking major scalps in the league, dude!
Makes Hawks mega loss a little easier to swallow.
Najeh Davenpoop
January 24th, 2011
11:24 pm
Melo has been to a place these Hawks have never been, and that is the conference finals. I would trade any one of the Hawks’ “big three” in a package for Melo, but nothing more. As nice of a core as Joe-Smoove-Al is, Joe-Melo-Al or Joe-Melo-Smoove (or Melo-Smoove-Al which would be my personal preference) would definitely be an upgrade.
Without a commitment to signing an extension, though, I wouldn’t trade anything more than Marvin and filler for him. No point in trading one of your best players for a guy who will only be here for five months unless you are 100% convinced that he will win a title for you.
Najeh Davenpoop
January 24th, 2011
11:28 pm
Anyway, I googled “hawks carmelo” and all I got was people posting potential Melo-Hawks trades from the ESPN trade machine on various forums and Bleacher Report. I’m not convinced that there is any more to this than just “Mr. Thin Air”.
Najeh Davenpoop
January 24th, 2011
11:37 pm
If the Hawks were going to make a Melo trade, the ideal realistic situation to me would be something like this:
http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=6kfo9pd
…with the Hawks and Pistons each sending a first rounder to the Nuggets and Melo signing a contract extension.
Of course, that’s a lot of salary for the DASG to take on, and the Pistons may or may not be willing to give up a first rounder to shed $6 million from their payroll for the next two years, and the Nuggets may or may not see Joe and his max contract as an adequate replacement for Melo, but I could see a scenario where something like that plays out. And I do think this trade would make the Hawks a better all around team.
Najeh Davenpoop
January 24th, 2011
11:43 pm
The really impressive thing about the Hornets is that the Hawks arguably have four guys who are better than the Hornets’ second best player, and it’s not even like their best player is having a career year. They are making it happen with a really mediocre roster. Monty Williams should be the easy front runner for coach of the year right now.
george
January 24th, 2011
11:47 pm
Josh for Melo makes no sense for the Hawks because it does not address two major weaknesses: the center and point guard positions. Please focus on trades which make the Hawks better and real contenders.
Najeh Davenpoop
January 24th, 2011
11:49 pm
“Guys, here is a question I have. This off season, would it be foolish of the Hawks to pursue K. Perkins? Would offering Perkins a deal of 4 years-$32 mil be a terrible idea?”
It would be a great idea, and Perkins would be a great fit here, but I don’t think the Celtics will let him get away, and the Hawks don’t have the cap space to give him more than the mid-level regardless.
SteveW
January 25th, 2011
12:02 am
How to develop a player by the New Orleans Hornets:
David West a #18 pick in the 1st round
Rookie, age 23 – stats 3.8 ppg 4.1 rpg in 13.1 mpg
Age 24 – 6.2 ppg 4.3 rpg in 18.4 mpg
From Age 25 – 30 he’s averaged about 19 ppg and 8 rpg
That’s how you develop a non-lottery pick in the NBA. Patience, work with him, and if he’s got the desire, and you did your scouting right, you have a very solid NBA player.
Notice he was 23 as a rookie. Teague is still only 22. Teague would have been a senior at Wake this season if he would have stayed in school.
SteveW
January 25th, 2011
12:07 am
Lou Williams is another good example on how to develop a player, but there are several. Look at Big Baby, another 2nd round pick like Lou. The list could go on.
Hey, I’ve got an idea! Let’s develop Teague and JC2. I’m just joking and stirring the pot. Nobody get excited.
cp
January 25th, 2011
12:09 am
It was a rumor out a while ago that the Hawks were the sleeper team to acquire Melo. I forget which talking head on ESPN was saying it but its been out there for a while.
Najeh Davenpoop
January 25th, 2011
1:21 am
SLAM Online has a feature on Smoove.
Here’s my favorite part:
“One thing a lot of people don’t realize in this offense…we try to generate ball movement, body movement, and it’s a lot to learn. I would say him more than any other player on our team—not only did he learn his position, but he learned everybody else’s position. I can put him anywhere on the floor…and he has an understanding about what I’m looking for. And that’s very special to have a player like that,” says Drew.
Not going to stop half the people on this blog from saying he has no basketball IQ, though.
Jae Evolution
January 25th, 2011
1:44 am
Instead of Perkins as stated above, what about DeAndre Jordan from the Clippers who also has an expiring contract and would be much cheaper to pick up.
Dude is 6′11 with CRAZY hops and CRAZY potential, I don’t think the maturity is there at all, but you have to work with these types of players and develop them in a way that if effective for the team.
Worldwide Clyde
January 25th, 2011
2:40 am
Fire Sund
Ra'mon
January 25th, 2011
2:49 am
Najeh, when Smoove is telling everyone where they need to go on offense (and defense) many fans look at it and think he’s just fussing, and being immature. Very early you could see that he had an understanding of this offense, because he was putting passes where players should’ve expect to receive the ball but weren’t ready.
Grandad
January 25th, 2011
3:26 am
Can anyone tell me why Larry Brown is supposed to be LD’s mentor?
From all that I can gather, LD coached with:
* Magic Johnson – Lakers
* Alvin Gentry – Pistons
* Doug Collins – Wizards
* Byron Scott – Nets
* Mike Woodson – Hawks
** He played for Norm Stewart @ Missouri
*** Pro Coaches were:
*** Scotty Robertson
*** Cotton Fitzsimmons
*** Jack McKinney
*** Phil Johnson
*** Don Chaney
*** Gene Shue
*** Pat Riley
*** Mike Dunleavy
A pretty varied coaching background.
Quite an assortment of -mentors- and pg killers [prior to wdsn]
KevinM
January 25th, 2011
6:46 am
Jae Evolution – on DeAndre Jordan….I have been asking for him since preseason based on costs alone. I saw him in college and we all know it takes the big men a bit longer to come around. While everyone wanted Kaman, who I want nothing to do with, Jordan has very little costs. So we go get Etan, resign Collins way too early in the offseason, and we bring in Powell, behind Smoove, and after LD says Al will play more PF this year….huh?
These are the kinds of questionable moves you have with this organization. Somewhere along the line, you’ve got to admit you don’t know what you’re doing (haha) and go get a PG and a C.
And if there is a rumor to go get Melo, you gotta inquire about Chauncey too….move whomever it takes and the offer has to be better than the Knicks….that’s you’re only competition here.
Denver could easily be the Cleveland of 2011 if they can’t get Melo moved. So that rookie GM better make a move to get some pawns/picks in place of Melo before the trade deadline.
Sund involved in a major deal? I have to see it done before I believe it. He told you himself last summer he wouldn’t be going after any superstars. Lots of wishing we had a creative GM here.
Atlanta or Orlando for the 4th slot? Doesn’t matter, as it stands today, the Hawks aren’t getting out of Round 1 if that is their opponent. NO way Dwight goes down in Round 1. That lineup is still better than the core in 2 areas: PG and C.
KevinM
January 25th, 2011
6:55 am
You know those expiring contracts and how easy they are to move? Take a look at Indiana’s expiring lineup:
Dunleavy – 10.56M
TJ Ford – 8.5
Foster – 6.66
So much for easy to move expiring contracts: that’s 25+M of ez contracts to be moved…..now who wants to deal? If I see Indiana move any of these 3, I will be a bit more convinced that the expiring contract is an thing to move….similar to that MLE that the Hawks have had for decades and have never used….and it should have been used on Big Baby when they had the chance….again, admit you don’t know what you’re doing and let someone in there who knows.
drmaryb (*_*)
January 25th, 2011
7:11 am
Toronto just signed Sundiata Gaines. He is a very interesting player, PG I think? He made a buzzer beater 3 pt shot for Utah last season and it was a magnificent play. I wonder why, he was available and Sund didn’t give him a look.
Sund needs to find his ‘inner dog’ and become creative for the Hawks roster. We need some tweeks not tweets for our team.
Aye Sund! You are quickly replacing Marvin as the ‘Invisisble Man’ around here.
KevinM
January 25th, 2011
7:13 am
A must read…one of the top articles of the year….
The Fanhouse guide to the worse NBA players on a roster…
Did we get a mention….I think so…and our GM was mentioned here..surprise!
http://nba.fanhouse.com/2011/01/24/the-works-who-are-the-nbas-worst-players/?ncid=txtlnkusspor00000002
My favorite: Shellhead has made this 17-20 man roster…the GM has to be Rick Sund based on his years of experience alone.
O'Brien
January 25th, 2011
7:21 am
Cleveland has lost 17 games in a row, and 27 out of their last 28. Ouch.
I would trade Josh for Melo ONLY if Melo signed an extension. I dont think we would win the title right away, but with Al, Melo and JJ you have a pretty good 3 to start with.
And all of a sudden, players might be willing to take a discount to play for the Hawks. Then its just a matter of bringing in the right complimentary pieces.
Our salary would be through the roof, but ASG would be able to make that money back (imo). Jersey sales, attendance, media coverage, TV games etc would go way up.
O'Brien
January 25th, 2011
7:31 am
@ KevinM, funny stuff speaking of Shelden;
“He isn’t even the best player in his own household.
His nickname was “The Landlord.” I think Atlanta drafted him that year because they wanted to take advantage of the housing bubble. So, in a way, Shelden’s career is the story of America.”
To be fair, that was all BK and Woody. Speaking of which, BK has not been interviewed for another GM job in the league. I wonder if the same thing will happen to Woody (no HC interviews).
KevinM
January 25th, 2011
8:38 am
OB,
Yes, that is not a surprise, and I would take Mike Brown over Woody any day. Woody might not get another shot unless he is willing to go back to the assistant ranks to keep your name fresh. But Woody’s mentor is gone, so Woody might just live off his Hawks’ earnings going forward.
Knight? He has ties to Indiana so he might get another shot there. Bird is talking retirement for he was a better coach than GM.
terrell
January 25th, 2011
9:00 am
Glad to hear we might be in the Melo discussions. Didnt know Sund knew how to pick up a phone anymore. lol!
Josh/Zaza/Jamal and Mo’s expiring and a 1st for Melo/Billups/Birdman(Nuggets will try to dump him on us).
Billups/JJ/Melo/Al/Collins
Bibby/Wilkins/Marvin/Powell/Birdman
Teague/JC2
Melo might could end up being a rental for a playoff run, but we’ll have PLENTY of cap space next year to go after a legit center. (Nene, Chandler, etc..)
terrell
January 25th, 2011
9:02 am
But who knows, maybe he’ll like Atlanta and sign an extension? Worth a shot. Hate to give up Smoove, but Denver wont budge unless a young budding star and expirings are involved.
terrell
January 25th, 2011
9:12 am
The new BIG 3.(JJ/Melo/Al) lol!
KevinM
January 25th, 2011
9:21 am
You guys really think Sund has a sense of urgency?
-The same guy who said he doesn’t like to make changes during the season.
-The guy who says we aren’t bringing in any elite free agents.
-The same guy who is very happy with the core….yes, he has to say that or just kill the value of his marginal players…Bibby, Marvin, Zaza, etc.
No moves=no playoff success. Getting to the 2nd round isn’t playoff success. It should be the ECF or blow this thing up.
O'Brien
January 25th, 2011
9:47 am
terrell,
Dont get your hopes up. Although he gave Al an extension, the kinds of decisions Sund usually makes during the season are:
1) paper or plastic
2) Eat-in or carry out
3) Chocolate or vanilla
4) Fox news or CNN
etc..
doc
January 25th, 2011
9:50 am
kevin a lot of present and former hawks have made that worst in the nba list, scary.
O'Brien
January 25th, 2011
9:55 am
How about Dwight, calling out his perimeter defenders. From the Orlando sentinel;
“Either we get it together or we’re just going to be a playoff team that doesn’t win a championship,” Howard said.
“Guys got to guard on the perimeter, got to do a better job. It just can’t be one dribble to the basket. So you got to do a better job.” .
Is he talking about the Magic or the Hawks?
Ra'mon
January 25th, 2011
10:09 am
A big three of Joe, Melo, and Josh makes more sense than Joe, Melo, and Al. Joe, Melo, and Al best attribute is jump shots. Each of them, the best thing they do is shoot jumpers. Neither of them attacks the defense consistently. For years, Melo has been criticized for settling for jumpers too often. Also, Melo would get close to the number of shot attempts that Josh and JC1 combined (last season Josh and JC1 averaged a combined 26 shot attempts per game, Carmelo alone averaged 21.8 per game). Also remember Melo, Joe, and Al will cost close to $50 million a season in salary, and you’re still with out a league premiere defensive player. Who was the last team to win a title without a premiere defensive player consistently in the running for All Defensive team?
Geemack
January 25th, 2011
10:18 am
I guess the Dallas Mavericks are the Hawks measuring stick 10 plus 50 win seasons, 1 Finals appearance, and no championships.
That’s seems to be the direction this franchise is taking.
Well it would be better than BK original model the Pistons.
Image how good the Piston would be had they drafted Melo instead of Darko, but wait didn’t the Nets just try to put that team together (Rip, Melo & Billups).
I wonder how good Josh & JJ would be if the Hawks would not have had their own draft mistake MW instead of CP3.
Oh well 5 years later, and we’re still looking for a pg, Josh has proven he can play the 3, and JJ is not a PG.
drmaryb (*_*)
January 25th, 2011
10:37 am
Hot Sauce!
O’Brien drank some hot sauce this morning, because that man is on fire!
Aye O’Brien! Your dry sense of humor reminds me of:
The Bob Newhart Show one of my All time favorite comedian/actor. My sense of humor is extremely dry and people laugh at – the stuff I laugh at.
But, you cracked me the hell up – when you said this:
“1) paper or plastic
2) Eat-in or carry out
3) Chocolate or vanilla
4) Fox news or CNN”
ROF & split my pants! Oowwee! I need some water! (wiping my tears!)
___________________________
Sund on aisle 8, just picking up a few odds and ends for the team roster, a true Think – Tank! Aye Sund! Paper or Plastic? Boxers or Briefs? Open toe or Closed toe sandals?
Big Ray
January 25th, 2011
10:39 am
SteveW ,
“It’s called stats”?
College stats are great. Let me start by saying that last time I looked, the college trey wasn’t the same as the NBA trey, and it certainly isn’t the same against NBA players.
Do you recall Acie Law? Remember how he used to score in college? Well, he certainly wasn’t able to do that in the NBA. Now, we can blame Mike Woodson for his inability to break into the Hawks’ permanent rotation, and in some ways I do.
However, this doesn’t explain how/why the man has not managed to do so under two or three more teams since then (and two or three different coaches), now does it? Whatever happened to Law the prolific college scorer? Does what you do in college automatically translate to the pros? That’s not a very strong argument my condescending friend.
Remember how deadly J.J. Reddick was at Duke? How come he couldn’t seem to score like he did in college? Dude was one of the most prolific college shooters ever. Took him 4 years to become a legit rotation player, and he’s never going to be a starter.
I remember how Teague was in college. He was a straight predator…always on the attack. Always dunking on somebody or hitting jumpers from all over the court. You explain to me why he isn’t able to hit those jumpers now? Why does he get his shot blocked so much when he goes to the basket (unless he’s shooting that high floater)?
What I’m telling you is he will take time to develop. Mike Conley was picked a hell of a lot higher than Teague was, and it took him nearly 4 years to develop into a consistent, successful point guard. Teague looks like he’s another year or two away from being that. And Larry Drew doesn’t have a damn thing to do with it. He brought in Van Exel to try and figure out what makes Teague tick. I’ve watched Teague and that jumper of his. It’s not on the mark all that well.
And I’m not listening to any arguments about college performance because I’ve seen way too many times that not only does this NOT always translate to the pros, it does NOT always translate right away. What coach in his right mind would bench a faster, better, younger player in favor of an older, slower one without a reason? Why would LD hold him back? Teague is holding himself back in some ways. And as stated before, LD’s offense requires that everybody pass the ball, and everybody be able to shoot. Teague’s gotta work on that jumper. His PRO jumper. The college one is fine….for COLLEGE games.
Big Ray
January 25th, 2011
10:45 am
The best post most likely to get ignored all day long:
Najeh Davenpoop
January 25th, 2011
1:21 am
SLAM Online has a feature on Smoove.
Here’s my favorite part:
“One thing a lot of people don’t realize in this offense…we try to generate ball movement, body movement, and it’s a lot to learn. I would say him more than any other player on our team—not only did he learn his position, but he learned everybody else’s position. I can put him anywhere on the floor…and he has an understanding about what I’m looking for. And that’s very special to have a player like that,” says Drew.
Not going to stop half the people on this blog from saying he has no basketball IQ, though.
Big Ray
January 25th, 2011
10:46 am
KevinM ,
Heh….you told the best joke of the day.
Sund is representative of those who hired him. He’d show urgency if his bosses (all 45 of them) showed any urgency. They don’t, so he doesn’t. They are more interested in involving themselves in lawsuits.
Geemack
January 25th, 2011
10:47 am
Since 1979 The Lakers have been to finals 16 times, captured 10 NBA titles, brought in 4 cornerstone changing HOF’er (Magic, Worthy, Shaq & Kobe).
During that same time period the Hawks have missed the playoffs 12 times, never been past the 2nd round, and traded away the greatest Hawk ever for nothing.
Hey, I thought the draft lottery was supposed to make the league more competitive….guess I was wrong.
Hey another 2nd round exit should be very exciting this year….we’re doing it with same team from last year.
I forgot we do have a different coach! Didn’t Jeff Teague get stuck on the bench last year. Must be de’ja vu. Lol.
Rufus1
January 25th, 2011
10:51 am
Melo Trade
The only question for Melo is, does he want to win a title or Just go to New York. If he want a title, then the Hawks are a much better option than New York….The Knicks will never win a title with the way they play defense.
If the Nuggets wanted Josh and Jamal, they would probably have to send Melo and Bird man.
I also Horford, might be the untouchable.
Geemack
January 25th, 2011
10:52 am
O’Brien
I would trade Josh for Melo ONLY if Melo signed an extension. I dont think we would win the title right away, but with Al, Melo and JJ you have a pretty good 3 to start with.
And all of a sudden, players might be willing to take a discount to play for the Hawks. Then its just a matter of bringing in the right complimentary pieces.
Our salary would be through the roof, but ASG would be able to make that money back (imo). Jersey sales, attendance, media coverage, TV games etc would go way up.
Great post…to bad our front office don’t think like you.
Big Ray
January 25th, 2011
10:53 am
The Hawks have been in “preliminary talks” with probably every major free agent. That’s as far as it usually gets. I don’t see anything coming out of this at all. Especially since ‘Melo seems to want to be in New York.
Rufus1
January 25th, 2011
11:01 am
http://www.hoopinionblog.com/2011/01/atlanta-hawks-defy-percentages.html
Ra'mon
January 25th, 2011
11:38 am
I will say as a fan of Josh Smith, it would be very interesting to see how he would play under George Karl. I think he would excel with him. However, with Kenyon Martin still on the roster, I don’t see the Nuggets making a move for another PF.
Rufus1
January 25th, 2011
11:56 am
Ra’mon
I think martin’s contract expires at the end of the year
RMan
January 25th, 2011
12:14 pm
How about a shake ‘em up trade with Golden State (who’s unbalanced and rumored to be open to moving pieces for a top name in return)? They send us Curry, Biedrens and Udoh. We send them Josh, ZaZa and Jeff. Seems to be balanced for both sides and addresses principal needs of both teams. You have to give to get…
O'Brien
January 25th, 2011
12:21 pm
Ra’mon,
Also, Kenyon Martin can’t stay healthy.
drmary,
Boxers or briefs was a good one too.
northcyde
January 25th, 2011
12:50 pm
Props to Big Ray for his string of posts in the last 24 hours.
At some point, fans just have to see things as they really are. It took me 2.5 years to see it with Salim, and 1.5 years to see it with Acie.
At some point, when you see guys doing the same things over, and over, and over again, you have to seriously consider if the REAL PROBLEM is how the player is used . . or the player himself.
I always thought that Salim was a much more talented player than Tyronn Lue. But what guy made all the plays? What guy made all of the open shots? Despite his absolutely woeful defense, it was obvious that Lue was much more of an asset than Salim.
At some point, I simply had to wake up.
northcyde
January 25th, 2011
1:08 pm
@ SteveW
Once again, you have to look at the circumstances that a player is in, and how he can be developed.
In 2003 – 05, David West had guys like Lee Nailon, Rodney Rodgers, and on occasion PJ Brown playing in front of him. Not necessarily high quality players or potential 6th man of the year candidates there.
Those New Orleans teams in that 2 season span went 41 – 41 . . and 18 – 54 respectively ( which is why they were even in position to obtail a Chris Paul in 05 – 06 in the first place ).
And West didn’t get a chance to get major playing time, until Rodgers and Nailon were moved out of NOLA.
New Orleans was NOT a playoff team looking to make a deep run in the playoffs. They were a developing team simply trying to find players who they could count on in the future.
It’s simply a big difference in mindset.
A playoff contender isn’t going to waste a lot of time in the development of a player, if that team have players who are more effective than the developing player.
The developing player, in a lot of cases, simply has to wait until people are moved out, before he gets major minutes to prove himself.
Some guys don’t need those minutes to prove their worth. Others do. But for the ones that do, they better hope the better players in front of them move onto other teams . . or the player improves so much, that the coach HAS to play him.
northcyde
January 25th, 2011
1:13 pm
My bad . . . the Hornets were 18 – 64 in West’s 2nd year.
northcyde
January 25th, 2011
1:14 pm
My bad . . the Hornets were 18 – 64 in West’s 2nd year.
northcyde
January 25th, 2011
1:27 pm
As for the Melo rumor, I’d definitely bring him in for a one year shot to make a run at a title.
99% of Hawks fans believe that this team, as constructed right now, cannot make the NBA Finals. Does that change next year . . or the year after that?
Because of our center situation, I think the one person we can’t trade, is Al Horford. But both JJ or Smith are expendible, in a possible deal for Melo . . even just for one year.
Melo replaces the scoring that JJ gives us, and gives us a better “go-to guy”. If it’s Smith for Melo, Melo is a much better and more active scorer around the rim, than Smith is. Plus Melo can get to the line much better than both JJ and Smith. Melo would instantly become our best post up guy.
northcyde
January 25th, 2011
1:33 pm
If the lineup is Al – Josh – Melo . . we arguably assemble the best frontcourt in the league. Drew would probably opt to start Mo Evans and Bibby at the guards. And you’d still have Jamal and Marvin to bring off the bench.
Of course, the issue would be perimeter defense even more, with that lineup. Evans and/or Damien would be the best perimeter defender on the team, and might have to play during crunch time.
C – Horford
PF – Smith
F – Melo
G – Evans
PG – Bibby
6th – Jamal
7th – Marvin
8th – Zaza
9th – Damien
10th – Collins/Teague
This is assuming that Denver would take on JJ’s enormous contract, which I would dobut it.
northcyde
January 25th, 2011
1:47 pm
If the lineup is Al – Melo – JJ, you now have 2 bonafide scorers on the team, with a 3rd in Jamal.
With this lineup, a good coach would probably leave one of JJ or Melo out on the floor at all times, much like Miami does with Wade and Lebron, and the Lakers do with Kobe and Gasol.
I’m assuming that if the guy that’s traded is Smith, we may have to add a few more people to the mix, in order to make the deal work. So say we add Evans and Teague to that deal.
C – Horford
PF – Melo
F – Marvin
G – JJ
PG – Bibby
6th – Jamal
7th – Zaza
8th – Damien
9th – Collins
10th – Jordan
The wild card with this lineup, is Marvin. While Melo can offensively play PF, there may be defensive issues on the frontcourt. So Marvin would really have to step up as a defender and as a rebounder, in order to justify him still starting. If he does, this lineup becomes very dangerous. If he doesn’t, we’d be forced to start Collins, which would give us a much better balanced look, but less offensive production.
C – Collins
PF – Horford
F – Melo
G – JJ
PG – Bibby
6th – Jamal
7th – Marvin
8th – Zaza
9th – Damien
10th – Jordan
Collins as the starter is probably the more formidible lineup, with Horford and Melo at the forwards.
Westurd
January 25th, 2011
1:49 pm
Melo to Atlanta is horrible. Melo is a ball hog that will blow our offensive system up. He is good on a team full of one v one ballers, but wouldn’t fit well in the A. He has a huge name and puts up big points, but he is not our ideal trade. He is going to take the ball out of Al and Joshs hand and also JJ’s and Jamals should they not be part of a trade….I don’t like Melo in Atlanta……I would rather have Curry personally.
Either way we are destined to hover around the 4 or 5 spot all season. Hate to love ya…Go Hawks!
CYATES1
January 25th, 2011
1:51 pm
But if Teague could play anywhere CLOSE to Billups, Iverson, or Mark Jackson, then I don’t think you’d see LD “holding him back”. Most of what’s holding Teague back is within himself.
I give you that one but you also have to let him play through the mistakes as well beacuse L.D. pulls him right after a mistake so in his head he is thinking that he has to play perfect which is affecting his game. I say if he has confidence in him let him play through the mistakes. J-Smoove had to play through some mistakes to get where he is so let the kid play.
Najeh Davenpoop
January 25th, 2011
1:52 pm
“They send us Curry, Biedrens and Udoh. We send them Josh, ZaZa and Jeff. ”
I saw this on Bill Simmons’ Twitter a couple of days ago. It’s not an unfair trade, but I would lean against doing it, mainly because Biedrins is so injury prone and such a liability at the free throw line that you can’t rely on him to play big minutes. And without him, that trade would leave the Hawks seriously deficient defensively.
CYATES1
January 25th, 2011
1:54 pm
Melo to Atlanta is horrible. Melo is a ball hog that will blow our offensive system up. He is good on a team full of one v one ballers, but wouldn’t fit well in the A. He has a huge name and puts up big points, but he is not our ideal trade. He is going to take the ball out of Al and Joshs hand and also JJ’s and Jamals should they not be part of a trade….I don’t like Melo in Atlanta……I would rather have Curry personally.
I agree I believe that we do not need Melo cause he plays no defense. Given that J-Smoove is prone at times but at least he plays defense. We need more bigs so that Horford can play his natural spot and have Marvin come off the bench to have another scoring option other than JC1. That would help us substantially.
Najeh Davenpoop
January 25th, 2011
1:55 pm
“If the lineup is Al – Josh – Melo . . we arguably assemble the best frontcourt in the league. Drew would probably opt to start Mo Evans and Bibby at the guards. And you’d still have Jamal and Marvin to bring off the bench.”
That would be a really weak back court to the point that it would hold the front court back, but check the trade machine link I posted earlier and see what you think.
CYATES1
January 25th, 2011
1:57 pm
Melo replaces the scoring that JJ gives us, and gives us a better “go-to guy”. If it’s Smith for Melo, Melo is a much better and more active scorer around the rim, than Smith is. Plus Melo can get to the line much better than both JJ and Smith. Melo would instantly become our best post up guy.
Melo maybe a better scorer than Josh but Josh plays better defense. I don’t see Melo on any All-Defensive teams anytime in his career. And what good is scoring if you can’t stop anybody. That to me is what the team needs to work on is the defensive end cause the hawks offense takes care of itself unless it goes to “iso-joe” mode.
Najeh Davenpoop
January 25th, 2011
1:58 pm
“Melo to Atlanta is horrible. Melo is a ball hog that will blow our offensive system up. He is good on a team full of one v one ballers, but wouldn’t fit well in the A. He has a huge name and puts up big points, but he is not our ideal trade. He is going to take the ball out of Al and Joshs hand and also JJ’s and Jamals should they not be part of a trade”
These are exactly the same things people said about LeBron and Wade joining forces in Miami, or for that matter Joe adapting to a non-iso offense.
Great players can play in any system. Melo is not Antoine Walker. He plays the way he does because he is on a team that requires him to play that way. Bring him here and he would fit in fine.
northcyde
January 25th, 2011
2:06 pm
Westurd . . a scorer like Melo is supposed to take the ball out of people’s hands. Josh doesn’t need to be shooting jumpers. He needs to be active around the rim. And this team wastes possessions trying to get other ineffectibe scorers their shots.
On a team like ours, Melo would understand that he doesn’t have to do it all offensively. What he would give you though, is another great offensive weapon that teams would be forced to double, which frees up other guys.
I doubt this rumor is true. But if it is, and the Hawks can deal for that guy, they would be CRAZY not to.
In the NBA, the formula for winning a title is usually this:
- 2 All-Star ( preferably All-NBA players ), with a 3rd player who is a borderline All-Star . . and one of the 2 All-Stars is an MVP candidate
- a top 10 defensive team ( preferably top 5 )
- a top 10 offensive team
That’s pretty much been the characteristics of every NBA champion for the past 30 years. You don’t win titles with just good players. You need stars.
Even with the anomoly(sp) that people love to cite ( the 2004 Pistons ), that team had 2 All-Star caliber guards in Billups and Hamilton, and a dominant defensive/rebounding center in Ben Wallace, who was an All-Star talent in that regard . . along with a premier perimeter defender in Prince, and a very good offensive and defensive big man in Rasheed.
GREAT alent wins titles . . not GOOD talent.
Geemack
January 25th, 2011
2:19 pm
northcyde
You’re a fan and you realize what it takes to win a championship.
It seems that in the 4 plus decades this franchise has been in Atlanta.
Someone would have duplicated that formula at least once by now.
40 something years in Atlanta, and the Atlanta Hawks have never played for an NBA championship, or competed in the Eastern Conference finals. SMH
Rufus1
January 25th, 2011
2:32 pm
Melo or Curry
ASG would do either one of those trades if they had the chance…for the simple reason, we are not drawing enough fans. ASG are business men 1st, and the improvement of their business is primary.
IF WE LOSE IN THE PLAYOFFS WE THE SAME TEAM, NEXT YEAR WE WILL DRAW LESS FANS!
I would prefer the Curry deal…with Curry, Amundson and Gadzuric(expiring contract) for Josh, and Teague.
That would eliminate our PG problem and give us money to sign a player next year for maybe the MLE.
slim
January 25th, 2011
2:35 pm
Melo=Star
Josh/Marvin= not….These two will never take the Hawks to the next level, ECF.. Not talented enough! Your guard play can only take you so far then the front line has to step up and close the deal..The Small forward today is super critical! He has to be a scorer and play good defense to boot! That’s where I would invest in. We need another point guard like Mookie. I am sure hes out there..Go get one from the D League if you have to..This is were the GM directs his scouts to go look for talent in all the right places… It’s the job of the scout to find them…
Sund, Go get Devin Harris yesterday!!!
Rufus1
January 25th, 2011
3:32 pm
Quote from kobe
Maybe someone should send a copy to Melo before he decides to go to New York.
“We’re not a fastbreak team by any stretch of imagination,” Bryant said. “But fastbreaks don’t win championships anyway. If they did, Phoenix would’ve won a bunch.”
Grandad
January 25th, 2011
4:46 pm
Najeh;
I’ve been lookin’ @ Curry scenario’s all day.
Regardless of defensive deficiencies,
we cannot overlook any opportunity to get in on Curry.
If we could steal him with Marv + JC2 + Teague + Pcks & filler,
then all the better. The great thing about Curry is he would be
such a perfect fit in LD’s offense [pg]. Git ‘er done!
(I know, I know…..GS would never fall for that)
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
[from 3:26 AM] *bizarro meds could’t sleep*
I’m callin’ out anyone who read my earlier post:
Why is Larry Brown LD’s mentor?
The Truth
January 25th, 2011
5:01 pm
Q&A
Q: Why can’t the Hawks win more games in the playoff?
A: Because of an uneven roster with too many jump shooters is at the root of the problem. However, this could change starting with JJ relying more on his midrange, floaters, and in-the-paint game and less on his long range high-degree-of-difficulty shooting. Since our Alpha-dog JJ has the lowest FG% among the Hawks starters including Jamal, it is essential for him to improve this stat if there is any hope of advancing further in the playoff. He ranks 92 in the league out of 121 players in FG% at 43.4%. With so much of our offense going through JJ, regardless of the much hyped “motion offense” his shooting % alone should explain our inconsistency in the playoff. Also, while we all cringe each time Josh takes that jumper from the perimeter; we really should cringe when JJ takes a 3-pointer attempt. JJ is ranked 121 in 3-pt % at 29.7% out of 125 active players in the league. Actually Josh is ranked much better at 62 shooting 37.6%. Maybe this explains why he’s not afraid to take them. If anything Bibby should be the 3-pt taker since he ranks 4th at 46.3%. This is perhaps the most revealing reason why Bibby starts over Jeff Teague given that LD is an offense-minded coach. He is a very high % shoot-maker, so enough said. With JJ, Bibby, Marvin, Jamal and now even Josh shooting all those jumpers, actually where does the points in the paint comes from, Al Horford? Though he is the most efficient starter who ranks 9th in league, he does most of his damage with a pick and pop midrange game and less scoring the paint. So the Hawks uneven scoring distribution is linked to the core players’ style of game. We need a core player committed to doing damage exclusively in the paint (scoring, rebounding, defending, etc.) If that can’t happen because of long-term commitment with these players, then by committee, each player should go against their tendency, make the effort to score more in the paint for the Hawks to change the playoff outcome.
Q: Would Melo game gel with the Hawks?
A: If anyone watched Melo play, you know that he can also fall in love with his jumper, but when called upon, he can be a “pit-bull” in the paint against his defender. So, yes, compared to the Hawks current roster Melo would definitely compliment the Hawks needs. But since talking Melo addition to Hawks is drifting in fantasy basketball, I’ll leave it at that.
Najeh Davenpoop
January 25th, 2011
5:08 pm
If the Hawks could give up their trash to get a player like Curry, I’m all for it. I’m not necessarily for giving up the defensive anchor of this team to get him though.
Jamillion
January 25th, 2011
6:21 pm
& after u give them that for melo give phoenix the rest 4 nash
slimjr
January 25th, 2011
6:23 pm
it has just been reported on the PTI broadcast at 6:20pm today 01-25-11, that DWILL is unhappy in UTAH!!!!!
Rick Sund did you read that?????? Go get him yesterday…If you are ready to win the “big one”?????????????????????
Jamillion
January 25th, 2011
6:33 pm
Y do any of you think the hawks have to give up any of their better players for melo? When melo can be had for nothing since he gone bolt any way give them duck or jc plus picks. And give the other to phoenix for nash pick and a player. Then u have a championship team
Jamillion
January 25th, 2011
6:37 pm
Now that a be some championship basketball nash jj melo josh & al. The real core make that happen
jason
January 25th, 2011
6:38 pm
iguodala?
Jamillion
January 25th, 2011
6:43 pm
Sorry iggy doesn’t make us better
Worldwide Clyde
January 25th, 2011
6:44 pm
All this trade talk makes me laugh. Yall know good and well the Spirit Group ain’t got the balls to make a major trade.
Jamillion
January 25th, 2011
6:47 pm
Yeah Clyde only if i was gm we’ll be champions
Ramon
January 25th, 2011
7:15 pm
I would trade Al Horford, JC1, and a first for D Williams in a blink of an eye and take my chances. Al becomes the new Malone under Sloan. And Williams becomes half of the best back court in the NBA with Joe Johnson. In a short instance, you just balanced out your roster, and upgraded your half court offense.
northcyde
January 25th, 2011
7:31 pm
LOL @ Iggy doesn’t make us better.
Why not?
That dude basically is asked to do the same things in Philly, that JJ does in ATL. The only exception is that Iggy’s jumper is schizophrenic as hell. If Iggy could shoot, he’d be better than JJ.
But you add Iggy to the Hawks, and subtract either Jamal or Marvin ( + fillers ), the Hawks instantly become a top 10 . . possibly as high as a top 6 or 7 defensive team in the NBA.
Add Iggy to the Hawks, and we now have someone who can guard Wade, while JJ, Marvin, and Smith take turns guarding Lebron. Instead of JJ having to do everything defensively out on the perimeter, Iggy could take on some of those responsibilities.
Iggy is a top 10 SG/SF in the NBA. But he wouldn’t help us?
Man please.
Najeh Davenpoop
January 25th, 2011
7:53 pm
New video blog up. Oh snap!
TRADE 4 NASH
January 26th, 2011
2:57 am
what a trad
http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine
TRADE 4 NASH
January 26th, 2011
2:58 am
*trade
TRADE 4 NASH
January 26th, 2011
2:59 am
sory
http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=5w22dm4
i_am_soulstar
January 26th, 2011
10:07 am
Melo would be nice, but I’d rather work a trade for Gerald Wallace. That is the highest quality player that fits what the Hawks are doing, and that we could obtain without having to give up JJ, Josh, or Al.
He provides a need with rebounding and defense, and with he and Josh in the starting line-up, the Hawks instantly become an improved defensive team. On top of that, the guy just makes very good decisions, which is my biggest knock on Marvin sometimes. He would put the Hawks right up there with the Celtics and Heat (IMO).
ESPN Trade Machine says we’d drop down 2 wins if you trade him straight up for Jamal, but i don’t see it happening if you bring JC2 into a consistent off the bench scoring role.
Diego
January 26th, 2011
11:41 am
http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=49efsse
Nash/Bibby
JJ/JC1/JC2
Marvin/Mo/Damien
Horford/Powell
Robin Lopez/Collins/Zaza
= Championship
Diego
January 26th, 2011
11:43 am
We can throw in a pick too