Knicks at Atlanta Hawks: Can they stop Felton-Amar’e pick-and-roll?
When the Hawks played at New York on Nov. 27, the Knicks had 88 offensive possessions. According to L.D., New York ran 60 pick-and-rolls.
I don’t have to tell my blog people the Hawks, among the worst teams in the league at defending the play, can expect more of the same tonight from New York’s Raymond Felton-Amar’e two-man game.
“When we stick with our principles and our proper techniques in defending it and we are all on the same page, we seem to do a pretty good job,” Drew said. “But the minute there is a breakdown with just one guy it is like a chain reaction.”
As you might expect for one of the league’s best offensive teams, the Knicks rate highly on the metrics you expect to be associated with pick-and-rolls.
“The key with defending their pick-and-roll is going to be our ability to get up on the ball,” L.D. said. “In all of our coverages involving the pick-and-roll, the guard has to be able to get up on the ball knowing that he’s going to get hit, he’s going to be late getting to Felton coming off [screen]. It is kind of a double-edged sword. We have got to be able to do a good job containing Felton after the screen but at the same time we have to do not a good job, but a great job, affecting Amare’s roll to the basket.
“The last time we played them I thought we did an above-average job in defending them. They surround them with shooters; if we are tardy getting back to Felton, if we are tardy getting back to Amar’e on the roll, it forces the other guys on the perimeter to collapse and have to help. That’s what gets you because they’ve got Galinari spotting up, Chandler [Note: He's out tonight with a calf injury] spotting up. Fields can make a three, Douglas can come in and make a three.”
Marvin’s back
Marvin is in the starting lineup. L.D. said he wants to quickly get him back up to speed.
“I am pretty much going to let him loose,” Drew said. “He is going to have to give me the fist when he gets winded. I know his wind is not where it was before he got hurt but he is going to have to get back in a rhythm. With his size and his ability to make shots, I just thought it would be more of a benefit for us.
The more he plays, the more he will get back into a rhythm. Hopefully like tonight with his matchup he can kind of get into a rhythm. As we move closer to the All-Star break, I am going to need him.”
Bibby’s fine
Bibby is in the lineup after getting banged on his left hand by Keyon Dooling Wednesday at Milwaukee.
“I’ve always had strong bones since I was a kid, so that’s a good thing,” he said.
“He will probably get it whacked again,” L.D. said. “That is always the case when you have those kind of injuries.”
Damien’s happy
Damien Wilkins is obviously pleased to stick with the Hawks. He got the call late last night and said he was nervous to answer the phone when his agent’s name popped up on his caller I.D.
“It takes a lot of pressure off of me,” he said. “I can sleep better now.”
He had an interesting answer when I asked him if he was happy to stick around not just because of his his affection for the Hawks, but also because he thinks this team can make a serious run:
It’s up to us how well we focus and how consistent and focused we can be. Even from watching from afar and paying attention to this team since it was in my backyard, you always felt like this team could do some things if they really just locked in and focused on the task at hand. When we do those things and we go out and we play hard and play with a focused mentality and we play confident and believe in each other and execute on both ends of the floor, then we are a tough team to beat. But when we come in and play like we think we are better than we are, that’s when complacency seeps in. And then we lose like we did ti New Orleans, a game that humbles you and a game like Milwaukee that humbles you. That shows you are not as good as you think you are and there’s a lot of work ahead. You can’t take any teams lightly or for granted.
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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390 comments Add your comment
Ra'mon
January 28th, 2011
10:31 pm
Ra’mon
January 28th, 2011
10:01 pm
This is stupid though. As if you don’t already miss enough games due to injury. Now you want to go and miss games over fighting S. Williams? Not Lebron, not Pierce or Garnett, but Williams? How does that help your team at all? I said it before, Marvin always do things to GUARANTEE that he’s not traded. If he plays good for 5 games in a row, he makes sure he gets injured on game 6.
Where in that comment did it say Marvin was suspended so he wouldn’t be traded?
Fundamentals
January 28th, 2011
10:32 pm
Good emotion, good energy except for the 8-9 minute lull at the start of the 4th.
FOCUS FOR 48!
Ra'mon
January 28th, 2011
10:32 pm
Fundamentals, play or move Powell? Think about this, if you were another team, would you trade even a 2nd round pick for Powell? lol. I wish the Hawks would try to move Powell and Thomas for Ben Wallace with Pistons, since Wallace is owed another season after this, makes sense for the Pistons.
Fundamentals
January 28th, 2011
10:33 pm
Ra’mon – we can read. Scroll his comments.
Najeh Davenpoop
January 28th, 2011
10:33 pm
Magic have the same problem without Jameer Nelson that the Hawks do — they get way too perimeter oriented and forget to get the ball in the post, and that’s a big reason they are about to lose this game. Hawks and Magic are about to be tied again.
Oldtimer
January 28th, 2011
10:33 pm
Superior, don’t act too superior. This was the right thing for Marvin. Go Hawks. Go Big Al. This is what we need, attitude, this is our home, this is our court, no one will come and show us up. That is two on NY. Now get the f** out of ATL and go back to NY
Hawks Fan
January 28th, 2011
10:34 pm
Trading Josh Smith………Yall hating ass fans still wnt to do that?Yall stupid!He was scoring from everywhere.Yall ain’t no fans,hating on the team you so called love.Fake ass fans man.Yall stay hating on this man.Everyone makes a bad play once in a while.Yall never jump on Joe Johnson because hes plays no damn defense.He’s inconsistent.He’ll prolly have 10 point tomorrow(Johnson).
Fundamentals
January 28th, 2011
10:35 pm
Powell, Etan, Mo are all not due $$ next year so picking up someone would help another team. I just hate to see slots for role players filled with someone we’ll never use.
Fundamentals
January 28th, 2011
10:37 pm
Wallace would provide D & Rebounding, but what other options are there? Alot will happen before Feb ends. We need to be active for a C & PG.
terrell
January 28th, 2011
10:38 pm
Najeh, I’m getting to the point where I dont care about min. These guys are in great shape(-Bibby) Look how the Knicks played coming off a back to back. They were down by 24 at one point. Hell, the Falcons had the whole week off(no minutes at all). Didnt help them out none. And does LD really have a choice? Have you seen Zaza and Mo play?
Ra'mon
January 28th, 2011
10:38 pm
Could trade Powell for nothing, just to pick up the roster slot, and sign J. Williams.
Jae Evolution
January 28th, 2011
10:39 pm
Damn Howard with a huge game almost 40 and 20, is Dwight getting better at the FT line, everytime I check the box score he has HUGE FT attempts and converts on a decent number of them.
drmaryb (*_*)
January 28th, 2011
10:39 pm
Dang! JOE got a big azz knot on his right forhead. Did he jump Marvin in the locker room, LOL! Prolly a elbow under the basket though. What a physical game all night. Great rebounding from The Hawks!
All these NY transplants need to trek on back up to NY with all that cheering Ish!
But, to the Hawks vredit, we sent them home with a double whamie! Thanks top Marvin! Drew be pissing them off with a soft whisper, he don’t yell or scream, he just ignore them like Lenny Wilkens did.
Lenny was so raw, he didn’t even look at rookies and scrubs. He went a whole year without ever speaking one word to the useless players. He prollywas pissed at how much money they were making with no game. LOL!
terrell
January 28th, 2011
10:40 pm
WE NEED A PG AND A BENCH. Free Jordan Crawford!
Najeh Davenpoop
January 28th, 2011
10:42 pm
“I’m getting to the point where I dont care about min. These guys are in great shape(-Bibby) Look how the Knicks played coming off a back to back. They were down by 24 at one point. Hell, the Falcons had the whole week off(no minutes at all). Didnt help them out none. And does LD really have a choice? Have you seen Zaza and Mo play?”
I feel you on that, especially the part about Zaza and Mo, and the numbers back you up since the Hawks have the best record on second games of back-to-backs in the league. So far it hasn’t affected the Hawks. I hope that can continue over an 82 game season and into the playoffs.
superiorblogman
January 28th, 2011
10:43 pm
Jamal was rattled by Toney Douglas defense tonight. I’m not a big fan of Jamal. He is just a little better than Flip. We need him now but that’s only because they have not gotten Jordan ready
brigadierjerry
January 28th, 2011
10:45 pm
Good game I think these two teams would be a good playoff matchup. What kills the Hawks is the PG. Felton running circles around Bibby but Teague cant hit a jump shot and Bibby cant move.
Also Laundry Fields is a good player to have a glue guy that does a lot of the little things. Hard to believe he was a 2nd round pick
Najeh Davenpoop
January 28th, 2011
10:48 pm
Hawks are going to need a 3 seed to play the Knicks in the playoffs, which would require them to leapfrog Orlando AND either Chicago or Miami. More likely that they play Orlando or Chicago. I’d definitely rather see the Knicks in the first round than either of those two teams though.
Hawks Fan
January 28th, 2011
10:48 pm
superiorblogman
Why do you always get on here saying stupid stuff.Jamal is way better than Flip!Flip ain’t even playing!That explains it all.F OUTTA HERE wit that man.Dang……….Stupid stuff stay off the blog.When has Flip ever scored 50 in his career?Even just wit 1 team?Brah chill
Solid Fifth Seed
January 28th, 2011
10:53 pm
Yeah Baby!! Won some $$ from my favorite K-nix fan!!
drmaryb (*_*)
January 28th, 2011
10:53 pm
Joe is the best defender on that perimeter. A one man wrecking crew who covers for Bibby and Jamal. He always draws the opponent’s best player:
Kobe, LeBron, Wade, Durantula, and it just don’t stop!
_____________________
Free Basketball, double OT in OKC. Wizards match them well! Hawks can learn from that game tape.
superiorblogman
January 28th, 2011
10:54 pm
Hawks Fan
January 28th, 2011
10:48 pm
superiorblogman
Why do you always get on here saying stupid stuff.Jamal is way better than Flip!Flip ain’t even playing!That explains it all.F OUTTA HERE wit that man.Dang……….Stupid stuff stay off the blog.When has Flip ever scored 50 in his career?Even just wit 1 team?Brah chill
You are a lame. You are talking about a handful of games during Jamal’s career which is around a decade long. Flip average 15 a game the last year he was with the Hawks. Crawford does not average much more.
yodaddy
January 28th, 2011
10:54 pm
@Fundamentals
when did Trevor Ariza and KG get in a fight….can’t find it on google….must not exist
Solid Fifth Seed
January 28th, 2011
10:54 pm
Joe needs to stay aggressive. I like the 34 points and the J-Smove highlights. Did u see JJ’s cross-over and pop from 15. Sweet.
Hawks Fan
January 28th, 2011
11:00 pm
superiorblogman
Thats because he’s on a good team.Brah when crawford was wit the Knicks he averaged 21 points.Flip never did that.What you saying?Speak facts,not opinions.Flip can’t score at will.What he do when the hawks let him go?Didn’t nobody want his ass.Brah stop talking!Take a nap
Hawks Fan
January 28th, 2011
11:02 pm
Who’s better Jamal Crawford or Flip Murray?
Najeh Davenpoop
January 28th, 2011
11:06 pm
The only difference between last year’s team and the previous year’s team was replacing Flip with Jamal, and the result was a 6 win increase. Jamal’s strengths and weaknesses are more or less the same as Flip’s strengths and weaknesses, but Jamal is a much better player than Flip. More athletic, better at hitting bad shots, better handles, and more consistent.
superiorblogman
January 28th, 2011
11:10 pm
The fact is Jamal is not that much better than Flip like I stated initially. The margin is not even worth talking about. Jamal does 1 thing and that is score, he is only marginally better than Flip and should have been traded, goodnight kids
Hawks Fan
January 28th, 2011
11:10 pm
Thank You
Ra'mon
January 28th, 2011
11:10 pm
Najeh, Jamal is a much better player than Flip. However, Flip was here for almost 15% the cost of Jamal. So if having Flip would mean the 85% of Jamal’s contract going to other areas of the bench (or that $8 mil just happens to be MORE than what Felton is making this season- or Salmons, who would be great along side Joe), then the argument of is it better to have Jamal or Flip does have merit.
Hawks Fan
January 28th, 2011
11:13 pm
superiorblogman
Traded for what?If they can’t sign him to a new contract,what makes you thank they will be able to sign what they get in return?Brah you know nothing bout basketball!They mite as well play the season out with him!They gave your favorite player joe johnson all the money
Najeh Davenpoop
January 28th, 2011
11:48 pm
“Flip was here for almost 15% the cost of Jamal. So if having Flip would mean the 85% of Jamal’s contract going to other areas of the bench (or that $8 mil just happens to be MORE than what Felton is making this season- or Salmons, who would be great along side Joe), then the argument of is it better to have Jamal or Flip does have merit.”
The argument of “is it better to have Jamal or Flip” does have merit, I agree, because of salary. The argument that superiorblogman made and I responded to, which is that there isn’t a big difference between Jamal as a player and Flip as a player, isn’t the same thing.
rusty
January 28th, 2011
11:53 pm
As good as jj played, I still don’t like what he did in the forth quarter he started to hold on to the ball way to long & took us out of our rhythm . What the hell is wrong with dumb ld refusing to play jt,jc2 @ Josh powell . I really can’t understand his reasoning. He gives time to mo who is just horrible,plays jc1 at the point & gives mb major minutes when he couldn’t guard my grandmother who is 90
Section 303
January 28th, 2011
11:59 pm
What a game tonight! I love watching trash talking NYC teams get their asses handed to them. I, for one, am proud of Marvin for not taking any crap from those clowns.
If any of you are on Twitter, you should follow the Knicks beat writer. Knicks are A’mere is talking all kinds of crap about Horford. Guess he did not like it when Al pumped the crowd up while at the free throw line.
“He doesn’t want to see me any night. He needs to calm down.”–A’mere on Horford.
They can talk all they want…Hawks are 2 and 0 against the Knicks. Knicks = wannabe
Grandad
January 29th, 2011
12:21 am
If you go back to the previous possession Landry fields clocks Marv
in the jaw. Marv may have thought it was S.Will.
S.Will. grabbed Marv’s arms and nearly caused Marv’s head to get
taken off.
Whoever said Joe was the last one there…Josh and Al were nearby
so naturally they got there 1st. Joe arrived quickly thereafter.
Never saw bibby…..don’t blame him.
All the players from both teams did a good job of diffusing the situation.
Josh was a “neanderthal” tonight.
The crotch grab was unacceptable.
Plus, he was almost a cause for a FT violation once;
[yakking at the Knicks bench]
Bibby had to yell at him to get on the lane.
I like Josh but there is no place for that bilge.
Back to Marv:
S.Will threw the *1st of two punches.
That doesn’t excuse Marv but he at least showed courage
if not good sense.
The Knicks began baiting the Hawks in the 2nd qtr
when they began to be run off the floor.
It escalated in the 2nd half with dirty play.
That’s why we need an enforcer
One Bad Ass that will stop all that guano.
slimjr
January 29th, 2011
12:28 am
“Josh was a “neanderthal” tonight.
The crotch grab was unacceptable.
Plus, he was almost a cause for a FT violation once;
[yakking at the Knicks bench]”
Josh/Marvin for Who?????
Sund jettison the core.Make it so..
ISO JOE, ISO JOE
slimjr
January 29th, 2011
12:31 am
Felton is balling, 5th pick after DUCK!!! Nice PG, averaging 17/9 per night….Thanks Billy Knight……………….
Grandad
January 29th, 2011
12:36 am
Section 303 – Al’s my favorite Hawk but I would prefer he concentrate on making his free throws. [He missed FT # 2 after pumping the crowd]
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Another matter that is becoming more and more common;
The Hawks will run either ‘motion’ or a ’set play’,
get the ball inside only to have our post player
[and sometimes Joe]
reverse and kick it out to the corner for a three.
This does a couple of things:
1. causes us to shoot less FT’s due to attacking the basket less.
-&-
2. the Hawks rely on the 3 pointer rather than being inside oriented.
superiorblogman
January 29th, 2011
10:51 am
Hawks Fan
January 28th, 2011
11:13 pm
superiorblogman
Traded for what?If they can’t sign him to a new contract,what makes you thank they will be able to sign what they get in return?Brah you know nothing bout basketball!They mite as well play the season out with him!They gave your favorite player joe johnson all the money
First off, you are one ignorant short bus riding drooling little keyboard. There are several players that Jamal can be traded for that will be within budget. That’s Sund’s job. How do you know how much Mike Dunleavy, TJ Ford, Dalembert, Prince, and so many other guys with expirings are asking for in there next contracts? It is quite possible that all of those guys are asking for less than Jamal, and they all fill a need. If you would look around for facts instead of an argument in which you always sound stupid when engaging in you could learn something.
superiorblogman
January 29th, 2011
11:08 am
Trades that could be made including Jamal that would help in the long run and maybe even now.
Jamal for Omri Casspi works because Kings under cap
Jamal for Donte Greene works ”
Jamal for Jonny Flynn works”
Those are just straight up trades for guys under contract next year and none make more than 3.1 million next year. The question would be rather you want to pay that guy 1-3 mill or Jamal his asking price, which should really be about what Marvin is making 7-8 mill. Read for yourself before trying to act informed or smart