Hawks-Bobcats game thread
Greetings, all
Ken here for the last time in awhile as MC braces for the mother of all road trips.
1) You may find this interesting. On my way in to the arena, I was thinking to myself, If I were ever to feel good about wagering on a game (not that I wager), this would be it. Hawks have spent three days stewing over an embarrassing loss, playing at home where they’ve beaten Charlotte seven in a row, Al Horford back, Charlotte coming off a back to back, etc.
However, I confess I was not aware of what happened in Charlotte last night. The Bobcats lost at home to New Jersey, which had come into the game having lost 12 in a row on the road. Not only that, but Charlotte never led the whole game.
Stephen Jackson and Gerald Wallace excoriated their teammates for their lack of effort. Read these gems, excerpted from the Charlotte Observer game story (written by the very capable Rick Bonnell, who is sitting behind me in the media room):
“To not even show up at all is embarrassing,” said Jackson (21 points). “It’s sad that a coach has to ask guys to play hard…to care.”
“We acted like the other team was just going to fall down. There are only two or three teams in the league (good enough) that they can be like that. We’re not one of them.”
Or as Wallace (20 points and nine rebounds) added, “We just gave away a game in Indiana (Wednesday). We can’t keep doing that.
“We haven’t lost two (straight) games; we gave them away with our (lack of) effort. A coach should never have to ask for that.”
So, rather than being a gut-check game for one team, it’s a gut-check game for both. I still give the edge to the Hawks by basis of rest, being at home and the fact that they’re better, but this could be a bit more of a fight than you normally see in February.
2) This sort of feeds into 1), and is kind of amusing. I was in the locker room prior to the game, and it came to light that Wallace, from tiny Childersburg, Ala., bought 80 tickets for the game. Apparently even the mayor is coming. So Marvin Williams kiddingly wished Josh Smith good luck in defending a presumably extra-motivated Wallace. (Childersburg’s website claims it’s the “oldest city in America.” Not sure how that’s possible, but, hey, who am I to argue?
3) Nothing else new to report, really. Horford’s still going.
Enjoy the game.
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442 comments Add your comment
Don Mohow
February 12th, 2011
9:53 pm
Something that really worries me when I watch L.D.’s post game interviews is it’s tough to tell whether he’s lying when he blames the losses on things like “settling for jump shots” or “lack of intensity” or “no sense of urgency” or whether he truly believes that these are the causes for the losses. I hope the reason is the former and not the latter because Drew is actually being honest when he makes these excuses, then he should not be the head coach on any team. Any basketball novice could see that the Hawks biggest problems are on the defensive end. It’s almost always the perimeter defense that kills us. Our offense is above average, but our defense on the perimeter is laughable. All teams have off-nights shooting the ball, but good teams can fall back onto their defense to still win games. With our pathetic backcourt lineup of Bibby and Jamal, we can never play elite defense. Get it together, L.D. Stop trying to make lemonade with prunes. It’s not going to happen.
Najeh Davenpoop
February 12th, 2011
9:54 pm
Whatever lineup changes LD has in mind, it’s time to implement them.
{MAC-Town Georgia 478}
February 12th, 2011
9:54 pm
lol@Flea
I can see it now….Rathbun gonna take about 5 to the dome then go for the 6th but he just cant do it
Nique: “That was a HEAT CHECK!!!!”
bigdave
February 12th, 2011
9:54 pm
who are these guys.. get to hoop @ phillips after the game?
Don Mohow
February 12th, 2011
9:54 pm
Correction on the second sentence of my last post: I meant to say “…IF Drew is actually being honest…”.
Najeh Davenpoop
February 12th, 2011
9:55 pm
Is the “championship belt” celebration what’s hot right now? Everyone trying to copy Aaron Rodgers?
lewis
February 12th, 2011
9:55 pm
“we like our core”
{MAC-Town Georgia 478}
February 12th, 2011
9:56 pm
Don Mohow, Drew is frustrated. He knows we cant get it done with the personnel we have, but just doesnt wanna say it flat out.
bigdave
February 12th, 2011
9:56 pm
Nejeh..
the actually copying Freddie ‘the peoples champ’ Mitchell
of UCLA fame..
mattjones
February 12th, 2011
9:57 pm
ASG hired LD because keeping Woody would have cost them more. Joe Johnson improved his game so that he could get an All-Star selection. He’s had only one good game since his selection and that was the day he was selected. His numbers have dropped back to where they were previously. That tells me he CAN play at a higher level consistently when he’s motivated. Shame on you Joe for your lack of effort.
Najeh Davenpoop
February 12th, 2011
9:57 pm
“I can see it now….Rathbun gonna take about 5 to the dome then go for the 6th but he just cant do it
Nique: “That was a HEAT CHECK!!!!””
LMAO… those are some pretty big nimbers.
lewis
February 12th, 2011
9:58 pm
Keep in mind, we would’ve been blown out badly without a hurt AL
Don Mohow
February 12th, 2011
9:59 pm
MAC-Town,
He doesn’t need to say it publicly, but if he really knows what the issue is, there’s not excuse for him not trying to correct it. There was no excuse for why Bibby and Jamal played major minutes (especially with Jamal being absolutely useless in this game) , while Teague and Damien sat for virtually the entire night. I hate to sound too negative, but it’s very frustrating to see the same mistakes cost us games over and over with no adjustments being made to prevent the mistakes.
kwooden1
February 12th, 2011
9:59 pm
I will say this also, I don’t think Marvin played that poorly even though he was 1-7. Most of his shots were close to the basket but just didn’t fall. He was very aggressive and so was Zaza. The problem is neither is very good.
Jae Evolution
February 12th, 2011
10:00 pm
What lineup change can LD honestly make, besides starting Teague I don’t see any other alternative that would be remotely effective. And if he did that Bibby and Jamal would just be coming off the bench with their ZERO D.
Trades are needed.
lewis
February 12th, 2011
10:01 pm
Hawks are stupid and our only leaders are bigs so its not like they can dictate the offense necessarily, and on defense they can only cover up so many mistakes
Don Mohow
February 12th, 2011
10:01 pm
At least there’s one positive from this game: Al Horford looked pretty good, even while being hurt. You could tell that his back was still sore, but it looks like he’s healing up just fine, and still giving us great production, even while not being at 100% health.
rusty
February 12th, 2011
10:02 pm
Ld took no blame in his interview,same old crap,lousy coach.bring woody back even tho I thought he was lousy
yodaddy
February 12th, 2011
10:03 pm
Starting Lineup
Teague
JJ
Josh Smith
Al Horford
Zaza Pachulia
Bench:
Jamal Crawford
Marvin Williams
Damien Wilkins
Jason Collins
Never See The Court:
Mo Evans
Mike Bibby
Etan Thomas
And if you can’t get with that…then don’t step on the team plane. Quit and forfeit your money. Now that’s a real change.
Teague can’t shoot?….good…run the offense…
we virtually have no 3 pt shooting in the starting lineup?…GOOD run the offense.
Post up, take the ball to the basket and pick and roll that’s the name of the game…..not long two pointers with a hand in the face or 3 pointers with the clock winding down.
Tyronn Lue
February 12th, 2011
10:03 pm
Any of you guys miss me now?
Tyronn Lue
February 12th, 2011
10:04 pm
Give me my job back.
Don Mohow
February 12th, 2011
10:04 pm
Jae Evolution,
You’re spot on with your comment about L.D. having limited options. As of now, I don’t think he can do much outside of benching Bibby and going with defense over offense when Jamal clearly doesn’t have it going, but as far as major improvements, we need to make trades to accomplish that. We need a true playmaker at the point-guard position and desperately need some well-rounded guards who play both ends of the floor. At this point, I’d settle for a point guard who isn’t even an offensive threat as long as he can be trusted as a playmaker and defender, but unfortuntely there aren’t many quality PGs out there that are available. I’m ready to cut ties with Jamal to see if we can get something close to that though.
thetruth
February 12th, 2011
10:07 pm
_
(’,')
_ _ / /)
( (_`,–……_._,/ / \ rest of nba
\ ) `( ,__ ‘-’-)-’\ ))
(/ \ | ‘ 7,/` | /
\\ / / ( |
hawks” | ) | )
=’-’ =’-’
Najeh Davenpoop
February 12th, 2011
10:07 pm
LMAO @ Tyronn Lue. Lue in ‘07 was basically what Bibby is now. Back then BK realized the need to improve the point guard position and made the Bibby trade. Now Rick Sund thinks Bibby is in his prime.
You could make a pretty solid case that Billy Knight > Rick Sund.
yodaddy
February 12th, 2011
10:07 pm
Forget the three point line…run the Flex offense like Boston College used to do and get shots closer to the basket through penetration. I don’t care if you get blocked 100 times…take the ball into the paint like a man and get to the free throw line. They are waiting to foul.
Najeh Davenpoop
February 12th, 2011
10:08 pm
Bulls have come back and tied the Hornets in the 4th.
Randall
February 12th, 2011
10:08 pm
rusty,
When has L.D. ever taken the blame for a loss? He’s not man enough to do that. I don’t have much respect at all for Drew as a person or as a coach. I think he’d be alright on a rebuilding team or on a team that is trying to make the playoffs for the first time in years, but he really brings nothing to our team as far as improvement goes. If we wanted to be 33-20, we could have just stuck with Woodson. I’m sick of L.D., but since he was only hired to save money, I doubt he will be fired any time soon.
kwooden1
February 12th, 2011
10:08 pm
What I don’t understand is the HAWKS have shown no ability to minimize their deficiencies. They have to get better PG play or they clearly won’t make it out of the 2nd round of the Playoffs. (maybe even the first round) They have to develop Teague or trade for someone that can drive and finish. Or every 4th quarter were going to watch the HAWKS miss a bunch of jumpshots because they can’t drive and get to the free-throw line.
Worldwide Clyde
February 12th, 2011
10:12 pm
Blame it on Teague
Fire Sund
yodaddy
February 12th, 2011
10:12 pm
Trade Jeff Teague, Jamal Crawford, Jordan Crawford and a first rounder for Deron Williams
PROBLEM SOLVED
SteveW
February 12th, 2011
10:15 pm
I think LD is in a game of chicken with Sund and ASG over Teague. LD is refusing to develop him, hoping Sund/ASG will trade him for a Rip Hamilton or something. We’ll see.
I have loved some of LD’s stuff. But his subsitutions and after halftime adjustments have stunk. We have to be leading the lead in getting beat in the second half recently.
yodaddy
February 12th, 2011
10:17 pm
The trade actually works on Trade Machine
http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine
Projected added wins…13….I wholeheartedly agree
SteveW
February 12th, 2011
10:18 pm
Of course it’s Teague’s fault. He should be practicing better forcing LD to play him (sarcasm).
I really think LD is so concerned about his job and winning now, he has zero interest in developing Teague. He wants vets, and folks to win now, not later. I hope he knows what he is doing, because as of right now, I don’t trust him.
Besides having a motion offense on occasion, and going big when the occasion arises, just how is he different than Woody? Just asking.
northcyde
February 12th, 2011
10:20 pm
lol @ thetruth . . . ya’ll are getting too creative now.
By the way folks, guess who was the +/- leader for tonight?.
Hint: he’s the guy that everyone wants to bench
SteveW
February 12th, 2011
10:22 pm
Our record is worse than last year, and we’re heading on a 7 game road trip, and we are playing really bad basketball. Bibby has lost it,
Jamal has also
JJ is as well
We have no inside game
No PG
No Coach who will develop youth – JC2 is playing way less than Teague did last season
A Coach who insists on playing Mo over Wilkens
” ” ” ” ” ‘” Bibby over Teague
I said a few days ago, we are close to being a bad team, closer than many think. When the Sixers and Bobcats come to your place and beat you, your in trouble.
Najeh Davenpoop
February 12th, 2011
10:22 pm
Jamal had a +6 and Smoove had a -7. I’d like to see the argument for how Jamal had a better game than Smoove.
SteveW
February 12th, 2011
10:23 pm
Northcyde, I know, and the guy with the best stats was by far the +/- loser by far. That stat can be overrated depending on player combinations.
SteveW
February 12th, 2011
10:25 pm
I wonder what ASG will do if we collapse, and the trade deadline has passed? Keep trotting Bibby out there so Teague can get some DNP Coaches Decision? Popovich develops players, Rivers develops players, Woody and LD don’t seem to develop players.
Jae Evolution
February 12th, 2011
10:27 pm
I’m frustrated with this Teague DNP, why does LD not allow this kid to even have a chance to grow. C’mon dude! You gotta let this kid go, give him some damn minutes!
O'Brien
February 12th, 2011
10:28 pm
Wow. Bulls outscore Hornets 30-21 in the 3rd, and 21-10 in the fourth so far. They lead by 9 after being down double digits. On the road. To a good team…
northcyde
February 12th, 2011
10:29 pm
Haha @ Tyronn Lue making an appearance. One thing about it . . with the Godfather of the ISO ( Lue ) on the team, we didn’t have these 4th quarter offensive meltdowns.
He couldn’t guard anybody, but he’d at least score.
Maybe we can leave Teague in Detroit, and exchange him for Will Bynum. Or leave Jamal in Phoenix and bring aboard Nash.
Only in NBA 2K11 I guess.
Worldwide Clyde
February 12th, 2011
10:30 pm
Free Jordan Crawford
Jae Evolution
February 12th, 2011
10:30 pm
“No Coach who will develop youth – JC2 is playing way less than Teague did last season”
SteveW while I agree with your statement completely, the single reason that Jordan doesn’t get many minutes is because we are completely overloaded at the SG position it’s not even funny. Last year Jeff Teague was pretty much our only backup PG so he HAD to get minutes regardless of Coach’s view on Rookies.
slimjr
February 12th, 2011
10:32 pm
“NewsFlash” Northcyde, Southcyde,Eastcyde,Westcyde, Stick a fork in the Hawks, with 32 games and roughly 10 weeks to go till the playoffs,PLAYOFFS, the Hawks are officially toast!!! 6 straight 4th quarter meltdowns!!! Are you kidding me??? Next 11 are brutal, this team may go 3-8 over this stretch.. Forget about 3rd seed. That”s a wrap!!! 7th seed maybe??? Ouch!! LD start packing now! Why was JJ not guarding Capt. J????Huh?????? Wow…Whew. Up 22 points in the third quarter just crap!!!!!!Scored 14 lousy points in the 4th, because everybody started throwing up bricks. JC1 i believe shot 1-12??????? ………..I am done with this ish…………………..Insanity nothing changing around here!!! Insanity…………………..Where was Teague.Mike Bibby and JC1 can’t guard their shawdow and both were shooting blanks. ASGEEMen, the Hawks fans should get refunds…This this unbelievable………………………………………………………….Yawn……………………….
Najeh Davenpoop
February 12th, 2011
10:33 pm
Knicks win, Bulls win, Hawks lose. Hawks are still in 4th place, tied with Orlando in the standings but ahead of them by virtue of the tiebreaker. The difference between the Hawks and Bulls is now 3.5 games.
yodaddy
February 12th, 2011
10:35 pm
Mike Bibby for Reggie Evans
SteveW
February 12th, 2011
10:35 pm
Jae Evolution – I know – I’m thinking JC2 needs some DLeague time if LD won’t put him in a game, even when we’re up 22. Surely he wouldn’t evaporate leads any faster than the starters have over the past several weeks.
And then LD puts JC2 in at the end of the Heat game….weird.
SteveW
February 12th, 2011
10:36 pm
Najeh – What’s your solution for this team? I know mine, but LD ain’t goin’ to come close it looks like. You got any ideas?
yodaddy
February 12th, 2011
10:38 pm
let the young boys play….that could be a nice change of pace and don’t yank them the first time they turn the ball over eithere
slimjr
February 12th, 2011
10:38 pm
@theTruth
” (’,’)
_ _ / /)
( (_`,–……_._,/ / \ rest of nba
\ ) `( ,__ ‘-’-)-’\ ))
(/ \ | ‘ 7,/` | /
\\ / / ( |
hawks” | ) | )
=’-’ =’-’
Wow!!! That’s Sund bent over…………..LOL 31+ yrs………………Whew…………………..