Nets at Atlanta Hawks: Josh Smith’s knee still ailing
Smoove says he has a new plan for his knee pain and his game.
The right knee is still sore. He sprained it against the Nuggets on Feb. 28 after he’d tweaked it earlier in the season.
“It gets sore as I play on it,” Smith said. “That day off after that back-to-back was big for me. I needed the rest. It’s probably not going to be 100 percent at this point. I will just get it treated as much as I can and rest it when I can.”
Smith said his father, Pete, told him a few games back to try running on his toes. He resisted at first because he’s more comfortable running heel-toe but finally relented at Philly and said it helped alleviate some of the pain.
Even with the bum knee, Smoove said he plans to continue to play closer to the basket like he did at Philly.
“I’m trying to drive the ball a little bit more,” he said. “I think it’s a positive for the team and a positive for my game. I can’t think about [the knee]. It makes me play worse. I’ve got to go out there and try to play the way I’m capable.”
Notes
- “Regular” lineup tonight: Hinrich, J.J., Marvin, Josh and Al.
- Deron Williams (wrist) shot baskets before the game but is out for the Nets.
- L.D. said the seven-man rotation he used at Philly won’t be the norm: “I was looking at matchups, looking at the rhythm of the game. As we wind down these last 10 a lot of it will depend on the matchups and how the game is going. If I feel we need to kind of speed the game up, I’ll be playing Jeff Teague more. I am definitely going to get him in tonight playing against Farmar and [Uzoh]. But a lot depends on matchups.”
- Al on the increased minutes for the starters: “We have to do it as a team. We can’t do it with five, six guys. We have to rely on our other guys. They have to be ready to come in and play.”
- Hawks players were a very loose group in the locker room before the game tonight. Same thing at practice yesterday. “You have got to give a lot of credit to coach,” Marvin said. “Coach is not a big downer. I think when you are a head coach that comes in with an upbeat, positive attitude and things are kind of shaky it really does help your confidence as a player. He has come in with a great attitude and it is really rubbing off on us players.”
- Marvin on his increased production lately: “My shot has been so up-and-down all year. I guess I am going through a stretch where I am making shots, thankfully. I have just got to continue to stay aggressive, get to the free-throw line and I guess that has helped me stay in a little rhythm lately. “
- The Nets are awful on offense but not half bad on defense. They are an average offensive rebounding team which is good enough to give the Hawks problems.
- “New Jersey is going to be a brutal game,” L.D. said. “That team has not thrown the towel in. They are playing hard. They’ve got big guys who play physical, they have got guys who can shoot it. It’s going to be a war. We have to bring our hardhat and our tool box. We have to roll our sleeves up. That’s just the kind of game it’s going to be.”
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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133 comments Add your comment
tremaine
March 26th, 2011
9:48 pm
Section 303
March 26th, 2011
9:39 pm
I’m not exactly ready to plan the Championship Parade down Peachtree after this win. Can’t wait to read quotes from these clowns talking about how “we needed this” or “this has to carry over…” or “This might get us back on track..”.
They’ll probably lose tomorrow night in Cleveland.
Co-sign
mykhalc
March 26th, 2011
9:49 pm
didn’t watch…but i said 1-10 in remainin’ 11…well they got their 1… 0′fer from here on out…PERIOD!!! KA BOOM!!!
W.R.Terrell
March 26th, 2011
9:49 pm
New Jersey battled Orlando last night and even tho they were probably a tired team they managed to give a good scare to us in the waining moments of the 4th quarter. A win is a win but this was not as impressive as it should have been. Seems like the “SOFT’S” have difficulty focusing at times, especially on defense. We made the playoffs, good news to some and better news to the opposing team they will be playing. I’m a big fan of the HAWKS but have no clue as to what the “SOFT’S” will bring to the table besides what they have brought all year, and if I was a fatman on a diet I would be thin as the wind if they were food. We play Cleveland tomorrow and I know many are expecting a win but with this team you just don’t know. Very disapointing season to say the least. Expectations were big but reality set in and so did the “SOFT’S”. They kind of looked like a basketball team for 2 and a half quarters. I am glad for the win, but again it’s just “FOOLS GOLD”, but I will be there shouting and screaming and hoping for a real nugget.
Najeh Davenpoop
March 26th, 2011
9:55 pm
Joe Johnson is out for tomorrow’s game according to MC’s Twitter. Maybe this means the Teague/Kirk back court?
drmaryb (*_-)
March 26th, 2011
9:56 pm
Pearls of Wisdom!
Rondo clip,”We’re not trying to be contenders, we’re trying to win it all.”
____________
NBA TV just intervied Al Horford.
D3 was asked what player on the Hawks will get in a teammates face,
he said,”Believe it or not, it was Mike Bibby!”
The other guy said, “Maybe that’s what they are missing now. Kirk Hinrich hasn’t been there long enough to bark orders.”
______________
Bibby directed the offense and put players in their right spots to make all the plays.
O'Brien
March 26th, 2011
9:56 pm
The Nets played yesterday and are also playing without their best player. Hawks win by 11. YAWN.
Remember how good they looked the Bucks game, and what happened when they played good teams after that? They should win tomorrow, setting up a big matchup with Orlando, who will more than likely be their playoff opponent.
I hope they come prepared to send Orlando a message.
Najeh Davenpoop
March 26th, 2011
10:03 pm
42 minutes for Al on the front end of a back to back to beat a team that has won 32% of its games this season.
prison mike
March 26th, 2011
10:04 pm
JC almost willed the lead completely over. He’s yet another one of those guys that will iso his team to hell if allowed.
It’s nice that drew unofficially called out joe for his slow reaction time because he looked crisped passing out of double teams. Josh just showed him once the guy gets 5 feet within you with the double just pass the dang ball.
prison mike
March 26th, 2011
10:07 pm
God I don’t want the kittens to backdoor their way into the playoffs, such a irrelevant team. Bucks looking healthier than they’ve been, could be trouble for some team.
drmaryb (*_-)
March 26th, 2011
10:11 pm
“I am glad for the win, but again it’s just “FOOLS GOLD”, ”
______________
The starters did not let the nets back in tonight. They were all on the bench. That was Teague and Crew that laid all those eggs. Go back and watch the tape.
Rusty
March 26th, 2011
10:13 pm
I am amazed that when jc1 is in the game with kh or jt he is the man handling the ball,which I don’t like he seems way to careless & takes way to many bad shots. Why is he playing pg?
Najeh Davenpoop
March 26th, 2011
10:40 pm
Crazy stat: 7 foot tall Brook Lopez had zero rebounds against the Hawks in 30 minutes today.
Now, I have never played in an NBA game and I am only 5′11″, but it is hard for me to understand how that is possible. When you are that tall — and notably taller than everyone on the opposing team — shouldn’t you get a few boards just by accident, even if you don’t try?
Najeh Davenpoop
March 26th, 2011
10:41 pm
7 foot tall Andrea Bargnani did the same thing yesterday in 27 minutes, and that might be even more embarrassing considering it was against the Warriors.
Paradise Lost
March 26th, 2011
10:54 pm
Bulls come back on Bucks. Shouts of MVP for Rose from Bucks’ home crowd.
JSS
March 26th, 2011
10:54 pm
drmaryb (*_-)
March 26th, 2011
9:56 pm
“he said,”Believe it or not, it was Mike Bibby!”
I said it a number of times, that Bibby once got into a war of words with Ty Hill back during the final game of the Miami playoff series. He was the only one that seemed to actually care.
Unfortunately, his body was shot…
northcyde
March 26th, 2011
10:55 pm
Najeh . . that’s called “being soft”.
Another incredible stat, is that despite the huge lead we had most of the game, Jamal Crawford was STILL ( -1 ) in the plus/minus category tonight.
doc
March 26th, 2011
10:58 pm
dmd
kidding on a morrow?
kid went to ga tech free agent to warriors
right under bk’s nose
SWAT Native
March 26th, 2011
10:59 pm
@ Najeh – I was watching Lopez tonight and thinking what a different player he is without Devin Harris.
JSS
March 26th, 2011
11:03 pm
Height does not make you a good rebounder, Barkley and Rodman studied the craft. They were as short as most two guards and they were root hogs for boards, Mookie Blaylock too!
EmirS.
March 26th, 2011
11:10 pm
So much for playing Teague more.
I’m sorry but this buffoon that we call a coach is as lost as a 5th grader doing calculus. With the playoffs approaching is he expecting to win a game with just 1 or 2 guys of the bench? Witht eh exception of Jamal who got way to many damn minutes…..
Zaza: 18 mins
Teague: 12 mins
Damien: 6 mins
Rest of Bench: DNP CD
Screw LD. Sick of this crap. This guy needs to quit the NBA scene. And go get a job in whatever he majored in college.
“…If I feel we need to kind of speed the game up, I’ll be playing Jeff Teague more. I am definitely going to get him in tonight playing against Farmar and [Uzoh]. But a lot depends on matchups.”
-Larry Drew
Shut the f*ck up.
drmaryb (*_-)
March 26th, 2011
11:15 pm
I Got Jokes!
doc, I got a lot of jokes maane … But I wasn’t kidding. Anthony Morrow went to Ga Tech? For real? Wow! How come I never knew of this guy. He was an enigma out there tonight, he was carrying that team!
What happened to Sundiata Gaines? Isn’t he on their roster? I saw him on NBA TV standing on the scorers table in Utah after a game winner at the buzzer last year. I thought Hawks should have given him a look.
_________________
Najeh!
Skip Caray used to take calls on 750 AM for the Braves a while back.
All the silly callers would ask dumb questions about the millions of complex baseball rules, that to this day I don’t understand.
Skip would pulverize the callers like a blender. He would shake the callers down like that “Soup Nazi” on Seinfield. If he wasn’t so vicious, it actually would have been funny. A 10 year old kid called in once and he made the kid cry on the radio. That parent probably wrote a letter to TBS and got him pulled off the air! No doubt! Dude was evil to the bone.
I used to mute him and listen to music when Braves played after that.
_____________
No lie, Najeh!
O'Brien
March 26th, 2011
11:22 pm
Najeh,
Not to mention the Nets have won only 5 road games all year.
As for the Brook Lopez stat, there are some fans who consider him a real center, but yet criticize our center (Al).
O'Brien
March 26th, 2011
11:28 pm
drmaryb, doc,
Morrow was not drafted, but the Warriors signed him as an undrafted FA, and he blew up. But I think he was right under Rick’s nose (not BK).
He could have been a good role player for us off the bench (as our designated shooter)…For cheap.
brigadierjerry
March 26th, 2011
11:33 pm
drmaryb,
Sundiata Gaines has a bruised hip. He is out for the rest of the season. How are you doing?You know who was an uderrated player for the Hawks back in the days no one ever talks about?Grant long
Mj49
March 26th, 2011
11:36 pm
Marvin said this has been an up & down season for him, Question, When was it up? I mustve missed that game
drmaryb (*_-)
March 26th, 2011
11:40 pm
O’B
Oh OK!
So, without a computer and apparently a newspaper or radio,
Ole’ Slick-Rick let an UFA get away? From a 1/2 block away @ Ga Tech?
Heck, TNT is literally sitting inside the Tech Campus. So much for scouting a college payer, but that is just lazy.
Now, that I think about, I remember Paul Hewitt telling Morrow to stay in school, it was all over the radio. Go Figure!
JSS
March 26th, 2011
11:42 pm
“You know who was an uderrated player for the Hawks back in the days no one ever talks about?Grant long”
I’ve always hoped that someone in the Hawks organization would get him to work with Marvin and that lazy Randolph Morris when we were wasting money on him…
W.R.Terrell
March 26th, 2011
11:47 pm
We are in the playoffs with LD as our Coach. Are there any fantasies about winning a series? I am seeing a broom in the midst and it is “SWEEPING”. LD is too dumb to try and think and he has Teague so screwed in the mind until the kid may be useless now. There are many words to describe LD: Pitiful, DUMB, Ignorant, Useless along with; Stupid, Assinine and POO. The “SOFT’S” have their leader but where will he lead them. I could not have imagined someone being so bad as a professional coach. Even if the “SOFT’S” tried to put up a good game they have tired legs. LD has played them too many minutes to stand against the grueling combat they are about to take on. One thing is for certain and that is LD must go. The present roster has sparked a trade all of em except Al, Teague, Armstrong, Marvin, Zsa Zsa and ISO Joe. I don’t think the “smoove” will ever be anything but a minimal highlight reel and Jamal may as well look for another team. I really thought he could add a presence but it is understandable why he is a nomad in the NBA.
JSS
March 27th, 2011
12:09 am
True story…
February 1975…
Before a Hawks game my Mother bought seats behind the Hawks broadcast table. Skip was doing the radio then. The Hawks were horrible. Skip was drinking and partying pretty hard back then. But after the game, my Mother took me by the table and I said: “Hello Mr. Caray, I want to work on TV some day.” He turned around and spent 25 minutes telling me about the equipment and what it took to put a broadcast on the air. He also told me to respect my Mother because his Mom was the best friend he had as boy.
Now, in 1990 after I graduated and I was doing an internship in the PR arm of Cobb County. We were invited into the Braves booth. Skip and Dave O’Brien were there. So they Braves PR folks introduced us… And without hesitation, Skip Caray said: “I see you made it into the business!” I said: “Yes sir!”
Now, he did not tolerate fools, and a lot of callers were just that… And as he neared the end of his life and a lot of his demons were cleared out, he apologized alt for his caustic temperament. He did not ask to do that show, the Braves and the sponsors wanted him because he brought in ad dollars…
But, Skip Caray was not an evil man. Want someone to hold their phony feet to the fire? Go and get that self serving John Kincade.
doc
March 27th, 2011
12:12 am
my bad o’b i thought he came out the same year as crit and the kid with philly now.
he has stones:
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/117341-anthony-morrow-a-pleasant-surprise-in-an-otherwise-dismal-season-for
drmaryb (*_-)
March 27th, 2011
12:04 pm
* Correction!
Skip Caray used to take calls on 750 AM for the Braves a while back.
__________________
CHIP Caray NOT Skip Caray. I’m talking about the son, not the legend father. My bad.
drmaryb (*_-)
March 27th, 2011
12:18 pm
Techwood Homes!
(A place you wouldn’t want to raise your kids)
______________
Doc,
I think Thaddeus Young plays in philly.
I think Javaris Crittendon was the guy in Washington, DC involved in that gun in the locker room incident with Gilbert Arenas.
(Wasn’t that incident re: a gambling debt from that same type of card game that Tony Allen and OJ Mayo played?)
Anthony Morrow is the kid I know very little about, until you and O’B cued me up. Thanks.
__________________
What’s going on Brigadierjerry Jerry?
Grant Long the master of the pump-fake and baseline drive!
Oh yeah! One of my favorite Lenny Wilkens boys. Smitty and Long! Didn’t Grant Long choke a player on the court. That was the good ole’ days. Who was that guy he choked and lifted up by the neck – funny stuff! They don’t make em’ like that anymore.
Duane ??? I think the chokee’s name was Duane Ferrell? Duane was talking ish! I think?
drmaryb (*_-)
March 27th, 2011
12:50 pm
JSS
Thanks for sharing that Sip Caray personal story with us. That was nice to hear some behind the scenes stuff. Now, I never knew Skip had passed away? Of course, I knew Harry Caray had (the old man).
So, who the heck is CHIP CARAY then? I’m so confused!