Atlanta Hawks: Magic 88, Hawks 82
Orlando–The Magic pounded the Hawks on the boards and outscored them 29-11 from the free-throw line. That’s how they won while shooting 34 percent from the field and committing 16 turnovers.
- The deficit on the boards is can be chalked up to Dwight beasting and Al playing only 26 minutes because of L.D.’s two-foul rule. The disparity in free throws is a Dwight production, too, because it’s become clear that Twin (and to a lesser extent, Zaza) is the only Hawks big with any hope of preventing him from shooting 100 percent in the post.
- Despite all of that, the Hawks had a chance to win after I thought they looked beat down and done. They suddenly came alive for a 10-0 run: Smoove’s running hook shot, Al’s baseline drive, a J and floater by Joe floater and Al’s block leading to his dunk.
- But then Turkoglu scored on a tough driving basket over Al and Al missed a challenged iso jumper. J-Rich shook free for a 3 and Al missed a 3-point try. “I think that towards the end we couldn’t get organized a couple times on the offensive end and forced me to take a couple tough shots that I usually don’t take,” Al said.
- So that was the end of the rally. The Hawks headed back to Philips with the split.
- “That’s all you can ask for,” Josh said. “If you can’t get two of them try to steal one. We’ve still got the home-court advantage. We’ve just got to be able to come in to a sellout crowd at Philips Arena, the Highlight Factory and try to use our fan advantage to win games.”
- He looked into the camera when he said that last part about a sellout. It was a plea to fans.
- The officiating was a mess with bodies banging all over the place, lots of rebounds and hard screens. The Magic cranked up their D but the Hawks thought they came out on the short end of calls.
- “Some were fouls that wasn’t called,” Smoove said. “It is what it is. I think we handled the physicality well. I think we cranked up our defense as well. We have just got to make sure we box out next time because we played pretty good defense in the half court.”
- The Magic didn’t wait to double team J.J. this time. An extra man came pretty much any time he got inside the 3-point line. Joe didn’t make good or quick decisions, dribbled headlong into traffic and pretty much stagnated the offense.
- “He wasn’t a sharp as he was in Game 1,” L.D. said. “Clearly they were going to play him a lot more physical. I don’t think there was anything else about that. He is going to have to look at the film and see how they are playing him, do things quicker. He will bounce back.”
- The Magic had to give up something while chasing Joe but Marvin missed the open jumpers that were available.
- It’s not that Orlando’s role players hurt the Hawks: They were 18 of 66 from the field to Dwight’s 9 of 12. It’s just that they made timely shots after missing a bunch and played much better team defense in front of Dwight than in Game 1.
- “Our guys’ effort tonight was above and beyond,” Stan Van Gundy said. “When you can shoot 34 percent in a playoff game and win it, I’ve got to be very proud of guys and just hope at some point guys will start making some shots.”
- L.D. had some weird sub patterns tonight.
- Josh Powell, not Zaza, was the first big off the bench when Al got two early fouls. Didn’t Powell already prove in Game 1 that he’s no match for Dwight? Hilton Armstrong got a turn against Dwight, too, and was ineffective.
- Twin was solid against Dwight. He helped force three turnovers on Dwight’s first four post-ups but played only three minutes in the second quarter then didn’t play after an 8-minute stint in the third as Zaza got most of the minutes against Dwight.
- “We got into a rhythm with Zaza out there,” Drew said. “I did not want to disrupt that. I thought Zaza did a really good job. We just couldn’t stop [Dwight].”
- Al didn’t go back in after those two early fouls. The Magic wrecked the Hawks for 15 of their 16 first-half offensive boards with Al on the bench but somehow trailed just 48-42 at the half.
- “The guys were playing well,” Al said. “It was just unfortunate that we are giving up offensive rebounds. That was the only thing that was a little frustrating. The defense was great. I think I finished up the game with two fouls. It’s kind of one of those things it is going to be up to [Drew]. I know he doesn’t want to risk it. We were fine today because we played good defense, we were only down six going into the half.”
- L.D. said he had planned to put Al back in before halftime.
- “When he came out, I told him to be prepared to go back in the second quarter,” Drew said. “My thought process behind that was if we were struggling, I was going to play him. But we actually played very well in that second quarter and it wasn’t until late in the second quarter when we hit the bump in the road. At that point I didn’t want to put him in and jeopardize him getting his third foul with less than three minutes to go.”
- Al on sitting for that long: “It is tough. I was out of rhythm by the time I came in the second half. It took me a while to get going. It’s one of those things. The team player well but we missed some shots.”
- Dwight played all 48 minutes and finished with five fouls.
- Hinrich was sharp at the start and then just seemed to fade offensively. He’s one of the guys who had his space cut off by Orlando’s more aggressive D. “Maybe they had a little bit more sense of urgency tonight,” Hinrich said. “But it seemed like at times we got a little bogged down tonight offensively. In Game 1 we were just moving that ball.”
- Al said he banged his right knee with a teammate’s knee in the second half but stayed in the game. He had ice on ot for the swelling after the game.
- Jamal was the only guard who had it going offensively (though got in on the high-degree-of-difficulty shooting to do it). L.D. stuck with him late until the Hawks needed some D. He went back to Hinrich and later subbed Jamal for Zaza.
- “Jamal was playing well and making shots,” Drew said. “There came a point where we needed to get some spots so I came back with Hinrich, and then came back with Jamal for [Zaza]. I was getting a feel who is going good and what do we need at that time.”
- The Hawks left Orlando with a W, a loss in a near-comeback and home-court advantage. It feels a lot different from last year, when they headed back to Atlanta with two listless Ls and no hope of winning the series.
- “It’s a different team,” Al said. “I’ve been trying to tell you guys. It is not the same team as you saw last year. I know they are different but we are different. We’re confident.”
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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237 comments Add your comment
darrell starks
April 20th, 2011
12:01 pm
MY BAD JUMPSHOTS
FREE TEAGUE
GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
JeJe
April 20th, 2011
12:01 pm
WE NEED EVERYONE ON THIS DAMN TEAM HELPING OUT ON THE BOARDS
WE CANT HAVE DWIGHT + BASS + TURKOGLU VS. SMOOVE, HORFORD, AND MARVINA
tidog
April 20th, 2011
12:09 pm
The 3rd quarter was their for the hawks taking and they failed. both teams were inept in that crucial period hawks 12 magic 17 points. a good run in the 3rd was lights out for the magic oh well.
Slimjr
April 20th, 2011
12:09 pm
“Oh yeah ….. And, when he gets there?
Check in with TSA to get a body scan, perhaps they can pull the LEAD out of his azz, before he weighs the plane down. His game is absolutely garbage. There is no excuse to be that turrible, has he ever had a jump shot, ever?”
NOW THATS FUNNY,I ALMOST SPILLED MY COFFEE…lol
drmaryb (*_-)
April 20th, 2011
12:13 pm
Referee Memorandum!
I hope Sund is typing or dictating an email (since he has no computer), to David Stern’s referees to complain about those 20 fouls Dwight got away with last night. No wonder Dwight complains about calls he normally gets away with.
Tragic!
Slimjr
April 20th, 2011
12:14 pm
INSERT TEAGUE IN THAT 3RD QUARTER TO JUMP START THE OFFENSE(1-12) AT ONE PT..WE WIN THE FREAKING GAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Rod from College Park
April 20th, 2011
12:14 pm
The TSA body scan. Very funny drmaryb. HAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!! Glad we have some knowlegable basketball bloggers who don’t continue to make excuses for that bum. I can remember when I was the only one letting him have it daily.
Slimjr
April 20th, 2011
12:15 pm
THE SECRET IS OUT THE BAG NOW ABOUT YOUR GOONS MR. STERN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Slimjr
April 20th, 2011
12:19 pm
yea @Rod, your were a lone voice in the wilderness!!! LOL
Looks like “it was a good pick” went into hiding…He’s probably gassing up the Navigator to drive Marvina back home to his mommy…………
Jt
April 20th, 2011
12:33 pm
How bout LD saying something like this to Al? “It’s the effing playoffs and we need your as# out there. Now how about going out there and playing defense and do it without fouling?” Maybe it’s time to say something like that without offending one of your stars?
tremaine
April 20th, 2011
12:35 pm
Section 303
April 20th, 2011
10:10 am
tremaine,
You can’t have Howard setting illegal screens left and right without getting called. On top of that, Horford gets called for an illegal screen as a quick 2nd foul.
I’m all for letting the teams play. But, you can’t let one team (one player, really) get away with assult, but no one else.
Good thing those a$$holes got the Jamal Crawford foul situation correct at the end, though. With four seconds left and the game over, it was critical that they take 30 minutes to figure out if Jamal had fouled out or not. What a bunch of a$$holes…..they ref a miserable game and then have to get all “professional” on a meaningless foul situation. Just further justifies my hatred of all officials. Each one is a little bit worst than the last. Aren’t any good ones.
You are right the fact that the hawks shot 39.5% and got rebound 52-39 played no part in the lose. Quit looking for a bailout from the refs.
Just Dumb
April 20th, 2011
12:37 pm
Man What a difference a Game Makes. All of a sudden we need Teague to be free and the coach is sorry and Both Al amd Joe are sorry. It is 1 game. And if any of you really basketball you will know that hawks have done exactly what they needed to do, Which win a game there and come home. The hawks have the advantage still….
Yall are some fake fans
Just Smart
April 20th, 2011
12:45 pm
Enter your comments here
SWAT Native
April 20th, 2011
12:51 pm
I wonder if anyone else noticed in last night’s game. After getting Twin got called for a foul on Dwight, Dwight took a minute to come over to bark at him before he went to the free throw line. Twin never said a word, but he kept glancing at the ref like he was thinking “are you hearing this?”. Twin didnt seem the same the rest of the game, like he was intimidated. I hope that’s not the case because it doesn’t bode well for the rest of the series.
2 FOR JOHN DREW
April 20th, 2011
12:51 pm
LD should do everything possible … offensively & defensively from 1st qt to 4th qt to foul DH out or make him ineffective b/c of foul trouble. The DNP-CD concerning Teague is inexcusable considering what Teague has shown when he has played. Especially, when KH is struggling. If you’re not going to use Teague you might as well put Teague in street clothes & dress-out all the BIGS and lets get real physical !!!!!!!
drmaryb (*_-)
April 20th, 2011
12:51 pm
Fan-Dom!
“Yall are some fake fans”
____________
And, we saw some fake basketball.
___________________
Some of these fans have been observing these losers for 43 years, many before you were born. So, you late with the criticism.
_________________
Rod from CP!
When you see a Buster? You call him by his name: Marvin! Marvina is an insult to all women, we deserve better! Women have more heart. LOL!
ICECOLD
April 20th, 2011
12:58 pm
Slimjr.
I go to west ga… what made you say west ga offense ?
ReverandSimon
April 20th, 2011
12:59 pm
WHY DIDNT THE HAWKS INSERT TEAGUE IN THE THIRD QUARTER TO JUMPSTART THE OFFENSE AND EXPAND THE LEAD TO 30 POINTS. THE HUBIE BROWN HAWKS OF THE LATE SEVENTIES AND LATER MIKE FRATELLOS HAWKS TEAMS OF THE EIGHTIES USED TO DO THAT WITH THE LIGHTNING QUICK “SPUD WEBB”. Teague can be used on this team similarly to the way Spud Webb was used on Mike Fratellos and Hubie Browns Hawks teams that won 50 games every year. Teague can be used to set the tempo and have the Hawks race down the floor and push the ball down the throats of the Magic and Hawks opponents. Teague is a valuable weapon because he has quickness, speed and he is lightning fast. Teague is the fastest player in the NBA and Larry Drew is so dumb that he is afraid to give Teague the minutes that Teague deserves. Sure Teague is a walking turnover but that is because Teague is nervous when he comes into a game and is not relaxed enough AND hasnt had enough playing time to play with poise. Give Teague more minutes and he will be this generations Spud Webb on our explosive Hawks team.
ag
April 20th, 2011
1:11 pm
How many times this season has JT either rebounded or received a pass and beat everyone down the court for a easy layup? When the Hawks could not convert an offensive possession I felt he should have played JT to change the pace.
O'Brien
April 20th, 2011
1:12 pm
I’m no Marvin fan, but I can’t help but wonder if it’s LD’s offense that has him camped out at the 3-pt line. Didn’t LD refer to Marvin as one of his shooters?
it was not a bad pick,
Why can’t your grandson knock down open shots?
Rod,
During the season, Jamal was the reason for a lot of teams making a run on us (imo), especially late 3rd early 4th, and LD would leave Jamal in there whether or not he was struggling offensively.
That being said, Jamal came to play this series. Jason Richardson is a FA, and so is Vince Carter. But Jamal might be the #1 SG on the market given his performance these 2 games. And if he keeps it up, he is pricing himself out of the Hawks price range (imo).
Just Smart
April 20th, 2011
1:14 pm
Ld will make sure the Hawks do not win this winnable series…More TV dollars for the the NBA if Dwight advances not ISO….Sorry……
LD= “Company Man”
tremaine
April 20th, 2011
1:14 pm
Just Dumb
April 20th, 2011
12:37 pm
Man What a difference a Game Makes. All of a sudden we need Teague to be free and the coach is sorry and Both Al amd Joe are sorry. It is 1 game. And if any of you really basketball you will know that hawks have done exactly what they needed to do, Which win a game there and come home. The hawks have the advantage still….
Yall are some fake fans
Just Dumb the people who have only been following the hawks since the playoffs started are over on Jeff Schultz blog with all the other unrealistic people who blame the refs and thought Jason Collins could stop Dwight Howard.
Slimjr
April 20th, 2011
1:19 pm
Marvin cant knock down open shots consistently because his center is not centered!! He never squares up to the basket, he’s always leaning to his right, he kicks his feet out from under his body so that knocks himself off balance, and most of all he is one nervous sob……………
tremaine
April 20th, 2011
1:21 pm
ag
April 20th, 2011
1:11 pm
How many times this season has JT either rebounded or received a pass and beat everyone down the court for a easy layup? When the Hawks could not convert an offensive possession I felt he should have played JT to change the pace.
Everytime Horford and Josh Smith would not overlook him and either throw the ball to somebody else or dribble the ball down themselves and turn it over.
James on Pharr Rd
April 20th, 2011
1:23 pm
A humble observation about MARVIN-He may actually hold the key to opening up The Magic’s D with the mid range jumper. Marvin is one of the only players that does any movement off the ball and is usually in position. If Marvin and AL’s jumpers are dropping, thats as good or high percentage we can get from everyone not named JJ or JS. I purposefully ignored JC-fool’s gold.
Wabe
April 20th, 2011
1:27 pm
cp
April 20th, 2011
11:28 am
“Yea dont play an unprepared Teague lets play vets like Marvin who continues to show up in the playoffs. Please note the sarcasm.”
co-sign
Slimjr
April 20th, 2011
1:27 pm
Marvin needs a miracle transformation on the court….
Move on…………..
PerryHenderson
April 20th, 2011
1:28 pm
If the Hawks lose the series to the Orlando Magic, Larry Drew should be fired and join mike woodsen among the casualties. The Hawks have superior personnel to the Magic and are much more athletic than the Magic, yet the Magic continue to dominate the Hawks. Once again, if the Magic win this series, like his predecessor mike woodsen, larry drew should be shown the door and asked never to return to the coaching reins of the Hawks.
drmaryb (*_-)
April 20th, 2011
1:32 pm
O’Brien
True, Jamal is increasing his worth. But, how long and how far will The ASKG operate on the cheap? At some point, they will need to keep some talent here and just “pony – on – up”.
The Luxury Tax is available to them and like all other contenders, they will eventually need to explore that. The increased ticket sales and vendor/parking revenue will more than cover the taxes.
Don’t you agree? I think so.
Wabe
April 20th, 2011
1:38 pm
And O’Brien,
Just to respond to your last post regarding Horford being on the bench. Point taken.
What I’m saying though is, the Hawks built that lead and controlled that game after Horford sat down. Horford picked up both of his fouls with like 9 minutes and some change left. He was on the bench from that point on. The Hawks played pretty much the entire half with him sitting. We built that 10 point lead with him sitting on the bench. There wasn’t a 16 point swing after he went out. You can’t pin Horford’s extended period on the bench to that 16-point swing, because Horford himself wasn’t in the game when the Hawks built that lead.
Again, I’m not saying it was wise for LD to keep Al on the bench that long. I’m not supporting Drew’s substitions patterns or his 2-foul rule. All I was saying from the get go was that our poor shooting performance should be at the top of the list when discussing why we lost this game.
But points taken from everybody. It is what it is. We had every opportunity to win that game in the 2nd half. The Hawks offense did them in.
When your opponent shoots 34% and commits 19 (?) turnovers? We should’ve won. Why didn’t we win? Because we didn’t put the ball in the hoop at a higher clip. We wasted a lot of possessions forcing bad looks. JJ wasn’t aggressive. Too much isolation and not enough ball movement.
That’s all I’m getting at.
ag
April 20th, 2011
1:40 pm
Sautee
April 20th, 2011
10:39 am
I’m confused by Collins (our “Dwight stopper”) only playing 19 minutes. I thought that Zaza was giving up too much in the second half to Dwight.
I just didn’t “see” whatever LD “saw” to keep Zaza in the game that long.
Twin gives us NOTHING…okay he gives us a big body! Twin, snatch a rebound… PLEASE!!! BLOCK OUT!! I will give him credit for being smart and not try to block Howard’s shot..rather let him run into you.
drmaryb (*_-)
April 20th, 2011
1:45 pm
Film Study Session!
“Marvin cant knock down open shots consistently because his center is not centered!! He never squares up to the basket, he’s always leaning to his right, he kicks his feet out from under his body so that knocks himself off balance, and most of all he is one nervous sob…”
-slimJr-
_____________________
Perfect and Astute observation of the day! Way to break the film down, slimJr!
mykhalc
April 20th, 2011
1:45 pm
Twin caused 3 Howard turnovers too before leavin’ the game also…
i’m with you Sautee…i didn’t see whatever the hell LD saw with Zaza last nite. but then again i usually don’t!!!
ag
April 20th, 2011
1:49 pm
JeJe
April 20th, 2011
10:53 am
ENOUGH with you damn Teague lovers. He has NO ROLE in this series. If we were playing CHI, sure you can put him on Rose’s backup. If we were playing Indy, sure you can put him on AJ Price.
Ask yourself, why do we love Teague? When Hilton came to the team a lot of you wanted us to start him. Since we have seen him on the floor, he really has proven what I read about him. He is not any good.
Remember the 3rd quarter when we could not score. Imagine JT getting one of those rebounds and race down the court. Remember Dwight played the entire game and even Turk was gasping for air in the 4th. Speeding up the tempo may have changed things.
Also, when the Hawks were trying to get a steal under the last two minutes, why didn’t Dumbo insert JT and Wilkins? Lastly, what has Marvin done that he deserves so much PT.
FYI Teague has more 20 point games this season than KH. He has one less than Marvin!
KevinM
April 20th, 2011
1:53 pm
Hell of a jumper that Marvin has that requires a ‘kick’….its not getting better…all those summers in Chapel Hill aren’t helping.
And Marvin moves on offense? Are you watching the same iso-offense I’m watching? Marvin has camped out since Woody told him to stand there in ‘05. Its not LD….but its also LD that’s not recognizing the stagnation that is the Marvin offense.
And why can’t Collins play both ends of the court? Why does he even cross the half court line if you aren’t going to be part of the offense.
We’ll never get DH fouled out with a 0-1 offensive performance.
ag
April 20th, 2011
1:55 pm
Sleepy
April 20th, 2011
11:04 am
I love how m,any people are trying to vouch for Teague .
He wont be a defensive liability ? WHAT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He can only hurt offensively ? lol WHAT !!!!!!!!!
Teague should plat at home for a few minutes but anyone saying we should play that unprepared kid on the road you are wrong .
I cant count how many times some of you have screamed for Teague to play and then LD puts him in and hes absolutely garbage
Great point considering you judge him in 3 minutes of playing time. What upsets me is the other guys are not doing anything (KH, MW, JJ, etc). Why not put the kid and see what happens. The other guys are doing noooo better.
KevinM
April 20th, 2011
1:55 pm
Reminds me of the good ole days of girls basketball, when only 2 rovers could play both ends and 2 girls stayed on their end of the court.
Is that the offense LD has prescribed here? At times, it looks like 3 on 5.
ag
April 20th, 2011
2:02 pm
zachdahater
April 20th, 2011
11:27 am
. LARRY DREW CAN’T MAKE GOOD ROTATION DECISIONS!!! I was watching this with my dad, HAwks were up 8, and I said, “WE GOT THIS”. THEN, that retard Drew put in Josh Powell in and then Hilton FREAKING Armstrong in against Howard for a LOoOoong time, and Horford sat for a LOOOONG time!! AND GUESS WHAT!?!?!?!? The Magic erased the 10 point lead, and got a 6 point lead! FREAKIN’ GAAHHHH!! A 1st grader could’ve made better subs! Put in Etan Thomas’ big self against Howard and insert Horford earlier.
Again, Dumbo strikes again! Etan would has struggled against Dwight playing with his suit and tie! Dumbo made him inactive. If he is not going to play Teague, let him walk around in a shirt and tie!
Leffty
April 20th, 2011
2:06 pm
The free throw disparity was obviously a huge problem last night, but so was Jameer Nelson’s ability to create for himself and his teammates–he also played great defense on Hinrich. In fact, Nelson played to a +12 +/- last night, which is inexcusable from a veteran like Kirk. Going 11-17 from the free throw line, like the Hawks did, really didn’t do anybody favors except Orlando. The sloppy play has to be cleaned up in Game Three at home if the Hawks want to take control back. Check out the numbers:
http://sportstatistics.blogspot.com/2011/04/nba-playoffs-night-four.html
JeJe
April 20th, 2011
2:32 pm
FINE, PLAY TEAGUE
SEE IF IT HELPS
FIRE SUND
SteveW
April 20th, 2011
3:02 pm
SVG is keeping ATL in this series. Somehow, a guy who I thought was a halfway decent coach, has turned into LD2.
All I have to say SVG is “Keep playing D12 48 minutes a game, and see what happens”. I know D12 is a phenomenal athlete, but can anybody take the pounding he does and keep being effective?
So in my opinion, we are watching a horribly coached series.
Fire LD, hire Rick Adelman, sign Jason Richardson if you can as a FA (I doubt you can), and see how deep of a playoff run you make.
Even if LD stumbles around and beats these guys, he has not shown me he knows how to handle Chicago. Let Hinrich and Jamal guard Rose for 30 minutes until Chitown has a 40+ point lead, then bring in Teague?
SteveW
April 20th, 2011
3:07 pm
I am at the point in this series of saying, “We should beat this team”. It’s obvious we match up very well with them, and they are currently a shadow of the team they’ve had the last two years.
But I think LD:
1) Coaches trying to prove a point and justify decisions he’s made, rather than to just beat the other team.
2) And has rules like the two foul rule, and then feel and game flow like keeping ZaZa in instead of bringing Collins in. Maybe Collins is still hurt?
But playing Powell and Armstrong was just a bad move. Cost us the game probably.
But the Hawks can win this series. I just don’t trust LD at all.
Now if we could combine all of Woody’s good points, and all of Ld’s good points, you would have a very good NBA coach. Not elite, but probably above average.
SylviaSheppard
April 20th, 2011
3:10 pm
Larry Drew should resign effectively immediately IF THE HAWKS DONT SWEEP THEIR NEXT 2 GAMES IN ATLANTA AND TAKE A 3-1 LEAD IN THE SERIES. LARRY Drew is the worst coach in the NBA. He should step down with dignity before he is forced out on the street. Drew is completely clueless how to run a basketball team and the reason why players Teague and Josh Smith havent developed and progressed is because Drew doesnt know ANYTHING to teach them. Drew if you are reading this blog turn in your resignation today so the Hawks can have to chance to progress to the next level.
SteveW
April 20th, 2011
3:10 pm
And at what point do you play Teague? When your up? When your down? When the game is on the line?
I’m not sure Hinrich can stay fresh an entire series against Jameer and Arenas. And I think bringing Teague in 8-10 minutes per half would wear Jameer and Arenas out trying to keep up with him.
SteveW
April 20th, 2011
3:15 pm
I still say Collins, ZaZa, and Etan are one of the best sets of defensive, big C’s to guard Dwight in the playoffs.
Dampier, Z, and Anthony? Z too skinny and Anthony too small
Shaq, Jermaine, and Kristic? Too injured and Kristic just bad
Noah, Thomas, and Asik – Too small
The Knicks have nobody
Bynum and Gasol?
Duncan and McDyess?
I say the 3 or 4 headed hydra we throw at him on the defensive end, if you include Horford, is as good defensively for 48 minutes as D12 is gonna see.
SteveW
April 20th, 2011
3:24 pm
And any Coach that would bring Josh Powell off the bench, less than 3 minutes into the game, as your first substitution has got to have some form illness, mental or otherwise. Something is wrong there.
LD, keep learning, win this series, then prove me wrong by beating the Bulls also.
Go Hawks!!!
Najeh Davenpoop
April 20th, 2011
3:35 pm
“PUT EARL BOYKINS WITH A TORN ACL ON MARVIN AND HE PROBABLY WILL PROBABLY AIRBALL A LAYUP AND GET INJURED”
LMAO
SteveW
April 20th, 2011
3:37 pm
I just don’t know if LD comprehends that a 2nd unit of:
ZaZa
Marvin
Wilkens
Jamal
Teague
Is one of the best 2nd units in the League? Throw Etan in occasionally at the C also. Marvin can compete with either Anderson or Bass. Wilkens can guard the wing. I know Hedo could post him, but I think for short stretches, Wilkens could physical him.
You would engage the bench guys, give them a known role. Let them play with purpose and energy. Then the Collins, Horford, Josh, JJ, Hinrich 5 could come back in and be so much fresher.
It’s just so frustrating when you see the weakness in the East. Look what Indy is doing to the Bulls. The Celts look very vunerable. And I think we match up very well with the Heat, and can beat them.
This could be our year too the ECF and beyond, if LD will just develop into a Coach in a hurry.
And for the 3rd of 4th time, let me give props to LD for Starting the big lineup. Maybe the best thing he’s done as coach of the Hawks.
But he’s a terrible coach otherwise.
Ken Strickland
April 20th, 2011
3:38 pm
When you look at the number of turnovers JPowell caused while defending Howard, how can you say he wasn’t effective? Considering how last nights gm was officiated, it appears that David Stern made it clear to the officials he didn’t want a repeat of the Hawks gm 1 win over Orlando.
DHoward got so many favorable calls and/or none calls, he felt guilty and didn’t complain about the calls he did get. And Van Gundy felt so confident that the refs wouldn’t allow Howard to foul out, unless he broke a bone or two, he didn’t feel the need to take him out after getting his 5th foul.
The Magic are relieved for now, but still worried as hell. They know as well as anyone that last nights win was a gift. Now they have to deal with the very nasty and determined Hawks in our house. With the way they’ve struggled against us all season, they can’t afford a split in Atlanta, let alone a sweep.
If they leave the ATL down 3-1, they’ll have to do something they haven’t come close to doing all season against he Hawks, and that’s win consective gms, let alone 3 consecutive gms.
tremaine
April 20th, 2011
3:39 pm
SteveW
April 20th, 2011
3:15 pm
I still say Collins, ZaZa, and Etan are one of the best sets of defensive, big C’s to guard Dwight in the playoffs
Good job guys, he’s only scored 79pts with 38reb in the first to games. SMH!