Atlanta Hawks: Video: Wrapping up Hawks-Magic
I joined Josh Robbins of the Orlando Sentinel after Game 6 to talk Hawks-Magic.
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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85 comments Add your comment
KevinM
April 29th, 2011
2:43 pm
northcyde
April 29th, 2011
2:06 pm
“Over the season, that translates in a 1.94 million dollar loss this year . . just at the gate. No telling how much money they lost in other areas.”
So are you telling us that those Kobe jerseys selling in the arena stores aren’t making up the difference?
Stupid ownership gives you negative results, simple. If they were so worried about $$, then why did Joe get that much money? I have zero concerns with the way they decide to spend $$.
If they think Jamal isn’t important enough, it wouldn’t surprise me in the least. They better hope for a long playoff run this time around then. Marvin isn’t giving you 6MOY numbers in this league…maybe the NBDL.
J from the A
April 29th, 2011
2:44 pm
@Section 303: Re: Marvin: Agreed. If Marvin can have a big series — and by big, I just mean shutting down Deng, hitting key shots, crashing the boards, and limiting his turnovers — the Hawks will stand a really good chance of pulling the upset. And I think he will have a good series.
Of course, we really need everyone else to show up, too. This is a very, very good Bulls team — much better than I thought they would be when I was making predictions pre-season. They are going to be tough, but the Hawks just might be able to pull the upset. Marvin may very well play a huge role in the outcome of the series.
northcyde
April 29th, 2011
2:45 pm
J . . Memphis would never do that.
OJ, like Jamal, is proving his worth during these playoffs. And he becomes a restricted free agent after the 2012 season, which means that they can make the decision to re-sign him, or do a better sign and trade for a better player involving him.
Memphis’ payroll going into next year was a mere 36 million before they re-signed Zach Randolph last week to the 4yr – 71 mill contract. That’ll still put them a little over 50 million, with a lot of room to work with. Of course they’ll have to re-sign Marc Gasol, who will probably get a nice little contract from them ( probably 10 mill a year at least ). After that, they only have to decide on whether to bring Battier back at a reduced price.
Plus arguably their best player, Rudy Gay, isn’t even playing in these playoffs.
Memphis is in a real good position as a franchise, if they can get more people to come out to see them to increase revenue. Tonight’s game is easily the biggest game in franchise history, not only because they can get to the 2nd round, but also because it could be a revenue game changer for that franchise. They’re almost exactly like we were in 08 – 09. So there’s no reason to trade an asset like OJ Mayo for a limited backup center like Zaza or an up and down forward like Marvin.
drmaryb (*_-)
April 29th, 2011
2:55 pm
SlimJr add game 3 to your formula. Games 1 and 3 is a winner in 7.
Section 303
April 29th, 2011
2:59 pm
J from the A, I was the same way on the Bulls at the start of the season. I was not buying that they were an elite team. I just thought it was the typical lovefest showered on any team from a big market city like Chicago.
I still don’t think they are unbeatable. Rose is the only glaring matchup problem, but he’s a matchup problem for every team in the league. Everywhere else on the floor, the Hawks have an edge or are even.
Kyle Korver, besides Rose, really concerns me, too. He won’t miss shots like Turkalo did in the Magic series. Korver will hit his open looks almost always.
J from the A
April 29th, 2011
3:18 pm
@northcyde: Very good points per usual. I just remember reports earlier in the season that OJ might have been becoming a bit problematic for team chemistry, but I guess all that was either overblown (and probably false) or put behind them.
Grandad
April 29th, 2011
3:18 pm
An Open Letter to Mr Cunningham,
Don’t worry ’bout that there “Zinsser” fella,
’cause if an uncultivated jake like myself gets it,
[your writing]
then it’s likely to have passed the scrutiny of:
the “Dept. of Unintended Irony”,
and that’s all that really matters.
“A perfect judge will read each work of wit
With the same spirit that its author writ”
Sautee
April 29th, 2011
3:21 pm
JeJe,
From the last blog, where you said this:
“IF IT WASN’T FOR LARRY DREW’S IDIOTIC DECISION TO SIT HORFORD IN GAME 2 (HE FINISHED WITH 2 FOULS) WITH FOUL TROUBLE, WE WOULD’VE SWEPT ORLANDO AND HINRICH WOULDN’T BE HURT”
So Hinrich couldn’t have gotten hurt in practice?
That logic fails.
And BTW for all of the LD haters, he’ll still be here next year. The Hawks have just made sure of that. There are only 3 teams in the entire league who have been to the second round the last 3 years in a row:
Lakers
Celtics
and yes….. The Atlanta Hawks. Don’t think for a minute that Sund and the ASKG won’t be pulling THAT fact out to justify keeping LD and his oh-so affordable contract. Not to mention slaying the dragon that ate us last year.
FYI – I’m still bitterly disappointed in Drew for failing to hold players accountable, so don’t put me in with the Drew defenders. It just is what it is. He WILL be here for at least another year.
The Truth
April 29th, 2011
3:22 pm
The Bulls strengths concern me more because they are the Hawks biggest weaknesses. Their only ISO players are really Rose and Boozer. Everybody else run screens, hustle plays and spot-up J’s. So game planning against them should be less complex. But Rose ability to get in the paint is something we don’t defend well. Also our defenders don’t fight through screens very well either. So the Bulls will repeatedly give the Hawks heavy doses of hard screens using Kyle Korver and Deng. Believe of not, our greatest strength in this series will be Josh Smith if he plays to his potential. His help defense can be problematic for the Bulls. For that reason, he should return to his PF position and not away from the basket as a SF.
hawkville
April 29th, 2011
3:23 pm
Daniel, it’s a different series/team. I hope they stay big as well, but I think they should start Za Za. Chicago post players do not present the same challenge as D. Howard, it’s D. Rose that you worry about. So a backcourt of Al, Josh, Za Za along with Marvin should be fine and you play guards/forwards against Rose to guard/foul/bang against him. Same game plan as the last series, just a different position to focus on
The Truth
April 29th, 2011
3:33 pm
Defense will decide this series not offense
Grandad
April 29th, 2011
3:33 pm
Section 303
“I was the same way on the Bulls
at the start of the season.
I was not buying that they were an elite team”
– Me neither –
The Reason Chicago has been so Improved:
Tom Thibodeau !
The Difference in the upcoming series:
Tom Thibodeau !
It’s really not so much about adjustments and game-planning
but like KS said last eve;
it’s the *habits the Bulls have developed this year.
[under Thibs]
Hustle plays add up. (deflections, loose balls, etc)
*plus [hockey assts] assisting the assister.
KS said that will be the dif in the series.
I concur.
*Habits:
Think about what our Hawks habitually do.
KevinM
April 29th, 2011
3:40 pm
I gotta say the Hawks have a favorable record all-time in the playoffs vs. Chicago….5-8 in Atlanta, 8-8 overall. Small sample, yes.
And here is a link to the games from this year….we beat them when Rose goes 5-21 from the field and lose 83-80 after the Bulls blow a 19 pt lead.
If the regular season is any indication…..it was for the Magic matchups.
And 2 words that define the Hawks team….IF MARVIN….no truer words spoken. J from the A..you’re asking alot of Marvin going forward in this series.
ant banks
April 29th, 2011
3:44 pm
hordford>noah
smooth>boozer
marvinbogans
hinrich=bogans
HAWKS WIN IN 7
KevinM
April 29th, 2011
3:44 pm
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=ycn-8389999
It would help if the link was there…..duh
Nate ArchiBALL
April 29th, 2011
3:45 pm
Need to see the regular season All Star Al – FG% 55 per cent rather than the playoff All Star Al – FG% – 40 per cent.
Dept. of Unintended Irony
April 29th, 2011
3:45 pm
“Take it to the bank, the Bulls is watching the Hawks replays and will explicit their weaknesses”
Yes they is. And I believe this implicitly: We will exploit their explicitness.
J from the A
April 29th, 2011
4:00 pm
@KevinM: I think the Hawks are going to be asking (and needing!) a lot out of Marvin. It doesn’t necessarily have to be great stat lines, but just like Collins and Zaza really stepped up against the Magic (and did so without it really showing up in the stats), I think Marvin is going to have to be the key role player to step up against the Bulls if the Hawks hope to pull off the upset.
I think if Marvin can neutralize Deng (and effectively help on D Rose when needed), make key shots, crash the boards, and limit his turnovers, then he has played his role as well as he can. A 10-7-2 stat line would be fine if he is playing great D and not turning the ball over. This is a role he is capable of playing.
The Real Mandingo
April 29th, 2011
4:05 pm
All this discussion about Jamal not being resigned is crazy nonsense. Jamal would immediately sign a 3yr contract paying him between $33mil. and $40mil. pending some new collective bargaining agreement. Hawks’ management just needs to find a way to get it done. Jamal wants to be and finish his career in Atlanta. He is an overall “nice guy” and conducts himself with a certain amount of class. Jamal was the MVP of this past playoff series against the Magic. So goes Jamal, Joe and Al, so goes the Hawks; believe me.
Anyone heard of the following cliche, phrase or adage: “Wannabe big when small gotcha ya.” Well, I’m about to remix this phrase. Check it out; “Wannabe hero when goat gotcha ya.” That applies Josh Smith aka J-Smurf. This guy, Josh Smith, needs to play within his ability and skill set like Al Horford does. I hope he gets it eventually before it’s too late.
J from the A
April 29th, 2011
4:07 pm
Dept. of Unintended Irony
April 29th, 2011
3:45 pm
““Take it to the bank, the Bulls is watching the Hawks replays and will explicit their weaknesses”
Yes they is. And I believe this implicitly: We will exploit their explicitness.”
Collective Nouns subject-verb agreement: If the Bulls is acting as a single unit, then it is actually acceptable (in fact, right!) to use the singular verb ‘is’. If the Bulls are not acting as a single unit, then the plural verb ‘are’ would be correct.
The Bulls [team] is viewing tape in preparation for their play-off series against the Hawks.
The Bulls [team] are fighting amongst themselves because they cannot agree on the proper strategy.
The parenthetical ‘team’ is not necessary in either case, but I added it so the first sentence would sound more natural (though it is grammatically correct even if it doesn’t sound so natural).
Could catch on the mistaken word use ‘explicit’ though.
J from the A
April 29th, 2011
4:08 pm
*good catch … not ‘could catch’. Whoops!
J from the A
April 29th, 2011
4:12 pm
Darn it! Nevermind. Sports teams are the exception to the standard collective noun subject-verb agreement rules! They are always supposed to be treated as plurals. I thought I had the Dept. of Unintended Irony. As it turns out, I only had myself! [Go ahead, Dept., get me for that one!]
Najeh Davenpoop
April 29th, 2011
4:13 pm
“make key shots, crash the boards, and limit his turnovers, then he has played his role as well as he can. A 10-7-2 stat line would be fine if he is playing great D and not turning the ball over. This is a role he is capable of playing.”
Real talk. I’ve been saying that about Marvin for several years now. The Hawks don’t need Marvin to be a great scorer. They just need him to consistently hit open shots and lock down his man on D. If he does for the Hawks what Bruce Bowen did for the Spurs or Shane Battier did for the Grizzlies and Rockets, he’s a major asset.
Najeh Davenpoop
April 29th, 2011
4:18 pm
If Kirk is healthy, I would actually like to see the Teague/Kirk starting back court against Chicago. Teague is going to have to play meaningful minutes one way or another in this series — might as well start him seeing as how he has consistently been more productive playing with the starters. Let Joe check Deng (who is going to guard Joe regardless of who the Hawks start), let Teague and Kirk switch off on Rose, and keep Kirk on the floor to chase Korver around screens when he comes into the game. And with Marvin coming off the bench, the Hawks can counter what the Bulls get bringing Ronnie Brewer into the game in a similar role.
I don’t think the big lineup is necessary against Chicago. Al will be fired up to take on Noah and Smoove has the advantage athletically over Boozer and is capable of exploiting him one on one in the post. The main thing is that both of them are going to have to crash the boards. Zaza can come in and be the instigator off the bench. Between Noah and Asik, the Bulls have instigators of their own inside that Zaza can battle.
J from the A
April 29th, 2011
4:19 pm
Wow, Bulls fans/bloggers/”writers” are already predicting such a lopsided series, that they may prefer to watch the Celtics-Heat games over the Hawks-Bulls game.
http://blogs.bulls.com/2011/04/bulls-get-atlanta-in-second-round/
The key quote:
“Frankly, I don’t see how the Hawks can get a game. Maybe they get one because you can miss shots. I may record the series and watch it after it’s over and watch the Celtics and Heat, instead.”
Grandad
April 29th, 2011
4:21 pm
Thoughts about next year:
[I am not an actuary so I'll stay away from sal. & nimbers]
* We will re-sign Jamal (if he still wants to stay)
* We will keep Joe (much to my displeasure)
* We will trade Josh (sadly but necessary)
* We will trade Marv (it will be in his best interest & ours)
* We will finally trade for a Big
* We will *NOT get a pg unless we draft Isaiah Thomas (2nd rd)
* We will sign a pretty good vet FA
* LD does not return / new HC again
** In a perfect world we hire Doc
** In a more perfect world…..
D.Howard demands a trade to the Hawks…
so he can play for Doc !
The Truth
April 29th, 2011
4:22 pm
Dept. of Unintended Irony
“Yes they is. And I believe this implicitly: We will exploit their explicitness”
This would be funny if you had a clue
Bulls (like Team) = Collective Noun (in this case) – a word used to define a group of objects
You should know this or maybe you don’t
Also, explicit (exploit) was a “typo” not a misspell
Najeh Davenpoop
April 29th, 2011
4:28 pm
Regarding next year and whether or not Jamal will stay, all our speculation means jack sh-t because there will be a new CBA in place after the lockout, and free agents won’t sign until after the new CBA is in effect. The DASG has no idea right now how much cap space they will have and whether they can even exceed the cap under the new CBA. Without the knowledge of what the new system will hold, we have no basis for speculating on what the Hawks might do.
Dept. of Unintended Irony
April 29th, 2011
4:47 pm
“Bulls (like Team) = Collective Noun (in this case) – a word used to define a group of objects”
See J from the A at 4:12
“Also, explicit (exploit) was a “typo” not a misspell”
Typo: a typographical error
Typographical Error: A mistake in printing, typesetting or typing, especially caused by striking an incorrect key on a keyboard.
Which key did you strike incorrectly to change explicit to exploit?
That’s not a typo, it’s brain fart. We’ve ALL done it, so don’t be so offended. And I don’t call anyone out for spelling unless the misspelling makes for irony.
Grandad
April 29th, 2011
4:50 pm
Najeh;
You sir are absotively correct.
However, speculation is more fun than reconsidering the core.
Plus, from what I’ve read, the threat of a lockout is fading,
due to the NFL stategy of decertifying.
* All wishful thinking, of course.
Bill Cosby said: (concerning optimism -vs- pessimism)
“The container being half full or half empty
depends on if your drinking or pouring”
I [-had to / still have to-] think about that one.
The Truth
April 29th, 2011
5:03 pm
Dept. of Unintended Irony
(LOL) Assumption of being offended is incorrect
Let’s try this logic
“Typographical Error: A mistake in printing, typesetting or typing, especially caused by striking an incorrect key on a keyboard”
Yes, a mistake in typing. That also sounds like a brain fart to me. Since we’re not talking basketball anymore, what’s the difference?
Leffty
April 29th, 2011
5:04 pm
I wish they talked more about how well the Hawks did on the boards, especially with Noah and Boozer coming up in Chi-town. All night long in Game Six, the Atlanta was dominant on the boards. The Hawks had seven more offensive rebounds than Orlando, and they got five more second-chance points as a result. Those five points are the difference in such a close game. Joe Johnson was particularly huge with has O-board that got Crawford two big free throws. That play on the boards will be particularly important against the Bulls in the next round. Check it out:
http://bit.ly/l2wTeQ
Grandad
April 29th, 2011
5:12 pm
Mr. Dept. of U.I.
How do you know he was trying to type exploit?
What if he were trying to type;
explicate or expugn or even expunge or maybe exfoliate.
The Truth
April 29th, 2011
5:20 pm
Dept. of Unintended Irony
Bulls (like Team) = Collective Noun (in this case) – a word used to define a group of objects”
See J from the A at 4:12
“Related collective nouns
Sports team names like those discussed above—as well as more grammatically ordinary names such as Reds, Knicks, and Canadiens, and straightforward compound names such as Blue Jays—form a particular set of collective nouns. Closely related to the class of essentially plural headless nouns typified by Red Sox are the growing number of orthographically singular sports team names that may be classified as examples of a special type of collective noun—one that (a) has identical terms for both the collective and an individual thereof (as with the essentially plural headless noun) but (b) is not used as a counting noun beyond the singular. Two examples include the name of the Miami NBA team—Heat—and the name of the Colorado NHL team—Avalanche. While heat is a mass noun, whereas avalanche is a normal counting noun, in the context of a team name, both words operate as this special type of collective noun”
Go figure
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_plural
Booo!
April 29th, 2011
7:44 pm
LOL @ Gearon getting on Mark Bradley, Ha!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9lP9zBI0HU&feature=channel_video_title
For, me this next series against the Cows rests on Jeff Teague. If he has a coming out party, I see positive things for our future. Hopefully someone will give LD the memo.