Atlanta Hawks: Hope on horizon (Update: Talks break off, more games canceled)

Michael, when have we been here before? I’ve followed the Lockout like an addict since it started. This is the only time where everyone is feeling upbeat and expecting a deal. Up until now, almost everything has been doom & gloom. A deal is getting done soon. Big question is whether we will get an 82-game schedule. I hope we do. Need to have a credible season. 82 games is about the only way that happens.

Looking forward to Hawks games at Philips. Also, looking forward to debuting my new seats in Row A, Section 212.

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Some other hope on the horizon is that northcyde will take over as GM as he claims – he clearly knows more about the NBA than the rest of us do.

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Does the NBA HAVE to come back? I was kind of liking it when it was gone.

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Wasn’t Harold Miner supposed to be Jordanesque?

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I am still po’ed at Sund for needlessly trading Jordon Crawford.

FIRE SUND!

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So how much is Meruelo worth? He ain’t worth 14.5B

And would his COMPANY be buying the team (as it appears)?

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* and, it not counting against the cap …

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The irony of this post is although there is hope on the horizon for the NBA, I’m less than hopeful that the Hawks will be successful. The ownership deal with Meruelo is still in flux. We’re saddled with JJ’s large contract, Crawford may leave due to cap ramifications, and we only have one tradable piece (Smith).

Honestly, even if this thing is resolved, the issues inherent to our club still remain. The Merelo thing reeks of David McDavid. Until the stink of mediocrity and the ASG is washed away, it’s hard for me to get excited.

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Although I am excited about the lockout possibly coming to an end, I think the Hawks team will be very similar to last year’s team except for the departure of Jamal due to our budget.

Also, even if Meruelo does take over, I think he will leave Rick and LD in charge, since they are in the last year of their deal.

So I can expect more of the same status quo. Any improvements the Hawks make (imo) will come from within.

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“Teams still would have to pay waived players their full contract (the “stretch provision” would allow the payments to be spread out longer). It just means cap space would be freed and/or luxury tax would be avoided.”

Works for me.

Drmaryb, I was referring to the amnesty clause. If you read what I quoted, it was referring to the aforementioned clause

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I am a directv customer in NC and they already always blacked out coverage of Hawks games on the Fox Sports nets, because Charlotte has a team that I am forced into considering my home team.

If they don’t settle with Fox Sports where that would get me is Braves , which do not get blacked out.

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Anyone looking forward to a 7 man rotation next year? The only cap we have left is for a Collins, or another one of Sund’s previous 7 footers sitting on someone’s bench.

I do expect Collins to be back, and we employ much of what we saw last year.

My real question this year is, can Woody motivate the troops in NY to play ’some’ defense? They may pass us right by if so.

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“I see where the owners want 2 years to ‘amensty’ a player…so guys, don’t count on a quick Marvin move….Sund will string this out as well.”

Maybe I don’t understand this amnesty clause.

Why not get rid of Marvin ASAP and pay him on the side while he doesn’t count toward our cap? He is NOT going to improve and NO ONE in this league wants him. No need to think about it.

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For all the good folks who still get lathered up over JC2:
*[and for our esteemed, self-proclaimed part owner-GM];
(not the real one but the faux talent adjudicator & blog adjutator)

Mr Jordan Crawford was ranked # 210 by -espn-
[in their recent rankings of NBA players # 1 - 500]
His score was 4.24 (whatever that means)

ATL Hawks raked ahead of JC2:
* ahem … Marvin – 4.68
Capt Kirk 5.68
* Zaza slid in just behind @ 4.20
________________________________________________

Others … ranked ahead of Mr JC2:
*Roddy Beaubois & Greg Oden – who don’t even play – (inj)
Boris Diaw
Robin Lopez – avgs a whopping 6 & 3
Josh Childress – whom PHX can’t give away
Goran Drajic – admittedly pretty good
Rickey Rubio – who’s never played (NBA)
* and the corpse of Jermaine O’Neal
________________________________________________

One last item; [on Crawford]
Mr JC2 was listed 7th on the Wiz

________________________________________________

I am officially beginning my campaign to go after Battier !
5.66 (espn top 100 score for what it’s worth)
Top 100 player
Amnesty Marv – Sign Shane !
He’s a G-dad TopTen Player on a TEAM !

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Hope on horizon? Say isn’t SO!

.

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Sounds like more nba games will be cancelled. Players have come down from 57% down to 52%, but owners are not budging unless they get 50-50 split of BRI.

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I guess good news is ASG will loose more money with no season and will give Meruelo the advantage also i like what i am hearing that the Hawks possibly getting under the cap Dwight Howard anyone .

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* and, just maybe you will win it all – or not? (see Miami)

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The lockout:
Today’s events = posturing.
Billy Hunter knows that as soon as the lockout ends …
his 15 minutes of fame are over.

*** Prediction = NBA plays a * 74 * game season ***
- Beginning Dec 1st -
so says … Pierre the Soothsayer
______________________________________________________

MOVE TO SEATTLE
PLEASE !!!!!!

Okay – if the AJC is a rag [no quarrel] why do you bother ?
” Thug Sport ” … you sir / ma’am are a bigot.
Why don’t you make us all happy & relocate yourself to Seattle ?

______________________________________________________

I do like Starbucks.
-But- I prefer Cheese Grits much better !

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Whatup Dr. Mary B!

I say we sign Damien to replace Marvin if we were to amnesty his sorry soul.

Damien is crafty on offense (pump fake, jump into defender) and brings ENERGY every play. He is 3 inches shorter but is BETTER than Marvin in EVERY facet of the game and costs nothing.
Larry Hughes would be a great cheap replacement for Jamal.

This is the only good team Jamal will excel on. If he goes to Miami, he will average 10 points a game and get far less minutes. But if he leaves us, get Larry Hughes

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Looks like Sund traded away the next Jordan: – Nanny

Nope… traded away the next ADAM MORRISON. For those of you who don’t know, Jordan Crawford had the least-efficient offensive season for a rookie since ADAM MORRISON last year. That means he put up numbers but took a huge number of shot attempts to do it. If not for Nick Young’s injury, Jordan Crawford would have ridden the bench just as hard in WAS as he did in ATL.

“Larry Hughes and Mike Dunleavy are the 2 guys we should be targeting outside of our big man needs” – An idea

Neither player is likely to help the Hawks. We need Jeff Foster.

“we only have one tradable piece (Smith).” – Khao$

Was going to respond to this but KevinM had it covered.

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“* Zaza slid in just behind @ 4.20″ – G-Dad

I think it’s a travesty to rank Zaza behind ADAM MORRISON, I mean JC2. As I clearly documented, if Zaza had played more in the CHI series instead of letting Collins get run circles around by CHI’s young, athletic and MOBILE big men, the HAWKS might have gone to the ECF.

“That doesn’t exactly sound like a man who is ready to commit long-term to the Magic, and if the lockout drags out for the entire season, the Magic may lose him without compensation.” – DMB

Dwight really went for the jugular. He lit up Stan Van Gundy and basically let ORL know it ain’t happening. Good for him for not pulling a LeBron James and messin with those folks hearts and just coming right out and saying it. I don’t think Atlanta is what he has in mind when he says “somewhere bigger.” Also, the amnestly clause devalues my proposed Dwight and Gilbert for Al and Joe trade. Rich DeVos is one of the deep-pocketed owners that the amnesty clause is built to favor. They might as well call it the Gilbert Arenas clause because it will be executed on Agent Zero before David Stern’s signature is dry.

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Where is the update? Nevermind, I will go to another website.

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Now, Marvin is only 25 (amazing these guys like Marvin and Josh are still so young), but I don’t expect much/anything out of him this year – no homo

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pitfulajc……update is the first line of the article! Geez!!! HELLO, anybody home up there?

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pitifulajc…..if I appologized everytime I did something like that, it would be all I got done for the day. Being from Ireland, sometimes the Jamison gets in my head. But it is only 1030 am, so I’m good for awhile.

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What aholes players are…..If I owned a business, paid for it out of my pocket, pay the costs that go with it and employ hundreds…nobody is going to tell me they are entitled to a majority percentage of said business.

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I am not one of these people who thinks Jordan Crawford is some guaranteed future All Star, but those of you who point to his poor efficiency this year as an indicator of him not having promise are missing the point. Just because he was inefficient in his rookie season playing in a system that allowed him to take terrible shots at will doesn’t mean he is going to remain inefficient for the rest of his career. Jamal Crawford in his rookie season was even less efficient than Jordan Crawford, and he turned out fine. As Jordan develops, he will become better at understanding what is and is not a good shot, and he will become better at finishing at the rim and making outside shots (he was 24% from 3 last year and took 4 3’s a game, which is the main reason for his inefficiency). I don’t think his ceiling is that much higher than Jamal, but he will be a solid player for a long time.

Also, sometimes stats don’t tell the whole story. Stats say Adam Morrison as a rookie and Jordan Crawford as a rookie were equally efficient. Stats don’t say, however, that Morrison was supposed to be a lights-out shooter whose athleticism was going to pose problems for him, and it turned out that not only was he too unathletic to get to the rim consistently but his shot was a) not good enough to compensate for it and b) not quick enough for him to get it off against more athletic defenders consistently. Jordan’s shot and shot selection need work, but he has plenty of athleticism and ball handling ability, which is reasonable enough evidence to assume that he will improve, unlike Morrison.

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Now that talks have broken down, can one of those BEEFCAKES break me off some???

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Buddy Grizzard ,

Because Marvin is going to have a breakout year with JC1 and his absurd amount of shot attempts gone. Given a role in the offense, Marvin, and I’ve said this before, will play himself into a tradeable commodity. They may yet use the amnesty clause on him, but only when it produces some tangible gain, such creating cap room to facilitate a specific trade.

I think most folks finally stopped believing that one before they let go of Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy.

All sarcasm aside, it doesn’t matter whether you blame the head coach (there’s been two of them now…Woody always started Marvin, Larry benched him half the time), blame the other players (Joe will take his shots, Jamal took his, and Smoove does what he wants), or Marvin himself – the effect has remained the same.

I’d love to agree with you on this, but Marvin seems destined to do anything but blossom into this wonderfully effective player. Seems to me that Woody, for all his faults and warts, kept the kid in the starting lineup and let him have consistent minutes from year to year. Marvin was doing okay, averaging roughly 12-14 ppg those days, and 5 rebounds or so.

Things didn’t get better for him under Uncle Larry. Again, you can blame whoever you choose (as we all do), but I do recall that the Hawks tried to shop him. Smart front offices generally know when a player is on the verge of a breakout, and what will cause that player to break out. The Hawks had no luck selling Marvin’s talent + his contract. This may not be a definitive answer to whether or not Marvin can be a significantly better player, but it IS an indicator that A) His play was not that well received, and B) His contract was more than any team wanted to pay for him, potential or not…..which kinda leads to C) Sund overpaid for him.

Either that, or Sund made all the wrong moves, as bringing in JC1 has clearly stunted Marvin’s fragile growth curve.

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The Jordan Crawford issue –

1) The Hawks needed another pg, a solid one who could play defense and be quick enough to run fast breaks. They wanted to go further/deeper in the playoffs.

2) Jordan Crawford could not provide them the above for the purpose of playoffs. What he could provide was a lot of ill-conceived shots at ill-conceived times, with enough makes to keep things interesting/exciting…but not necessarily result in wins. Just so happens that we were able to get the same from Josh Smith and Jamal Crawford. The difference is Josh can play hellacious defense and rebound, while Jamal is a veteran with better finishing ability.

3) The Wiz were asking a lot in trade, since they were going to take on Bibby’s contract. They were and still are in a youth movement. We wanted to dump Bibby and his contract. It was a squeeze play/staring contest, and the Hawks blinked first, simple as that. Either we dumped Bibby and picked up Hinrich the way they wanted to do it, or we didn’t.

If we hadn’t done the deal, nobody would be extolling the virtues of Jordan Crawford in the playoffs. Instead, they’d be cursing Sund’s lack of movement at the trade deadline. There was going to be some massive complaining either way.

4) I’ll go out on a limb and say JC2 has a better career than Marvin Williams. Okay, so that’s not “out on a limb.” It’s also not saying a whole heck of a lot, either. JC2 has to reign in his tendencies and become a better percentage shooter, plus learn to play at least passable defense. If somebody works with him, and he works hard, he’ll be fine.

At least nobody will be talking about cajoling, massaging, and otherwise baby-talking him into being a full-fledged, full-time NBA player…..a la Marvin Williams.

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Big Ray

October 29th, 2011
9:56 pm
Did I mention I’m gay?

Hey, look….no basketball, but the troll is still around….

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See you later, Troll. I look forward to the “IP address” game we always play on my blog….libraries and coffee shops around the world, beware…..

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We DID shop Marvin around and teams DID want him.

The Nets wanted Marvin in a Devin Harris trade, but we refused and they traded him for Deron.

We could’ve traded Marvin in a deal for Mo Williams/Shaq.

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Good to see some of the long-time posters just wanted to point out an article that I saw today:

Tentative agreements are already in place on the following major items:

¶ Luxury-tax rate: Teams will be charged $1.50 per $1 spent beyond a threshold, replacing the previous dollar-for-dollar tax, according to people who have seen the plan.

To further discourage spending, the tax will increase for every $5 million spent beyond the threshold: to $1.75 after $5 million, $2.50 after $10 million and $3.25 after $15 million.

Under this system, the Los Angeles Lakers would have paid $45 million in taxes last season, compared with $20 million under the old formula. (The rates could still change based on other tradeoffs.)

¶ Contract lengths: Players with “Bird” rights will be eligible for five-year deals, while others will be limited to four. The previous C.B.A. allowed for six-year (Bird) and five-year deals. The 1999 C.B.A. allowed for seven-year (Bird) and six-year deals.

¶ Raises: Annual raises will be reduced by several percentage points, possibly as low as 5.5 percent for Bird players and 3.5 percent for non-Bird players. The prior deal allowed raises as high as 10.5 percent (Bird) and 8 percent.

¶ Midlevel exception: It will start at $5 million, a decrease of $800,000. The contract length and annual raises attached to the exception remain under discussion.

¶ Amnesty clause: Each team will be permitted to waive one player, with pay — anytime during the life of the C.B.A. — and have his salary be exempt from the cap and the luxury tax. Its use will be limited to players already under contract as of July 1, 2011.

¶ Stretch exception: Teams will be permitted to stretch out payments to waived players, spreading out the cap hit, over several seasons. The payment schedule will be set by doubling the years left on the contract and adding one. (Thus a team waiving a player with two years left could pay him over five years.)

I like the last two rules. Makes it so there are less mistakes made with F/A signings

There are a few critical issues still under debate. The N.B.A. wants to further punish tax-paying teams by denying them use of the midlevel exception and sign-and-trade deals, and wants additional penalties for “repeat offenders.” The union opposes those measures.

Not a fan of the bold. Basically it would kill big market teams. In every sport you have big market teams yet basketball wants to be different even though small market teams dont bring in the dough like big market teams. Kinda funny if you ask me.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/30/sport … r=1&src=tp

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“The Wiz were asking a lot in trade, since they were going to take on Bibby’s contract. They were and still are in a youth movement. We wanted to dump Bibby and his contract. It was a squeeze play/staring contest, and the Hawks blinked first, simple as that. Either we dumped Bibby and picked up Hinrich the way they wanted to do it, or we didn’t. ”

The problem, of course, is that the trade never had to be made in the first place. If the Hawks had simply started Teague, who was better than Bibby anyway, they may have been able to hold on to JC2 and possibly trade him and Bibby for someone at a different position.

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For Big Ray:

I don’t know about beat writers in other cities ?
But two or three columns a week; I doubt it.
Heck … one per week … I’ll check on that.
Shoot, we’d be happy with one.

Forget MC;
Let’s talk AJC or the Hawks organization:
Other cities have multiple outlets for info & fan dialogue.
This city – this state – the Hawks have never promoted basketball.

MC catches the crap because it’s [supposedly] his blog.
*(his picture out front)
*(his byline)
So, once again, this is an open forum … folks are frustrated.
Therefore, MC is gonna hear the unpleasantness.
Comes with the terretory.

MC uses this forum to give his honest opinion on;
the Hawks, Players, coaches, LD, the so called troll,
strategies, effort, ASG, Rick Sund, “etc, etc, etc”
*[-Yul Brynner - The King of Siam-]
By the same token – we his “blog people”
should be able to do the same.

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The problem, of course, is that the trade never had to be made in the first place. If the Hawks had simply started Teague, who was better than Bibby anyway, they may have been able to hold on to JC2 and possibly trade him and Bibby for someone at a different position.

The Hawks also didn’t have to re-sign Joe, Bibby, and Marvin to the contracts they got. I have just two answers for you:

1) Sund – inept, old, stupid, tired, and willing to do as he’s told.

2) ASG – meddlesome, quarrelsome, myopic, and foolish to a fault.

The same group who claimed they cut Woody loose in part because he wouldn’t hardly play Teague, let Larry get away with the same thing all season. You make it all sound so simple, Najeh , but you know where the problems lie….

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http://leeinks.weei.com/sports/2010/07/14/report-cavaliers-hawks-in-talks-for-shaq-marvin-williams-deal

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Sorry for the broken NY Times article link. Here is the direct link if anyone is interested

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/30/sports/basketball/nba-deal-is-close-but-last-hurdle-is-a-big-one.html?_r=1&src=tp

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oh it is soo good to be back together again for however short a period it is.

mc, can you go to a blog soon that really looks hard at where this ownership thing it going and showing us some of the x’s and o’c on this one before it goes much further or at least give us a link other than tim’s that doesnt really look too deep behind the scenes as to how this ball got started and who is responsible for lack of insight into there it could be derailed. who really put there heads in the sand, basg, nba, lawyers, etc. as there should have been some red flags even before ths thing got too far. at least when i heard the basg had to stay involved or do some of the financing it didnt ring true or seem like it was more than smoke and mirrors. it wold be nice to have a forum to discuss this on with facts or suggestions of what the inevitable outcomes could be.

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And he will be the one guy on the team showing up at camp out of shape (like Boris Diaw after he got that new deal 3 or 4 years ago). – Grandmaster JeJe

This is my greatest fear. Marvin should be dropping weight right now. I really think being overweight is the biggest contributor to his back problems. If he starts the season overweight it’s going to ruin the best chance he will ever have to become a 15 ppg player on a playoff team. This is his window of opportunity. We know he’s not assertive enough to take shots away from JC1. With Jamal gone, it’s his for the taking.

If I owned a business, paid for it out of my pocket, pay the costs that go with it and employ hundreds… – Cancel them All

This is a completely ignorant statement. Since 2000, eight NBA teams have begun playing in new or renovated stadiums. The cost of this construction is over $2 billion. 84 percent of that has been paid through public funds, not out of the pockets of the owners:

http://wagesofwins.net/2011/07/11/do-the-players-and-cities-really-need-the-nba-owners/

But you probably blame this country’s financial woes on welfare mothers. Fat, rich white men are the biggest welfare collectors on the planet.

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MC

Good to hear from you. I kid because I love.

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I am very worried some settlement will take place and cancel the Ringling Brother’s Circus. Pleeeeease, not the circus!!!

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In all seriousness – I’ve been wondering;
what does “no homo” mean ?

Is it latin ?

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Too Much Good Stuff!

Wow! You fellas are ALL on Fiyah! Great comments and points of views. There is a lot for me to chew on, hopefully I can add something of value to this convo, once I digest some of these nuggets and figure out what it all means.

Oh yeah, and before the timer shuts the blog down? LOL

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O’Brien,

I’m always concerned about the Spartans. They could be playing the School of the Blind and Deaf and I would still worry they could lose.

Just got back from Lincoln, NE. Home of the most friendly college football fans in America. People are beyond nice.

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Grandad,

Good evening. Good to hear from you sir. It has been a long time or seems that way. I am not pro players or owners per se but the players can’t have it both ways…. no hard cap, larger part of the split, guaranteed deals. Why even play the games at all, just tell the owners to write checks, take losses and call it a day…. I figured this was going to be a long hard fight.. the players seem to think this is a renegotiation and that they are giving back.. but that old CBA is done, different set of circumstances now, and the owners want a deal that puts them in a better place.. again, that is not unreasonable, the players have always been in a good place, and anytime people have to make changes where they are taking a bit less, it is always going to be hard to swallow, but in most cases is necessary to save franchises and their own jobs.

The players are fighting this battle as a renegotiation like you say, but only a handful of people in this thread see it differently. The overwhelming majority believe the players are giving up too much based on the last CBA, not recognizing the monumental shift in the economic landscape. It’s obvious that in the court of public opinion the players are winning. But unlike in the past when the winner in the public’s eye would win the war, this time the economics of the matter are taking precedence to public opinion. The owners imo are willing to take the black eye from the media to change a business model that does not work in this economic environment. It’s a matter of survival not for the owners personally, but for their NBA business interest.

We argue back and forth in this thread comparing apples to oranges. Too many people just gloss over the economics as if things will be the way they were back in 2007 real soon. The economic landscape has changed forever imo and all asset prices not in control of government inflating will decrease in value over time. The NBA owners are just trying to get their house in order based on the macro economic picture. I can’t blame them one bit if they continue taking a hard stance.
if the league gets to have a hard cap i think they will give the player the 52.5 they want.
the players will break, but it won’t be the superstars sipping their mai tais who decide they’ve had enough, it will be revolt of the rank and file who will finally get tired of things and just want to get back to playing basketball and earning beaucoup cash. Same way it ended in ‘98. There are already rumblings. They will only get louder as things progress. Then if the players are LUCKY the owners will move the offer back to where it was left off at 50% to catch the defectors. Actually if we are all lucky. Because these owners have been out for blood and I don’t trust their instincts. If they keep pushing lower as more guys defect we really could lose the season.

Grandad, you do make a good point and I have thought of that as well. Contraction would be the probably the best thing for a few teams but I dont see that happening in this econmic climate. Look at the Hornets who are owned by the NBA. Too many jobs are at stake and I dont mean the players. If anything it would just move to another city that doesnt have any NBA team.

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Grandmaster JeJe ,

There is no way in all the seven hells that such a deal was going to be a one-for-one. Devin Harris has been twice the player Marvin has been. Not only that, but this just goes to show you how foolish Hawks management/ownership has been. Not offering Marvin in a trade like that after paying him what they did is insanity. I’m saying that one was on the ASG…they liked Joe and feared a fan desertion if their top scorer was gone, and didn’t know if they could convince anybody else to come here – so they paid him like he was a mixture of Kobe and LeBron. Same guys hung onto Marvin until Uncle Larry began benching him, and then they said “hey, wait a minute…we’re paying $7.5 mil a year for a bench player?” THEN they wanted to trade him…

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No Sekou Bloggers Fantasy League this year. I’m moving to Rio.

FIRE SUND

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BRI = Basketball Related Income
Let me re-phrase:

What is actually included within the BRI is a point of contention;
inside the negotations.

* The owners might would give up 57% depending –
on what is or is not included. [within the BRI]
That is why you hear them [owners and or players] say;
“we offered ____%” and they refused.
Well …they [whichever one] may have offered _____%,
yet what was or was not included in the BRI made it unpalatable
for the opposing side.
Did you get all that ?

I think I just confused myself !

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Just Maybe – Marvin?

“2) Maybe he hired Tony Robbins as his life coach.
3) Maybe him, Josh and Al, were working on their 3-pt shots together.” – O’Brien -
____________

2) … Throw some Joel Olsteen in there too (for a prayer?)
3) … Just say it ain’t so? Marvin? – YES! Josh & Al?
(Let’s pray NOT!)

LOL! I see O’Brien Got Jokes? Funny stuff right there.
_______________

Grandmaster JeJe! Wassup baby boy? I feel you on that idea to Amnesty Marvin and sign Damien Wilkens. That would at the very least put some real defense on the LBJ’s @ SF and a few pump fakes? Oh what a lost art in the NBA.

We haven’t seen a good pump fake since Grant Long played for Lenny Wilkens in the ATL and Steve Smitty donned his patented head fake tO the middle and turn to the base line. As re: to Smitty, you knew it was coming and fell for it every time. Classic stuff!

These new breed of players are nothing more than POSERS! (smh)
_________________

I sure have missed all the ICONIC bloggers on here too – Grand-Daddy! Please keep the damned blog open, we’ll run it ourselves. Hey MC! Just type a period or a comma, we’ll take over from there. LOL!

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It’s official, Kito Benson has packed his bags and is on its way to the USA.

According to the club, it was a consensual split, with Benson asking to leave.

He was struggling, but had a decent game last week (not this weekend) with 8 points and 13 rebounds in 23 minutes, but that was by far his best performance in 4 games.

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http://195.56.77.208/player/?id=BEN-KEI-88

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Vava,

Even if the split was mutual, does it bother you that Benson wanted out? It’s not like we will be having any NBA games soon, so why not keep playing?

I wonder what the issues were…

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yes grandad, been a long time admirer of foster and his tenacity and dalembert would be a huge plus over twin. money is why it wont happen. what a surprise. an after thought, for reality testing among fans, maybe those fantasy leagues might also have some rules to have to deal with a cap. heh heh, wouldnt that be some sh!t.

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We arent missing much. You see better offense and defense at a Rec league

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doc:

“dalembert would be a huge plus over twin”

Major mistake. With Dalembert, we would not have won the series against ORL. Not by a mile.

Back to prescribing pain killers doc…

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vava pure speculation but i think the overall season would change is dalembert focused on rbounding and defense and was a dependable back up to al and keep zaza at the top of his game. sorry, i see him as an upgrade to twin. i could live with a the towers of all, josh, foster(who was part of the discussion), zaza and dalembert easy and not miss twin for a second.

glad to see you around bro. heh heh we can pick right up where we left off i see. i should have known better but not a mid-season form by a long shot. btw, i do most of my work with herbs and needles and not by prescribing pain killers for post op wound pain, anymore.

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Doc,

The bees play better with a chip on their shoulder. Hopefully CPJ will have them motivated again for the Hokies.

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Grandad, the Hawks cannot amnesty Marvin. Guys signed prior to July 1, 2011 are protected. That’s been agreed upon by players and owners. So, Marvin is safe.

I actually think it may be a mistake to amnesty Marvin anyways. His size is perfect for defending guys who are hard to defend–thinking LeBron. He does not always shut those guys down, but he does about as well as anyone else.

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doc,

yes, I went right at you just to show that I have not lost my mojo

Dalembert looks decent on paper, but he renowned for being a malcontent and showing very irregular effort levels… not exactly staple material.

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Interesting read. From ESPN.com;

ATLANTA HAWKS: Most likely amnesty cut: Marvin Williams

There can be no conceivable motivation left within the organization to try to camouflage the grave Williams mistakes (drafting him and then extending him) of the past..

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Correction!

Correction – “FILED” for divorce today! 790 The Zone reported the divorce was finalized. Uggh … NO it’s not!

Kris Humphries! You should have started running away, when Kim told you, “I will NOT be taking your name .. Kardashian is a “get money” Brand!” LOL!

I guess Kris money couldn’t match Lamar Odom money – Pounf for Pound? LOL!
_______________

Kim Kardashian Files For Divorce

October 31 2011 | Jocelyn Vena

Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries said “I Do” in an elaborate, very public ceremony over the summer, and now comes word that the reality starlet and her basketball player hubby are calling it quits just 72 days after tying the know
TMZ reported that Kim filed for divorce from Humphries on Monday (October 31), coincidentally the scariest day of the year. Sources told the site that Kim is not seeking an annulment and cites “irreconcilable differences” as the cause for the split.
The couple reportedly have a prenuptial agreement and celebrity lawyer Laura Wasser has been tapped to represent Kardashian. According to TMZ, the pair’s $10 million wedding cost approximately $138,888 a day as of October 31. A rep for Kim had not responded to MTV News’ request for comment as of press time.

However, Ryan Secreast, who produces the reality star’s E! shows, confirmed the news on Twitter, writing, “Yes @kimkardashian is filing for divorce this morning. I touched base with her, getting a statement in just a few min.”
The news comes as several tabloids have been reporting on Kim and Kris’ marital woes. Kardashian and NBA player Humphries married on August 20 in California in a lavish ceremony in front of friends, family and E! cameras. “The dresses were so gorgeous, and watching those beautiful girls walk down the aisle … they are absolutely stunning,” guest Julianne Hough gushed to MTV News after the ceremony. “To just see them walking down the aisle was just beautiful. And then little Mason, Kourtney’s little boy, he kind of stole the show.”
The first few months of Kris and Kim’s marriage will be documented on the second season of “Kourtney & Kim Take New York,” which kicks off on November 27. In previews for the show, fans have gotten a peek at the short-lived marriage. “How am I going to have my career and live in Minnesota?” Kim asks Kris when he suggests they move to his hometown. His response? “Baby, by the time you have kids and they’re in school, nobody will probably care about you.”
Are you surprised by Kim’s decision to file for divorce?
- drmaryb The Entertainment Reporter -
________________

Hey NBA Players! Yawl better go back to work … The beautiful gold-diggers aint loving you right – if you ain’t got no Loot? These Ho’s ain’t knocking no Boots!

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790 The Zone!

Hey yawl! Ryan Stewart just read my 1:03PM post, Live on the radio show verbatum!

You fellas keep posting … We really do have an Live audience for as long as the Hawks blog stays open.

Go “2-Live Stews!”

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You Are Not Alone …

“And the ASG remaining as owners of this team depresses me enough to never want to blog again…” -Blu-Ray-

____________

You are not alone … I am here with you!
-michael jackson (RIP)-
__________

Finally, That Man in The Mirror – can rest now. (so sad)

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Woops….misread the Howard Beck article. Looks like Marvin could be an amnesty victum. I still don”t think that will happen, though. Here is the article I had trouble reading.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/30/sports/basketball/nba-deal-is-close-but-last-hurdle-is-a-big-one.html?_r=1&adxnnl=1&src=tp&adxnnlx=1320087782-MyiRyZbQbCFqET6ORfO2LA

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doc,

yeah, i know the issues with dalembert and would address them prior to moving ahead. pipe dream anyway..

Dont worry. LD has a fool proof plan that would help Dalembert change/fix his issues. LD would make him co-captain

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can i be captain, too?

dmb, i hope they gave cred to you and the blog.

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What is this talk of the Kardashians, did not Jean Luc Picard banish them to the Neutral Zone?

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Beat Biters!

“dmb, i hope they gave cred to you and the blog.” -doc-
__________

naw doc, them “beat-biters” stole my material … line for line! LOL!

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TRICK OR TREAT!!

Any BEEFY boogeymen out there looking for something SWEET tonight?

(Hopefully, BIG OL’ DWIGHT dressed as a CANDY BAR!!!)

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Let’s try this again.

http://www.nba.com/2011/news/features/david_aldridge/10/31/nba-lockout-next-steps/index.html?ls=iref:nbahpt1/

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From hoopinion;

On Saturday, BCM Gravelines beat Pau-Lacq-Orthez 89-60, led by Pape Sy’s 25 points on 11 shots in 20 minutes. Sy made three of five three-pointers, five of six two-point attempts and all six of his free throws. Sy grabbed four rebounds, earned an assist, committed a turnover and drew seven fouls..

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Geez, dmb like flat out plagerism stole your words as their own? no wonder the ship is sinking a bit.

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BTW-

If you think the lockout shortened offseason hurt the performance of football teams, just wait until you see NBA teams.

Not to mention our own undisciplined bunch…

Looking at M. Cunningham’s tweets, I had to laugh. So Keith Benson was unable to take playing time from former Hawks Othello Hunter over there in Italy, huh? How ironic….

Hunter struck me as a fundamentally sound hard worker when he was with us (when he was allowed to play). Sure, let’s get rid of guys like THAT, and replace them with guys who can’t get PT in front of those types in a weaker League.

Hopeless…

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Whether the players realize it or not;
-once- College Basketball starts,
many, many, many, many folks are gonna cease …
to give a shooey whether or not these guys ever play again.

Myself included !

Once College fb season is over;
I’ll flip to collegiate basketball in a flash.

I’ll think of the NBA again next June around draft time.

____________________________________________

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One thing I’ve learned:
Life don’t wait around.
This year will pass and then it’s gone, never comin’ back.
You’re a year older;
you either did somethin’ or you wasted it.
We all know;
we are not promised tomorrow.
We’d best live today.
Paint your masterpiece now, while you have the chance.
One day you will look up;
and you say to yourself;
hmmm, I wasn’t quite ready to be old yet.
Life didn’t wait on me, it went on and happened.
You kinda look back and say;
man, if ………?
Or, you don’t waste one precious second;
worrying about little bitty things that don’t matter.
Run, jump, smile, laugh, hold a baby, call your ma’ma,
hug your children and tell ‘em every day that you love ‘em,
Make a vow to a good woman and keep it,
help someone that needs it, be nice,
make love not war,
find someone and do something for them without them asking.
-Grandad-

I need to end this little soliloquy with a quote:
“It’s nice to be important, but it’s more important to be nice”
-Mary Woods- wife of Marvin Woods Coach of Milan HS, Indiana
(Milan HS Indiana – the real Hickory Hoosiers)

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Big Ray,

Benson: wrong Hunter, its Steven Hunter than will replace him.

In general about EuroBall:

People around here simply think that the level of basketball in Europe is low, for instance at NBDL.

You are wrong: the level of bball is LOWER but the game is also different (more collective and guys are less physically gifted).

This means that in Europe, they guys that REALLY make it are normally:

- Guys who are technically good, but are either slow or small for the NBA;
- Unprepared guys like Jennings was and like Benson is, DON’T MAKE IT because although physically gifted, they are too RAW.

Steven Hunter may not be a wonder, but he has significantly more experience and his size allows him to be semi-dominant in Europe.

Othello, whose stats I have not seen recently, would be big enough at 6′9” to play in Europe the PF AND the even the C position comfortably.

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Picking up on the previous post:

DaJuan Summers was also sacked by an italian team (the top team – Sienna) following just 5 games averaging 4ppg.

Another raw guy who struggles in Europe.

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Paddy:

While I agree with you,
I’m afraid the avg NBA fan comes to the game to see players.
-Not Teams-
highlight reel plays, dunks, spectacular passes athleticism, etc.

Myself,
I’m old school and love Team play, Defense, precision offense and the like.
But most of all a Competitive Attitude.

I’m not debating either you nor Big Ray.
I just think it’s the way things are nowadays.

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Grandad…..the “me first, me always” attitude does not sell. At least not enough to keep teams afloat and profitable. They have marketed themselves into a no-win situation.

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i think it is on between, glamor sells whether it is teams stars or talent. people show up for glamor teams or great players. if the glamor teams have great poayers tyey come oit in droves like the celts or lakers. if teams have great players but not glamor teams un not so much like the duncans, parkers and durants of the world. yeah the heat too with big three are huge draw but a good one just with dwade with the bulls comimg on. again it is glamor.

sorry to disagree with the whole laqueen is the problem thing and the narcissist. what the owners wont fess up it was one of their own again who played by the rules maybe sorta and shook their tree. they were outsmarted by pat riley and they are truly trying to protect themselves from their own.

gilbert was cheap and wanted it all for himself and got caught with his pants down egg on his fafe and exposed for the azz he really is, a donald sterling type in disguise thinking like a slave owner with the biggest slave to sell. yup grandad that is what it is and you and everybody better see it and enjoy it as ticket prices gonup no matter the product. we the fools to see it any other way:

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@Michael Cunningham Thanks for posting the Q and A with Kevin Murphy, the players economist. Good business explanation as to why one would purchase a franchise in a league that is losing money.

http://www.nba.com/2011/news/features/steve_aschburner/10/27/lockout-q-and-a-kevin-murphy/index.html

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Given the lockout situation, and the owner friendly CBA that is coming (5 year Max contracts, smaller annual raises, lower MLE etc), how bad does the JJ contract look now?

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My premise that LeBJ scared the owners is real.
I’m not real sure that 9:06 AM doc is the real doc ?
If so, then, my mistake.
Back to LeBJ;
just because he created the impetus for the lockout,
does not mean that a lockout was not forthcoming.

Slaves – Slave owners – seriously.

Jews were slaves before Africans.
It’s curious, in history, to study the evolution of post slavery.
How the cultures have responded to the after-affects.

Enslaving human beings is wrong.
Putting any people in bondage is wrong.
The Bible says:
“the love of money is the root of all evil”
[1st Tim 6:10]
perhaps that is enslaving young athletes.
Fame, money, drugs, sex, power – intoxicating.
I see the bondage.

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