Atlanta Hawks: Hawks waive Sy, Wanamaker, Rolle (Update: Benson also released)
The Hawks waived forward Magnum Rolle and guards Pape Sy and Brad Wanamaker today. More cuts are coming later today: The roster now stands at 16, one more than the maximum, and it’s possible Atlanta will carry the minimum 13 players for the regular season.
UPDATE: The Hawks waived center Keith Benson, their only draft pick in June. The team plans to carry 15 on the roster to start the season. There are four players on the roster with non-guaranteed deals: Ivan Johnson, Jannero Pargo, Donald Sloan, and Jerry Stackhouse.
The decisions on Rolle and Wanamaker were not unexpected but the Hawks gave up on Sy after investing in him as a long-term prospect. Coach Larry Drew said Sy’s inability to develop as a point guard played a part in the decision.
“We, the coaches and the management, came to an agreement that he’s been a little bit more effective off the ball than at the point,” Drew said. “With that and the acquisition of Willie Green and [having] a number of other guys that are veterans that can play two, he became expendable. We were hoping he would mature and develop but he just seemed more comfortable at that two-guard spot. With that, we made the decision to go in a different direction.”
Sy, a native of France, made his way to the NBA as a a rare unknown prospect–prominent Web sites that track numerous draft-eligible players had no file on Sy before Atlanta selected him in the second of the 2010 draft. Sy had paid his own way to work out for the Hawks, the only team to grant him an audience, and impressed Drew.
The Hawks paid about $125,000 to buy out Sy’s French contract last year and paid him $473,604 in salary in 2010-11. He played a total of 21 minutes for the Hawks last season and spent 23 games with Atlanta’s D-League affiliate.
Sy had a good training camp but Atlanta’s payroll is pushing against the luxury-tax line, leaving little room for carrying players who can’t help the team now. The Hawks added guards Green and Pargo during training camp.
“It was a really tough decision,” Drew said. “There were a lot of things we liked about Pape.”
When the Hawks drafted Benson, they said he was a long-term prospect because he needed to add bulk and strength. But Benson, like Sy, appears to be a victim of Atlanta’s focus on veterans at the expense of carrying prospects who need time to develop. Benson was released by a club team in Italy during the lockout.
Rolle signed with the Hawks near the end of last season and re-joined the team following a stint in South Korea. He came into camp out of shape after he said a right foot injury hampered him from maintaining his conditioning.
Wanamaker, a rookie free agent out of the University of Pittsburgh, struggled during last night’s exhibition victory against Charlotte.
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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771 comments Add your comment
Smith.Leuer.Bogut
December 26th, 2011
3:19 pm
V-Rad is not starting material on any decent team.
Heck, he is only borderline useful on a decent rotation.
Anything above 10mpg for V-Rad is a bad omen on how the season will progress.
And what is a good omen?
Josh averaging 18.5ppg? Would not hold my breath.
We lost to CHA we could lose to NJN .
Grandmaster JeJe
December 26th, 2011
3:23 pm
WE SHOULD WIN BY 20 TOMORROW. NJN SUCKS. THEIR ROSTER IS A JOKE. JUST MAKE SURE HUMPHRIES DOESN’T RULE THE GLASS.
GEARON: YOU ARE A JOKE. I SERIOUSLY MEAN THIS. ORLANDO, OKC, AND DALLAS ALL HAVE BEEN TO THE WCF/FINALS/WON A RING. WE HAVE DONE NONE OF THE ABOVE. YOU ARE A JOKE
IF YOU THINK WE ARE NOT CHEAP, THEN WHY DO WE HAVE THE LOWEST PAID COACH IN THE NBA?
HAVE I EVER HEARD YOU OR ANYONE ELSE AFFILIATED WITH THIS ORGANIZATION SAY “OUR ONLY GOAL IS TO WIN A RING????”
NO, ALL YOU CARE ABOUT IS BEING COMPETITIVE AND ENTERTAINING. THAT’S THE REASON GUYS LIKE KOBE CP3 AND DWIGHT WOULD NEVER WANT TO COME HERE
Vino
December 26th, 2011
3:23 pm
What do we have to do to get JAMES HARDEN on this team??
hittman jamillion
December 26th, 2011
3:31 pm
So rod are you telling me no one on the hawks can get their own shot?
There are only a hand full of players who can’t create their own shots in the league,these are usually centers who can’t put the ball on the floor,no the correct rhetoric a be the hawks only have one player who commands a double team,which is jj.
Plus the penetration of jt will create a load of offensive opportunity especially for the likes of marvin.Alot of people don’t see the significence of having a point gaurd who can penetrate just check out the clippers game last night and see how well chauncy billups played as what he is a two guard,getting set up from a true point cp3 something billups never was.
The same thing is gonna happen with the hawks only it’s going to be Josh cutting for alleys,or marvin or jj hitting the open jumper.Hence we all agree JT is super quick and is going to get past his man with ease therefore settin g up a five on four,whic another player has to rotate leaving a player open or JT goes to the rack uncontested.
As far as the arguement about Tmac is concerned.We all know he isn’t that great but a shell of Tmac beats Josh Powell,Bibby,Etah, and whatever we’ve had on this God awful bench in years.Bring in ZaZa,Vlad,Hinrich,Ivan,and pargo and we have a nice bench which can ,shoot,defend,pass,and have a little toughness.
The only reason i don’t see people lining up to play with the hawks is they don’t have that type player who is just cool as hell,or just awesome.Check NY,no one was going there til Stat got there,even Melo wasn’t talking bout going there till one of his potnas got there.Real talk Wade was in Miami for years til he convinced his potna Lebron to play with him.Look at Orlando no one is lining up to go there just saying.
GOOOOOOO HAWKS
Rottweiler
December 26th, 2011
3:31 pm
Hey, Al’s wife has got it right there! I dont know if Id want that picture of my wife circulating. If I was Al think Id buy that one. Kind of reminds me of Lawrence Fishburn’s daughter doing the porno and then Lawrence spends millions buy them up to protect his daughters image. Im not sure I want a picture of my wife’s package being detailed and out lined for all to see.
Sautee
December 26th, 2011
3:37 pm
Blue steel (T-S),
“I understand that ” All Press Al” got a coach’s add on and press support, but how can I call a guy a weapon of mass destruction, who only averages 10 ppg and 7 rbs in 39 play off games?”
Here’s the real truth: 11.5 ppg, 8.7 rpg
http://www.nba.com/playerfile/al_horford/career_stats.html
And that total includes his 08-09 postseason, when he tried to play hurt for several games. Exclude that season, and he was: 12.8 ppg and 9.6 rpg in 30 games, despite laying a major egg in last year’s playoffs. And he DID lay a major egg.
And who (besides you) has called Horford a “weapon of mass destruction”? I haven’t heard THAT one before.
Why do you do this over and over? I don’t care if you hate Horford’s game, that’s your own opinion, but WHY purposely misrepresent the truth? I KNOW that you know better. Why is the truth not good enough?
Do you so lack faith in your opinion that you must fudge numbers repeatedly? Be stronger than that.
I know that you can.
Peace
Rottweiler
December 26th, 2011
3:40 pm
1Miami
2Hawks
3Knicks
4Boston
5Chicago
6Milwaukee
7Indiana
8Orlando
Just joking ! LMAO Hawks are a 6 or 7 seed.
doc
December 26th, 2011
3:42 pm
northcyde, we will see if he has those virtues and if they can harness him. the accuracy numbers of 45% which was what jc1 got jc2 has not come close to. right now is about 30% at best thinking he is the second coming of air jordan in his mind. we will see.
i do agree when we threw in the other first rounder we got hosed until you look at folks this group drafts then look at the fact they seem to not want a first rounders salary on the books and it is a wash for us. dont forget this you have to look at the way basg think tank and rationale for any decision before you judge whether it is good or not. in their heads they have won because they didnt have any pressure on them during the draft, nor a first round salary on the books. comprende?
Sautee
December 26th, 2011
3:53 pm
doc,
That’s so sadly true.
Blue Steel
December 26th, 2011
4:02 pm
Sautee, my bad, I took Big Dogs stats. Heres what NBA.com has on Al’s play off numbers.
11ppg/8rbs/1blk averages for 2xALL STAR/1xALL NBA AL Horford
12.6
6.9
14.6
11.3
11.5
———
56.9/ 5 = 11.3, my bad, its 11ppg not 10ppg
rebounds?
10.4
5.8
9.0
9.0
8.7
——-
43.5/5 = 8.7
Blks?
0.7
1.0
1.7
1.1
1.0
——
5.5/5 =1.1
Hope that clears this up. Thanks for pointing it out!
Blue Steel
December 26th, 2011
4:04 pm
Sautee, is Al Horford our hightest draft pick in the last 20 years?
Rottweiler
December 26th, 2011
4:14 pm
Id like to have more that 11points 8 rebounds and 1 block from an all nba player. Id like to think al is a better player than 11pts 1 block 8 rebounds. those numbers cant be right, get him sautee.
Not So Casual Observer
December 26th, 2011
4:26 pm
Worldwide Clyde – You and Larry Bird made my point more directly. There are still dedicated players, we can name them, but in general the dedication seems lost.
doc – I am usually in the arena 45 minutes prior to the game and I am not angry but certainly disgusted with the written word from Actually @ 10:21am, Gearon = Cluless 1%er and then followed by the 72% comment. Gearon, Jr. has been close to the Atlanta Hawks his entire life and is far from clueless.
vava – Your opinion the Hawks have been mismanaged is fine for you but I do not agree. Remember, the first significant decision after the ASG bought the team was the Joe Johnson acquisition.There was disagreement in the ASG on the deal that resulted in 3 years of problems. Without Joe I think you could say the Hawks would have remained terrible and no free agents would come to Atlanta.
In the 90’s I studied the Champions from the previous 20 years and divided the league into thirds – the good teams, the mediocre teams and the bad teams. One team became champions from the mediocre teams (the middle third) without first becoming a bad team – the Chicago Bulls. Theirs was a special trip because after drafting MJ he was injured for most of a year and Chicago drafted Pippen You know the rest.
I studied this because one Hawks assistant commented the team was better off to barely make the playoffs than to sit home. The reality is that champions were built from the draft and all of the non-playoff teams were in the lottery with a “chance’ at a great player. This may have changed with the free agent atmosphere in place now but time will tell. When the Knicks drafted Patrick Ewing the general consensus was there would be multiple championships and there were none.
No “loose opinons” here.
Sautee, You are citing the beginning of the growth in the economy of the US and the growth in the population from the Baby Boomers. The GDP was a fraction of that today, the cost of WWII was still a problem and there were not 47-49% of the earners failing to pay tax as is the case today. Until we expand the tax base to include every income earner to some extent there will be the entitlement mentality.
I do not know, nor care to look for, the rates in the 1950’s but I do know the top rate in 1970 was 70%. A family of four could live very nicely on less than $20,000 per year, the most expensive American car was less than $12,000 and the most expensive Mercedes (other than the 600 limo) was under $15,000.
The rates stayed relatively high until the economic policies of the Carter administration nearly crippled the country. Reagan then lowered the rates and the economy boomed, however we also began the period of run-away spending by Congress. The first non-wartime deficit was under Kennedy but the Congress in the 1980’s ran wild in comparison. The problem today is SPENDING not revenue.
The selections of Marvin and Shelden in the top five of the draft are the problem we can’t undo at this point. Thank you Mr. Knight! The extension given to Marvin is beyond belief, given Marvin clearly demonstrated he was not capable. That goes to Mr. Sund and the owners.
Blue Steel
December 26th, 2011
4:27 pm
Sautee, my question to you would be how, does your center play in five(5) playoff series and average only 1 block per series?
That cant be right, its insane that our center can play over 39 playoff games and walk away with only 5.5 block shots.
Incredible.
1 block shot per playoffs per year. Thats an average of 8 games,(39/5) per series. So after 8 games our center, or should I say Al, has only 1block shot. Dude? WTF?
Buddy Grizzard
December 26th, 2011
4:30 pm
“Sautee, is Al Horford our hightest draft pick in the last 20 years?”
Horford was drafted third overall. Marvin Williams was drafted second overall.
Blue Steel
December 26th, 2011
4:31 pm
“That’s so sadly true.” – Sautee
Slimjr
December 26th, 2011
4:32 pm
“11pts 1 block 8 rebounds”
That’s not AllStar stats? That’s not ECF material either.. Overrated comes to many minds once again..
Gearon, who are your gonna ship out of here 1st when you jettison the Core?
Slimjr
December 26th, 2011
4:35 pm
Gearon= Puppet master..
Sund= ignore
Smith.Leuer.Bogut
December 26th, 2011
4:37 pm
Horford a “weapon of mass destruction”? You’ve gone gooonygoogoo
Blue Steel
December 26th, 2011
4:39 pm
Slimjr how can you expect to go far in the playoffs when your center blocks 1 shot per series?
Slimjr
December 26th, 2011
4:41 pm
Gearon is Clueless, he hired two bums in BK and Sund. Two people who obviously have limited talent in observing and processing talented ball players. It ironic that one of them actually played in the NBA but it just goes to show you that its a talent to find the real ballers….Maybe hire some darn scouts to help ya out?
See the pattern………..
ryan
December 26th, 2011
4:41 pm
ASG says there not cheap we know they overpaid for Joe Johnson they consider that not being cheap but comes about spending on big FA they fail to explain why they pass on them or trade for a big name Gearon and his crew are BS .
Just Joe
December 26th, 2011
4:45 pm
Al Horford has 44 blocked shots in 39 playoff games. No need to spin it any other way.
Tyson Chandler has 58 blocked shots in 53 playoff games.
Andrew Bynum has 73 blocked shots in 62 playoff games.
Slimjr
December 26th, 2011
4:45 pm
with numbers like that @ the 5= 2-12 in the semis= .166%= abysmal!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And Gearon want us to buy this chit??????????????????????????????
Sautee
December 26th, 2011
4:47 pm
T-S,
Man, you need a lesson in reading stats. Horford has blocked 44 shots in 39 GAMES. That’s 1.1 PER GAME, not per playoffs!. LMFAO!
BTW, Al’s 1.1 blocks per game is exactly the same as…wait for it…
Tyson Chandler
Over Horford’s last two years, he has blocked 31 shots in 23 playoff games. That’s 1.35 / game, which is up from his regular season. Just the facts.
And despite what many remember about Chandler in last year’s playoffs, his block per game average is lower than Al’s for the last two seasons. In fact, he’s only exceeded 1.0 blocks per game for two of his 6 seasons. Al has reached 1.0 or better four times in five years.
I’d love for Horford to double his blocked shots, but we have to face the fact the he’s not a quick jumper like Josh. Al has to gather himself, and he’d often just a little late.
Still, let’s keep the stats real.
Just Joe
December 26th, 2011
4:48 pm
I think we all know Horford’s strengths and weaknesses. No need to “reach” when trying to make your point.
Sautee
December 26th, 2011
4:49 pm
To be clear, when I was giving T. Chandler’s block stats, they were for the playoff games in his career.
Blue Steel
December 26th, 2011
4:50 pm
Really Joe( sautee)?
http://www.nba.com/playerfile/al_horford/career_stats.html
5.5 blocks total, in 5 playoff series, thats 1.1 per series
Blue Steel
December 26th, 2011
4:52 pm
Ok we agree 1.1 blks per game LOL
Slimjr
December 26th, 2011
4:53 pm
I’ll take DeAndre everyday all day and bench All “setshot” everyday all day..
“Setshot” would make a perfect backup for my ECF’s squad!
Blue Steel
December 26th, 2011
4:54 pm
Late? He dont even try!
Just Joe
December 26th, 2011
4:55 pm
Blue Steel. You posted the link, now look at the bottom of the page where it says playoff totals.
You’re having an off day. Forgetting Marvin’s draft position, and now you can’t read stats. How do you get a half a block (total) anyway?
Blue Steel
December 26th, 2011
4:55 pm
Al, Weapon of Mass Destruction, Horford!
Blue Steel
December 26th, 2011
4:57 pm
“You posted the link, now look at the bottom of the page where it says playoff totals. ”
@Blue Steel
December 26th, 2011
4:52 pm
Sautee
December 26th, 2011
5:00 pm
T-S,
“Ok we agree 1.1 blks per game LOL”
Congrats on regaining your sanity.
Blue Steel
December 26th, 2011
5:02 pm
why johnny cant read or the hawks get out of the second round of the playoff
All NBA,2XAll Star, 2XWMD
11.3pts
0.8rbs
0.1blks
Blue Steel
December 26th, 2011
5:04 pm
Ok Sautee LOL
11.3
8.0
1.1
northcyde
December 26th, 2011
5:05 pm
@ Not So Casual
IF Gearon wasn’t clueless, why does he make these statements . .
“Josh Smith is the closest thing to Lebron that we have in the league”
“Only the Lakers, Celtics and Hawks have made it to the 2nd round the past 3 years”
“I think we played well against competitive teams”.
How is the fan base supposed to take that dude serious, when he makes those types of statements? As a longtime follower of the team, he ( of all people ) should know better than to try some spin doctoring type ish, to elevate the Hawks.
The problem with Gearon, is that he’s content with the Hawks where they are. As long as we stay “good”, that’s cool with him. But if he ever said that he’s striving for GREATNESS, or if he expects GREATNESS out of his coaches and players, he would be flat out lying to everyone.
The fact is that we’ve been a mid-level playoff team for 3 years now. A mid-level team that had to claw and fight to get out of the 1st round vs inferior teams ( other than Orlando last year ), and has a 2 – 12 record in the 2nd round the last 3 years.
So is a 4th year at the same level acceptable to Gearon? Is making it to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semis . . but losing that game . . cool with Gearon? If so, he and the other owners should sell the team.
What pizzes me ( and probably others ) off, is that perennial scrub teams like the LA Clippers and Memphis Grizzlies have now jumped over us in not only national perception, but in their own expectations for their teams. I even heard an ESPN commentator Bruce Bowen talking about Memphis being a dark horse to come out of the Western Conference ( if everything lines up right ).
Seriously?
The Memphis Grizzlies?
That, if anything, should spark a fire in Gearon and the rest of the organization.
But it doesn’t, because they are content with where we are.
So most of the fans now are like “(( bleep )) them”.
Blue Steel
December 26th, 2011
5:07 pm
You know sautee this would be as much fun for me except I always fish for your reaction to a WMD exaggeration. Once I see you logged on I got to go for it,http://blogs.ajc.com/hawks/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_wink.gif
History Channel
December 26th, 2011
5:08 pm
“You are citing the beginning of the growth in the economy of the US and the growth in the population from the Baby Boomers. The GDP was a fraction of that today, the cost of WWII was still a problem and there were not 47-49% of the earners failing to pay tax as is the case today. Until we expand the tax base to include every income earner to some extent there will be the entitlement mentality.”
@Casual, the bubbles have been created over last 98 years by yours truly, “The Federal Reserve” who is headquartered in Puerto Rico along with their partners the IRS.. Follow the economic problems right to their front door…More taxes is not the way to go..Clean house first then revamp the broken tax structure. Demoncrats and Republicrats will not play that game..
History Channel
December 26th, 2011
5:15 pm
“Until we expand the tax base to include every income earner to some extent there will be the entitlement mentality.”
Agree with the above statement… Raising taxes is not the answer…
Sautee
December 26th, 2011
5:29 pm
T-S,
Fish away, my friend, but remember that the casual reader will be scratching his head at your seeming denseness while you are baiting me. Which of course, weakens the very arguments you seek to make, since you lose credibility by posting bogus stats. But, whatever, have fun with it.
But try to keep it real.
Sautee
December 26th, 2011
5:47 pm
Regarding this:
“and there were not 47-49% of the earners failing to pay tax as is the case today. ”
Two things. First, there are not 47-49% of earners “failing” to pay taxes. The largest majority of those not paying income tax (because their incomes are too low) STILL pay payroll and medicare and SS taxes. So how is the 47-49% “failing” to pay taxes? They are not.
Second, the fact that the % of people not paying income tax has risen, means that we have more poor people than ever before. A fact that the Corporations could care less about. The “entitlement mentality” that is mentioned seems FAR more deeply rooted in the Corporate world, where even the mention of going back to the Clinton tax rates (remember the Clintons, when we actually had a surplus?) is viewed as blasphemy by the richest Congress that we’ve ever had in terms of net worth. They, and the Corporations are the ones who seem “entitled” to their mere 15% tax rates.
OK, sorry for injecting politics. Back to the Hawks. I’ll stop with the political, I promise
FreshFromATL
December 26th, 2011
5:58 pm
WTF? Lol, man I guess I’ll just post again when a new blog goes up.
Slimjr
December 26th, 2011
6:03 pm
Enter your comments here
Slimjr
December 26th, 2011
6:05 pm
Falcons play tonight..Watch another Atlanta professional sports team stink it up in a playoff type game on National TV again…..lol
Grandad
December 26th, 2011
6:05 pm
I heard Hatters in the house;
so,
I could not resist my temptation to return;
just to say ” hello ”
and;
Happy New Year to -the- Hatter
and I hope all the “Hat” family is doing well !
Grandad
December 26th, 2011
6:11 pm
ahhh President Clinton !
-at least thats what Monica said-
Sautee
December 26th, 2011
6:26 pm
Grandad,
That girl shouldn’t talk with her mouth full.
Aunt Marguerite woulda said “Now Sautee, that was uncalled for”
EmirS.
December 26th, 2011
6:32 pm
Off topic….
But anyone else, besides myself, think that there was a “passing of the torch” when Rose hit that game winner over the Lakers, while Kobe missed his?