Atlanta Hawks: Hawks 100, Heat 92
Miami–After a bad start, the Hawks settled down behind a zone defense and better shot selection. Tracy McGrady delivered the finishing blows.
- “It feels good,” McGrady said. “It’s been a long time since I’ve had that feeling. My legs feel fresh. Everything just feels good. It feels right. That’s a good sign. I haven’t felt this good in a long time, probably since the beginning of my knee injury.”
- We’ll see how McGrady holds up physically but so far he’s looking like the kind of low-cost value the the Hawks needed if they were going to improve the team without paying the tax. He scores, rebounds, passes and defends. And he still loves the big moments. “I’m a competitor, especially competing against the best, LeBron and D-Wade,” he said. “I’m always up for the challenge. Those guys, it brings the best out of you. It felt pretty good.”
- Not sure if the Hawks were lethargic early or if they just couldn’t handle the Heat’s speed and ball movement. “Early in the game we were too soft,” Larry Drew said. “We just allowed them to drive the ball to thee basket [and] not contesting shots. You give credit where credit is due, and certainly Miami is a heck of a ballclub. But you can’t come into this building and just allow them to drive it down your throat every possession and not put up any resistance.”
- The bench guys got the Hawks back in it. “We got off to a slow start but our bench really lifted us up,” Joe Johnson said. “That’s how it’s going to have to be sometimes.”
- Atlanta’s zone defense changed the pace of the game. By playing zone, the Hawks took a page from the books of Boston and Dallas in last season’s playoffs and also their W here last January. The Heat looked befuddled by the alignment. Suddenly they were stagnant instead of dynamic, settling for contested jumpers instead of attacking the basket at will.
- “They went to the zone and we got out of our rhythm and what was disappointing was it affected our concentration from then on,” Erik Spoelstra said.
- “I didn’t know how good the zone would be,” Drew said. “I just wanted to try to keep the game at a pace that would allow us to play at a speed that would slow them down. They missed some shots so it worked to our advantage tonight. Some nights it doesn’t work to your advantage.”
- “The Celtics had success [with the zone],” McGrady said. “Dallas had the most success. Teams are just taking a little bit of what they did to them. You can’t play them one-on-one, I’m sorry. LeBron and D-Wade, I don’t give a damn how good your defense is, you can’t play them one-on-one so you have got to come up with something different.”
- At the same time the zone slowed down the Heat, the Hawks stopped settling for Js.
- Josh Smith mostly stayed away from them after jacking a few early. Marvin Williams was effective cutting off the ball. Al Horford scored through high activity around the basket and also had some nice cuts. And Johnson got his in spite of Miami’s swarming defense.
- Johnson also helped harass Wade into an off night. He used his length to keep Wade off balance, scraping at the ball and forcing him into help. “You have to be ready to play him,” Drew said of Wade. “He is so good and so elusive off the dribble. I thought Joe Johnson did a phenomenal job against him. Joe to me is one of the better defensive players at that spot. He does not get enough credit for it.”
- Johnson played with a brace on his right thumb. It’s the same injury that bothered him at times last season. “As you can see it’s always swollen,” he said. “When I get hit on it it is sore for a few possessions and then it kind of goes out. For the most part I will be all right. It will linger around for the whole season but there is nothing I can do about it.”
- Atlanta hawked the ball and turned 16 Miami turnovers into 19 points. It could have been a lot more if not for Atlanta’s turnovers on the break (a big problem last season) and a few blown layups. “We did get in the open court but I don’t think we finished very well,” Drew said. “A few times it looked like we had clear paths to basket but just didn’t finish. But we did a good job in recognizing when to run and when not to.”
- Jeff Teague got to the basket and didn’t finish a few times, but he kept attacking. He lost the ball a couple times on the break but set up key 3-pointers in the fourth quarter from McGrady and Johnson. Tonight he found the right balance of attacking to score and attacking to make plays for others.
- Jannero Pargo also made a big 3-pointer in the fourth quarter. Willie Green (0 for 5) was quick on the trigger again and didn’t make many other positive contributions. Vladimir Radmanovic is now 0 for 10 in his last two games but he grabbed four rebounds and had three assists. Zaza Pachulia fouled a lot and tangled with Udonis Haslem.
- It’s early in the season but this was a strong, spirited effort by the Hawks against the best team in the East.
- “We came down in a hostile environment and we came to play,” Josh said. “Even though we started off struggling, we just kept fighting and playing hard.”
- “I think everybody in this locker room is confident,” Teague said. “I think we know we are a good team that can play with anybody . But I don’t think it proved anything. It’s still early in the season. It’s another game but it’s a good stepping team for us as a team.”
- “If you look at this game and the game at Houston, you see two different ballclubs,” Drew said. “We have to become a more consistent ballclub. When we reach that stage, yeah, we can start talking about statements. Right now we are just trying to find ourselves as a club and get better.”
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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266 comments Add your comment
doc
January 3rd, 2012
10:04 am
josh tuck the ball and move towards the basket, create contact not space. space is your enemy dude.
Big Crimson 75
January 3rd, 2012
10:17 am
This is our year. The lockout will help this team per the core have been together for awhile.
This is the best Hawks team since Joe got here. We got our point – our center – our forwards are a handful once again – and I like this bench better than what we have had the last couple years — Jamaal & nothing else. Plus, Coach Drew has a better handle on his players than Wood did. You get farther with respect !!
Go Hawks
BigTimeTECHFan
January 3rd, 2012
10:19 am
Nice blocks by Josh (LeBron) and Hortford (Wade).
Coach is right, Miami is asesome if you let them have their way, they fold when they get challanged, block let them know they were not going to come back at their will.
I to would like to see Ivan start getting a lttle time with second team, he can shoot but needs playing time to get confidence. Will be key player in playoffs if Hawks let him grow.
JJ is playing very nice ball, team is sharing the ball as well as any team in NBA.
I think by years end Atlanta and Miami will be 1 and 2 seed in the east, as long as they stay healthy
KZ
January 3rd, 2012
10:27 am
Can we cut Willie Green and sign someone else as backup SG? Arenas maybe? Pargo is okay.
vava74
January 3rd, 2012
10:38 am
Good win, but the sad thing is that we will lose tonight and thursday deflating the hot air balloon which constitutes our ball club.
The famous consistency is never there and I don’t believe in miracles: T-Mac’s resurgence is a bit inflated because EVERYONE thought he is completely washed up when in fact is still has a LITTLE in the tank (but not as much as everyone thinks).
Once teams realize that T-Mac still retains a bit of his ability, they will stop feeling kind of sorry for him and play him harder, send him to the floor and the results will not be replicated.
On last night’s game:
During the first 6 minutes we had Josh taking 5 shots, whilst Marvin took 0, JJ 1, Horford 2, Teague maybe 2 or 3…
Unacceptable that our poorest shooter is the one that believes will take over the game from outside.
If it wasn’t for Teague in the first period and the subs that brought some defensive cohesion, we could have been blown out right there.
My grades:
Teague: A- (excellent first period, keeping us afloat, excellent D when we played zone forcing TO’s – like Lebron’s out of bounds – and bad shots with his adhesive stance at the top of the key – forcing Lebron into at least a tough out of balance turnaround that barely touch the front of the rim).
JJ: B+ (excellent second quarter and in general a very balanced effort moving the ball accurately and timely and playing good D at the front of the zone).
Pargo: B (fund his shot, was very active on D and was on the floor when we made the final fun. As a third stringer, he has proven doubters – including myself before I saw his first game in NJ – that he can contribute).
Green: D (still hasn’t found his shot, but he did have open looks and if he was on the floor when we had a +12 run means that at least he did not compromise on D, which is already very important).
Marvin: C (again started the game half asleep and letting Lebron virtually unattended. I am not expecting him to stop him, but at least to try and slow him down (preferably to hurt him a bit and make him gain some fear before trotting into the paint). Came alive on the third for a short stretch and when he left for T-Mac MIA made a run, which may indicate that he was disciplined working the zone D during that period too).
T-Mac: A+ (great 4th quarter, shooting, rebounding and passing. Again, I think that his performance is a by-product of a bizarre combo of “respect for the elderly” and “lack of respect for his remaining ability” – I doubt that this “status” will linger until the playoffs).
Josh: C+ (inexcusable start of the game making all the typical mistakes. Made up for it with a much more disciplined second half, with the alley hoop and the block).
V-Rad: B- (shot like a blind man and got mugged twice at the cup BUT, played very disciplined D, rebounded and moved the ball well. Incredibly, he is impressing me with stuff completely unrelated to his shooting – which is still off).
Al: A (looks like Al is realising that he is not getting the space he got last year to launch his jumpshots and is getting back to work down low. Granted that MIA does not have any big bodies but Haslem and Anthony are renown bruisers and Al did not shy away. Light at the end of the tunnel?).
Zaza: C+ (could have played more minutes and when he was on the floor never compromised. In the first half was there when we made a run to cut MIA’s lead and in the second scored 4 important points when we made the decisive run. Although un-athletic, he sells contact well and gets to the line which is always important).
LD: B+ (would be a A if he had pulled Josh earlier, but even so, made progress in several fronts!)
Nugent, Ted Nugent
January 3rd, 2012
10:38 am
Hey KJB!,
Put your pom poms down, cheerleader
I’ll go if you buy tix, food, drink, parking etc.
Won’t happen, so calm down
Packed house or quiet house??
Nugent, Ted Nugent
January 3rd, 2012
10:40 am
Big Crimson 75
Our year? What’s that
We gonna win it all
??????
Just dumb
Nugent, Ted Nugent
January 3rd, 2012
10:43 am
KJB,
Also stop with the( !!!!!!!!!)
It’s like a woman talking with their hands
ryan
January 3rd, 2012
10:52 am
Hawks are on fire D12 you watching your home town should give something think about instead of playing with Derron Williams .
The Truth
January 3rd, 2012
10:58 am
“Anyone that’s being critical of anyone who played in last nights gm is just looking for any excuse to b!tch”
Ken
You won “The Truth” award for today.
Congratulation!
JM
January 3rd, 2012
11:02 am
There is a lot of negativity on this blog, you’d think we lost. As for Josh and his jumper, it has to become a part of his game. He will not be able to jump out the gym forever and like other great athletic players he will have to be able to develop other parts of the game. I have no problem with his shooting the J unless it is out of the flow of the game. Even if it is , I wouldn’t react as some on this blog have. Every player tries to get his now and them. And people need to relax on the BBIQ bull, as LD and others have pointed out, Josh knows where everyone is supposed to be on the floor and has a good BBIQ. Just becasue a player tries too hard to make a play or tries to get a bucket for himself doesnt mean they have a low BBIQ. Relax people, it was a win.
Go Hawks!
doc
January 3rd, 2012
11:09 am
vava, then you look so smart until they win saturday to reinforce it is impossible to predict the unpredictable hawks.
really, i hoped for a win against three losses on this string of four so one more win is gravy.
kwooden
January 3rd, 2012
11:23 am
Great win last night, but its time to worry about the Bulls. I think tonight is similar to last night in terms of the offensive. Josh has to attack Boozer in the post and make Chicago double team him. Chicago wants to run off of turnovers and not play half-court, so we’ve got to be very disciplined again on offensive. We have a definite advantage with JJ against Hamilton, so don’t be surprise if they put Deng JJ. Either way Marvin should get many opportunities on the boards and with open shots. Defensively we probably don’t have to zone as much, Teague better go under on the screen and rolls and hope that Roses is missing his shots. The big match-up to me is the benches. The Bulls have a very consistent unit, but our bench is coming along. I want to see how they match-up against Tracy because Korver clearly can’t guard him and defensive we can switch on all screen and rolls to keep up with him.
GO HAWKS!
GO HAWKS!!
vava74
January 3rd, 2012
11:24 am
Josh is shooting worse from the field than Pargo…
fortunately/unfortunately, Josh is always relevant in both our wins and in our losses.
his immaturity is what is keeping us from taking the next step.
he is “inconsistency” in the form of a bball player and that is so damn frustrating.
when he played to his strengths last year against the Bulls, we won game 4.
he only needs to replicate that game (at least the approach), but he wont.
Rod from College Park
January 3rd, 2012
11:31 am
vava74,
I agree with most of your grades. Glad to see that you can see some of the valuable things that Pargo is doing. I told you he would be a decent backup. TMac does not look like the loser you said he was, but I am wishing and praying that he can stay healthy for a whole season. Al has looked much better in the first couple of games, but as we both said, teams are closing out on his jumper, which is forcing him to play more down low. I agree also on Marv. He let Lebron run wild in the first quarter, and also did a bad job on Buddinger the Houston game, but seemed to try to pick it up in the second half. No way he keeps TMac, off the floor at the end of the game though. Just like with Flip, Jamal, Chills, and now TMac. Josh is Josh. Teague is playing really well, and may be the big reason this team progresses. He is the only guy on the team who actually attacks the rim. Good balance for a bunch of guys who all want to shoot jumpers.
vava74
January 3rd, 2012
11:33 am
kwooden,
they key to play the Bulls, IMO, is to play them exactly as we played ORL:
Put Teague on him and concentrate on shutting down the others.
Let Rose try to score 50 on Teague and tell Teague to make everything within his reach to make his life difficult but not to try to enter into a competition but simply to try to make him work on D as well without going overboard.
Last year it wasn’t Rose who won the series for CHI, it was the Hawks that lost the series but not doing a good job on the other guys.
Marvin must stay with Deng, JJ must stay on Hamilton/Brewer, Josh has to stay on Boozer and Al has to stay on Noah.
As much work Rose does, but closing the passing lane for others and making him go to the cup on his own, as much he will be tired for the final stretch of the game.
We simply need to stay in the game and make Rose lose his stamina and then will certainly start to make mistakes.
Astro Joe
January 3rd, 2012
11:39 am
Maybe we should amnesty Horford and sign this camp legend.
The Suns waived center Garret Siler after Monday’s game, putting the roster at the 13-man minimum. Siler was a project when he signed a two-year contract last season, but this season’s salary was not guaranteed. Siler, 25, played in 21 games last season but had not played this season. He would have been a likely choice to be inactive once guard Michael Redd is ready to play. Redd had his first workout with the Suns on Monday after returning from Columbus, Ohio. He will participate in his first practice Tuesday and figures to be at least a week away from playing. Arizona Republic
moboman
January 3rd, 2012
11:40 am
Only time they looked sluggish is when they went into “let Joe bring the ball up and start the offense” mode. Dont like those iso Joe moments. We looked better with the PG starting the offense.
SteveW
January 3rd, 2012
11:46 am
AJ – Teague played terrible at Houston? Nah, he had a pensive 1st half. He’s getting told he shoots too much by a Captain, even when he’s 9-12 last game. So he stops shooting and catches grief for not shooting. He played well in the Houston game. Not perfect, but well.
And you’ve had it in for Teague since last season. What’s the beef? He’s not CP3. He’s playing great BBall, and has everytime he’s been given the opportunity. The most consistent starter this season. So what’s the beef with him? Mad you missed on him last season?
vava74
January 3rd, 2012
11:53 am
Rod,
I am the first to do a “mea culpa” when warranted (I will never make a mea culpa on Jamal since I still believe that he is basketball’s version of cocaine – the false perception of the magnitude of the “positive” effects – induced euphoria – overrides the blatant negative effects in the minds of poor coaches* who end up overusing him).
* Popovich or Phil would know how to use Jamal, BUT Jamal would never sign for their teams since with them, Jamal’s minutes and salary slot would be much smaller than what he thinks he is worth).
Back to Pargo: since the first game in NJ I have been defending Pargo on the blog.
No one should expect more from him since the vast majority of the shots that were not going in were open shots within the offense and not forced (only a couple in the 5 games) and he did not have the luxury of spending a full mini-camp with these cats to get fully acclimatized.
He has has made a huge effort to always stay with his man on D and contest shots, which is something that Sloan proved completely unable to in the pre-season.
People complained about his performance against Wall but, for crying out loud, who is fast enough to keep up with him in the league?
It’s clear that Pargo has lost a step but I think he has embraced the opportunity we gave him and is making an honest effort to fit in, which is something not entirely common with guys known as “loose on offense”.
Even when Hinrich comes back there will be situations in which he will be able to contribute with a few minutes if we need to go small.
On Marvin: I think he will be better this season and that he will be comfortable with this “lesser role” since it seems to fit his character. There will be games in which he will give us some scoring and there will be games in which he will disappear and that’s should be enough if he remains fairly disciplined on D.
He had good games but I also agree that he started the past two games passive on D making his case for more minutes very difficult.
IMO, he should be the first to come out (in T-Mac) and then used as a sub for Josh for a few minutes since I still believe that he is better suited to play as a scoring PF off the bench (against lesser opposition) rather than as a SF.
If we look at his best moments since game 1, apart from the 3 pointers which he could still shoot as a stretch PF, he had a few good buckets out of offensive rebounds and there is something where I believe he can produce consistently.
I MUS WRITE
January 3rd, 2012
11:55 am
Good game last night …..JJ played great D,TMac is what this team has been missing, Not only does the man score but his passing ability is sick and he doesnt mind giving up the rock. JC1 gave us scoring and nothing else, I would say this is a nice upgrade.
I swear …..Marvin has been playing well but lets not get carried away-he probably wont play like this all season. If I know Marvin like i think he will disappear for a large stretch of games.
Only an idiot would compare Josh’s importance to this team vs Marvin -I wont even go there.
Pargo is a true 3rd string pg- the guy makes one shot and people wanna crown his azz like denny green said. This team will be alot better with kirk coming off the bench and pargo buried at the end…..
I agree that this second unit could do sum damage
Pargo/Kirk- Tmac- VRad-Ivan-Zaza….Size energy hustle
Here comes the bring Garret Siler home posts in 1….2….3
doc
January 3rd, 2012
11:55 am
astro you know the garrett siler story was one of hope and thirst. he was a local college grad from small school that was huge and smart. the thirst came from the fans to have a real tall presence on the hawks for a change, anyone. sorry, for him it didnt work out. i have got to admire his effort and hope he finds a way to get more experience as bigs mature late. ndbl for him?
vava74
January 3rd, 2012
11:57 am
One thing that really gets on my nerves:
If Josh can’t hit FTs consistently, when he has no opposition and all the time of the world to shoot, why the hell does he think he can hit jump-shots?
SteveW
January 3rd, 2012
11:58 am
AJ – Maybe you missed this from Peachtree Hoops about the Houston game and Jeff Teague, “By comparison, Jeff Teague didn’t resonate as his Rockets point guard counterpart, but I thought that, while he could have stepped up more on the court to control the team and maybe get himself inside more to loosen up a tight Rockets defense, he was the one player needed most on the court at all times, due to Lowry.
I don’t know what crime against humanity and basketball Teague committed four minutes into the second half, but Drew singled his young point guard out for all the team’s failings and yanked him for the quarter, and immediately the Hawks lost ground with Willie Green struggling to keep up defensively at the point. Two minutes after the Hawks yanked Teague still down by nine, they were down by 13, two more minutes and the deficit now 17.
Teague’s exile lasted until there were less than ten minutes left in the game and the Hawks were down 14. Within a minute it was down to 10, another three minutes, the lead was down to six. The Hawks finished off game as they had started it, shooting themselves in the feet offensively, and watching Martin, Scola, and Budinger score 16 points in the game’s final six minutes to seal the deal. Ball game.”
“Benches Jeff Teague: A Commentary
Regarding Teague and being singled out by Coach Larry Drew: Post game, according to the Real MC’s AJC recap Saturday night, Drew offered this explanation for the teaching moment this game, and specifically Kyle Lowry’s play, offered to his own point guard.
“I hope my young guy can take a look at that and see how you can impact the game and not score points,” Drew said. “Sometimes scoring can be overrrated. Good point guards still find a way to impact the game irregardless if they score.”
Teague’s first half: 0-0 FG, four assists, one turnover. You mean like that, coach?
I’m not going to say that Teague played as well as Lowry, but a quote like that tells you that a coach is seeing what he wants to despite what’s actually going on out on the floor. Teague was actually doing exactly the type of play — don’t shoot and get your guys involved — that Drew wanted and his reward was that his coach didn’t see it that way.
Teague actually should have attacked the cup more himself early on and loosened up the defense, got to the line, etc. — it’s a strength of his, after all — but because Teague’s teammates didn’t make their shots as Lowry’s readily made theirs, Teague’s four assists against zero shots made no positive mental imprint on his coach.
Benching him for whatever in the third quarter and only affording him 13 minutes in the second half overall merely delayed any meaningful run at making the game close again and will play no stronger role in getting the result Drew is looking for. How can you shoot less than zero?”
That coupled with Northcydes excellent 4:20 pm post after the game pretty much sums up Teague and the Houston game.
Jeff Teague must not be on you fantasy roster or something. Or he is, and is not doing enough for you.
I MUS WRITE
January 3rd, 2012
11:59 am
Vava how is josh immature -I havent seen him cry’n and complaining to the refs so far. Also his shot selection is slightly better this yr-when he gets the ball on the perimeter w/h 4 seconds left he has no choice but to shoot and that hasnt happened alot. pargo and green is who you should attack. They are putrid from the field. I could shoot a better percentage……Well maybe 10 yrs ago…lol
honest_abe
January 3rd, 2012
12:04 pm
my new years resolution – to be more positive
pargo might be better than i first thought. but not by much. he goes from officially being the worst player ever to set foot on an nba floor to a marginal one who should be on a roster but never get pt. god awful.
josh is josh. i couldn’t have said it more succinctly. he’s a knucklehead. at least for the most part he’s kept his promise of less 3’s. now he think’s he can be more effective two feet within the line. i say if he’s going to jack up shot go back another two feet. in the off chance it goes in it’ll at least count for one more point.
hawks win in the ugliest of ways. i don’t know how they do it but they do. glad for the good start but realistic in my expectations for the rest of the week.
teague is beastin. keep it up young fella.
KevinM
January 3rd, 2012
12:05 pm
If you saw the ESPN Heat highlights this am, you would have thought the Heat won the game….highlight of DWade blocking VRad was good, but then they say he shot 4-17 on a bad foot….which is it ESPN?
Then they show Teague dribbling the ball in the back court. Really? Is that the best you can do? It’s like the national media protecting the Democratic party…there’s nothing fair and balanced on ESPN either.
Gotta go back to NBA-TV now…..see if the Hawks get any positive talk there or is it more Heat-support.
honest_abe
January 3rd, 2012
12:07 pm
maybe i read aj’s post wrong. i thought all he said was for teague to be effective he needs to stay aggressive. do i need another lesson on reading comprehension?
vava74
January 3rd, 2012
12:09 pm
IMUS,
Pargo is shooting .370 from the field and Josh .365 (on 10.4 attempts per game – second for the team and MOST of them from the outside).
Pargo is shooting .313 from 3 pt land and Josh .000 (but still attempting 0.8 per game).
Yes, Green is shooting like crap, but Green is a career .424 shooter so he is bound to improve.
KevinM
January 3rd, 2012
12:17 pm
Teague is definitely not a problem on this team. His play should not be near as criticized and the core on this team. They have been given major minutes much longer and should know their roles on this team.
And when northcyde shows us that Josh is shooing 20% outside of 16ft, doesn’t that tell us that LD isn’t doing anything about the decisions Josh makes? I do recall him benching him once last year, but apparently it did not help. Josh still gets the ball at the end of the shot clock, which he never should. That is the team’s fault as much as it is Drew.
You just have to put yourself in better position to be successful each rip down the court. This is not a knock at all on the victory of last night. Our guys simply played better in the 4th than the Heat.
Has anyone mentioned the slow start we got off to again last night, but this time they came back and stayed close? A def area of improvement.
Also, 50-38 PITP…a key stat against any team this year.
doc
January 3rd, 2012
12:19 pm
so “ninja lite”? if that is positive then you are really creeping up on it honest.
justahawkfan
January 3rd, 2012
12:29 pm
KZ-We have 61 more games to play before the end of the regulalr season, live in the moment and enjoy this victory. Or better yet, wait until Thursday night!! We can re-visit JS’s shot selection then. Both teams are not locks to be in the play off. An injury or two to right players can derail either team’s playoff hopes. Exercise a little patience please!
honest_abe
January 3rd, 2012
12:31 pm
doc: it’s all about baby steps. heh
KevinM
January 3rd, 2012
12:39 pm
A big stat to our team….when Joe gets 20, we are usually in the game.
Rufus1
January 3rd, 2012
12:45 pm
The Hawks have never LOST a game because of TALENT….
Coaching, B.B.I.Q.,PG, bench and size, but never TALENT. We are now starting to what we were missing(Except Size) and this is going to be an excellent year.
_________________________________________________________________________
The ball movement…
I thought the 2nd units BALL MOVEMENT would RUB OFF on the “Children of the ISO” and we starting to get very go MOVEMENT.
PS.One day we are going to have to give LD and Sund some credit for this teams performance.
cybo
January 3rd, 2012
12:45 pm
I feel good about this team. I like Jamal Crawford. There is a reason he is always traded. He is a chemistry killer and he forces teams to play help defense every possession.
Rufus1
January 3rd, 2012
12:53 pm
Al not a SHOT BLOCKER… Could we please put that to REST.
Now that he is standing UNDER THE BASKET and not chasing PG, he is PROTECTING the RIM.
Grandad
January 3rd, 2012
12:55 pm
I have decided to make a premature return to the blog !
Over the holidays my family suffered a tragic loss,
with the death of a family member.
My wife, children and grandchildren are fine ! ! !
My loved one was more than just family, he was a friend.
My thinking now is;
why isolate myself … as did the person whom I lost.
Depression is lethal ! * -not me-
*[I do not suffer from that horrific disease]
The blog is my extended community and I’ve always felt as much.
I was punishing myself for the incapacity of Sund & Gearon
by boycotting the blog.
I had decided that I was coming back to the blog when and only when
the Hawks acquired a legit Big Man.
Now – after my loss – I need my outlet back.
I, really at this time,
(until such time that I return to the game professionally)
need to talk basketball with my friends.
____________________________________________
Grandmaster JeJe – Is everything allright ?
____________________________________________
vava74
January 3rd, 2012
12:57 pm
Sudden vision:
Ivan Johnson will go bananas and score a punch in Taj’s mug AND we win by 5 points.
vava74
January 3rd, 2012
1:02 pm
Grandad,
Good to see you back.
So far Al is working and acting a bit more manly down low so there is reason for some hope.
This, in spite of the fact that he does seem to be – as reported during the camp – the guy in worst shape of the starting 5.
Tonight is the real test. Will Al the Boss come to play or will he wilt again?
WE NEED IVAN DOWN LOW TO SCHOOL TAJ !!!!!!!! UNLEASH THE TERROR!!!!!
O'Brien
January 3rd, 2012
1:14 pm
Assuming everyone is healthy, when Hinrich comes back, I think Sloan will be released, and Willie Green will spend time on the inactive list.
I hope LD doesnt start giving T-Mac too many minutes, because we need T-Mac to last an entire season.
Translation needed
January 3rd, 2012
1:17 pm
To say Josh is inconsistent, and insert Marvin who has probably been the most inconsistent player in Hawks history is crazy. I personally would like to see Ivan Johnson at the 4 when Josh plays terrible, but not Marvin at the 4. He can’t rebound with or guard 4’s. Bosh would destroy him.
^ has a blue vein throbber for marvin
O'Brien
January 3rd, 2012
1:18 pm
Vava,
Last year, Hawks had a big comeback win against the Bulls, winning 83-80. One of the stars was Al Horford, going for 31 and 16. We don’t need that much from him, but 16 and 12 will be nice.
Also, Josh needs to stay away from the jumpers outside the paint, which I think the Bulls will give him the room to take.
Astro Joe
January 3rd, 2012
1:28 pm
Steve, so not shooting in a half is good for you? It isn’t for me, not from a guy with his specific abilities. Should I assume that you would be okay if he repeats his non-shooting ways? I don’t recall his coach saying to stop shooting. That is a childish reaction… involve your teammates is different than saying “don’t try to score”. If your boss tells you to stop coming to work late, is he asking you to spend the night in the office?
Abe, you didn’t misread anything. I was hard on Teague because he checked out on his team the other day (at least that’s how I saw it).
Astro Joe
January 3rd, 2012
1:31 pm
And Steve, I chose Ty Lawson as my young PG for my fantasy team BTW.
doc, I was just messing with Siler’s devoted following. i enjoyed reading about the young man and wish him well in whatever he plans to do next.
Quote of the Day — January 2, 2012 | JockSpin.com
January 3rd, 2012
1:34 pm
[...] Tracy McGrady takes us back to our youth: “My legs feel fresh. Everything just feels good. It feels right. That’s a good sign. I haven’t felt this good in a long time, probably since the beginning of my knee injury.” [...]
vava74
January 3rd, 2012
1:37 pm
OB,
That game is a testament of what Al is capable of doing if he sets his mind to come and play like a man.
Unfortunately, come playoff time, only jump shot Al showed up.
Rusty
January 3rd, 2012
1:45 pm
Astro joe ld probably told him that he needed to look for shots for teammates, not for himself. You don’t think that jt would tell us what ld actually told him,he wants to keep getting time. I didn’t see this anywhere but it is what would make sense,nothing else does. Ld has said a lot of things since he has been a coach which was not true.
SteveW
January 3rd, 2012
1:59 pm
Aj – Were just going to have to disagree. You’ve said you were looking to see if he was going to cry. Maybe he was unbalanced emotionally or something of that sort. You said, “That is a childish reaction” about not shooting in the 1st half. You said he played terrible that game.
And this from the only starter with a +/- of under -14 that game. His was a -3. 1 TO in that half. 4 dimes in a half, and could’ve been more if his teammates had been shooting well.
And it’s not just the Houston game – you’ve sniping at him since last season, and earlier this season also.
How about Marv’s D on Chase? How about Josh’s J’s? How about Al’s lack of rebounding? How about JJ’s terrible job on KMart? I know you comment on those sometimes, but admit it, you’ve got it in for Teague for whatever reason.
But if you say you don’t, well, we’ll see how the rest of the season plays out.
KevinM
January 3rd, 2012
2:00 pm
Those T-Mac comments are refreshing considering it has taken him awhile in his own words to start feeling good again. Those knee injuries are time restricting and it has forced him to change his game a bit.
I like what I saw from him in Detroit and they were mistaken to not re-up with him.
And yes, Marvin’s minutes/shots/dribbles, whatever you want to call it, are in jeopardy again..in Year 7. So now we have to accept Marvin and 20-25 minutes…..you think JC1 or T-Mac wouldn’t like some of that money he is making? Sund has strapped us to find a gem on a scrap heap.
Now take Stack to the heap and bring in Arenas to see if he can help this bench this year.