Sixers at Atlanta Hawks: Game thread
- The Hawks said Jason Collins will miss at least two weeks with what they said is a sprained left elbow. Elton Brand (thumb) is out for the Sixers. Spencer Hawes (Achilles) will play.
- Collins is glad his injury wasn’t worse: “I didn’t break it, didn’t dislocate it. We will look at it in two weeks and be re-evaluated.”
- There are different degrees of sprains, which also can mean torn ligaments, but neither Collins nor Larry Drew would get into the details of Twin’s diagnosis. “They said for me to say a sprain,” Collins said.
- Drew said the Hawks are looking at candidates to sign to a 10-day contract. “It’s possible,” he said. “We met yesterday and talked about it and tossed some names around. We will keep doing that until we make a decision what we want to do.”
- Available free-agent centers include Erick Dampier, Kyrylo Fesenko, Dan Gadzuric, DJ Mbenga, and Joel Przybilla (who appears headed to Miami or Chicago). Theo Ratliff says he’s done.
- For now, the Hawks will use forward Ivan Johnson to back up Zaza Pachulia. Drew said Josh Smith also will play minutes at center while Vladimir Radmanoivic and Marvin Williams could see time at power forward. “We will be moving people around, without a doubt,” Drew said. “Game-to-game we will just have to look at the matchups and see what makes sense where we are not putting ourselves at a disadvantage.”
- Josh on losing another big man: “I guess we’ve just we’ve got to roll with the punches. In this short season when you look around the league every team has had a significant injury. We are limited at the big position. I will have to play some minutes at the five position. We just have to man up and not worry about it and just step in and be there for each other.”
- Joe Johnson: “We ain’t got no choice, man. We’ve got to step up and try to do something a little different. With the way the season is, it’s going to be somebody dropping different every week in the league. We have got to do whatever we can to stay as healthy as we can. We have got to keep rolling with that we’ve got. Somebody has got to step up and fill that void.”
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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714 comments Add your comment
Wabe
February 4th, 2012
9:42 pm
Not sure why this turned into a Matt Ryan discussion…
Again, dude has plenty to prove and many things to improve upon.
But again, most Falcons fans, along with managment, would point to both the O-Coordinator and the freakin’ O-Line before pointing Ryan’s way.
With that said, we can agree to disagree about this. My main argument was and remains, if someone asked me whose got the best shot to win a title between the Falcons and Hawks, it’d remain the Falcons.
The Hawks seem to have peaked with this current group, IMO. Unless they can somehow change the dynamics of the core, they’ll remain one of the 4-6 seeds in the East and continue to get bounced in the 2nd round. The Falcons seem more like underachievers. With a shift in philosophy, a more aggressive offense + defense, with the right personnel moves, and I say they’re a contender.
Big Lou
February 4th, 2012
9:43 pm
“IMHO the most important individual stat for a QB is TD to INT ratio.”
Thank God! Somebody who isn’t a hater, and a real football watcher.
Ivan > Josh
February 4th, 2012
9:43 pm
“It’s pitiful that we collectively are talking about anything but the Hawks. It’s come to this?”
LOL I tried to tell ‘em
Big Lou
February 4th, 2012
9:44 pm
Najeh throwing out BS stats, and spewing crap out of his mouth to make his argument true, when he is completely incorrect. Thank you for blessing me with your ignorance.
Rev in Tampa
February 4th, 2012
9:45 pm
“It’s pitiful that we collectively are talking about anything but the Hawks. It’s come to this?”
We’re getting tired of saying, “We need another big!”
Draft history
February 4th, 2012
9:45 pm
It is clear that hinrich is affecting teague. Teague is not playing with the same confidence. I cant understand why we have not dealt hinrich’s expiring attractive expiring deal especially considering the team’s crisis in the pivot
Wabe
February 4th, 2012
9:45 pm
Not much to talk about when it comes to the Hawks…
Another night, another peformance worth forgetting.
We’ve been talkin’ bout the same issues with the Hawks for years. They’re the epitome of ’same ish, different day’.
Will always pull for them, but I’m basically just waiting on the playoffs at this point.
BIG DOG
February 4th, 2012
9:46 pm
Here is the trade Sund.
http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=88npuzs
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
Slimjr
February 4th, 2012
9:46 pm
ICE WILL MELT AGAIN! BOOK IT DANO!
Big Lou
February 4th, 2012
9:46 pm
Tell me if Matt Ryan threw three interceptions during the pro bowl and got booed on his rookie year? LMAO
Walt Frazier
February 4th, 2012
9:46 pm
You gotta give Philly credit-they been beaten up on a lot of decent teams lately, except Miami. IMHO, we need to part ways with Al Holford and get a decent scorer who is a center that can play smalll forward. The Hawks play like warriors on the road, but play like marhmellows at the Phillips. Somebody, please get that jokster lemonhead wanna be comedian Ryan Cameron out of that game announcer spot. We don’t need all that “that foul was offensive” crap. Why can’t they just hire an announcer who will just call the game and not try to entertain.
Big Lou
February 4th, 2012
9:48 pm
“It is clear that hinrich is affecting teague. Teague is not playing with the same confidence. I cant understand why we have not dealt hinrich’s expiring attractive expiring deal especially considering the team’s crisis in the pivot”
No. It’s not Hinrich, it’s LD. He benched Teague last night for making a couple mistakes the whole 3rd quarter. You don’t do that to your starting PG.
RA
February 4th, 2012
9:48 pm
Okay, first off, when a basketball blog turns into a football blog, even on Superbowl weekend, it’s not a good time for the home team. Question, can this team win as construed, yes. Can this team contend as construed, no way in hell. They can get to the playoffs, if more than one or two players show up to play on a nightly basis, but two things have to happen for them to get out of the first round. One, Al needs to come back, healthy, and two, they need to improve their frontline. You’ve got to get CONSISTANT scoring out of your forwards. They Hawks haven’t had that all year. One night Marvin will hit big, one night Josh will hit big, but there’s no consistancy. Ivan Johnson is our most inspired front liner, and he is horribly over matched against even average centers (as tonight’s game painfully illustrated). Za Za? Sometimes he shows up, sometimes he doesn’t. The Hawks have the same problems against weaker teams that they do against good ones, they don’t put 48 good minutes together. The difference, my friends, is that against the weaker teams, teams that phone it in instead of earning those exorbitant salaries, let you get away with playing like that. Five or six spurts of quality basketball isn’t going to beat Philly or Indiana. Let’s not even talk about Chicago and Miami at this point. Look, I’m a ride or die Hawks, third generation. I love that team and I’ll root for them to the bitter end, but it’s painful to see the same mistakes over and over again.
Slimjr
February 4th, 2012
9:48 pm
well at least we know now the loss to Memphis was not a fluke..Its a pattern like those sorry Falcons..can not beat the winners..
Pretenders they are, both organizations…..
Silmjr
February 4th, 2012
9:50 pm
I miss Vick so I’ll just hate on Ryan since yall sent my boy out !
Ole Hawks's Fan
February 4th, 2012
9:50 pm
The SUNS in next with a blow out of this clueless group of CORE PLAYERS! Now wait until you hear Josh on radio interview talking about why the Hawks LOST but not looking in the mirrow and seeing he is the reason this team SUCKS!
O'Brien
February 4th, 2012
9:51 pm
Great game by Teague. I’m sure he learned alot in practice the last 2 years
BIG DOG
February 4th, 2012
9:51 pm
Lakers need a point guard bad, this here is a good trade for both team Hinrich Josh for Walton Bynum, Hawks take on Walton bad contract plus get there legit center.
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
Big Lou
February 4th, 2012
9:52 pm
I wonder where Najeh went? Oh well, that’s what happens when a hater gets owned by throwing out BS stats.
“well at least we know now the loss to Memphis was not a fluke..Its a pattern like those sorry Falcons..can not beat the winners..
Pretenders they are, both organizations…..”
I agree. Yet, I like the Falcon’s chances better than the Hawks. Just because they have a solid owner, GM, and new coaching staff. At least they went out and spent money on a good DC, where the Hawks keep promoting crap assistant coaches. You might not like Matt Ryan, but they have WAY better management.
Ivan > Josh
February 4th, 2012
9:52 pm
Drew has no idea how to deal with point guards. Wasn’t he a PG back in the day too? SMFH
Rev in Tampa
February 4th, 2012
9:52 pm
Slimjr,
Good call on that prediction. Only one point shy. I picked the Hawks to win in a squeeker. LOL.
Dept. Of Unintended Irony
February 4th, 2012
9:52 pm
Walt Frazier
February 4th, 2012
9:46 pm
“IMHO, we need to part ways with Al Holford and get a decent scorer who is a center that can play smalll forward”
Huh? I think the Just For Men hair coloring is seeping into Walt’s brain, LOL.
Slimjr
February 4th, 2012
9:52 pm
Hey BIGLOU don’t get mad @ me cause your boy put up a doughnut in front of millions to see…LMAO!
BIG DOG
February 4th, 2012
9:54 pm
Teague, Joe, Marvin, Ivan, Bynum
Pargo, Green, Tmac, Vlad, Zaza
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
yodaddybrother
February 4th, 2012
9:55 pm
Matt Ryan is the 9th best QB in the league. However he fails to show up in the playoffs….he never takes the chance that even an Alex Smith would take.
I’m so tired of him checking down to the running back and not getting it done. You have Julio and Roddy along with Gonzalez.
Matt Ryan is also not athletic. He can’t scramble for a first down like Rodgers or Alex Smith (why does he keep coming up???)….heck he can’t even shift in the pocket to buy time like Brady and never escapes a sack like say Eli or Big Ben or even Drew Brees.
He will either check down to the RB, get sacked or throw it out of bounds if the initial read is not there. He can’t throw on the run, his deep ball is iffy at best and his overall arm strength is questionable.
He’s not a bad Qb though but I think the media overrates him a bit. He’s good but he isn’t amazing. For example, can you remember a game where he just flat out dominated? Ryan always has a good game but he never has a legendary performance or an unforgettable game.
Rusty
February 4th, 2012
9:55 pm
LD has done a great job in building JT’s confidence this year.
Big Lou
February 4th, 2012
9:55 pm
Slimjr
I’m not mad at you. I <3 you.
O'Brien
February 4th, 2012
9:56 pm
Let’s get back to basketall guys.
Josh was good on defense, turrible on offense. He needs to learn shot selection from Ivan Johnson. Speaking of which, great game from Ivan.
And good game from Teague. That’s about it for positives.
JJ needs to step up more often. Its one thing to have a great game against a Milwaukee, or Detroit. But where was he against the Spurs? Against Memphis? Both games against Philly?
And Josh has gone back to bad Josh (on offense),
Slimjr
February 4th, 2012
9:56 pm
Yeah Rev, its not looking good for our Hawks…
Looks like the month of February= out of the twilight zone and back to reality? lol
Sorta like last February 2011..They slid back down to mediocrity…..
doc
February 4th, 2012
9:56 pm
well i was there. the hawks had a game, reasonable crowd that didnt have a lot of sixer fans in it and they laid another egg. two players played, teague and ivan. sad to see the effort they put forth and the way they shot the ball.
yodaddybrother
February 4th, 2012
9:57 pm
why would the Lakers trade Andrew Bynum (All star center) for kirk hinrch?????
get outta here with the bogus trades
and Larry Drew was a backup point guard
Big Lou
February 4th, 2012
9:57 pm
“Matt Ryan is the 8th* best QB in the league. However he fails to show up in the playoffs….he never takes the chance that even an Alex Smith would take.”
Blame that on the conservative coaching staff. He took chances in the beginning and middle of the season, then they made him throw it away.
Harpie
February 4th, 2012
9:57 pm
Josh Smith and Larry Drew both turn my stomach….
Big Lou
February 4th, 2012
9:58 pm
“Let’s get back to basketall guys.” O’Brien
Let’s get back to spelling.
High-Tech Lynching
February 4th, 2012
9:59 pm
Steve Bartkowski > Matt Ryan
Crazy_88
February 4th, 2012
9:59 pm
One of the reasons I’m pissed about the Hawks losing this game to Philly is because they’re more than likely are going to be matched up with them in the first round. The Hawks do not want to see Miami, Chicago or the Pacers in the first round or else its a sweep. They need to be keeping their eye on Boston, Philly, Orlando..
Unfortunately by losing both games to Philly…Philly would have the home court advantage.
16-7 – 23 games out of 66 games are in the books..
Trade deadline is next month…what will the Hawks do ?
I think they will more than likely waive Stackhouse and Pargo…and hopefully sign 1 or 2 big men..I’m not sure I want to bank on Jason Collins coming back to help this squad…
My other thought is that LD should make it a point to give Tracy 10 shots per game…that’s the only way he’s going to get on an offensive roll. I can’t stand to see Joe and Josh constantly shoot and miss…
doc
February 4th, 2012
10:00 pm
yeah slimj, that was my concern the thud of fallling back to where we are really after the heights of january. just like last year.
Najeh Davenpoop
February 4th, 2012
10:01 pm
“Cam Newton lost the game versus the Falcons this year by throwing two interceptions, even though they had a 24 point lead at the half. Again, stop being a hater. I actually watch the Falcons games.”
I watch every Falcons game too. Yeah, he played poorly in that game. Doesn’t change the fact that he had a better statistical season this year than any rookie, and a better statistical season this year than Ryan has had yet.
Hollywould
February 4th, 2012
10:01 pm
Section 303, I know u are out there. Took this game to the bank. Hell, looking at the Hawks schedule I will double up, Hawks lose 3 of next 4. Try Again?
KBB
February 4th, 2012
10:01 pm
Marvina Williams suuuuuuuckks
Najeh Davenpoop
February 4th, 2012
10:01 pm
“I wonder where Najeh went? Oh well, that’s what happens when a hater gets owned by throwing out BS stats.”
I went to eat. I’m back. I’ll respond to your posts one by one.
The weakest argument in the book is to call anyone who disagrees with you a hater.
Ivan > Josh
February 4th, 2012
10:02 pm
Hawks would be more exciting if they fired Drew and let Ivan coach. I might buy season tix for that lol
Big Lou
February 4th, 2012
10:02 pm
“My other thought is that LD should make it a point to give Tracy 10 shots per game…that’s the only way he’s going to get on an offensive roll. I can’t stand to see Joe and Josh constantly shoot and miss…”
Josh is so busy chucking up bricks from the outside that he can’t even score in the paint anymore. Oh, and can somebody teach him how to make a FT?
Big Lou
February 4th, 2012
10:03 pm
“I watch every Falcons game too. Yeah, he played poorly in that game. Doesn’t change the fact that he had a better statistical season this year than any rookie, and a better statistical season this year than Ryan has had yet.”
That doesn’t make him a better QB. 17 interceptions is not acceptable!
hawkfan
February 4th, 2012
10:04 pm
well as bad as the magic have looked, if we continuing struggling, the magic can have a better record than us by next week and we might end up with a better road record than home one, but at the end of the day this month will help us in the playoffs knowing we have to focus and work hard to get a win and not face easier teams that will let you back in the game ala timberwolves, pistons, or bucks
Big Lou
February 4th, 2012
10:04 pm
“Hawks would be more exciting if they fired Drew and let Ivan coach. I might buy season tix for that lol”
HAHA! I can see Ivan punching Josh in the face for shooting up a brick.
Walt Frazier
February 4th, 2012
10:04 pm
You’ll probably heard, that K-Mart (Keynan Martin) agreed to terms with the LAC. The Hawks were one of several teams that were interested in him, but he chose the LAC. Now lets examine why. No one unrestricted superstar will want to come to Atlanta to “rescue” this organization-much less a superstar player. Remember, this is the team that was going to have new management and Sund was to be a gonner at this time. That is, before the deal fell through. We, the fans, may sometime want these things to transpire-but just like Shaq has said, Atlanta’s management sucks, and the ra ra feeling of wins got us drunk of good feelings-now reality has set in. Just like Anita Bakers song “No Fairy Tales”. Same ole Hawks, same Hawks Management, including Larry Drew, who shouda been long, long, gone. Tonight, he and his Hawks were outcoached, outplayed, and out-hustled. Oh, and how many points did the 120 MILLION DOLLAR man (richest contract in the all the NBA) get tonight? Was/is he a major factor in this home stand? The lockout should’ve cancelled the season. That would’ve been in the Hawks favor.
Ivan > Josh
February 4th, 2012
10:04 pm
“Trade deadline is next month…what will the Hawks do ?”
Nothing. Read the quotes about signing a big. They are chillin. So why assume they’ll do anything at the deadline? Pistons model! lol
Najeh Davenpoop
February 4th, 2012
10:04 pm
“Lets wait and see what he does. Need a bigger sample size. The league will have an entire season’s worth of tape on the dude next season. Lets hold off on declaring the dude one of the league’s best.”
I can respect this argument.
If you want to say Newton is not better than Ryan, I disagree, but that’s fine. But if you are going to take him out because he doesn’t win, you have to put Flacco in because he does win. Newton had the worst defense in the league this year. If Flacco wins because of his defense, Newton loses because of his defense.
Draft history
February 4th, 2012
10:05 pm
The hawks will always struggle with long, physical teams. Why?
Because the hawks are not long or physical! And the hawks dont have a philosophy of developing bigmen, particularily centers.
Bigmen usually bring toughness and easy buckets. No surprise that the hawks lack toughness, easy buckets.
Again hawes and vucic, 2 good but not all star centers, feasted on the hawks 29 points on 14/21 shooting.