Hawks 89, Magic 87 (OT)
Orlando–Before getting to everything the Hawks did wrong while blowing a lead before pulling out the W, let me take a minute to point out something that’s pretty remarkable.
- After a period in which it seemed as if the Hawks would never beat the Magic as long as Dwight Howard was around, it’s now to the point where the Magic can’t want anything to do with the Hawks. “I don’t think anyone in this locker room will ever forget what Orlando did to us in the playoffs a couple of years ago,” Marvin Williams said.
- The Hawks seem to have solved the Magic riddle and it’s really something to see. This time the Hawks beat Orlando without All-Star Al Horford, Magic slayer Jamal Crawford and Dwight stopper Jason Collins. They have two centers who have proven to frustrate Dwight. They give Orlando problems with their size all over the court, which Stan Van Gundy noted pregame is what tends to happen to his team. They outplayed Orlando when it was small vs. small, too.
- And now the Hawks win regularly in Orlando. Maybe it’s the new building. “Early on in my career the margin of defeat here was probably 30 or 25 points,” Josh Smith said. “Being able to get established here and be in every ball game of late, it definitely shows you the growth of this basketball team.”
- I think that’s a perfect segue into all the things the Hawks did wrong after they took the 78-70 lead with 2:26 to play. The Hawks had four more possessions in regulation and each one of them involved lots of dribbling and no clear plan of attack. This came after three straight possessions in which Josh scored two baskets and earned two free throws by aggressively driving to the rim.
- Jeff Teague actually shook free for a decent look that missed but only after a confused possession. On the next trip down, Teague rushed a 10-footer after a similarly scrambled possession. Joe Johnson then missed a challenged Iso jumper. And, finally, Josh missed a 20-footer after a timid attempt by Teague to run a pick-and-roll with him.
- “I thought we had some good looks,” Larry Drew said. “I think maybe one play we just didn’t execute it very well. We probably lost a little bit of our aggression when they made a run, particularly off the dribble on the attack. I thought we kind of settled toward the end of regulation. You have got to keep your aggression.”
- While Atlanta was squandering those possessions, Hedo Turkoglu and Jameer Nelson were easily getting to the basket for scores. And then Drew used some strange strategy on Orlando’s final possession of regulation.
- Drew subbed Willie Green for Zaza Pachulia, who had done an admirable job tangling with Dwight. He also swapped Tracy McGrady for Teague and, anticipating a Nelson-Howard screen-roll, put Johnson on Nelson and Smith on Howard. Not only that, Drew had Smith and Johnson switch on each screen.
- Nelson, not surprisingly, got by Johnson. That forced Smith to help, leaving Howard to dunk home the miss as there was no other Hawks player capable of sliding over to keep Howard away from the basket.
- Drew: “Jameer had gotten away from us a few times and we wanted to try, if be in a switchable situation, we put Josh on Howard and put Joe on the ball so it’s a bigger guy to wrestle Howard into the paint area. I thought we did a good job with it, we just didn’t finish it up. You take some gambles. I thought for the most part our coverages were good.”
- Smith: “We just knew that Dwight was going to come up for screen-and-roll and we didn’t want Teague rolling down on Dwight. That would have been just an impossible matchup to even contest if they threw it down low to Dwight. Jameer did what he had to do. Jameer got it up on the rim and no one came over to push Dwight under the rim and he got the tip dunk.”
- Give the Hawks credit for recovering from that sequence of events to win even after Turkoglu opened the overtime with a 3. Joe’s runner and turnaround J were the daggers. Or at least they could have been if he hadn’t later missed on a bad iso possession, Smith hadn’t turned it over under the basket and Marvin and Zaza had made both free-throw attempts on trips to the line.
- The Hawks won, though, to improve to 5-7 vs. opponents with winning records and 11-5 without Al. “I was a little concerned I thought our guys would come out flat for overtime,” Drew said. “They proved me wrong.”
- Josh had 23 points but needed 22 shots to do it. It was his rebounding that carried the Hawks. He really did a good job sealing off the glass for 19 boards and got his hands on several other misses.
- Every player has weaknesses. It just so often seems as if Smith’s twin bugaboos of suspect shot selection and looseness with the ball come at the worst times. And so it goes that he led the Hawks to victory at the same time he helped them nearly give it away.
- “I was getting some play calls tonight,” he said. “I wanted to be efficient down low on the block. I think I did a good job with that. I took what the defense gave me tonight.”
- Actually, he took what the Magic didn’t want to give him before being enticed into settling for what they wanted him to have. He also let Ryan Anderson get loose. But, in the final analysis, Josh was The Man. “When you see a stat line like that, it speaks for itself,” Marvin said. “Without him, we don’t win this game.”
- Josh was done talking about the All-Star snub. He said earlier today it doesn’t motivate him but I don’t think anyone is buying that. Drew: “This kid has had a remarkable first part of the year. He just impacts the game on both ends of the floor. He should have been there. It’s unfortunate the voting went that way. He’s a guy who if he just keeps playing the way he’s playing, it will happen. They passed him up this year.”
- Zaza was excellent: nine points on six shots, 10 rebounds, no turnovers. Like Collins, he figured out that sometimes the best way to defend Dwight is to back off a bit and let him start his move before poking at the ball.
- Joe didn’t shoot it well. He was good when he made quick decisions and passed out of double teams.
- Marvin played 35 minutes did what he should do: Make the open shots when the ball swings around to him. He also had six rebounds, three assists and no turnovers.
- Teague (13 points on 11 shots) was in scoring mode most of the night. He played spirited defense on the ball most of the way (three steals) but his intensity appeared to wane down the stretch.
- Tonight it was Tracy McGrady, Scorer (9 points on 7 shots). He spent a lot of time frantically waving for his teammates to throw him the ball in the post so he could abuse Chris Duhon and Quentin Richardson.
- Erick Dampier had two rebounds in 1:46. He sealed off Dwight for both of them. That’s a successful debut.
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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216 comments Add your comment
James
February 10th, 2012
11:31 pm
Go Hawks!
James
February 10th, 2012
11:32 pm
(and first)
Najeh Davenpoop
February 10th, 2012
11:37 pm
“He also let Ryan Anderson get loose. ”
Maybe I’m wrong, but from my recollection, Anderson really only got loose in the 4th quarter, and a good chunk of that was against Ivan.
Adam
February 10th, 2012
11:37 pm
Joe Johnson’s MVP run continued tonight. He owns each and every one of you.
Zach Blend
February 10th, 2012
11:39 pm
Great team W!! Total team effort!! We never lost hope!! Big Damp did his job!! Let’s make the most of Sunday night!!
Reggie
February 10th, 2012
11:42 pm
The 2 minutes Dampier played was enough time to convince me that we don’t need Jason Collins anymore.
Grandmaster JeJe (GM)
February 10th, 2012
11:45 pm
The Bulls are the 1 seed. Why should we have 2 All Stars and them not? Why should we have 2 All Stars and Philly 0 if they are higher in the standings than us? I am not a fan of Iguodala’s offensive game, but obviously he is an elite defender, and Ron Artest has made an All Star game too.
Smoove was stupid for calling out the coaches. He also said this is the best he’s played but look at his percentages. He is digging himself a hole.
AND LD, CALL SOME DAMN PLAYS IN THE 4TH QTR.
ENOUGH ISO-JOE AND JOSH’S HIDEOUS JUMP SHOOTING
STOP TAKING JUMPSHOTS JOSH
Michael Gearon, Jr.
February 10th, 2012
11:46 pm
That’s right… ERICK DAMPIER, YOU SNITCHES.
LT
February 10th, 2012
11:49 pm
“Erick Dampier had two rebounds in 1:46. He sealed off Dwight for both of them. That’s a successful debut”
LOL!
High-Tech Lynching
February 10th, 2012
11:50 pm
ninth?
Slimjr
February 10th, 2012
11:51 pm
Damp looks more in shape than Collins does just from the eyeball test! Hahah…
Slimjr
February 10th, 2012
11:53 pm
You cant go cold in the last 3:38 of the 4th and expect to pull these games out.. 9 out of 10 times you lose…I’m just saying…..
We need another scorer…..
Slimjr
February 10th, 2012
11:54 pm
Guess we could have used Jamal on a night like this to go up by 10 and seal the victory in regulation?
J.J.M.
February 10th, 2012
11:55 pm
damn they said blue ivy carter is jeremy lin daughter lmfao
Slimjr
February 10th, 2012
11:55 pm
Wish Josh had an NBA jumpshot for real! An Allstar shoe in he would be..(yoda voice)
High-Tech Lynching
February 10th, 2012
11:56 pm
Repost FTPB:
High-Tech Lynching
February 10th, 2012
11:37 pm
RCP [Rod from College Park],
In all fairness and since the Sixers are playing at a high level within the Eastern Conference, at least one Sixers’ player should make [or be on] the All-Star team. [Danny] Granger and/or Josh [Smith] should be on the All-Star team instead of Deron Williams and/or Carmelo Anthony.
Slimjr
February 10th, 2012
11:57 pm
Ms Carter sure looks top heavy..Awesome! Hahaha…..
dapluva!
February 10th, 2012
11:59 pm
We need to be confident and focused playing the heat sunday night. I think we can do it.
Kontract
February 11th, 2012
12:00 am
2 things of note: Hawks gettin stronger and Howard’s Magic dwindling.
doc
February 11th, 2012
12:01 am
brought over:
doc
February 10th, 2012
11:52 pm
iggy 13/7/5/2 is nothing to sneeze at on a team that has 6 scorers avg double figures. deng is 16/7/3. not that mush spread when you look at the totality of what a coach might look at. of those i say melo is the one who shouldnt be there even though his numbers are better but he is because he brings in the advertising bucks.
sadly i think and said this east team, within thirty minutes of the announcment of the team and josh got the short end of the deal, is very imbalanced as they have about five sf and josh is a pf. iggy is more a two than a three and choked the air out of jj with his defense.
i dont understand how they composed the team and that is where josh got shafted. melo got numbers for sure and a lot of street cred that i have always found suspect. when denver escorted him out of town and karl had the cat ate canary smile i thought right there melo was way over rated as a team guy. hibbert was there as was al in the past because there is no height in the east.
as much as i rag on josh it is because his flaws are soo overbearing and it just jumps in your face. rod i hear you though again i say, he shot himself in the foot at close range where he needs to stay on the court to become what i have long said he needs to be as a smash not the smoo sh!t i still cant say it. smoove is for a jazz player with a rhythm all his own and josh has none of that. now nique was flat out smoove. there is no glide in josh though he can flat out fly. i love the guy and when he brings it fine but sometimes a guy who is a year older than him and a rookie shows more interest in the game than he does and that just shouldnt ever happen. that never happens to say a kobe.
also rod, you are comparing josh to two hall of famers? comon man man. one, it was a different era and what was acceptable and two those guys as sorry as they were off the court brought it all every night as rodman avg 20 bounds and flat out took the other guys best on defense and crippled him one on one and not as a help defender.
sorry josh isnt quite there as they were every night full bore and i dont think josh is a shoe in as a hof but like jj and all though some may laugh when their full body of work is in and if they were to get to an ecf or two might end up in the hall.
Najeh Davenpoop
February 11th, 2012
12:02 am
“You cant go cold in the last 3:38 of the 4th and expect to pull these games out.. 9 out of 10 times you lose…I’m just saying…..
We need another scorer…..”
Maybe, but as far as this game is concerned, they just needed to stick with what’s working. As long as they were posting up Josh, they were maintaining their 7 point lead. As soon as they went away from that and went to the 1-2 screen to set up iso-Joe, the offense stalled.
Section 303
February 11th, 2012
12:06 am
I dislike Dwight Howard even more than I dislike LeBron and Wade. Love how Zaza just takes Howard out of his comfort zone.
The game never should have gotten to OT, win is a win. I was right there with LD. I thought the Hawks would come out flat in the OT. Marvin Williams hitting the tying 3 in OT was huge.
Officiating was awful down the stretch. Howard is allowed to illegal screen at will and Hinrich was mugged, setting up the Magic’s final shot.
18-9…not bad! Schedule is brutal this month. Every win counts.
doc
February 11th, 2012
12:09 am
MC:
Every player has weaknesses. It just so often seems as if Smith’s twin bugaboos of suspect shot selection and looseness with the ball come at the worst times. And so it goes that he led the Hawks to victory at the same time he helped them nearly give it away.
classic and what drives me crazy.
Slimjr
February 11th, 2012
12:10 am
ZaZa did a fantastic job against D12′…Hands clapping Sir!
Slimjr
February 11th, 2012
12:19 am
Lets face it Josh does not have to offensive firepower or polish to closeout games. Thats iso job…But I have to say this, the REF were terrible tonight..The Josh got fouled in the post by Richardson and the ball went off Josh near the end of regulation….
He should have went to the free throw line and closed out the game in regulation…
Sterns boys really wanted Orlando to pull it out with the no calls and phantom fouls…Brutal the Refs were….
doc
February 11th, 2012
12:21 am
meanwhile, jc2 shoots 2/12 for 6 points. much rather have willie green/kirk hinrich as back up 2 than that ish. so northcyde still posting him on his fantasy team? need sure things in fantasy league, consistency is key.
Buddy Grizzard
February 11th, 2012
12:23 am
“I think maybe one play we just didn’t execute it very well.”
I think maybe LD has no clue what went wrong or what the play was supposed to be or why he manages late game situations so poorly. I think maybe if it was SVG or Thibs or any number of coaches they could tell you down to the minutest detail what went wrong. I just don’t think LD is a good enough coach to do that.
Najeh Davenpoop
February 11th, 2012
12:26 am
From the ESPN comment section:
I think the most tiresome thing is SVG talking about “energy”. Every year, regardless of the players, its the same sorry critique. Honestly, I don’t think he knows what he is doing. That’s why Dwight wants to leave. He wants to play for a real coach
Sounds familiar, huh?
Buddy Grizzard
February 11th, 2012
12:33 am
“ZaZa did a fantastic job against D12′…Hands clapping Sir!”
Jedi Master Slimjr, that makes D12, Marc Gasol and Hibbits that Zaza has faced this month. Embarrassed he is not!
Katie
February 11th, 2012
12:39 am
I wonder what superiorblogman has to say about Josh and his play in this game…
He’ll still claim he’s the worst player ever! Lmfao!
Buddy Grizzard
February 11th, 2012
12:44 am
LIN-SANITY! 38 POINTS!
Grandad
February 11th, 2012
12:55 am
Najeh
“but from my recollection,
Anderson really only got loose in the 4th quarter,
and a good chunk of that was against Ivan”
Ivan only played 6 min. -the whole game-
Ryan Anderson had 21 pts; 9 rebs -with- 6 off. boards.
Kinda hard to blame Ivan for all that.
Grandad
February 11th, 2012
1:05 am
I shall say once more:
Tracy McGrady is our Best Post Player.
High-Tech Lynching
February 11th, 2012
1:06 am
I personally like the nickname “The Linja” for Jeremy Lin; [you] get it…ninja, Linja.
Grandad
February 11th, 2012
1:07 am
Tracy McGrady is our Best Post Player
Grandad
February 11th, 2012
1:08 am
Tracy McGrady is our Best Post Player.
-offense-
Grandad
February 11th, 2012
1:08 am
finally
doc
February 11th, 2012
1:09 am
heh heh @ gdad, memory does funny things when compared to facts, eh?
drew sometimes just blows me away as with his comments about our last four possessions in reg time. man we were lucky to get out of there with a victory reminiscent of losses to the heat and bulls earlier in the season.
Big Lou
February 11th, 2012
1:47 am
You cant go cold in the last 3:38 of the 4th and expect to pull these games out.. 9 out of 10 times you lose…I’m just saying…..
We need another scorer….. Slimjr
No. We need better offensive play calling. They went ISO Joe, and then screwed up on a lob to end regulation. When they pass the ball around, they get open shots. It’s not rocket science. They do it ALL THE TIME!
11 day contract
February 11th, 2012
1:59 am
Grandad
February 11th, 2012
1:07 am
Tracy McGrady is our Best Post Player
LinkReport this comment
Co-sign
Tmac cant be stopped on the block. Longer than most defenders, good passer, still quick, asssortment of moves
11 day contract
February 11th, 2012
2:00 am
Very good win.
Nice 2 minutes of work by dampier
11 day contract
February 11th, 2012
2:03 am
Need to run a lot of offense through tmac when hes on the floor.
Huge contribution fom marvin
Buddy Grizzard
February 11th, 2012
2:15 am
“Sounds familiar, huh?”
The Apprentice of Panic been takin notes!
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February 11th, 2012
2:36 am
[...] “I don't believe everyone in this locker space will ever forget … Study much more on Atlanta Journal Constitution (weblog) Shakespeare One-Piece Medium Heavy Action Ugly Stik Catfish Spinning Rod, [...]
jerry
February 11th, 2012
2:53 am
Tmac has really suprised me. His post play is like a well established PF or a Center. He has a variety of different movres and is a master at drawing contact. We all knew he was a masterfull passer, but his post work is top notch.
Reggie
February 11th, 2012
3:15 am
Najeh Davenpoop at 10:54 PM February 10, 2012
How you like them Birdbrains now, Mike Bianchi? Josh Smith looking pretty good, huh? Hey Magic, since Dwight is gone anyway, how about you send him home to ATL and we’ll give you Horford in return. GO HAWKS
LOL… I went to Orlando Sentinel web page to trash talk and Najeh beat me to it…there sports page is terrible, they only had like 20 connents from the fans. Atlanta is where the best and most passionate fans reside…Rob Parker you sir are an idiot, just keep you day job as Skip Bayless’s spineless pet
hittman jamillion
February 11th, 2012
3:30 am
Because JEJE the bulls are a oneman band and the sixers dont have any standout players. It was obvious every tnt analyst had josh as a allstar unanimous not jj. But you guys dislike him so much you cant see the forest for the trees.
tyger
February 11th, 2012
7:20 am
So, what have we learned…
- Hawks can beat good +.500 teams on the road…
- Will lose at home, repeatedly…
- Recognize they have to play hard all the time?….
- All-star snub works in our favor…
- A pissed Josh is a more focused Josh…
- Josh needs to focus…
- Hawks still mentally fragile, can’t put teams away…
- This game never should’ve been close…
- Did not play smart down stretch of regulation…
- Need to focus on a “closing” squad…
-T-Mac more than a hood ornament…
-T-Mac shows up 2 games, 2 wins…
-T-Mac should “close-out” games, smartest player…
- Teague single-handedly threw the game away…
- He has no peripheral vision, once he dives, he dives…
- He cant “close” games, Marvin either…
- Outta be a good one in the “A” Sunday night….
Cwebb
February 11th, 2012
7:43 am
Hittman jamillion
Every tnt analysts had JJ as an allstar too. He is a guard btw… A lot of people act as if Joe stole a selection from Josh
BruceG
February 11th, 2012
7:46 am
What about Kirk!? Even Duane Ferrell was talking about how well he was doing and how he wanted to be in the game. Heinrich was a big factor leading the second unit.
tjhook
February 11th, 2012
8:51 am
Can the Hawks’ bloggers consider a trade for Tony Parker? I like Teague but I want a player who can run the offense late without deferring to veteran influence. Joe would have to learn to play off the ball.
doc
February 11th, 2012
9:10 am
anyone notice how well woody’s defense worked last night with a competent point guard or was it dantoni’s offense?
fun game and kid to watch. love these types of stories. go j lin.
doc
February 11th, 2012
9:21 am
interesting, j lin has tommy amaker imprint as his former coach at harvard from 2007 on.
http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/basketball/news;_ylt=Aigj6jkJRkg1JDaqpGdF3OO8vLYF?slug=mh-huguenin_jeremy_lin_harvard_
soullrenaissance
February 11th, 2012
9:27 am
Maybe Erik Dampier will prove Shaq wrong and not be “Erika Dampier” this year.
Thanks for snubbing Josh Smith NBA, he snagged more rebounds than D12 last night. Post play was superb.
Throwback TMac was excellent in the post as well.
JLin ate Fisher’s breakfast lunch and dinner. Carmelo goes down-Knick go on a run.
doc
February 11th, 2012
9:56 am
melo will not be the man nor are lin’s playmates going to allow it. it could be interesting when melo gets back. as far as amare? he is probably chomping at the bit to play with a guy who will pick and roll all night long with him. throw in some energetic twos like douglas and shumpert among others like landry and it could be tough sledding for our guys from atl and tighten up the race if the celts win more of the games they should, now having lost to the cavs and raptors within two weeks.
woody’s head coaching job might have to wait a bit as well.
Hawks Fan Down Under
February 11th, 2012
10:09 am
Josh Smith……so much ability….such bad shot selection……..an All-Star you will not be.
O'Brien
February 11th, 2012
10:29 am
Doc,
Bibby (your boy
)is shooting 29% from the field, 27% from 3.
O'Brien
February 11th, 2012
10:34 am
Josh should have more highlight plays like Blake Griffin and Shawn Kemp. But he doesn’t know how to play to his strengths consistently. WithHorford out, I think Josh could average 18-20 pts, 10-12 rebs. Why doesn’t he? His mentality (and LD to a lesser extent).
That being said, I don’t think that should have kept him out of the all-star game.
O'Brien
February 11th, 2012
10:35 am
Going to Josh was working. But when the game got tight, we go Iso-JJ. JJ is not that kind of player (especially against good teams). If we’re going to go to him, we need to get him the ball in spots where he is more effective.
LD is slightly improved over last year, but I am still not impressed.
O'Brien
February 11th, 2012
10:35 am
NFL coaches do this all the time. Their normal defense is effective the entire game, but when the game is on the line, they go to a prevent defense. Stick to what works!
GEN MANAGER
February 11th, 2012
10:38 am
BIG UPS TO ZA ZA EXCELLENT JOB ON CONTAINING AND FRUSTRATING DWIGHT,MIGHT BE THE MOST OVERLOOKED PART OF THE HAWKS VICTORY LAST NIGHT.
Negarito
February 11th, 2012
10:50 am
Grandad Smokes the most weed on this blog page, Ill say it again, Grandad smokes the most weed on this blog page. – finally-
Can anyone tell me what the status is on FORMER all star Al, Horford? Is he getting is in shape to prepare to be traded, or is he milking the injury in hope he can sneak out another year? Is he studying new ways to help the other teams dunk on him? What the hell is going on with Al. Is there any teams any where in any country that’s interested in this slacker? We need to get something for our millions instead 10ppg 7rbs playoff records, playoff ending injuries coupled with season ending injuries.
Is Al trade ready ?
Negarito
February 11th, 2012
10:58 am
Zaza has been playing…. well Zaza. Most people over look the fact that Zaza was the starter when Slacker Al arrived. Between Z and Al, Z is better, not because of talent but because of heart. Al has no heart.
Al is like the Tin Man of Oz. and Teague is like the Scarecrow with no brain. So why dont we send them to Ozlando?
Dawg
February 11th, 2012
11:05 am
How is Al progressing in his rehab?
Negarito
February 11th, 2012
11:05 am
If Zaza had to face Al if Al was on another team Zaza would fck Al up…LMAO
Negarito
February 11th, 2012
11:06 am
What rehab? Al is humping ms camel toe.
Tin Man & Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
11:17 am
Quite clearly Josh is the bread and butter of this team and Marvin JJ and Josh + Zaza blend well together. I dont know that Al fits in here any more an would only slow the fluidity of the hawks. Plus all that complaining trick chit Al and his dad like to does takes the focus off the game. So Negarito is on point Time to ship the Tin man and throw in the Scarecrow for Dwight Howard.
terrell
February 11th, 2012
11:17 am
Tell Al to stay at home Sunday. They play better when he’s not on the bench. lol
terrell
February 11th, 2012
11:24 am
Melo ana Allstar THIS YEAR? lol. Knicjs playing better without him. Just like Denver did.
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
11:29 am
@ doc 12:21 am post
Wrong.
Willie and Kirk aren’t guaranteed to play 20 minutes a night. Jordan is. And I know that as a reserve guard, Jordan will put up enough supplemental stats to help our squad.
The 2 – 12 last night was as poor as he played in a while. He’d actually been pretty solid for the past 2 weeks.
With the lack of starter quality players on my squad, I had to find bench guys who will get minutes plus provide the supplemental stats to help the team. Guys like Jordan, Marvin, Jonas Jerebko, Sam Dalembert and Brandon Rush do just that.
As long as my heavy hitters ( Westbrook, Kyrie Irving, David Lee, Andrew Bynum, and Pau Gasol
i_am_soulstar
February 11th, 2012
11:32 am
MC,
Who was Josh waving at at the end of the game? Looked like he was taunting someone, saying “I love you.” Was it Jameer? I know the Hawks nation still hasn’t forgiven him for that stupid and thoughtless comment.
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
11:38 am
Damn Android phone.
As long as those guys continue to produce, with OJ Mayo being my 6th man off the bench, we’ll be fine.
I had to find the right mix. That’s why I made all of those moves. My last move will be to decide what to do with Eric Gordon. He’s the big gun that could help me in the 2nd half of the season. But I can’t wait until mid-march for him to come back either.
Like I said a few weeks ago. If I can get into the playoffs, I’m going to win it. I got the right mix of everything now to win. Just gotta keep people healthy.
doc
February 11th, 2012
11:39 am
o’b, yeah, believe it or not i was checking on him and his “progress”. he still does his little bump well though, hasnt lost all of his game.
i also think bibby is one of the reasons dampier had so little burn time at the end of the season as he couldnt cover for his point guards immobility that was as bad if not worse than his own. this is not a knock but truth. after we got dampier and he looked a h3ll of a lot better than it thought he would, i was thinking why dampier was suddenly sitting after putting up regular and decent numbers for a guy his age? if i were the coach i would have had to do the same thing against teams with quick guards. also udonis got well to help with the quickness but played out of position a lot.
remember, queen said they could cover for bibby, implying jj, al and osh were not as good as them. just for that, i would have beaten their azzes or died trying if in the hawks shoes. i think they also had to out the stiff dampier on the trash pile. yeah read it and then go out and pile on them hawks, your chance on sunday, damp you, too, revenge time.
dept i think i got it and used too appropriately. yeah i know i did. the one that gets me is your vs you’re.
take the test:
http://www.english-zone.com/verbs/your1.html
anyway back to bball.
does anyone know my distaste for the queen as i am really not too caught up in grammar police on a blog, anymore than punctuation police or spelling police, unless there is unintended irony or innuendo associated with it? queen has been a little more humble this year, i might add. his response to bird saying he would rather play with kobe was, “well, i guess that is true. i dont have five rings on my finger. ”
not sure but i think bird said if he were playing with queen he would take fewer more shots. it was a reference to some star just not sure who. heh heh
now if osh would just take a little taste of umble pie.
Grandmaster JeJe (GM)
February 11th, 2012
11:40 am
Lin saved D’Antoni’s job.
I love seeing Knicks win with Melo out. Amazing feeling
i_am_soulstar
February 11th, 2012
11:44 am
My sole complaint for the past few games is that besides the Pacers game, Hinrich has not been playing well. That being said, if Pargo was playing well before Hinrich’s return, why doesn’t Larry Drew keep playing Pargo until Kirk gets his life together?
Tin Man & Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
11:53 am
Hawks play better with Hinrich than with fatigue.
Trade fatigue With Al for D12
doc
February 11th, 2012
11:53 am
well northcyde, from what i read last week from the grandmaster poopah you are suffering in the league and the commissioners requests to check in on the rules as you make fantasy world making trade after trade, so something aint working. if he is one of your mainstays check amazon for “playing fantasy basketball for dummies”. he is bad on a very bad team with percentages that make me shudder as he throws shots. he would kill the hawks and be a shorter version of vlad who should stay on the bench for now. actually, i was talking about having green and kirk in real time not fantasy rather than a rally killer like jc2. but glad to know you got it figured out.
beware of all your fantasy plans. the last two weeks of the basketball season is like golf silly season when you have your playoffs in the fantasy world is impossible to predict. just a little warning. for all you know, those guys may be on the bench doing nothing because their team had clinched. actually you got a point, that might be when a jc2 shines in fantasy bball because he again is playing on a bad team. remember even shels and salim looked like world beaters then.
o’b jj at the end of games to be more effective as an offense on the whole and jj, he has to get the ball like pierce and certainly allen get the ball in those situations off the pass. that takes the coach trusting the point guard though.
doc
February 11th, 2012
11:57 am
yes grandmaster it was a pleasure watch last night and as i mentioned earlier woody gets to stay an assistant coach on a team that plays offense with ball movement. he also gets to keep his job because he has a point guard that can move and a center that is a real dealer of rejections not because of his switching defense sure to fail. melo has been warned by chandler he will have to adjust to the team not them to melo. even d’antoni mentioned he now has a team with lin running the show.
rk
February 11th, 2012
11:58 am
I now know what people mean by free the Teague. Josh just will not give him the ball after a rebound. I believe Josh when he says he can’t play any better than he is playing now. He played to long with coaches who did not know how to develop him. He actually thinks he is playing at allstar level. He is as good as he ever will be. Drew needs to free the Teague.
doc
February 11th, 2012
11:58 am
ncyde your android is better than my iphone.
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
12:24 pm
As for the game last night, I can’t say enough about the job that Smit did on the boards. And in the 2nd half, he actually played to the advantage he had in that game in the post. With JJ being off most of the game, he did exactly what he needed to do to win that game.
Smh @ Drew for going away from him in those final 2 minutes.
And props to Marvin’s threes. All at the right time. LOL @ Rod in OT saying “why is Marvin in the game?”. Then he almost immediately knocks down a big 3 off of a JJ pass. He then had to give him props for the good shot.
I’m just glad that Drew played him enough for him to affect the game. Marvin did a good job guarding Ryan Anderson too. Drew also recognized that Zaza was holding his own vs Dwight, and played him major minutes. That’s what Drew needs to do from now on. If a guy is playing well and helping the team, play that man.
But last night was about Smith. That was his statement game to the league. But to really change the perception of him, he needs to play well, but under control vs the big name teams on national TV. Make Bosh defend you at the rim, not out by the 3 point line.
doc
February 11th, 2012
12:54 pm
@ northcyde … that’s riiight.
Jcard120
February 11th, 2012
1:10 pm
This team is stacked!
High-Tech Lynching
February 11th, 2012
1:20 pm
Slimjr,
Are you going to start calling Jeremy Lin “The Real Grasshopper” or “The Yellow Mamba”? I have another question for you. Are you “Negarito” and “Tin Man & Scarecrow” because, if you are, you are on your way to having more personalities [or identities] than Sybil.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sybil_(book)
Ken Strickland
February 11th, 2012
1:24 pm
The question that I have is what will the Hawks do with Dampier when Collins returns? Will he or Stackhouse be waved or placed on the inactive list.
J.J.M.
February 11th, 2012
1:35 pm
best article ever
http://www.shattertheglass.com/2012/02/smith-proves-to-be-a-deserving-all-star/
Big Lou
February 11th, 2012
1:44 pm
“The question that I have is what will the Hawks do with Dampier when Collins returns? Will he or Stackhouse be waved or placed on the inactive list.” – Ken
I guess that they will have to see how he performs first.
ryan
February 11th, 2012
1:45 pm
Will Jeremy Lin still be with Knicks when Mello and Staoudamire come back i think every team will take a look at this kid now i hope the Hawks is one of them .
Grandad
February 11th, 2012
2:04 pm
Negarito is my man Hatter !
phil
February 11th, 2012
2:37 pm
Nice win. Nice numbers for Josh, but the shot selection issues ultimately doom us unless corrected.
Track record, however, makes it clear they won’t be corrected.
darrell starks
February 11th, 2012
2:39 pm
Ken Strickland when Collins return i believe Stack should be move to players assistant coach, he is a player who could help with experience and knowledge of game, keeping him around will benefit the Hawks come playoffs.
GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
darrell starks
February 11th, 2012
2:44 pm
Josh was awesome last knight playing inside out, but my game ball go Zaza the best game he played all year by being physical with Dwight and keeping him from dominating inside the paint, good game for both JOSH AND ZAZA.
GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Grandad
February 11th, 2012
2:45 pm
Now then:
LD; (whom I have been congratulatory for Coach-Growth)
must grow more abundantly in late game situations.
He [LD] reverts back to his mentor;
who [Woody] is way less “accomplished” as an offensive mind.
Therefore;
why does LD continue to run Iso-J, to close out games ?
*[that was a rhetorical question]
____________________________________________
No one asked, but I’m gonna tell you anyway:
Line-up to close:
Kirk & Teaguer + Joe
T-Mac -Plus- (V-Rad / Josh) off. / def.
Reasoning:
3 guards = ballhandling & FTs
V-Rad > Josh on off. ballhandling (less TOs) & space floor.
T-Mac = POST
Double High set / V-Rad -&- T-Mac
Defense possible substitutions:
Zaza or Ivan for T-Mac = situational only.
** Josh for V-Rad as mentioned ^ above ^ ** = not situational
*** Every trip down the court on offense would have one objective:
T-Mac must touch the ball in the post
before anyone else would be allowed to shoot. period.
This would guarantee a good shot with T-Mac the facilitator.
Bam … G-dad the Coach @ work.
____________________________________________
Rather than just lampooning LD;
this is logical, constructive criticism with sound reasoning.
darrell starks
February 11th, 2012
2:45 pm
Dampier also was solid.
GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!
darrell starks
February 11th, 2012
2:49 pm
Tmac should always close games out with Marvin on bench in the 4quarter.
TEAGUE, JOE, TMAC, JOSH, ZAZA.
should close out games.
GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Rufus1
February 11th, 2012
2:54 pm
Balance..
9-4 at Home 9-5 on the Road
The Truth
February 11th, 2012
3:00 pm
“And props to Marvin’s threes. All at the right time. LOL @ Rod in OT saying “why is Marvin in the game?”. Then he almost immediately knocks down a big 3 off of a JJ pass. He then had to give him props for the good shot” – northcyde
LOL If Marvin continue this trend, we may have to call him Mr. Big Shot since it seems to be in his DNA and that dates back to his college days at UNC.I just wish he would be more active creating offensive opportunities for myself. But because of LD system and Marvin’s role, his game can’t be measured in stat totals but overall game impact. Glue guys like Marvin can have pedestrian numbers with minimum minutes. But when they hit timly-3 to win games (for example) the stats will not show the importance, just their overall pedestrian numbers.
darrell starks
February 11th, 2012
3:13 pm
The Truth me and you both have watch extensively majority of the Hawks game, wouldn’t Tmac benefit the Hawks better closing out games better than Marvin who have underachieve his entire career, just one man opinion lol!!!!!!!!!!!!! at Rod from CP.
GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Michael Gearon, Jr.
February 11th, 2012
3:21 pm
Not seeing enough Dampier love in here.
Rod from College Park
February 11th, 2012
3:25 pm
Marv made a big shot last night, but TMac should have been in the game. He and Josh were unstoppable in the post, and I am almost sure that if TMac was in the game the last five minutes, we would have not gone almost 4 minutes without scoring to close the game Marv would have never needed to hit that shot. TMac knows how to take advantage of mismatches, and even if he does not get a shot, he will make an easier shot for JJ.
STRETCH
February 11th, 2012
3:29 pm
HINRICH FOR VAREJO straight up!
http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=7mwc748
Geemack
February 11th, 2012
3:47 pm
Lose tomorrow to the Heat at home, and this win means nothing.
Rufus1
February 11th, 2012
3:52 pm
Wow…
The Hawks are back to 3rd in the East…
brigadierjerry
February 11th, 2012
4:02 pm
It was interesting watching Lin against the Lakers last night. He has a broad appeal due to he is Asian. I work with some Asian co-workers and they do not even watch basketball and they were talking about Jeremy Lin. The thing is he can play is a smart heady player and has made the Knicks much more enjoyable to watch. Lakers arent as good as years past and they are a quality team and look at the lineup the Knicks have and they still beat LA and they still beat the Lakers with him dropping 38 and 7
Knicks have Lin’s early bird rights so I doubt he goes anywhere.
I dont know about you all but Howard as i said before is one of the most overrated players in the League. He is not a great offensive player and to me it says a lot when you can have stationary players who can defend him and defend him well. He doesnt have a go to move and that hurts him. That is why you need a pick and roll point guard or have him be a secondary scorer to be successfull with him
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
4:10 pm
So has any one search out what Al’s trade value is once he comes back from his free lunch,.
prison mike
February 11th, 2012
4:12 pm
Fellow bloggers need a favor….
I need a gif of Dwights faced cut onto Josh when he waved goodbye to Orlando Trick fans. Would be AWESOME, I would be a trolling fool. Every magic/trick message board, blog, forum would see this.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
4:13 pm
Lin is a scrub and the reasons for his being on the team is political
Id rather see a trade of Jeff (scarecrow) teague for VAREJO. or a 1st round draft pick. Weve invested enough in Teague and he has not produced time to ship him and Al to Oz land O for D12
BIG DOG
February 11th, 2012
4:27 pm
Tin Man are you serious Lin is balling and with no fluke attach, and you say trade Teague you must be a Heat fan scared of Teague, watch how Teague ball out of control on sunday.
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
4:28 pm
A team of
Hinrich
JJ
Marvin
Josh
Howard
bench
Draft pick
Teague
Tmac
Ivan
Dampier
Would be unstoppable !
STRETCH
February 11th, 2012
4:29 pm
Just have to admit that i was one of the Josh Smith bashers. But after last night, dude got much props from me. I dont hate the guy, i only wish he would play like that night in and out.
If he can mature and not “check out” at crucial moments he WILL be an all-star next season and for many to come. He is the X-factor when this team is flying high and when they are flying low.
Also, see they need to drop Collins and Stackhouse once Al comes back. I would package ZaZa, Stack, Cheesburger and Pargo or Green for whatever is out there that can help.
This team can be dangerous. They are 18-9 for a reason. Hope they show up tomorrow.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
4:31 pm
Al is the Tin man he has no heart and Jeff is the Scare crow he has no brain
Li is an ordinary player getting a boost from the press. The press keep picking the players not the fans. Lin had a good game or 2 in his career but he would not be on very many of the fans picks for an allstar team. The only reason we are having this discussion is because of the blow up from the press lately.
Marketing
Josh is a more qualified All Star than Lin
O'Brien
February 11th, 2012
4:34 pm
Ken s,
The hawks are slightly over the luxury tax right now, so somebody has to go. I think they will give dampier another 10 day contract, and then let him go, finishing the year with zaza and collins.
Northcyde,
If josh puts up a few more games like this, he will be an all star replacement. But look for josh to put up a 6-15 game, with 5 of them being jumpers,and 5 rebs, within the next 3 games (my opinion).
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
4:36 pm
Hater STRETCH nobody gets every bounce and every call every night. Josh plays with the same level of intensity night in night out. Hes been doing it all year long and haters come along and muddy the water with hate laced statements like ” I just wish he play that way night in night out.” He does. You dont just turn on and of the level Josh has achieve to. Hes been preforming all year long. Sure you may be able to find a few game where the numbers dont match the effort, but you can do that with all players even those in the hall of fame. So yes, you are still a hater, its it in your blood. Its who you are…
Hater ass STRETCH .
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
4:38 pm
*You dont just turn on and off the level Josh has achieved to
STRETCH
February 11th, 2012
4:42 pm
Tin man,
“Just have to admit that i was one of the Josh Smith bashers. But after last night, dude got much props from me. I dont hate the guy, i only wish he would play like that night in and out.”
Did you NOT read what i said? Then again, im not even going to try and prove anything to you.
THE ALL-STAR VOTERS SAID IT ALL.
BIG DOG
February 11th, 2012
4:44 pm
Tin Man tell me one thing Lin is doing wrong beside AVG 26POINTS A GAME ?
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
4:45 pm
Josh’s success and top level of play started with his off-season workout and condition. If Tin man Al had been working out rather than chasing skirt he may not have been so susceptible to injuries. Josh has been working hard just to be in the condition to compete at the level he is and that doesnt happen over night. You have to build that up.
So Josh does bring it every night haters. He may not get every bounce every night but neither does lebron, kobe, Dwade or anybody else. The bottom line is Josh is playing at a very high level as a result of his hard work and dedication. Al is loafing of and injuries because he is not as focus and intense as Josh. After watching Josh the first ten game of the season you haters were saying I just hope he keeps it up. Well is now near All star time and guess what,… The man is still producing, So get off his dick.
BIG DOG
February 11th, 2012
4:46 pm
Tin Man don’t no basketball STRETCH so need not worry about the Tin Man.
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
4:48 pm
*Al is loafing of
BIG DOG
February 11th, 2012
4:49 pm
Tin can’t use absurd comment such as D!ck on this blog bro.
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
4:51 pm
Did you NOT read what i said? its not what you said Its how you said it. What you implied.
I know Hateraid is intoxicating and probably if you had detoxed it wouldnt have came out that way. We do agree on this. Josh is playing very well at a high level.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
4:55 pm
Dog Thanks for pointing that out. I guess the screen filters missed that one.
BIG DOG
February 11th, 2012
4:57 pm
You welcome bro.
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
Ken Strickland
February 11th, 2012
5:01 pm
If the Hawks waited until Zaza was our only legit Big left on the roster before making a move to sign a FA Big, why in the devil would anyone expect them to trade for a big, especially with the team still doing so well? When Hinrich was out with his injury, we got regular reports on his progression. At some point we all knew Hinrich was progressing ahead of schedule and we had a basic idea on when to expect his return. We’ve gotten no such reports on Horford’s progression, or when we can expect him to return.
The fact that we’ve done so well in Horford’s absence is a testimate to the quality, versatility, depth, and production of our bench. This is Teague’s 1st yr as a starter and vital member of the team. Considering he’s playing the NBAs most important and difficult position, and learning on the fly, I expect him to really be explosive after getting a season and a full training camp and preseason under his belt.
Some of you might not want to admit it, but Marvin has been far more aggressive than in the past. He no longer hesitates when it come to taking the big shot, and there’s absolutely no way he would have called for the ball like he did last night when he made that last second shot before halftime.
BIG DOG
February 11th, 2012
5:02 pm
Tin Man Josh is balling, one thing i would like see from Josh is stay down low in paint, if he did that Josh would avg. 20points a game with 10 rebounds, my boy Josh would be beasting if played in the post.
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
doc
February 11th, 2012
5:05 pm
well the bulls are 5-1 without rose, so i guess that means they dont need him like we dont need al.
it isnt a one man game guys and the more soldiers the better.
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
5:19 pm
Those of you talking about t-mac closing out games, are forgetting a few things. With the most notable thing being T-Mac on defense. Also, if you post up T-Mac, who are his passing options out on the perimeter?
JJ
Teague
And Josh Smith
The opposing team will just do what they do when JJ gets the ball on the block. They’ll double the post shooter with Josh’s man, leaving Josh wide open on the perimeter. That’s why he’s open all the time in late game situations.
I’m not against playing T-Mac at the end of games. But all around, it’s not a no-brainer like some of you are making it out to be.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
5:30 pm
Dog Josh is a swing forward and should not be limited to low post play. Hes too versatile for that. The coach(es) see Josh as a tool and use him the way they want to run their offense. The ignorant and unlearned think Josh is Just doing his own thing. Josh is doing what the coach draws up in practice and implements during the game. Again Haters need to get of Josh’s d!ck(if that works for you). Its one thing to say the coach has and dumb offense scheme that isn’t working nor have the hawks playing to their best potential, but its another to hate on Josh for running the script the coach gives.him.
Another thing, Josh is not all about Josh and increasing his personal numbers. You dont hear Josh demanding to play any favorite position.
Josh is averaging 16 pts 9rbs 3ass 1.5 s 1.3 bks and shooting 47%. Getting 4 more points and 1 more rebound to stay in the low post may increase Josh’s numbers but not benefit the Hawks.
If Josh puts his game in the one dimension low post mode as you suggest it will a)make it easier to defend the Hawks b) limit Josh’s tools to the detriment of the hawks.
Josh playing inside and out opens the lane for drivers and slashers, where hed otherwise just clog the lane. Making the Hawks more predictable may help Josh increase his numbers(it may not) but it will change the dynamics of the offensive sets.
Im not a big Drew fan but I got to agree with him. Hes utilizing Josh to the advantage of the team not just josh. Whether josh hits or misses from outside he has shown hes capable, and therefore you have to send a man out there to guard him, which opens the lane for Teague and JJ and and Marv to Slash.
Here’s a CBS story on Josh just out.
http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/22748484/34797870
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
5:32 pm
Of course the tweak to that would be to go with this group:
Teague
JJ
T-Mac
Marvin
Smith
Small lineup with 3 good ballhandlers. That group would have to fight hard on the defensive end, especially from a rebounding standpoint.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
5:33 pm
*Its one thing to say the coach has a dumb offense scheme that isn’t working nor have the hawks playing to their best potential, but its another to hate on Josh for running the script the coach gives.him
yodaddybrother
February 11th, 2012
5:35 pm
hate to say it but stackhouse is the odd man out when Collins comes back. When Al Horford comes back the odd man out is Pargo.
Sautee
February 11th, 2012
5:36 pm
T-s,
“You dont hear Josh demanding to play any favorite position.”
Very true. Neither does one hear of Horford “demanding” to play a favorite position. Unless you have a source unknown to the rest of the blog. Perhaps it was that same mole who told you the locker room story. Because, as you told me yourself, you were not there.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
5:39 pm
I guarantee that Chicago cant go the whole season and compete at a high level with out Rose, as the hawks can with out Al. Al brings 12pts 9boards the table and thats nothing that Zaza or Ivan cant take care off so its a weak analogy to compare a 5 game stretch for Chicago and Rose to a season long demonstration by Atlanta.
Rose is A league MVP, a high scorer and a good defender.
Al is a complementary piece not the central player. We do just fine with out Al.
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
5:43 pm
Wrong Tin Man.
Josh would be a tremendous weapon on offense if he played around the rim. No other big man on this team hangs outside as much as Josh. He does it to make himself available to catch the ball 20 feet and out. The problem is that when he catches the ball out there, he doesn’t attack the rim. Even if he catches the ball with 5 seconds left on the clock, the next 2 seconds should see him going right at the rim. He just simply has to go to the rim as soon as he catches it.
More good things can and will happen for Josh if he did that. Instead, the result is an outside missed jumper almost 70% of the time.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
5:45 pm
Sautee, I agree Al aint saying ch@it, Hes too busy humping miss camel toe.
We agree Al has shut his mouth during this loafing time.Then again you cant prove Al isn’t demanding to play Josh’s position nor can you prove Al wasn’t the center of that locker room fight MC talked about. You cant prove that JJ, Josh and Marvin did not get in Al’s face, but we can prove that JJ, Josh and Marv get along very well and are playing excellent ball without Al.
So you do the math.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
5:52 pm
“Wrong Tin Man”
northcyde you are entitled to your own opinion not your own facts. You cant prove that your interpretation of how josh should play would make for better play. Thats your opinion. not fact. There is not Wrong or right, just opinions.
Unlike you I have no problem with josh shooting bombs. doesnt bother me a bit. I like his game and think Drew is playing him just fine.
Which brings me to this.for the willfully ignorant. JOSH IS DOING WHAT THE COACH TELLS HIM TO DO. IF YOU WANT TO HATE SOME ONE HATE THE COACH.
Or as BIG DOG would say, dont hate the player hate the game.
Josh does beautifully what the coach asks of him and runs his offense well both inside and out.
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
5:53 pm
And what’s worse about Josh’s missed jumpers, is that there’s usually only one person around the rim to get the board. However, if he attacked the basket or played closer to the rim, he could gather in an offensive rebound, or get an and-1, or even make a pass out to a better outside shooter that is more likely to make a jumper.
If Smith truly believes that he can’t play any better than he is now, he might want to review the 09 – 10 season in which he shot a career high FG% and only took about 3 outside jumpers a game.
Sautee
February 11th, 2012
5:54 pm
“Then again you cant prove Al isn’t demanding to play Josh’s position nor can you prove Al wasn’t the center of that locker room fight MC talked about.”
Source, please. I do NOT remember MC posting ANYTHING about a “locker room fight”. That’s NOT what was said. Unless you want to go and find it, I’m calling BS on that one.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
5:58 pm
northcyde why dont you just open up an opinion column because this nonsense and none fact base regurgitation are the equivalent of hate propaganda. Why do you attach Josh? Hes doing what his coach tells him.
How do you ignore that and continue to spew vomit? Look I got better things to do.
Have a great day. Hate on.
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
6:01 pm
Tin Man, Josh should be a hybrid of what Shawn Kemp and Shawn Marion. But he’s not that because he doesn’t attack the rim. JJ could historically be on the same level as Paul Pierce. But he isn’t because he doesn’t draw enough fouls on his shots. The 85+% that he shoots from the FT line is almost a waste, because he barely makes 2 FTs a game.
Just because a player does what the coach says, doesn’t mean that the player himself can’t be a better player and play to his strengths. Josh could be better. A LOT BETTER. He simply takes the easy way out by shooting those jumpers.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
6:01 pm
Later Sautee, Call MC by any other name but if you doubt the story take it up with him. And yes neither of us was in the locker room so we dont know but I can disprove your view nor you mind so we are forced to co-exist like potatoe/po ta to
Enjoy your weekend.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
6:03 pm
Smoove>Shawn Kemp
and more versatile.
later
Sautee
February 11th, 2012
6:04 pm
So, T-s, before you go, when exactly did this supposed locker room fight take place?
Inquiring minds, etc.
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
6:10 pm
Lol @ needing a coach to tell you to stop shooting jumpers when you are a historically horrible outside shooter. Oh wait, the coaches DO tell him to stop jacking up shots when he misses a few, and play inside.
People get onto Josh because his flaws are EASILY correctable. It’s not “hate” to tell a bad shooter to play inside or attack the rim. That’s common sense.
LOL @ my Vols absolutely dismantling the Gators today. Florida made the game closer than it was. Good win for the Big Orange today.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
6:12 pm
Sautee MC broke the story before Al was trying to kill his self while catching a ball under the basket. That would put the story somewhere between December and January.
Ive counted 4 major article chiming in on the Smith snub. Here’s another.
http://www.shattertheglass.com/2012/02/smith-proves-to-be-a-deserving-all-star/
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
6:13 pm
Lol @ Josh being better than Kemp. If he was, the hawks would be the top team in the East, because Kemp attacked the rim relentlessly. If we could have Josh and JJ switch bodies with Kemp and Mitch Richmond, the Hawks would be world beaters.
The Truth
February 11th, 2012
6:14 pm
“The Truth me and you both have watch extensively majority of the Hawks game, wouldn’t Tmac benefit the Hawks better closing out games better than Marvin who have underachieve his entire career, just one man opinion” – Darrell Starks
Agreed but under the condition that Tmac is on his game. However, if Marvin is feeling it and the match-up is right, then Marvin should finish. This can be problematic at times for LD if both are contributing but in that case, it’s a nice problem to have. LOL; I thought the argument on this blog was T-mac should start over Marvin. As long as these players are impacting the game, does it matters? In general though, I think T-mac has more offensive weapons out on the perimeter and in the paint making him a more versatile and dangerous player to guard. Since T-mac is steadily improving since his arrival, I’m sure LD will eventually use him accordingly.
We keep saying Marvin has underachieved but that unfairly is based on his draft selection and not his body of work in college. At UNC for just 1-year, he was the 6th man off the bench doing about what he is doing now, impacting the game making timely shots from the perimeter. He was never a demon in the paint. Marvin needs to expand his game in the paint to avoid the label of being just a 3-point specialist (a one trick pony). But he hasn’t shown an interest in making a serious commitment the way Josh has made with his outside shot.
From a half empty prospective, Marvin maybe on his next contract with another team before he realized he needs to be more versatile to get to the next level and that would be unfortunate for the Hawks.
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
6:16 pm
And Smith was definitely an all-star snub. No way should Deng had made it over him. Josh just picked a bad time to struggle a little bit. I’m still hoping that he can be a fill-in for somebody.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 11th, 2012
6:19 pm
Northcyde it sounds very ignorant and stupid for the unlearned but for a man who claims to be an authority its absolutely ridicules to say “man josh is floating around shooting bricks against the coach’s wishes and we are having a terrible season because josh is being a maverick and doing his own thing, the coach must be scared to take him out.”
Thats not what I hear Drew saying. I hear the coach saying he is running his offense through JJ and Josh and that he likes the way Josh is playing and practicing. When I see The coach pull out that white paper or the white board and draws up plays that put Josh on the perimeter as second or 3rd option thats not Josh’s fault, Thats the way the coach runs his offense.
Enjoy the rest of your hate. northcyde Let me guess… you are a republican.
Have a great night.
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
6:20 pm
LOL I remember 4 years ago when people were saying that Marvin needed to expand his game out to the 3 point line due to all of those long 2s he used to make. Marvin needs to finish better are the rim.
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
6:23 pm
Ok Tin Man. You win. Josh Smith is the perfect player that every coach would want. He doesn’t need to work on or improve anything about his game. He’s a perfect basketball player.
That’s a non-hater post.
Melvin
February 11th, 2012
6:23 pm
northcyde,
Marvin needs to get to the rim first, then worry about scoring next…
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
6:28 pm
I remember for years how people used to get on Marvin for just standing in the corner when a shot went up, while Josh Childress would be in that same corner, but literally gobble up offensive boards. I guess the coach told Chill to crash the boards, but double dared Marvin to leave the corner.
Slimjr
February 11th, 2012
6:28 pm
NO,NO,NO
SLB,T-S,PT Guard Slim,Negarita, Et Al are not Slimjr!
SLB is in a class by himsel! His basketball mind is far superior to mine..But I do enjoy his burps and essays! LMAO!!!!! HaHaHa..
Do you point guard slim! lol!
Slimjr
February 11th, 2012
6:29 pm
{himself}^^^^
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
6:32 pm
Melvin, Marvin just needs to affect the game any way possible. For a guy that’s not going to get 10 shots a game on most nights, I love the fact that he’s knocking down 3s now. If he could both, that would be great. I’m just glad he’s not invisible anymore.
Walt Frazier
February 11th, 2012
6:35 pm
This may be the year that the Hawks do something about acquiring a legitimate big man, (no pun intended Al Horford) to become a team with a true center player, not too old-like they always do. I’m not hating on Josh, but the painful part of this whole thing is that- yes, a lot of the blame can be attributed to the Hawks lack of good coaching, but the other-can be attributed to Josh himself. I know it’s not fair to compare Josh to the “Human Highlight Nique”, but I can’t help but wonder, if Josh had players around him, and coaches as well, like Mike Fratello-how his game would be much more evolved by now. As for coach LD-enough of licking that man’s butt; (“I don’t think we give Josh enough credit. That guy’s incredible, etc.”) That brings me to this-that unless the Hawks score big by getting a “really good” coach next year, Josh will be gone. Why should a player of his raw talent-be subjected year after year- to a coach who most games-gets outcoached by the “real coaches” in the NBA? Now the other question we should ask ourselves is: how bad does Josh want a different team or a different coach, or having different role players around him? (I heard he’s known to verbally bee-ah-ch slap LD on many television viewing occasions). Meanwhile, I’m sure Josh would be glad if the Hawks get Dwight Howard now, because they are such good friends. Ok, look-Josh is comfortable, and sometimes being comfortable with your current surroundings will make you complacent with trying to improve your game. Josh needs to think bigger because he can. He didn’t lose that all that weight for nothing, besides being a healthier and leaner player, but I feel he knows that other teams may have interest in him and can explore the market like iso-Joe did. (Believe it, the Hawks ain’t got the cash to match like they did with Joe), and he can, because he has youth on his side, but even youth quickly fades in the NBA. Personally, I would’ve liked to see Josh win a trophy with some NBA team. Hey, if Jason Terry (former Hawk) can do it, then a now current Hawk can as well. The question is-who will that be?
Sautee
February 11th, 2012
6:38 pm
“Sautee MC broke the story before Al was trying to kill his self while catching a ball under the basket. That would put the story somewhere between December and January”
That’s very interesting. Here a link to a very nice story on Josh at Hoopsworld:
http://www.hoopsworld.com/josh-smith-from-trade-bait-to-team-leader.
And here is an excerpt from that story:
“If there ever was a potential trade for Smith being seriously contemplated by the Hawks’ front office or a trade demand by the forward himself, center Jason Collins says he wasn’t buying it at all, chalking up that type of talk to being rumors or pure speculation.”
“Collins also noted from his viewpoint Smith has seemed happy in the locker room this season since the first day of training camp.”
Odd that Collins says that Josh was happy in the locker room since the very first day of training camp, but YOU say he and Al had “a locker room fight” in Dec-Jan. Which is total BS.
First, in the internet age, to think that there would be a fight in ANY pro locker room in ANY sport and NOBODY said a word about it is ludicrous. We hear about 100 times as much as we ever wanted to about sports these days, but you insist that there was a locker room fight (though you refuse to find the actual source BECAUSE THERE ISN’T ONE) and that MC reported it!.
Yeah right, like that wouldn’t have been headlining ESPN if it actually happened, lol.
Hint: MC NEVER reported a locker room fight. NEVER.
Why are you lying about this? Didn’t Horford’s miserable performance in the playoffs prove your point? Why make ish up?
terrell
February 11th, 2012
6:46 pm
I wonder how Woody feels sitting there watching an undrafted rookie pg having some success.(Lin). If he was one seat down(the head coach), he’d have Bibby starting, and Lin wouldve never had the chance. Clown!
Sautee
February 11th, 2012
7:02 pm
LOL @ terrell
11 day contract
February 11th, 2012
7:56 pm
terrell
February 11th, 2012
6:46 pm
I wonder how Woody feels sitting there watching an undrafted rookie pg having some success.(Lin). If he was one seat down(the head coach), he’d have Bibby starting, and Lin wouldve never had the chance. Clown!
LinkReport this comment
Woody is probably pissed! d’antoni was gonna be fired by the all star break and he would have got the interim gig. But after lin, no chance. Dantoni is again the genius of the run and gun steve nash suns
Hawks Fan Down Under
February 11th, 2012
7:57 pm
What was going on with LD’s subs? He used 11 players in the first 15mins of the game. He stil has really poor rotations. He played Pargo and Teague together!!! And that last 2mins was terrible coaching/playing. They just choked…didi it against Charlotte in the OT win and also against Bulls in Chi. I dont trust this team down the stretch in close games. JJ just isnt money trying to go 1v1 late in games. He hit that 1 3 in Detroit but has failed way more times. THey should be running plays to get open shots or inside shots.
11 day contract
February 11th, 2012
7:59 pm
Varejao out with injury extended period of time
Grandad
February 11th, 2012
8:24 pm
northcyde
I reckon I’m Hatter’s tag team partner tonight:
[from another angle] – This should be fun.
You said:
‘`Those of you talking about t-mac closing out games,
are forgetting a few things.
With the most notable thing being T-Mac on defense.
Also, if you post up T-Mac,
who are his passing options out on the perimeter.`’
`’The opposing team will just do what they do when JJ gets the ball
on the block.
They’ll double the post shooter with Josh’s man,
leaving Josh wide open on the perimeter.
That’s why he’s open all the time in late game situations.`’
____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____
All righty now, where to begin;
did you read my 2:45pm post, obviously not,
or you disregarded it, and that’s fine too.
Your closing line-up:
Teague
JJ
T-Mac
Marvin
Smith
is fine, but does not change much if LD doesn’t change philosophy.
Above you carp about putting T-Mac in the post
and continue about the lack of passing …
this is where I lost you;
I couldn’t decide if you were saying
there would be no one to feed the post
or there would be no way to pass out of the post ?
Regardless, having Josh on the floor complicates the problem,
and my plan of Kirk + V-Rad for passing and spacing solves
other issue.
Neither didyour five players address offense / defense platooning.
Your 2nd statement of doubling the post is correct;
which I addressed;
once again Kirk + V-Rad, & removing Josh on offense.
*[Josh platoons on defense]
Remember, I had two pgs in with both Teaguer & Kirk + Joe. [off.]
The post area is not just the low post:
it can be High, Low, Pinch, cutting into, flashing, slipping,
counter cutting, curling, pick & roll with Joe, etc. !
Just getting him [TM] the ball inside where he can facilitate.
Also, eliminate Iso altogether, any dribble drive …..
should be Teague only !
____________________________________________
Defense – T-Mac ain’t chopped liver.
We’re only talking about a limited amount of time.
____________________________________________
nc;
You are very savvy with numbers, stats, and the like.
_____________________________________________
I’m done.
Sautee
February 11th, 2012
8:34 pm
“Also, eliminate Iso altogether, any dribble drive …..
should be Teague only !”
Co-sign, Grandad
doc
February 11th, 2012
9:03 pm
saddened to see whitney houston is dead. wow, what a voice and persona ravaged by drugs and lifestyle. one can only hope peace now is her ally.
Sautee
February 11th, 2012
9:07 pm
doc,
Yeah, a cautionary tale if ever there was one.
northcyde
February 11th, 2012
9:25 pm
RIP Whitney Houston
doc
February 11th, 2012
9:28 pm
sautee, one of the very best voices i have ever heard for range and versatility. she went the route of so many other singers before her in many different genres. sad when given such a gift it cant translate into more existentially.
Sautee
February 11th, 2012
9:30 pm
Whitney Houston was like the David Thompson of pop music. Soared to heights unseen, but let blow be the God, and lost the very thing that raised them up.
A cautionary tale, indeed.
Sautee
February 11th, 2012
9:33 pm
doc,
I was amazed by her talents, but a bit disappointed that as her career went on she seemed to lose that gospel-tinged “thing” that made me like her in the first place. It was like she sanitized her voice to a degree that I missed the “flava”.
Melvin
February 11th, 2012
9:37 pm
Pacers just lost their 3rd game in a row. They are coming down to earth. Philly will come down next.
Hawks Blog Legend Worldwide Clyde
February 11th, 2012
9:38 pm
RIP Whitney Houston
Dam Mane!!!!!
One of the best that ever took the stage.
Melvin
February 11th, 2012
9:43 pm
Forget the All Star game. Josh may be the league MVP….
http://www.hoopsworld.com/nba-saturday-josh-smith-mvp-candidate?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=nba-saturday-josh-smith-mvp-candidate
hawkfan
February 11th, 2012
10:48 pm
i see lin is still HUST-LIN i can see stein putting knicks in top 10 ranks next week and hawks still out of top 10, doesn’t matter we just need to keep winning or linning
11 day contract
February 11th, 2012
11:19 pm
David thompson? Huh? More like wilt chamberlin
Whitney is up there with elvis, michael, the beatles. Check the record sales and body of work. Rest in peace to one of greatest entertainers
W. R. Terrell
February 11th, 2012
11:21 pm
I see Josh is a lil pis’d about not making the ALLSTAR team. The reason is very simple to me, he’s not an ALLLSTAR and never will be. After this season he’s gone and that’s good for the HAWKS believe it or not. Another coach will not put up with his shananigans, not for one moment. He should be ashamed of himself for even trying to place his game among elite players.
Slimjr
February 12th, 2012
12:24 am
Whitney’s voice was gift from God! One of the greatest singers EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Period! May she rest in peace.
Buddy Grizzard
February 12th, 2012
12:26 am
Wow can’t believe it about Whitney… so sad.
Grandad
February 12th, 2012
12:32 am
I know this is a silly thing to remember Whitney for;
besides her being so darn beautiful,
but the National Anthem is a difficult song to sing for anyone.
Bless her heart, she knocked it out of the park !
When I was coaching – for many years – most every HS in the country
had her tape of the “Star Spangled Banner”.
It was played before each game.
The best rendition of all time !
It made chills go up my neck, my kids always said the same.
Slimjr
February 12th, 2012
12:43 am
Agreed Grandad! Her rendition of the Star Spangled Banner was one for the “ages”…
Chills!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! For EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ken Strickland
February 12th, 2012
12:53 am
RIP Whitney. If your mind and spirit could have been as strong, developed, and as focused as your voice, you’d still be with us dear lady.
vava74
February 12th, 2012
6:01 am
Indeed, what a loss. She was one of the greatest ever.
vava74
February 12th, 2012
6:15 am
Back to the Hawks:
Unfortunately due to work commitments I haven’t been able to watch the recent games carefully, only peaks here and there whilst I’ve been working late at home.
So, I’ve only just finished watching the Pacers-Hawks game, top to bottom.
Josh played really really well, in particular because he established himself in the right block as he should do every single night.
When he does this, his jumper usually follows and falls with some consistency.
His opponents (West and Hansborough) still had good offensive games, but Josh worked the boards really well and kept second chance points low and intimidated with his steals and blocks (crucial possessions won).
JJ had a very good first half and the shots that were not going in during the second half were in MOST cases good shots that he has to launch.
Sometimes there is a bit too much ISO but we need that opposing teams sometime focus on one guy so others can get loose on other possessions.
Just passing the rock around the perimeter will only take us so far.
Hinrich had a very good offensive game but in spite of a very poor boxscore, Teague was fundamental in the good defensive stretches we had in the second half.
Hinrich’s D is a bit Bibbiesque right now (he was already having problems with faster PGs last year and the harsh reality is that the league is now rich in fast PGs.
T-Mac was excellent and Grandad is on the money when he says that he is our best post player: he still has a very good first step when he spins, excellent court vision and when his legs and back don’t betray him he usually launches good shots.
Zaza had a very good game too and that first possession in which he dove to avoid the out of bounds kind of marked the tone for the Hawks.
Now I am going to watch carefully the ORL game.
vava74
February 12th, 2012
6:17 am
Grandad,
Sorry for the late reply:
I saw your post on the former player who is with Lusitânia.
Is your guy Mills?
http://www.eurobasket.com/player.asp?Cntry=POR&PlayerID=136668
vava74
February 12th, 2012
6:22 am
Lusitânia is from the Azores so he his just over half way from the States and Europe.
There is an American military base in the island of Terceira (Lajes Base) which is a logistic and strategic point for the USA since late in the second world war.
Since he is playing in the same island, I am sure that he will be less homesick being able to hang out with many americans (funny enough, Terceira has a second team in the Portuguese bball league).
vava74
February 12th, 2012
7:06 am
He is just half way
hittman jamillion
February 12th, 2012
10:59 am
To tin man abn d scarcrow,or any other people who suggest we plsy beyter with kirk,than teague. Kirk has actualy stunted jts growth. Ld forced kirk back into the rotation though pargo was playing Well and it killed our chemistry and we lost three straight AT HOME!!!!! WTF
ntrigue
February 12th, 2012
11:03 am
Hope coac
ntrigue
February 12th, 2012
11:09 am
Hopefully coach plays teague at least 32mins and subs pargo for him and hinrich for Joe. Also Ivan needs to play 20 plus mins this game its a good matchup for him love to see Zaza Josh and Ivan on the court at the same time with teague and Joe but Coach will screw it up!
drmaryb.[*_*].
February 12th, 2012
11:21 am
The Sky is Falling!
Wow! I just heard about Whitney Houston – I’m speechless. The stars are truly falling from the sky these days first MJ and, now Ms. Houston.
Money, fame and notoriety is not the life I would ever want. Drug addiction is a tool of the devil and we should all run from it and, towards the light and our creator.
“Happiness is … The way you feel about your self deep on the inside.” -drmaryeb-
Look deep inside for the happiness, peace and love you seek and yearn for. Other’s acceptance and approval means very little in the end.
RIP my sister.
Ken Strickland
February 12th, 2012
11:39 am
Since Josh is about the same size and height as Miami center JAnthony, although more physical and athletic, I’d start him at center and IJohnson at PF. I believe Josh and Ivan would give us a definite advantage over Bosh and Anthony at those 2 positions. It would definitely put more pressure on their DEF, since both Josh and Ivan are better postup players than Zaza.
Forcing them to drop down and give help on Josh and Ivan’s postup’s would limit their ability to get out and run, which is a major part of their OFF. It would also make JJ, Teague and Marvin more dangerous as well. If we can start Twin at center in certain matchup situations, we can certainly start Josh at center for the same reason.
KevinM
February 12th, 2012
12:07 pm
Vava, a good week to go back and see what the Hawks did right to beat Indy and Orl.
Josh was big in both games and he and Joe basically cannot afford to be on the bench for any amount of time.
Orl was unhappy amount Anderson not making the AS reserves, but as we saw, Josh > Anderson.
This week could prove to be the Turning point for this team. When was the last time they beat 2 teams over .500 consecutively?
And yes, LD has some work to do in crunch time situations. Kudos to Zaza who played the game of his life.
IMO, Orlando is clueless. No way should Dwight not touch the ball on every possession. The same on our side for Joe. Just get 25+ shots up and things usually end up in your favor.
Eager to see how we handle Miami after Orl taking it to them this past week with 42 3 pt attempts. They must have let Dwight get his touches after misses.
northcyde
February 12th, 2012
1:26 pm
Regarding your lineup of
Teague
Hinrich
JJ
T-Mac
Vlad
When you you start playing this group? What happens if we missed the shot? If we go with that lineup, and Miami goes with this lineup
Chalmers.
Wade
Battier
Lebron.
Bosh
Does that lineup give us an offensive advantage? And how do we even begin to defend that group if our best rim protector and best defensive SF is out of the game?
Maybe if that was the absolute last possession of the game that lineup may work. But that would be playing with serious fire if that lineup was on the floor with 2 minutes to go in a close game. Any missed shot would put us at a severe disadvantage without Josh in the game. Josh has to be on the floor at all times. He should just be forced to play 6 feet from the rim, not on the perimeter.
And you have far more trust in Kirk and Vlad than I do.
northcyde
February 12th, 2012
1:28 pm
Last post was addressing Grandad’s closing lineup.
northcyde
February 12th, 2012
1:39 pm
@ drmaryb
They say things occur in threes. We’ve lost 3 icons in the past 3 weeks
- Don Cornelius
- Etta James
- Whitney Houston
vava74
February 12th, 2012
1:48 pm
no more commentaries since this morning than these few?
family time? I am mid-way mine.
on to the kitchen to pop a cork on a bottle of white wine and cook a fish in the oven.
fingers crossed for tonight. match up wise, I like our chances, however, we tend to play bad on weekends… too much coziness in a barely professional group IMO…
vava74
February 12th, 2012
1:50 pm
northcyde,
grandad is a valuable contributor but sometimes he gets overboard.
that line up would not rebound at all as you point out.
if they drove, that would be less of a problem, but as a jump shooting outfit, we need rebounders.
we need Zaza on that line up for V-Rad
doc
February 12th, 2012
2:24 pm
as far as vlad from his body if work as a hawk he needs to be on a suit behind the bench right now more than in a game on the closing moments.
Astro Joe
February 12th, 2012
2:36 pm
At the risk of sounding like a Sund defender or Hawks fan with rational expectations (neither of which is appreciated in these parts), I offer the following link that explains why a team like the Hawks (with limited trade assets) would have been stupid to have made a trade in the past few weeks.
http://espn.go.com/nba/dailydime/_/page/dime-120210-11/nba-dwight-howard-more-trade-chatter
vava74
February 12th, 2012
2:37 pm
V-Rad has done this his whole career:
He has good basketball knowledge, skills, good length and a complete lack of fire to be anything remotely described as consistency.
I would still use him for a few minutes -in and out of the game- with strict orders to shoot it every single time he is open and there is rebounding positioned.
Grandad
February 12th, 2012
2:54 pm
vava
In my original post;
which you may or may not have seen;
[nc failed to mention]
I had an offense / defense platoon;
with Josh re-entering the game.
* Under two min., 7 pt. lead, there would be multiple TOs;
permitting subbing on both ends of the floor.
* I said Josh on def / V-Rad on off with reasoning for both.
* Obviously, nc has more faith in Josh on offense,
in crucial situations, than I.
* note – Josh is a poor fundamental defender;
aside from the (2+ blks) per game.
* further noted that blks would be important during crunch time;
hence – defensive platoon. [getting Josh in on def]
** My plan was designed strictly to get the ball inside [T-Mac] period.
[a philosophical point of going inside and not to Josh]
** also Teaguer/ Kirk primary ballhandler not Iso-J
** dribble penetration only Teaguer
** V-Rad for spacing / also Kirk
** V-rad ends up with jumper at the end of possession rather than JS
** Not to Mention five better FT shooters than Josh
cannot argue that !!
_____________________________________________
Well thought out philosophy
-not overboard-
years of exp – not hero worship !!
Tmabry
February 12th, 2012
3:02 pm
Wow,
tickets to the upper deck tonight are 76$. And people wonder why actual hawks fans are not at national televised games. I wish they would not jack up the prices so only heat fans who have a couple games a year would go to. Oh well….i guess ill be watching from home.
We need Joe and Jeff teague to have big games tonight. I wanna see BOTH attack the basket early. Josh just keep up the good d and drive the hole when you get a chance! I hope we see damp for a few more minutes tonight and use that size advantage. LETS GO HAWKS
Grandad
February 12th, 2012
3:20 pm
vava
” I would still use him for a few minutes
-in and out of the game-
with strict orders to shoot it every single time he is open
*and there is rebounding positioned* ”
Red Auerbach used Frank Ramsey the same way;
only your last statement;
‘`and there is rebounding positioned`’
that is an outdated statement, sorta,
which Red did not limit FR with that rule.
A shooter’s gotta shoot. When he’s open & ready.
When I had a great shooter;
I used to tell them;
“all they need in order to shoot is – the ball “.
I think LD has messed with V-Rad’s confidence a bit
since he arrived.
V-Rad has a very high B-ball IQ;
another reason I would have him in the game to close with a lead.
LD could learn from Red.
_____________________________________________
BMills my guy
_____________________________________________
doc
February 12th, 2012
3:29 pm
tmabry there is very little incentive to be season ticket owner either with the tiered ticket arrangement. next year i might just buy a few selected games and sit out the rest as we pay in a similar way and extras are exhorbitant.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 12th, 2012
3:48 pm
After reading Grandads logic over the past years and particularly his most recent posts. I see why he is a blogger and not a coach.
Grandad is your garden variety arm chair coach. Its further clear that he is not a professional manager in employment and that his understanding of the game and players ability is equal to Ouija Board Coaching.
Drew may not call all the shots Id wish he would call bet he’s running his offense, successfully, and utilizing the talent and talent levels presented to him. Talent by the way, he did not developed but Woodson did.
Grandad why dont you start with pee wee leagues and run your offense. If its anything like your mouth it will be popping. Then work your way up to the pros. If you game is that strong you will probably do like Josh and make the Jump right out of high school. Let me know when you coach on the high school level then I’ll lobby for you to get some college experience and then finally a pro shot. That should put us around 2056 AD.
Until then, leave the Princeton offense to Drew.
On a parting note, the players are flowing the instructions on the coach. If you don’t like the way Drew is coaching his players that’s fine, but quench your hate, bloggers, Josh is doing exactly what is asked of him and he does it well.
You cannot take some one off the dribble to the rack if they don’t believe that you will pull up and shoot it. Make it or not you have to make the opposition know that you will jack it. Otherwise you end up like Al horford with a 1-dementional game.
The offense that Drew runs prescribes that Josh does what he does.
Dont hate the player, hate the game.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 12th, 2012
3:50 pm
Josh is one of the best defenders in the game and Grandad is undoubtedly the largest consumer of marijuana in the state of Ga.
Tin Man and Scarecrow
February 12th, 2012
3:55 pm
*but he’s running his offense, successfully,
**the players are following the instruction
KevinM
February 12th, 2012
4:00 pm
In this offense, Josh spends too much time on the perimeter. Marvin slashing to the basket envy once in a while wouldn’t hurt either. Him standing behind the line watching doesn’t cut it for me.
Sautee
February 12th, 2012
4:22 pm
Hello, T-s,
Now that you are back, I’ll repost this in case you missed it:
“Sautee MC broke the story before Al was trying to kill his self while catching a ball under the basket. That would put the story somewhere between December and January”
That’s very interesting. Here a link to a very nice story on Josh at Hoopsworld:
http://www.hoopsworld.com/josh-smith-from-trade-bait-to-team-leader.
And here is an excerpt from that story:
“If there ever was a potential trade for Smith being seriously contemplated by the Hawks’ front office or a trade demand by the forward himself, center Jason Collins says he wasn’t buying it at all, chalking up that type of talk to being rumors or pure speculation.”
“Collins also noted from his viewpoint Smith has seemed happy in the locker room this season since the first day of training camp.”
Odd that Collins says that Josh was happy in the locker room since the very first day of training camp, but YOU say he and Al had “a locker room fight” in Dec-Jan. Which is total BS.
First, in the internet age, to think that there would be a fight in ANY pro locker room in ANY sport and NOBODY said a word about it is ludicrous. We hear about 100 times as much as we ever wanted to about sports these days, but you insist that there was a locker room fight (though you refuse to find the actual source BECAUSE THERE ISN’T ONE) and that MC reported it!.
Yeah right, like that wouldn’t have been headlining ESPN if it actually happened, lol.
Hint: MC NEVER reported a locker room fight. NEVER.
Why are you lying about this? Didn’t Horford’s miserable performance in the playoffs prove your point? Why make ish up?
Buddy Grizzard
February 12th, 2012
4:28 pm
“Kudos to Zaza who played the game of his life.” – KevinM
Cosign. Can’t wait to see what he does against Bynum. Not making any predictions about tonight.
lewis
February 12th, 2012
4:43 pm
All star game rigged
No Rondo and no Josh?
Najeh Davenpoop
February 12th, 2012
4:56 pm
“note – Josh is a poor fundamental defender;
aside from the (2+ blks) per game.”
No.
Old Man Peabody
February 12th, 2012
4:59 pm
Well Josh has a chance to go head to head with an all star tonight to prove his case.
Dept. Of Unintended Irony
February 12th, 2012
6:06 pm
“Otherwise you end up like Al horford with a 1-dementional game. ”
Is there a dimension where “dementional” doesn’t mean crazy?
jhan
February 12th, 2012
6:56 pm
“Josh is doing exactly what is asked of him and he does it well” – I can just hear Drew at practice begging for Josh to dribble the length of the floor, dribble off his foot, gain control & throw it in the stands – all while Teague & Joe are waiting on either wing!. I’m sure Drew never tells Josh to give it to Teague so he can get it back and finish on the break.
Don’t get me wrong this team is toast without Josh. Let’s not exaggerate & say everything he is doing is by the design of the coach – please!!!