Atlanta Hawks at Bulls: Game Thread
Vivlamore reporting from Chicago.
Tracy McGrady met with Hawks coach Larry Drew and general manager Rick Sund about the forward’s publicly expressed displeasure over a lack of playing time.
Both sides say they are ready to move on.
“We talked,” McGrady said before Monday’s game against the Bulls. “Players get frustrated. I was frustrated. We talked and ironed things out. Now, we move on.”
Drew would not disclose the details of the meeting but said “we addressed the problem.”
After playing just 4:39 during a 97-77 loss to the Blazers Saturday, McGrady told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution: “I’m tired of this [bleep]. You can put that in the paper, I don’t give a [bleep].”
Drew has been mindful of McGrady’s minutes this season. The two-time NBA scoring champion has suffered through injuries, which includes a herniated disk in his back. He suffered back spasms on Jan. 11 and sat out three games.
“I’m sure everybody wants to play,” Drew said. “I want guys who want to play. I don’t want guys content to sit on the bench. But the way it was handled, you don’t handle it that way. We will keep looking at the situation of each game. I’m always looking at matchups. I’m always looking at it if it puts us at an advantage, if it puts us at a disadvantage. My job is to coach this team and I’m going to try to put us in the best position as possible. Sometimes it will jeopardize minutes when guys want to play but that is the way it is.”
Entering Monday’s game, McGrady has played in 26 of 32 games this season with average of 18 minutes. Last season with the Pistons McGrady averaged 23 minutes in 72 games.
“If you don’t feel I can help, come tell me that,” McGrady told the AJC. “He ain’t told me nothing. I just want to help these guys win, man, which I know I can. But, damn, four minutes?”
McGrady did not get a start Monday after Marvin Williams left the team Sunday due to the death of a relative. McGrady usually is the substitute for Williams.
* Drew did not know details of the personal situation or when Williams would return to the team. The Hawks end a five-game road trip against the Knicks on Wednesday.
Willie Green got the start in place of Williams.
“Willie has really been playing well for us,” Drew said. “I think the one thing we will miss about Willie is the punch he provides off the bench. In this situation I will juggle the guys coming off the bench but I just felt from a matchup standpoint he gives us a better chance.”
* The Hawks signed center Erick Dampier to a second 10-day contract Sunday with Jason Collins out up to another month with a torn ligament in his left elbow.
The 15-year veteran has appeared in four games for the Hawks after signing his first 10-day contract on Feb. 9. He has not scored but is averaging 2.5 rebounds, 0.3 assists, 0.3 steals and 0.3 blocks in 6.5 minutes.
* Drew said he expects no issues with Joe Johnson’s left knee. The All-Star wore a soft brace to protect his problematic the knee Saturday, saying he is suffering from tendinitis around the patellar tendon.
“We will keep an eye on it,” Drew said.
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
812 comments Add your comment
kiss the hawks rears
February 21st, 2012
3:12 am
What another sound lost to a NBA team wait til LIn gets done with Jose smith and company he score 45pts in a rout over the ASG hawks led by Sund and friends….Like i said when The Pa Man ask for Fans to stand up for The atlanta hawks turn and head for exit fast…let owners sit alone at Phillips arena the worms…and no way show up at arena with them as owners who sold out Hockey here!
Buddy Grizzard
February 21st, 2012
3:36 am
“$5 says Vlad plays at least 15 minutes at power forward in this game and gets his ass kicked on the boards by Taj Gibson during those minutes, while Ivan sits on the bench.” – Najeh
Haha somebody pay Najey. From my write up at hoopinionblog.com:
During a stretch of 4 games from Jan. 29th through Feb. 4th, Ivan averaged 23.5 minutes, 9.5 points and almost 8 rebounds per game playing primarily as backup center. During that stretch, the Hawks out-rebounded 3 of 4 opponents. In the 7 games that followed, Ivan averaged 8 minutes, 3 points and 2 rebounds. In those 7 games, the Hawks were out-rebounded by 6 opponents. Against Chicago, Ivan played 2 minutes and the Hawks were out-rebounded 51-41
northcyde
February 21st, 2012
3:36 am
My trade puts the clock on the Hawks for this year and the next before a possible total rebuild in the summer of 2013. That trade clears us of JJs contract while adding Gasol’s. If Deron decides to leave in the summer of 2013, we could execute a sign and trade for someone. We now also have cap room to rebuild the team.
hawks D
February 21st, 2012
3:49 am
what a pathetic game… the hawks are such a frustrating team to follow… no energy, stupid mistakes, bad coaching. The hawks need a coach who can motivate, energise, and yell at the team for bad play..
hawks D
February 21st, 2012
3:52 am
drews too soft, lacks stature. Hawks need a true center and a few players who actually THINK when they are on the court…such an embarrassment
hawks D
February 21st, 2012
3:54 am
the game wasnt even worthy for local television….
northcyde
February 21st, 2012
4:06 am
Sund and especially Gearon would rather hold onto all of our pieces until they prove beyond a shadow of a doubt thar they can’t get it done. Even if that “shadow” is already obvious.
I gotta give Mitch Kupchak the GM of the Lakers credit. He puts whatever personal feelings he has about a player, and puts the needs or wants of the team first. Even if his superstar player disagrees. That takes balls to do.
Meanwhile, Sund doesn’t want to upset players with trade talk. And Gearon is afraid to gamble by approving a groundshaking move.
If management is serious about competing for a title, they may have to admit that our top level talent simply isn’t good enough. Don’t get all emotional about moving them. Just do what is for the good of the team.
If they can’t be moved, then we have no choice but to roll with them. But if we can move them for an upgrade in top level talent, make a move. And don’t blink when you do it.
northcyde
February 21st, 2012
4:09 am
Then again, neither management nor coaches nor players talk about playing for a title. They just want to improve and get better.
High-sider
February 21st, 2012
4:59 am
^Should have said…”[Being] the second leading scorer while coming off the bench for a new team under a new head coach in a new [basketball] system in [a] new city is [a] pretty good [accomplishment] for Jamal Crawford in my opinion.”
I think that’s grammatically correct. LOL
prison mike
February 21st, 2012
5:53 am
Laughing at the Duck rumors. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjlTZCeF2EU
We tried to trade him last season. Sund needs to get more creative. Knight wasn’t alot of things but when it came down to trading bad contracts, he got ish done.
Just Joe
February 21st, 2012
6:09 am
I don’t see any way that NJ would give us Deron for Joe & Teague. We also can’t trade our 2012 pick unless we get one from another team (we didnt have a pick last year, can’t go back to back years without). Joe would have to be a straight salary dump, maybe even an exchange of bad contracts.
hawks D
February 21st, 2012
6:51 am
To ASG,
I am going to put aside what I really think about you. You unfortunately are our only hope for the future. DO SOMETHING!!!!!!!!!! The hawks are more f….ed than the costa concordia – not gonna go anywhere… Theres got be a move, and I am gonna join the others GET GASOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
hawks D
February 21st, 2012
7:00 am
Same core of players for so many years is not a secret for success (according the Sund) its laying the ground for failure. This has been ASG´s pathetic excuse for not being more active on the transfer market!
Signed
one of the hawks last true fans -and slowly fading….
hawks D
February 21st, 2012
7:05 am
*(according to Sund)
O'Brien
February 21st, 2012
7:30 am
Northcyde,
If the reports are true, he’s just tired of people ragging on him all the time, even when he plays well..
If that’s the case, I wonder if Marvin and josh are comparing notes, because Josh feels like he gets ragged on more than everybody else.
Ra'mon
February 21st, 2012
7:37 am
O’Brien, before this season Josh did get ragged on more. But I think with Horford’s injury, and the wonderful +/- statistic, its been easy to see this is Josh’s best season to date. And Marvin has been grossly unproductive in a lot of games. There’s no reason Marvin shouldn’t average 7-8 rebounds with his size advantage against most teams.
O'Brien
February 21st, 2012
7:40 am
From the ajc article online;
“I don’t know, man,” Josh Smith said of the Hawk’s lack of motivation. .
Josh sounds like JJ in his answer. And haven’t we been hearing this for years now (ever since Woody was here)? But that’s probably a better answer than Bibby’s “we’ll be alright” comments.
More from Josh;
“We are all in this foxhole together. Nobody is to blame but everybody. We all have to put ourselves in one foxhole and we have to figure it out together.”.
Although the Lin story is over-exposed, one of the things I like about him, is after every game, he tells you what ‘he’ needs to do to get better. Last night, he said he had a terrible game against Deron Williams, and needs to get better defensively. When he hit the game winning shot in Toronto, his first comments were he didn’t do a good job slowing down the Raptors guards. He always talks about needing to do a better job taking care of the ball etc.
One thing I’ve noticed with the Hawks, is after these games, players always talk about “we” need to figure it out. “We” need to play better. “We” are in this together. And let’s not forget JJ’s “I don’t get all the credit when we win, so why should I get all the blame when we lose”.
I wish the Hawks players would hold themselves more accountable, instead of always putting it on the team. Talk about what you should have done better individually first. And then talk about the team.
RB
February 21st, 2012
7:53 am
Rick Sund made a major mistake giving JJ that max contract. We are starting to see (and will see the next 6 years) the erosion of the Hawks play. They are a hard to to watch.
O'Brien
February 21st, 2012
7:54 am
Northcyde,
Trade JJ + 1st round 2012 for Deron Williams.
I don’t think the Nets will trade Deron. And if he opts out, they will work out a sign and trade to get some assets back (imo).
As for JJ, he missed 25 games in 06-07, but starting in 07-08, these are JJ’s games played for the season: 82, 79, 76, 72. I’m not a Math genius, but I notice a trend. And now his knee is hurting. And he turns 31 this year.
Good luck finding a taker for his him. He has a terrible contract (4 years, $82 mil left after this year), he’s getting old (31 this year, which is old for shooting guards), and his game is in decline, down from 21,5 and 5 two years ago, to 18, 4 and 4 this year.
E43
February 21st, 2012
8:10 am
Astro Joe- Teague has 14 games where he attempted 10 shots or more and had 30+minutes of playing time. He has 6 games where he played less than 30 minutes and attempted 10 or more shots. Blowouts are not accounted for. He is almost guaranteed playing time just to be aggressive offensively. He doesn’t even have to score, play good defense, or even attempt a shot. All he has to do is look like hes going to make something happen. Hinrich and Pargo rarely get 20+ minutes regardless of whether or not they earn it. Teague more than anyone else on this team(minus Marvin) is more likely to be given a free pass than be pulled for being passive.
Ra'mon
February 21st, 2012
8:13 am
O’brien, I actually think the Lakers would take Joe’s contract. But it would have to be a team like them.
Jase
February 21st, 2012
8:21 am
You are not going anywhere this year.
Dawg
February 21st, 2012
8:26 am
ATL has the worst management and the least coaching in the league.
ken
February 21st, 2012
8:44 am
So glad McGrady spoke out about his fustrations with coach Larry Drew because Drew is a nice guy but a below average coach. The Hawks management decided replace Woodson with a cheaper version that cannot maximize the talents of his starters and consistently under utilizes his bench. Right after Horford’s injury, Ivan gave the Hawks a great and unexpected life with his energy and effort . All of a sudden he cannot get on the floor . He played 2 minutes in the loss to the Bulls. No explanation from Drew, yet he continues to play other unproductive players I guess because they are getting paid more money .Its very fustrating to players when they don’t know their roles or when or if they will play. I believe the players have lost respect for Drew and have tuned him out. You get what you pay for so all we are going to get in the ATL is more mediocrity. I think JJ has figured out that this organization is not willing to do what it takes to win championships and will continue to be what it is now. That’s why he took his 120 million so that at least he can be well paid for having to play in mediocrity for the next 6 years.
The Great Pretender
February 21st, 2012
8:50 am
Sad to say, but I think the Hawks had their moment when they took the then soon-to-be world champion B. Celtics to 7 games three years ago. This is a sinking ship with maybe 2 good players (JJ aint one of em). Jettison most of the roster and the coach and start from scratch next year.
Jimmy Crack
February 21st, 2012
8:55 am
“But the Hawks are loaded with good players…”
And the excuses continue for primetime collapses.
The Braves are our ONLY pro sports team left that doesn’t
THRIVE on getting embarrassed on national TV just about every chance they get. Yet they wonder why fans don’t flock to downtown Atlanta in droves to see these multimillionaires play mediocre ball in person. I even heard the local sports station talking today about how “we can’t be a #7 or #8 seed because that would mean we play either Chicago or Miami right away and lose in the first round”. As opposed to automatically losing in the second round? WHAT’S THE DIFFERENCE??? A week?
The Hawks fans should call some old Sain’ts fans and borrow their paper bags, not because the Hawks are so bad, but because they are SUPPOSED TO BE GOOD. They are supposed to be getting better, but there is zero proof in recent past that this is happening. These guys have cornered the market on disappointment, with the Falcons coming in at number 2.
How many of you out there have a backup plan ALREADY IN PLACE, whether it is to watch another sports program or a movie or even a household chore to do, when the Hawks start losing BIG in on these nationally televised games?
ATLANTA SPORTS TEAMS….THEY’RE JUST GLAD TO BE PAID!
BIG DOG
February 21st, 2012
9:04 am
Antwan must be Marvin cousin reporting he want be traded, and Hawks fan don’t appreciate him WHAT A DAM JOKE.
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
BIG DOG
February 21st, 2012
9:06 am
Antwan take your cousin with you please bro.
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
tyger
February 21st, 2012
9:17 am
Joe Johnson vs. Deron Williams…
Jeremy Lin lit Deron up, initiating Linsanity…
Deron took note, took it personal, marked the calendar…
And last night, let the world know what an All-star is…
Conversely, the Wade, LeBron, Kobe, Rose, etc….
Come into JJ’s house and run amok…
Does he take note? Does he mark the calendar, is he pissed…
Well, stats don’t indicate so, there no vengance in the blood here…
More or less, its just a game, its just business as usual…
Around this time of year, players on the hot stove start taking dives…
Yesterday it was Marvin, today JJ, lets see about tommorrow…
Hopefully, they’ve seen enough to really shake this thing up…
I’ve often wondered whether it was better to tweak this roster…
Or if presented an opportunity, to get from under JJs contract…
Maybe the latter, is a reality, more than a fantasy…
When you see what the NYKnicks have assembled…
And this team’s 10 game performance (3-7)…
It’s painfully clear that we wont get out the 1st rd…
BIG DOG
February 21st, 2012
9:26 am
Coach LD must have the Woody syndrome, pretty soon he will be jobless, this guy begging Sund for dam center and this dum coach want even play the center Sund sign WTF is this coach retarted or what.
BULLS 51 HAWKS 41 REBOUNDS
This guy is clueless if im TMAC i would just walk out and leave the team, Tmac your best rebounder on the team and can’t starte a game with Marvin being out.
FIRE LD
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
doc
February 21st, 2012
9:32 am
nicely put o’b. i cant say we think alike but themes and interests are similar. as you know that is one of my pet peeves with these guys. it certainly isnt the mo of jj to put it on himself, josh tends to shirk it, al may come close, zaza usually doesnt defend himself in those tones, marvin is oblivious and presents himself as the golden retriever everything is cool persona while doing nothing ever to really improve himself or hold himself accountable. it just goes on. sorry, it doesnt start at ld when he cant hold himself accountable for things like his egregious mismanagement of the miami loss allowing bosh to get a shot off with fouls to give and a three point lead and only 5 seconds to go. certainly not at the gearon level where it is fans and jeff schulz’ fault for not having more gate success.
long this team has made terrible losses acceptable going back to the celt series where we got blown out in four away games. it didnt change with the cav blowout. last year they seemed to be a little angry with themselves over the magic trouncing. unfortunately, those memories are seared in fan’s mind. the only thing that can change it is the players. i dont think they get it.
STRETCH
February 21st, 2012
9:33 am
Did anyone see Hinrich yesterday waving frantically to Josh to pass the ball to Green and then throw his hands up in frustration when Josh looked both of them off and took the shot(brick) instead?
I hope i was not the only person to see that. I am convinced now that Josh Smith will NEVER get it.
But how can he get it when management and Larry Drew dont? Im mean, what coach in the NBA would let a PF with no shooting ability throw up 20 shots a game? He went what, 9-20? That hurt and i dont care who you are, when you are busting your tail getting back into a game and the worst shooter on the team is throwing up clunkers, its demoralizing!
And thats just one aspect of the “Ducks” game. They are a dumb team, they play selfish and they cant shoot free throws. They were 10 of 21 from the stripe! T-Mac missed 3 in a row at one point!
And they need to stop shooting but they cant because Sund keeps thinking they dont need another inside presence. When you can get anything inside you tend to try from outside. Check out the numbers:
KH 1-4
JJ 0-3
Vlad 0-4
WG 0-2
Overall total 9-25 from 3 pt range combined with no rebounding and poor FT shooting will get your butts kicked everytime!
And Joe Johnson and Josh Smith shouldnt be captains on anyones team in the NBA.
BIG DOG
February 21st, 2012
9:49 am
Marvin complaining to media, Coach LD don’t like that so i wonder will Marvin NOT starte the next game for punishment, like Tmac did when coach wouldn’t even put your best SF on the team in the game SMH.
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
STRETCH
February 21st, 2012
9:52 am
And poor Zaza, he is the only other guy they have that gets down in the paint and bag bodies, but the problem with him is he is clumsy as heck. Maybe it has to do with his hands and feet being to small for his body or something.
But i wouldnt throw him the ball on offense, just tell him to throw his body around. But its also clear that LD needs to play Dampier more. LD has to be the dumber more stubborn version of Woodson. Down two centers, they sign a guy and then dont use him…whats that all about?
And Teague is done, i would start Hinrich and follow him up with Pargo. Bad sign when your 3rd string PG scores the most points and your 6 time all-star and wanna be all-star both fold like lawn chairs.
I would trade Joe and Josh for anything i could get and play the guys with HEART(what Joe lacks) and SMARTS(Everybody knows who) over those two.
Flip em for Stephen Jackson/Erson Ilysasova or Rudy Fernandez/Bird Man Anderson or heck i would do Metta World Peace/Gasol!
O'Brien
February 21st, 2012
10:08 am
This is from Hoopinion’s report card about yesterday’s game. It’s long, but a good read (imo), and I have sprinkled in some of my comments.
Players:
Josh Smith: The numbers looked good: 17 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 blocks in 43 minutes. But Smoove shot only 7-for-21, all of his points coming in the paint as he went 0-for-8 on jumpers. 5/10.
When will Josh get it? If Josh would get more of his shots inside the paint, and drastically reduce his jumpers, I think he would be a lock for an all-star spot, because his rebounding would go up, and his ppg would go up (imo). I also think that would help the team a lot.
Jannero Pargo: The Hawks were unable to re-sign Jamal Crawford in the off-season and instead replaced him with streak-shooter-by-committee. Tonight’s contributor was Jannero Pargo, a player absurdly listed at 6-foot-1 who does not deserve the designation “point guard.” Pargo’s 19 points were flashy as he shot the team to within 6 with 4 threes over the game’s final 14 minutes. But his ball handling in the 4th quarter? Not so flashy. He started off the 4th with a heat-check three that missed the entire rim, followed with a bad pass straight to noted passing-lane disruptor Kyle Korver, dribbled out the clock and missed a layup, then dribbled into a triple-team on the baseline and pelted it out of bounds off Smoove. 4/10.
Kirk Hinrich: The Hawks are obviously playing Kirk a lot of minutes in an effort to get him in game shape and create some sort of trade value (lest the team receive little in return for the pair of first-round draft picks it traded away to acquire him). But 5 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists in 30 minutes from one of your primary point guards is not going to win you a lot of games in the meantime. 3/10. .
Pargo is streak, and has his bad moments, but Kirk Hinrich is not giving us anything right now. How many games does he need to get his legs back?
Vladimir Radmanovic: With Pargo as the evening’s designated streak shooter, Radmanovic took the night off, shooting 0-for-5 and going scoreless in 12 minutes, although he did collect 5 rebounds. The Hawks are 1-7 in the month of February in games in which Radmanovic plays at least 10 minutes. Two of the Hawks three wins this month came as Vlad averaged 3 minutes against Orlando and Indiana. 1/10
Ivan Johnson: During a stretch of 4 games from Jan. 29th through Feb. 4th, Ivan averaged 23.5 minutes, 9.5 points and almost 8 rebounds per game playing primarily as backup center. During that stretch, the Hawks out-rebounded 3 of 4 opponents. In the 7 games that followed, Ivan averaged 8 minutes, 3 points and 2 rebounds. In those 7 games, the Hawks were out-rebounded by 6 opponents. Against Chicago, Ivan played 2 minutes and the Hawks were out-rebounded 51-41. Grade: Incomplete.
So despite the Hawks being outrebounded, Vlad gets more PT than Ivan. I thought LD’s plan was to get more minutes for Ivan. And it’s not like Dampier has been getting minutes either. Najeh, northcyde (and others on here) have asked over and over again. Why does LD insist on giving Vlad the minutes he gets, while cutting Ivan’s minutes? LD has no clue. And speaking of the HC…
The head coach: The Hawks are 5th in the NBA in future committed salaries at over $244 million. To manage that quarter-billion dollar investment in personnel, the Hawks hired a coach with no previous NBA head coaching experience. He looks as in-over-his-head as you would imagine he would be. Since Lenny Wilkens retired, the Hawks have employed Lon Kruger, Terry Stotts, Mike Woodson and Larry Drew as head coaches. Once Drew is let go by the Hawks, it’s hard to imagine that any head coach the organization has employed since 2000-2001 will be in any demand whatsoever by other NBA teams seeking to fill head coaching positions. 1/10
A thought regarding the opposition: With 3:42 to play in the third quarter, Tom Thibodeau angrily called timeout after a Zaza Pachulia run-out layup. As Thibs shouted at his team on the sideline, the scoreboard showed his team ahead by 19..
Doc and I were big fans on Thibs, but 1) He probably had no interest in coming here and 2) Even if he did, ASG would not pay him the salary he deserves. So they hired LD, probably the lowest paid coach in the League.
What’s disappointing as a Hawks fan is we all know our team has faults. But looking at the list of HCs we have hired to maximize their talents… Lon Kruger, Terry Stotts, Mike Woodson and Larry Drew. Ouch.
lp
February 21st, 2012
10:13 am
Can we trade Marvin and Hinrich for Pau, that would help both teams, especially us
Just Joe
February 21st, 2012
10:21 am
The one team that’s desperate enough to take Joe Johnson is Orlando. We know they’re not afraid of a bad contract (see Arenas and Lewis). Now, they don’t have much to offer in return. But I think they would send Turkoglu, Reddick & a 2013 1st rd pick (I don’t think they can trade this year’s) to Atlanta for Joe. The reasons this move may work are:
1) This gets us back below this year’s luxury tax. I think we save $1M+ on this swap.
2) I think we can flip Reddick to a team like Minnesota for an expiring contract and another pick (1st or 2nd rounder, whatever we can get).
3) Turkoglu is similar in age to Joe, but makes half the money, has a year less on his deal (maybe 2 if by some chance he waived his player option year), offers us more size at 6′10″, and is a better/more consistent long range shooter.
4) If Dwight walks, then that 2013 1st rd pick could wind up being pretty valuable.
Astro Joe
February 21st, 2012
10:30 am
Hawks are struggling to score points. Maybe we should hire a head coach who actually gives a dang about offense. Someone who won’t run plays that involve Josh taking long-distance shots. Someone who will ensure that we don’t have sub-20 point quarters in the second half. Someone who can develop an offense that doesn’t stagnate and isn’t so predictable. A head coach who understands how to properly use his bench and make situational substitutions. Someone who will hold players accountable and someone who is clearly and irerefutably better than Woody. That’s what the Hawks need and we’re destined for greatness.
Astro Joe
February 21st, 2012
10:36 am
I know these guys are supposed to be super human, but my guess is that when an entire team has a bad free throw shooting performance, that it is a clear sign of fatigue. Although, I’m not quite sure why TMac would have been tired.
never mind.
STRETCH
February 21st, 2012
10:44 am
lp,
It would be nice if LA would fall for it. At this point i would send them Josh Smith and KH for Pao. But could you imagine the Lakers coming down the court, Kobe screaming for the ball and Josh jacks up a 20 footer? Man there would be WWF in that locker room! LOL!!!!
Jimmy Crack
February 21st, 2012
10:44 am
“I would trade Joe and Josh for anything i could get and play the guys with HEART(what Joe lacks) and SMARTS(Everybody knows who) over those two.”
STRETCH…I couldn’t have said it better myself.
The problem with trading “Cold Joe” is that everbody knows what we know. “Poutin’ Josh” could be easily traded to an elite team that needs defensive help, but they would have rework the contract to stipulate “pine sitting” penalties for excessive brick-throwing (and we have seen how well Josh works with authority). It’s no wonder he didn’t get the coaches vote for the ASG.
Hawks Fan Down Under
February 21st, 2012
10:47 am
Why sign Dampier then not play him?
Why has Ivan’s minutes been decreased so dramatically?
Why has Vrad’s minutes increased so dramatically?
Why is LD still our coach?!
ryan
February 21st, 2012
10:50 am
If we get rid Marvin Williams and get an expiring contract could help get under cap to go after a Howard or a Kaman i know i am living in a dream world but getting rid of him could be a good thing .
kwooden
February 21st, 2012
10:52 am
Another tough night and it would have been embarrassing if it wasn’t for Pargo doing work against the Chicago reserves. My problem with last night is LD gave up making moves. He got lucky that Pargo starting missing and the Chicago reserves started turning the ball over. The zone was another good move that was effective in slowing down Rose’s drives to the basket. But those were his last moves, he needed to continue. I think his final move was to put Vlad in, but he did that with about 2 min left in the game. LD didn’t change the line-up for almost the entire the 4th quarter, just waiting for the guys to do something. They were playing a zone defense so match-ups really didn’t matter, he could have easily substituted one or two guys that would have impacted the game on the offensive side of the ball. LD has to continue to impact the game and not give-up trying.
Josh needs to stop shooting outside, he has other guys that can do that.
GO HAWKS!!
ryan
February 21st, 2012
10:52 am
I think Larry Drew is done the players have all decided not play hard for him hence the loosing streak .
prison mike
February 21st, 2012
10:57 am
Who cares if Hinpoor was waving and stomping his feet looking for a shot. He’s had a clown of a season. He needs to show something in practice before he steps on the floor again.
prison mike
February 21st, 2012
10:58 am
Freaking Mike James has come in and outperformed Hinpoor, I mean seriously.
Rod from College Park
February 21st, 2012
11:02 am
It’s obvious to me that something happened in the locker room between players that the Hawks are not reporting. TMac blast the coach for not getting more minutes, and Marvin Williams (who has started since his 2nd year in Atlanta, and never said anything negative since his been here) put out that he wants a bigger role. First of all, no NBA team in their right mind will trade for Marvin Williams, unless they can give up a bigger salary. The guy is just not a good basketball player, who is clumsy, and uncoordinated. Obviously TMac, and some othe the other vets on the team, have become tired of LD talking about energy and effort every night, but the continuing to trot this Marvin Williams clown ou there every night who provides nothing but an occasional jumpshot. Hopefully this will be the beginning of the end of THE CORE.
bigdave
February 21st, 2012
11:09 am
lol.. the only way Marvin Williams gets traded is if we send him to Washington for Rashard.
bigdave
February 21st, 2012
11:13 am
“Josh Smith had 9 jumpers outside the paint. He missed all 9. Meanwhile, he was 7-12 inside the paint. When will Josh get it????”
ill give 70% of the blame to the coaching staff. they continuously allow Josh to roam the perimeter. Josh could be an effective offensive player, however, he has no filter to his game. Josh will take any shot, from anywhere on the court. even the best shooters in the game have sweet spots. look at Joe for example. he has areas on the floor where he likes to work.
im almost ready to send Josh somewhere where he can play under structure. he’ll never be the player he can be under the watchful eye of the cheapest instruction money can buy.