Atlanta Hawks: Knicks 113, Hawks 112
- The Hawks had what might have been their best offensive game of the season against a top 5 defense. At the very least, it was their best offensive game since Dec. 31 at Philadelphia. They lost both games because of lackluster defense and shaky late-game execution.
- Depending on your view, it could either a good sign that the Hawks showed the ability to score against good defensive opponents or a bad sign they squandered those efforts when they finally got them. Or maybe another way to look at is the Hawks have shown they can play consistently effective defense so maybe not doing it this game was a fluke and their offense is finally ready for the playoffs.
- Josh Smith didn’t sound too worried. “It wasn’t like we got blown out of the game,” he said. “If we didn’t compete at all, then I would be concerned.”
- But there is a worrisome disconnect with the Hawks when it comes to their offense. It’s been that way since I’ve been around and it was brought into sharp relief while listening to Larry Drew and Joe Johnson talk about the offense after this game.
- Drew: “We had enough stuff that I knew we wouldn’t be predictable offensively in what we did. We run things where we put things in Joe’s hands but, for the most part, we had good ball movement, we share the basketball and we get things moving from one side to the other.”
- Joe: “Down the stretch, I just figure you have got to put the ball in the hands of your playmakers. Point blank. The Knicks did it all game. [Carmelo Anthony] shot 32 times, man. They made sure they got the ball to the right man.”
- The Hawks didn’t do that? “Naw,” Joe said. “Not when we needed buckets.” So that means he should have gotten the ball more? “Of course. I always want the ball down the stretch.” But weren’t the Knicks forcing the ball out of your hands? “Naw. It was probably more just play-calling.”
- There are obvious holes in what both Drew and Joe said. Drew’s offense often devolves from what’s working–whether it be the share-the-ball philosophy or post-ups for Josh–into Iso-Joe. And Joe, for all his talents, just isn’t as effective as Anthony in that situation.
- Witness Joe’s forced, missed fadeaway 20-footer with the Hawks down 113-112. Or look at the next possession, when Joe dribbled out the shot clock in isolation before passing out to Josh for an airballed 3-point try.
- Joe took three shots in seven fourth-quarter minutes and made three. Marvin Williams, who was hot all game, took five shots and made three in 11 minutes. Josh took three shots and missed them all in 11 minutes. Jeff Teague missed both of his field-goal attempts in seven minutes.
- I just don’t see Joe’s gripe here. But I do see that this disconnect could be Atlanta’s undoing in the playoffs, and not energy or effort or defense or any of the other things the Hawks tend to attribute to their losses.
- That’s not to say nothing good came out of this from the Hawks. Aside from 19 turnovers and seven missed free throws, the Hawks were about as good as they could be offensively: 54 percent shooting, 26 fast-break points, 15 of 23 on 3-pointers. The Hawks engaged the Knicks in a high-possession game and nearly matched their output.
- “We knew they were going to get up-and-down, especially with ‘Melo’ playing the four,” Joe said. “They’ve got so many shooters to spread the floor. We didn’t put no force behind it when we was guarding him. You have got to make it tough. He’s a scorer in this league.”
- “We was getting [offense] from all different angles,” Josh said. “I loved what I saw from Marvin, especially the outside jump shots.”
- Marvin was nearly flawless: 29 points on 14 shots, 11 rebounds, three blocks, one steal and just one turnover. He did a really good job with spacing, catching, and shooting with confidence when the Knicks doubled Joe and Josh.
- His final dunk attempt missed but it came too late, anyway. The Hawks ran a play similar to the one they used to beat the Clippers last season, when Al Horford was decked by Blake Griffin and recovered to make two free throws.
- “Similar play,” Drew said. “Marvin made the right play. Probably didn’t get there quick enough, but he got to the rim and we got the look we wanted.”
- Marvin thought Amar’e Stoudemire fouled him. It looked like a clean challenge to me. “I don’t think anyone should complain that there was any contact on that last play,” Amare said.
- The Hawks didn’t immediately call timeout after Joe rebounded Anthony’s miss, with Joe instead passing to Kirk Hinrich. That cost them 1.5 seconds, which ended up being costly. There didn’t seem to be much situational awareness from the bench or the players on the floor.
- Marvin did what he could to slow Anthony but it’s tough when Anthony is making those pull-up Js with very little air space. “He’s a tough cover when he’s not making that,” Marvin said. “In my mind he’s top five, top three best scorers in this league. The things he is able to do is unbelievable.”
- Joe had 23 points on 14 shots but couldn’t consistently take advantage of Iman Sumpert’s tight defense (even if Shumpert got away with a lot of reaching). Joe tried to get around him with his hesitation dribble move but it was ineffective. So Joe often had to resort to making challenge Js, which he can do, but it wrecks the offensive flow when he misses.
- Josh took some good turns on Melo but never found his offensive flow. In games like this he has to earn more than three free-throw attempts. But it’s hard to do that when he’s so slow to make his move that he allows the Knicks to poke away the ball.
- Baron Davis should not be able to slip past Teague so easily to get to the basket. Teague should be able to score 23 points on 14 shots, and he did.
- Hinrich’s line (three points on four shots, four assists in 28 minutes) sticks out on a boxscore where so many others did much more.
- Jannero Pargo led the charge in the second quarter with nine points on five shots. He’s been pretty consistent with those outbursts. Pargo’s defense has been good this season but not today.
- Tracy McGrady is having a career-worst season on long 2s. That’s not so costly when he’s playmaking and rebounding but he didn’t do much of either today.
- I thought Ivan Johnson would make more of an impact in a smallball game like this.
- “He took 32 [shots] to get them,” Drew said. “I’m happy about that. I told our guys before the game, when you play guys who are high-volume scorers and big-time scorers you make a decision what you want to do against them and we carry the same approach against all scorers. Similar to how we play Dwight Howard, we try to defend him as best we can one-on-one and try to lock in on the other guys. Our problem is we didn’t lock in on the other guys.”
Melo’s 39 points on 32 shots weren’t so bad for the Hawks. Basically New York’s offense was Melo in isolation, Amar’e rolling to the basket (until the Knicks forgot about him late) and Landry Fields catching-and-shooting.
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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194 comments Add your comment
Bravesfan79
April 23rd, 2012
11:34 am
SlimJR: YEA RIGHT! Better overall record that Chicago? No team with melo will ever bring that intensity night in and night out to have the best record in the league. And im hoping Orlando wins at least 1 more game so we can be treated to a exciting Knicks/ Heat 1st round playoff series. One thing for sure, Orlando/ Miami would be very boring. And i dunno about anyone else, but im pulling hard for the Suns to get that 8 seed out west so i can see Nash do his thing 1 more time.
justahawkfan
April 23rd, 2012
11:49 am
JeJe (Gone MAd) You understood my post, did you not? I guess it wasn’t really that bad. Not to get into a contest with you because I dont’t have that much free time. My life gets in the way. I’m suprise yours don’t. You have to admit that you are a quantity poster, not neccessarilly a quality poster. You have random thoughts and you post them all, somtime in ALL CAPS. Your make predictions are often wrong and usually against the home team. You have fired all the coaches and traded all the players at least once or twice. This is a blog and you do have right to post as many times as you wish but maybe you should consider how it looks to the other bloggers.
Things you should consider before posting; 1. how many time I’ve posted in the last hour 2. how many times have repeated myself in last hour, 3. Did I miss my therapist appointment. and 4. Do (GM) really mean Gone Mad
Bravesfan79
April 23rd, 2012
11:57 am
DawgNole: When was the last championship for Ga football or basketball ? Over 30 years ago! Go root for the clippers and see how far that takes ya.
doc
April 23rd, 2012
12:00 pm
ill go with the mantra a win is a win. i wont go for it was a good loss. this team has a huge monkey on its back, along with jj, for not performing under pressure in big games. they lost another on yesterday. in my opinion the monkey got heavier. sorry, no excuses.
as i said yesterday, the bar to get over to win big games just got higher, not lower, as with each close loss it becomes harder to win. anyone with a background playing sports knows this or the least amount of knowledge of sports psychology. unfortunately, for them to get over the bar is going to take a huge win where they break it down in a big way. i dont see it happening from these guys when you hear jj complaining, he wasnt getting the ball, rather than saying, i still didnt deliver and it is on me, for the umpteenth time.
Dawg
April 23rd, 2012
12:09 pm
The offense can not run through JJ. He makes everything stagnant. He is great at moving without the ball and taking a pass but the offense boggs down if he dominates the ball.
Big Ray
April 23rd, 2012
12:21 pm
Can’t get into a shootout with a team like the Knicks. They have two bonafide STARS in Anthony and Stoudamire, and a former one in Baron Davis who is still very dangerous.
Marvin Williams had an exceptional game. Won’t see another like that for about a year, most likely. Josh had several games like that since the all-star snub….
Speaking of Josh, the Hawks still don’t get it. They have a (finally) budding star and once Joe is healthy, they seem to have problems consistently going to him. Joe was once head and shoulders above everybody else on the team. Not so anymore, and he’s not even what he once was.
Basically equal number of shots between Joe, Jeff, Josh, and Marvin. Josh struggles and is the low man. But look at Joe, Marvin, and Jeff. Joe was least efficient of the three.
Joe is still a heck of a player. But NOT for the money we’re paying him. Get him outta here, or watch us struggle with identity even more when Horford returns (next season). Josh is the man, Jeff has basically arrived, and Marvin still needs to be a bench guy in most cases…let Horford work his way back in or trade him if a good Center situation arrives. But get Joe out. He represents the past, and has issues reintegrating into what is now the future.
doc
April 23rd, 2012
12:27 pm
big ray, as i said before the game, we might be playing right into their hands by trying to go small ball on them. shootouts are for folks who have hired hands whose hands are steady when it comes down to the last minute. we dont have anyone like that on our team.
Big Ray
April 23rd, 2012
12:31 pm
Just look at the last 7 or 8 losses. In each one (except when we lost to Boston 79-76) and you see where Joe is SO much less efficient than Josh from game to game. In fact, Josh has outplayed Joe for more than a month now.
We’ll see what happens in the playoffs. Better hope the Celtics are too old to support the pride they’re gonna have, and that Teague can help slow Rondo down. Otherwise, it’s a first round loss. Especially without help from Horford down low (rebounds, defense, double figure scoring, energy).
Big Ray
April 23rd, 2012
12:32 pm
Doc,
You are so right.
Catch y’all later.
DawgNole
April 23rd, 2012
12:40 pm
Bravesfan79
April 23rd, 2012
11:57 am
DawgNole: When was the last championship for Ga football or basketball ? Over 30 years ago! Go root for the clippers and see how far that takes ya.
____________________
When a poster has little if anything of substance to bring to a blog, he posts irrelevancies when he would’ve been better off posting nothing.
Congratulations, Mr. Irrelevant.
doc
April 23rd, 2012
12:49 pm
big ray i think it would be great to find a buyer no mater the terms to move jj on. he has fewer and fewer big games and they come against the dregs. again to me though there may be stats to dispute it that he can be a first half guy or a last half guy but never carries the greatness through a full game like a true superstar can. example was his first half against the depleted celts was great, some adjustment was made and he became a non-factor. in big series good coaches learn how to stop him and do it if it os going to affect the outcome.
like vava has used the jamal idea that he was an addiction for ld, it still is for ld, as it as for woody, to use jj at the end of games even though he cant do it on his own. he does not have the ability to consistently create his own shot because like the best receiver in football who cant create separation, he is no good because he cant create separation whenever he needs it nor make the contested shot in close quarters. he isnt as good as he was 7 yrs ago and as much as i hate to say it he isnt the second coming of paul pierce nor will he. he is a good ballplayer just not a money player; the closest we got to that is josh. selah.
doc
April 23rd, 2012
12:50 pm
or creates echoes.
Rod from College Park
April 23rd, 2012
12:52 pm
The playoffs are coming. Winning percentages during the regular season will mean nothing. We won’t be playing the NJ Nets in the playoffs. Marvin won’t score 26 points in a playoff game. Most playoff teams have hired assasins. Guys that want the last shot, like Melo, Wade, Rose, Kobe Durant, Pierce…. We have Joe Johnson. We had a guy like that (assasin) in Jamal Crawford, but we did not want to pay him. Boston in 4, no more than 5.
Pargo needs major minutes in the playoffs. I don’t know how, but he has that killer mentality that is needed to be successful in playoff games. He also does not seen to feel like he has to defer to anyone on this team. If he is open, he takes tha shot.
O'brien
April 23rd, 2012
12:52 pm
Vava,
you cannot also forget that bad calls usually make him lose his focus and there were plenty of those yesterday.
Don’t you think there will be bad calls going up against the Celtics in the playoffs? So should we expect (and be ok with) Josh losing his focus if that happens?
5 rebs from Josh against the Knicks is terrible. And he had 7 turnovers against the Boston reserves (and 5 yesterday). I like what he has done this year, but he needs to be mentally tougher. Doc Rivers will find a way to get inside his head.
northcyde
April 23rd, 2012
12:52 pm
Big Ray….. So how is this team better without JJ? Getting rid of JJ means trading him for a bunch of expiring contracts. Meanwhile, you lose your best perimeter scorer AND perimeter defender on the team. Who do you trade him for? Tyreke Evans?
Trading JJ is the same as trading Smith or Horford. If you’re not getting close to their talent level back in return, you’re basically going into give up mode.
And another thing. What evidence is there that Smith is ready to be “the man”? He’s scoring more, but taking a lot, a lot of shots to get those points. And without the ability to score in the post down the stretch of games, who do you go to?
For all of the hatred of ISO JJ, hd’s 8th in the league in ckutch scoring points per 48 minutes, and is shooting 47% during that time frame. But perception is reality around these parts.
doc
April 23rd, 2012
12:53 pm
Blog Troll 73 up, 30 down
1.(n) -A pathetic and moronic person who maintains a blog with an unhealthy obsessive-compulsive drive, especially angsty goths (sorry to all the likeable goths out there). The content of their blogs usually includes events that no sane person would care about. Here’s sample of what a blog troll might write on their blog:
“today, I ate a sanwich. It bad – it was just ok, mediocre, I guess you could call it. After that I read a few chapters out of an Anne Rice book and was deeply moved by her erotic descriptions of gay vampires fornicating. . Then I took a nap.
2.(n) -A depraved individual who sits in front of a computer all day and posts flames of an idiotic or pseudo-intellectual nature on public forums and private websites. Many of these people actually become emotional about what is said on the afore-said mediums and feel it is their duty to punish those who disagree with them. They too may pursue this object in an obsessive-compulsive manner.
doc
April 23rd, 2012
1:03 pm
northcyde, can you break it down to opponent and how good he is in the clutch. sorry, i dont feel it. maybe it is as much his crybaby demeanor when he doesnt deliver and blames it on the others for not getting the ball in his hands after a close loss when he didnt deliver rather than say, i didnt get the job done. yes, he can really ball against the detroit’s but not so much against the boston’s is my observation. again, it may be only my perception based on his lackadaisical non-accountabilty role, just like in josh, it is his demeanor that folks dont like rather than his game. what about a breakdown in the close losses against the cream that i think, he just doesnt get er dun? perception or realty?
Astro Joe
April 23rd, 2012
1:06 pm
By definition of their positions, most SGs are less efficient than a PF. The 5th best PF would always be more efficient than the 5th ranked SG (as an example). Paul Millsap is probably more efficient than D-Wade, so what? It is a function of where they shoot. Childress shot over 55% for the Hawks and fans hated him. Horford shot around 54% last season and somehow, he has become among the most dispised player on the squad. I suspect that the Hawks are very close to a .500 team when Josh leads them in scoring. I’m sure some will be fine with watching the Hawks win around 45 games as long as Josh is the main cog. But will that be enough for him to stay (”I’ll stay and be a 7th seeded team as long as I get the bulk of the shots”).
Josh had a phenomenal month of March, when the Hawks were essentially a .500 team. The most recent mediocrity the Hawks are showing (IMO) is due to Zaza’s absence… or more generally, the absence of a quality big (i.e., Horford or Zaza). When Ivan plays well, the Hawks are able to win, when he has a rookie-type game, the Hawks lose. Yesterday, we got nothing from the C position and gave up over 110 points. If the Hawks have to score more than 110 points to win a game, the problem isn’t one of offensive efficiency (especially when the Hawks go for ~110).
J
April 23rd, 2012
1:15 pm
Brian – “the east is so weak” … really? Tell that to Boston/Chicago/Miami/Indiana. Making a comment like that just makes you look like a fool.
northcyde
April 23rd, 2012
1:19 pm
The fact is that we need as much talent on this team as possible. Unless people want to just go into rebuild mode, the Hawks just can’t arbitrarily trade off pieces. Even when the Smith rumors were rampant, I was talking about trading him for a comparable talent, like a Pau Gasol. I’m not trading Smith for Omer Asik.
The fact that JJ has had some bad games in our losses actually illustrates that he’s needed as much as ever.
The other thing that’s not being talked about, is that Josh has basically been the #1 offensive option since the All-Star break.
Josh is averaging 19.1 shots per game, scoring 21.7 points since the All-Star break, by far tops on the team. JJ is averaging 15.4 shots per game, scoring 20.2 points So JJ is already functioning as the #2 guy.
So if Smith wants to be the man, it is HE that has to do more, especially in crunch time. Otherwise, the Hawks need as much talent on the floor as possible. With our opponent being for certain being Boston now, people simply have to step up and get the job done as a team. If it comes down to individual performances, these are the numbers vs Boston
Johnson: 23.7 ppg – 4.7 rebs – 3.7 asst – 0.3 blks – 0.7 stls – 48% FG ( 17.3 shots/gm ) – 50% 3FG ( 7 – 14 ) – 86% FT ( 12 – 14 )
Smith: 16.3 ppg – 11.3 rebs – 5 asst – 1.7 blks – 1.7 stls – 39% FG ( 18.7 shots/gm ) – 13% 3FG ( 1 – 8 FG ) – 80% FT ( 4 – 5 )
Despite whomever the team’s offense should revolve around, Boston does not fear Josh Smith. They fear Joe Johnson. Because of this, JJ should get a plethora of defensive looks thrown at him. This “should” enable Smith to face one on one coverage most of the series.
The question is . . if Boston does everything they can to shut down JJ, can Josh ( and others ) deliver?
northcyde
April 23rd, 2012
1:21 pm
My bad . . JJ averages 23 ppg vs Boston. Not 23.7 ppg
Astro Joe
April 23rd, 2012
1:22 pm
doc, I think your perception is reality. But I aslo think the personality (and contract) continues to cloud the issue. In the world of “you are who you are”, the Hawks are 2 games away from finishing as the 4th seed after playing the vast majority of the year without their All-Star center. IMO, Joe deserves some credit for that accomplishment. Josh gets a lot, so does Zaza, Teague and heaven forbid, the head coach and GM who built a better 1-14 roster than we’ve seen in a decade. But if memory goes beyond tjust the month of March, then Joe gets a fair share of the love for a surprisingly successful regular season.
O'brien
April 23rd, 2012
1:23 pm
Rod,
If Pargo and/or Green or hot, I think they will get minutes, especially late in the game when Teague tightens up.
Doc,
JJ is known for spouting off to the media. But I wonder if he says anything to his teammates and his coach, which is what a leader should do.
Astro Joe
April 23rd, 2012
1:25 pm
northcyde, what is the Hawks record since the All-Star game?
northcyde
April 23rd, 2012
1:28 pm
Astro . . and to drive home your point, Wade leads all SGs in efficiency at 22. However, that is .1 behind David Lee’s 22.1 efficiency rating, who is 5th among PFs.
And I also agree that the thing that will carry us through the playoffs will be DEFENSE, not offense. If the Hawks are having trouble scoring, they have to buckle down on the other end and prevent their opponent from scoring. And that means playing good on the ball defense, and securing defensive rebounds.
Scoop
April 23rd, 2012
1:29 pm
@MC
Why was there no mention of how poor Josh played? 5-13 with 5 TURNOVERS!!!!!!!!!!! R u kidding me????????? For a wannabe all-star to come up that short in a ‘playoff’ type game is a joke.
This game epitomizes Josh as a player to me. He is soft, in a nutshell. The Knicks INTENTIONALLY put a smaller player on him (a guard no less) and Josh still settled. Except when he spun and got the and-1 against Landry Fields. Twice with J.R. Smith on him, he let J.R. push him to the baseline FROM THE TOP OF THE KEY and steal he pass to him!!!!!TWICE!!!!!!
The other times J.R. was on Josh he drifted to the three point line and was content to pass the ball!!!!!
Plus, Josh is lazy on the pick and rolls, offensively and defensively. Offensively, he sets weak, shadow picks and a lot of times just moves to the block to get the ball. Defensively is worse. He doesn’t hedge to give his teammate time to get over and then get back to his own defender. Josh does the worst thing possible-he sits in the middle, gives the ball handler an ocean of space and is content to just switch it and leave his teammate out to dry.
Also, Josh NEVER boxes out. He relies too much on his athleticism to get rebounds and then complains for a whistle when he gives up an offensive rebound.
As a fan, I’m angry because the Hawks played like they wanted this game. Marvin did EVERYTHING you could ask of him IMO. He had an incredible night. Teague was outstanding defensively and distributing the bball. Teague set the stage early with those steals and his aggressiveness. Joe made some big threes late and played a good game. But Josh came up short in the clutch and it’s happening consistently.
Josh should stop trying to be Lebron and bringing the ball up the court and focus on the little things like boxing out, pick and roll defense, reducing turnovers, and shot selection. If he just did those the Hawks would go a long way…….
northcyde
April 23rd, 2012
1:37 pm
Record of Hawks since the All-Star game: 18 – 12
E43
April 23rd, 2012
1:41 pm
“The problem is that on a consistent basis, he makes those shots at a higher rate when someone else creates the shot for him than when he has to create it himself in an isolation situation.”
See now that’s exactly what the problem is. There are too many guys with very selective aggressiveness. It would help if the hawks had the size and speed to play possum and then go for the unsuspecting jugular.
Joe is aggressive all day everyday with his shot. Not to break a record but Josh would be fine if he was a SF in my opinion. Why? Because the competition dictates too much whether or not that ball falls.He should be shooting close to 55% and I think he can do that lining up against SF’s more often. I feel like having a C and PF in front of him brings better shot selection because guys like Ivan and Zaza wont go perimeter and if they do it wont be just for the sake of doing so.
I also feel like the same thing that happens to Joe against defensive SF’s like Pietrus is the same thing that happens to Josh Smith against PF’s like Garnett. Obviously the celtics don’t have enough matchup advantages to obliterate the hawks, LD should really keep the in game adjustments rolling enough to keep Doc from keying in and studying our weaknesses. I think this would be a good series or maybe even playoffs for the Hawks to not shorten their rotation and try anything different they’re comfortable with.
O'brien
April 23rd, 2012
1:42 pm
northcyde,
To me, coaching is the bigger problem when it comes to late game execution. At the end of the game, we need our HC to design a play for Josh, or to design a better play for JJ. But we havent seen it very often. Too often it’s iso-JJ, or run another play for somebody else.
And losing JJ Does not make the Hawks a better team. But isn’t it possible that by taking one step back, the Hawks may take 2 steps forward in another year or so (if we had a good GM).
And JJ has been good against Boston this year, Josh not so much. But I think most of JJ’s clutch stats are from playing the Detroits, Washington, Cleveland etc.
I think Josh will struggle against Boston, so we will need the JJ from thr 4th quarter playoff game in ‘08 to show up.
vava74
April 23rd, 2012
1:42 pm
Josh coasted these past couple of games.
His statement after the NYK game is telling (”…it’s not that we were run off the building…”).
I AM NOT JUSTIFYING HIS POOR PERFORMANCES, but I don’t think we saw Josh’s best effort.
Also, as discussed above, LD has not been using zone D consistently after using it substantially at the beginning of the year.
I think that in close quarters the message inside the locker room is: “lets give a decent effort and try and get the most wins without risking injury and disclosing too much of our strategy”.
AGAIN, I DON’T AGREE WITH THIS, but seems to be the mind set coming from the head honcho himself, LD and Josh seems to be the biggest culprit at taking the foot off the pedal.
northcyde
April 23rd, 2012
1:44 pm
Record vs current playoff teams since the All-Star break: 6 – 8
KevinM
April 23rd, 2012
1:49 pm
Let’s talk 2 seconds on Al: If he does come back, you think he’s coming back to fight in the paint? He will have his face to the basket offense in high gear. No way he plays balls-to-the-wall this year.
We need Ivan and Zaza inside more than Al to come back. We’ve made it this far without him.
So 1 win gets us HC for the playoffs? We better get it on Tuesday, as the pressure will be too great during the last game.
E43
April 23rd, 2012
1:49 pm
Northclyde- I’m not familiar with this cosign phenomena or what it means I guess I cosign your 1:19PM post.
KevinM
April 23rd, 2012
1:58 pm
Speaking on David Lee, has he ever played on a winning team in the pros?
His college teams always underperformed. I saw Kenneth Faried give him a post up clinic on THE ASSOCIATION last week.
northcyde
April 23rd, 2012
2:00 pm
Vava, the fact that you had to say that, means that you’re actually doing just that.
Yesterday’s game was a game tailor made for Josh to dominate, and he didn’t. And why would he coast, when he knows ( or should know ) that this team is playing for home court advantage vs Boston? The last thing I want to see in that series, is a Game 7 @ Boston. That would literally be going into the pit of Hell right there.
Like I said, if that dude wants to be “the man”, then a lot is going to be expected of him. That’s why JJ can’t get mad when people call him out. He’s looked to, and paid to be “the man”. So he must deliver.
And Scoop makes a great point about Josh. If he did the fundamental little things on a nightly basis, that dude would be a monster, and might even lead the league in rebounding. I’ve always thought he could be an 11 – 12 rebound a game guy, if he simply boxed out.
And I disagree with you when you say that Drew is taking his foot off the pedal. Drew is the main one trying to keep these guys playing at a high level going into the playoffs. He damn near had a meltdown last year, with the way they entered the playoffs, and was skeptical that they could just “turn it on” ( which they did ).
Nothing easy for Josh next game either. Blake Griffin comes to town, along with Deandre Jordan. They will fight us to the death to win that division and get the 3rd seed over the Lakers. Hope his foot isn’t still “off the pedal”. We need him playing at a high level, at least on the boards and on the defensive end.
northcyde
April 23rd, 2012
2:04 pm
@ Scoop 1:29
The bad thing is, if you see this as a fan, you KNOW coaches see this about Josh. That’s why the perception of him is somewhat negative, despite his All-Star caliber talent. It’s unfortunate too.
doc
April 23rd, 2012
2:05 pm
aj, agreed. in spite of a counter culture here, some things have gone right this year in a big way and should be recognized and lauded against where i thought this team would be and it certainly was not in the ecf. they have played well and probably to their skill set max. does this equate to going further? i dont think so and said so at the beginning of the season we were on a down slope where we might actually perform better during the season in numbers but have an earlier exit in the playoffs. i dont want to pay for this, so with every close loss, i tend to want to keep my dollars in my pocket.
remember, a few years ago i suggested to trade josh to get bigger? right now, jj’s contract will get in the way of making this a better team. i dont see any plausible way around it unless the basg is going to go into tax land. i got news for you if you didnt hear it, they wont until we get to the ecf, which we wont, because of jj’s contract. nice catch 22 there and allows the basg to serve up more spin crap like they ever intend to go into the tax or have a winner and not an entertainer.
if we can get something of value for jj, i say trade him. this isnt taking anything away from the thought i like his game. especially, when he is pouring it in, like he was in the first half against the celts. problem is, those moments seem to be able to be shut off like a faucet by opposing coaches. it is just like, anytime they want to shut down josh, all they have to do is let him shoot or throw him into a double team and slap the ball away.
again, it is to look to the big picture and the bigger albatross is going to be jj’s contract. frankly, i am also not sure about resigning josh as that often turns out bad for guys like him, getting the big money, as their bodies wear down and it will. an example is brand with the sixers; that is how josh could look in three years midway into a max contract.
doc
April 23rd, 2012
2:06 pm
northcyde 6-8 divided by 2 equals 3-4. that equals to a first round exit.
kwooden1
April 23rd, 2012
2:15 pm
Fun game to watch, but bad game for the HAWKS. I would like to win every game, but I’m more concerned with how we played. It’s really evident how poor a rebounding team we are without a real center. I thought Zaza’s impact on games was high, but we’re a completely different team without him. As I watched the game I could see how LD was just stuck and had no options when it came to personnel. At one point he tried Ivan on Amare and very quickly things went bad. I thought LD should have tried more double-teams and zone but all things considered he did a pretty good job. I saw Woody has grown as a coach and was making some adjustments in the 4th.
Right now I’m just waiting for Zaza and Horford to get back, because clearly we have no chance against Boston without at least one of those guys.
GO HAWKS!!
DawgNole
April 23rd, 2012
2:29 pm
kwooden1
April 23rd, 2012
2:15 pm
Fun game to watch, but bad game for the HAWKS. I would like to win every game, but I’m more concerned with how we played.
_____________________
Never fun to lose.
Rather play poorly and win than play well and lose.
Ws are ALWAYS better than Ls.
O'brien
April 23rd, 2012
2:41 pm
New Blog
bama52
April 23rd, 2012
9:07 pm
My opinion Joe don’t know when to shoot. Picks are set for Joe and he’s wide open for a jump shot or drive to the basket instead he dribble’s the ball until he’s double or triple teamed.He needs to learn how to get in a position to shot or drive the ball before he get’s it. Joe,Marvin and Josh must attack the basket more. J Teague is playing great,but no one is breaking open when he’s pushing the ball. Joe,Marvin and Josh are either jump shooting or isolating themselves to far from the basket. Josh still wants to play guard,his passing and ball handling leads to more turnovers than big plays. Get the ball to J Teague so he can run. We turn the ball over simply because we wait to late to pass. Josh and Joe your teammates can shoot.Josh and Joe can bring a championship to the ATL,but they must have confidence in their teammates. The bench is playing outstanding,this team can go deep into the playoff, could be a shocker because of their ability to play defense. DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS. LETS GO HAWKS!!!!
Rusty
April 23rd, 2012
9:39 pm
Nortcyde haven’t you had enough time to see that iso Joe does not work. Joe is the last guy on the team whom I want to see with the ball in his hands because it all comes to a complete stoppage.
Geno
April 24th, 2012
12:24 am
Lol… When we start having a sellout arena full of hawks fans actually cheering for the hawks then we will make it to next level…