Atlanta Hawks: Josh Smith doubtful for Game 3 with knee injury
A person with knowledge of the prognosis for Josh Smith said the Hawks forward is doubtful to play in Game 3 against the Celtics Friday after he suffered a left knee injury in Game 2 Tuesday.
The person said Smith has patellar tendonitis with inflammation in the injured area but an MRI revealed no structural damage. If Smith misses Game 3 he likely would return for Game 4 Sunday in Boston, according to the person.
The person did not want to be identified because the Hawks have not released details of Smith’s injury. The Hawks released a statement that said Smith is day-to-day with a “strained left tendon.”
Smith suffered the injury during the fourth quarter of Atlanta’s 87-80 defeat to Boston. He appeared to pull up limping after a layup attempt and later aggravated it while jostling for rebounding position with Boston’s Kevin Garnett.
Smith played through nagging injuries during the regular season. Smith and Jeff Teague were the only starters to play in all 66 games.
“I know Josh is a guy if it’s just hurting him, he’s going to play,” Hawks coach Larry Drew said before Smith’s MRI results were known. “He has that kind of toughness. But if it’s a situation where he positively, absolutely can’t play, then he won’t be out there.
“I’m always worried in these situations. He’ s just been so good for us and certainly he’s a key component in order for us to have success. With both of your centers out and looking at your power forward being injured, I’m hoping for the best. ”
The Hawks also are without Al Horford (pectoral) and Zaza Pachulia (foot). Horford has ruled himself out for the entire series but there is a chance Pachulia can return if the series is extended.
Drew said Smith’s injury has no bearing on the timetable for Horford and Pachulia.
“I ask every day how they are doing, but me asking and wanting them back is not going to speed up the process whether they are ready or not,” Drew said. “If they are ready and they can play I am sure they would play. If Josh is not ready to go, and if Zaza and Al are not ready, I will just have to be without all three guys and we will march on. As bad as I want those guys back, if those guys aren’t ready to play I can’t push it or pressure them into playing.”
If the Hawks have to play without Smith, they’d be left with no effective low-post scorers or help defenders in the frontcourt. Ivan Johnson would be about it as far as big men who can rebound.
Drew’s options for the lineup would include starting Johnson at power forward alongside Jason Collins or going small with Marvin Williams, Vladimir Radmanovic or Tracy McGrady at power forward.
None of those options is likely to do much to help Atlanta’s anemic offense. Smith’s ability to score in the post and ignite the fast break after rebounds have been the most reliable options for the Hawks in this series.
“We have to make a decision who to insert into the starting lineup,” Drew said. “It changes the matchups. Defensively, we would have to make adjustments. Offensively we are certainly going to have to do some things differently. As far as posting up, he’s the guy I’ve really been going through a lot. We would have to tweak things quite a bit.”
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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
272 comments Add your comment
julius
May 3rd, 2012
11:49 am
I think Joe johnson shoud give the money back
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
11:50 am
On D, at least to give Collins a breather at C, I would run the Diamond and 1 Zone, with Dampier down low, and Teague shadowing Rondo.
I personally don’t think Boston can beat us shooting J’s. That’s just me. I would make them beat me shooting J’s.
And whoever can get inside of Paul Pierce’s jersey and stay there – Stack or whoever, that’s who I would put on him. I would think Marvin’s length would bother him. But I would be thinking wrong.
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
11:58 am
Rod and Vava – Weirdly enough, you are both correct in a sense. You gotta have folks that can put the ball through the hoop, regardless of how good you D is.
But you’ve got to rebound and play D, or your not going very far in the playoffs.
Vava – I think one thing sometimes you and ‘Cyde miss is that you can hide a guy on D, unless your opponent has all good scorers at say the 1-3, as in Young’s case. All you do with Young on D is put him on Tony Allen, since he can’t G Conley or Gay. Then if Tony Allen tries to beat you on O, really that’s what you want.
But Vava – I think we were all so shell shocked by Bibby and Jamal and the matador D and the horrible coaching by LD last season, we just never want to get anywhere near that again. But even Rod said Jamal should be nowhere near the Point on O.
And that’s why it’s all about matchups. Rightly used, a scorer can be invaluable. LD was trying to turn Jamal into something he wasn’t and didn’t even like to do – an all around BB player. Jamal is not. Jamal is a volume scorer, who doesn’t need to lead a team
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
12:09 pm
Vava – But now let’s say JJ was on the Grizzlies, and you had Conley, JJ, and Gay on the court at the same time. There is nowhere to hide Nick Young in that scenario. So then, the only way he sees the court is as a situational 3 guy, or if the game is out of hand, or if there is an injury or something. No way you can use Young there in a normal situation in the playoffs.
And that’s why it’s all about matchups. And good coach’s know how to exploit them, and bad coach’s do not.
Vava – Notice we didn’t get blown out really this season? Jeff Teague playing D at the point was almost the total reason why, even without Horford.
And that’s why we were beasting pretty good with Horford out there. Jeff’s presence alone tightened the D, and kept us from getting blown out. The other teams couldn’t exploit our PG Defensive deficiencies and it changed the game.
I have no idea why LD or some fans couldn’t see what was so obvious.
As you say, infatuation with O maybe.
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
12:22 pm
We only had 12 double digit losses this season out of 26 losses. Our worst loss was by 22 @ San Antonio.
Compare that to last season – I have no idea how many 20+ point beat downs we had. And many could have been worse, but we were down so bad in the 3rd, the other team would call off the dogs, and we’d only lose by 20 instead of 38 or something.
So I counted – we had 8 beatdowns of 20+ points last season. We had 4 30+ beat downs.
This season the worst beatdown was 22 pts at San Antonio. None even by 25.
Credit Jeff Teague, and the rest of the Hawks really.
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
12:31 pm
I dare say that us getting ZaZa back will change the complexion of this series, if he’s anywhere near healthy, more than the C’s getting Ray Allen back.
ZaZa can tip this thing in our favor really.
Sautee
May 3rd, 2012
12:31 pm
“WTF is LD doing playing 5 reserves at the same time when we are already missing 2 of our top 6 players in Zaza and Al???” – vava74
Vava, this is untrue. Go back and read my 3:47 pm. post yesterday and you’ll see.
northcyde
May 3rd, 2012
12:33 pm
Co-sign Vava 9:26am
The only way we’re winning this series, is if we outwork the Celtics on the boards and on the defensive end. This is NOT a great Celtics team. And this series is far from over. Drew just needs to understand that in the playoffs, your main cogs must be on the court as much as possible. They can be on the court and “rest” at the same time.
When I say “rest”, I mean be on the court, but instead of being the focal point of the offense, have them be facilitators for others. You can also give a player a variety of looks on defense. As much as Boston loves to shoot the jumpshot, I’m surprised that the Hawks haven’t gone to more zone in this series.
*********************
Offensively, one thing about Game 3 is this. If we can effectively defensively rebound the basketball without Josh in the game, Jeff Teague has the potential to have a HUGE offensive game.
I say that because instead of Smith bringing the ball up after a defensive rebound, the guy who gathers up the rebound will probably get it right to Teague, who can then push the ball right down their throats in transition ( ala Spud Webb ). If we can get early and quick offense in that fashion, that may make up some of the offense we’ll lose with Josh gone.
I still would like to see Drew start this lineup
Teague
JJ
T-Mac
Ivan
Collins
Let T-Mac be the “point forward” and see if he can get multiple people easy looks. Drew may have to concede that the same premise that he used to start Hinrich, may have to be used in order to start T-Mac.
McGrady gives you better playmaking and better rebounding than Hinrich. And he has an all-around better offensive game. If defense is an issue, you can always “hide” him a little, if you don’t want him going head up against Pierce. He also gives you a guy who can get his own shot.
It’s strange. In the only appearance the Teague – JJ – McGrady – Smith – Collins lineup has appeared during these playoffs, they outscored Boston 6 – 0 in a 4 minute span.
Expecting T-Mac to play 30 minutes and score 20 points is probably unrealistic. Expecting T-Mac to play 30 minutes and score 10 points and dish out 6 assists to create 24 total points, is probably something that can be achieved.
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
12:37 pm
On that offensive set, there are alot of variations obviously.
But the main things are:
If somebody is doubled, somebody is open
And if your in the Lane on O, many times good things happen if you know what your doing.
Rod from College Park
May 3rd, 2012
12:47 pm
SteveW,
“Vava – I think one thing sometimes you and ‘Cyde miss is that you can hide a guy on D, unless your opponent has all good scorers at say the 1-3, as in Young’s case. All you do with Young on D is put him on Tony Allen, since he can’t G Conley or Gay. Then if Tony Allen tries to beat you on O, really that’s what you want.”
Thanks for attempting to give this guy some knowledge. Vava and northcyde are fantasy stats guys. They probably neveer have played the game or coached, so they have no idea that players have different roles and responsibility. Everyones job on a championship team is not to rebound and play great man to man defense (LOL). That is why there is a term called team defense.
Rod from College Park
May 3rd, 2012
12:57 pm
“The only way we’re winning this series, is if we outwork the Celtics on the boards and on the defensive end. This is NOT a great Celtics team. And this series is far from over. Drew just needs to understand that in the playoffs, your main cogs must be on the court as much as possible. They can be on the court and “rest” at the same time.”
LOL. So what are we going to do hold them to 70ppg? We are already holding them to 80ppg. Please explain to me haw we are going to outrebound them. Who is going to do that on a consistent basis?
Josh Smith Injury Update | We Live The Game
May 3rd, 2012
1:06 pm
[...] A person with knowledge of the prognosis for Josh Smith said the Hawks forward is doubtful to play in Game 3 against the [...]
northcyde
May 3rd, 2012
1:11 pm
Sautee . . . here’s the thing about your 12:31 post . . when you look at the personnel on the floor, we actually DID have 5 reserves in the game.
The way our team is constructed, the only legit starters we have on this team are JJ, Smith, and Teague. The issues with this team arise when 2 of those 3 are out of the game. A lot of times during the season, bad things would begin to happen as soon as Teague and JJ/Smith left the game. You could almost tell right out of the gate if the 2nd unit was going to be effective.
If Drew is going to manage this rotation effectively in the playoffs, he CANNOT have two of those guys on the bench at ANY point in this series.
When that 4th quarter started, this is was who was on the floor
Hinrich
Green
Marvin
Ivan
Smith
While Hinrich is technically a “starter”, you have Teague and JJ on the bench. Josh goes to the bench. Now you have THIS lineup on the floor
Hinrich
Green
T-Mac
Marvin
Ivan
Once again, Hinrich is “techincally” the starter in the game, but you have ALL 3 of our main guys on the bench. Celtics only score 2 points, while the Hawks are getting nothing, so Drew changes the lineup again. And here’s what we have on the floor
Hinrich
Green
McGrady
Marvin
Collins
And you STILL have our new “Big 3″ on the bench.
So when people talk about having 5 “bench guys” on the floor, they’re basically right. Just because Collins and Hinrich are “starters”, doesn’t mean that they are “starter quality”.
And in the 1st half, Drew did the same thing . . except for a longer period. Instead of our usual “bench mob” of Pargo -Green – McGrady – Marvin – Ivan . . he sat Ivan and put back in Collins. 5 Bench players.
Fortunately for the Hawks, Pierce happened to be on the bench, and KG didn’t score. LOL . . but that group was still outscored by 1 point.
The fact is that Drew MUST manage this lineup better. At no point in last night’s game, was both Pierce and Garnett out of the game at the same time. And if you consider Bradley part of their “Big 3″ on Tuesday night, Doc had at least 2 of those guys in the game at all times for 45 minutes of that game.
Meanwhile, JJ – Smith – Teague were out of the game TOGETHER for a total of 5 minutes that game . . with 2 of the 3 out of the game for about 9 minutes.
This is the playoffs. You can’t do that crap now. Paul Pierce played the final 33 MINUTES of that game. He didn’t come out of the game from early in the 2nd quarter on. KG played 24 of the final 27 minutes of that game. Bradley, Pierce, and KG played the entire 4th quarter, and scored 24 of Boston’s 26 points.
Drew better quickly learn how to coach in the playoffs. If you have to play JJ, Smith, and Teague the entire 2nd half of games, then so be it. Call a few extra timeouts during the flow of the game, to get them rest.
northcyde
May 3rd, 2012
1:23 pm
Rod . . you’re the fantasy guy, seeing how you want to play one dimensional offensive players. Both Vava and I specifically stress the importance of defense and rebounding, while you want to put unconscious gunners in the game so the team can score. Forget about the other end, in which they could give those points right back.
So YOU’RE the real fantasy guy. Basketball is played on two ends of the court. And if you can effectively defend people, and then rebound their misses, that in itself can create offense. This is why in the NBA, the team who can stop people, and turn those stops into points, will usually win a title. That’s why everybody feared Chicago.
Rod, it’s not about the total points, it’s WHEN you need to get stops.
If you’ve held a team to 60 points going into the 4th quarter, you have to maintain enough defensive intensity to NOT let them break 80. You just can’t all of a sudden give up 25 points in the 4th quarter. That’s when your defense needs to be at its toughest.
The guys that you covet like Nick Young and Jamal Crawford, are not added to great teams for a reason. They’re not added because their games are too one-dimensional. And they’re too streaky of shooters.
But that’s what YOU like. Those streaky shooters who if they’re shot is not on, can shoot you right out of the game . . and make things worse because they’re not stopping anybody.
northcyde
May 3rd, 2012
1:38 pm
Hmmm Rod . . . let’s see
We’re facing the #1 defensive team in the NBA who is 2nd in least points given up . . but you think we can beat them with good offense.
Meanwhile, they finished the season 25th in offensive rating, and are DEAD LAST in offensive rebounding, and #20 in defensive rebounding.
Yet, you think the formula to beating the Celtics is to throw one dimensional scorers at them to win games?
Hawks are #6 in points and 6th in points given up. We are a DEFENSIVE TEAM Rod. We beat teams when we’re able to limit what they do best, just like how Boston wins. While we do need to be better on offense, we also can be better on defense.
Get stops when you NEED to get stops, and the Hawks can beat the Celtics in this series. Drew needs to stop holding people back, and simply let them play their game.
Najeh Davenpoop
May 3rd, 2012
1:39 pm
Judging from MC’s Tweets it looks like a Game 3 return for Josh hasn’t been completely ruled out.
northcyde
May 3rd, 2012
1:42 pm
The next blog update I want to see from MC, is something on this T-Mac issue. Either from Drew’s perspective, or from McGrady’s perspective. I would love to see what T-Mac has to say about why he isn’t playing more. I would love to see him publically expose what is REALLY going on between those two, and why T-Mac can’t get on the floor with our new “Big 3″.
Sautee
May 3rd, 2012
1:45 pm
“So when people talk about having 5 “bench guys” on the floor, they’re basically right. Just because Collins and Hinrich are “starters”, doesn’t mean that they are “starter quality”.” -northcyde
First, I think that’s some pretty good hairsplitting. If someone starts the game, regardless of their talent level, by definition, they are a starter (can you say Royal Ivey?). I didn’t see ANYONE post: “LD had 5 players together, none of whom should be a starter.”
LDs options at this point are SO limited. I agree that one of JT/JJ/JS shouId be on the court at any time. Also I agree that Collins is not truly a starter, but Hinrich is certainly starter quality IMO. So I’ll stand by my argument, but acknowledge that Twin is NOT starter quality. But before the season started, how many thought Zaza was starter quality? Not that Twin will prove us wrong, like Zaza, LOL.
northcyde
May 3rd, 2012
1:47 pm
Drew says if J. Smith out, both M. Williams and T. McGrady get mins at PF. McGrady was with 1s at end of practice. #Hawks 52 mins ago
AT PF?
So Drew is going to go with a Teague – Hinrich – JJ – T-Mac – Collins lineup?
Does that mean that Ivan is in the doghouse again?
LOL @ Drew . . . just play the most talented people you got on this roster, and stop over-thinking. Play McGrady at the 2 and the 3 and put your bangers down on the blocks. Or hell, just start this lineup if you’re going to play Marvin
Teague
JJ
T-Mac
Marvin
Collins
And let Ivan be the main guy off the bench that plays both the 4 and the 5. And DON’T have Teague and JJ out of Game 3 at the same time.
This is the playoffs. Shorten your rotation. Give more minutes to your main guys.
northcyde
May 3rd, 2012
1:58 pm
Sautee . . the bottom line is that Drew simply can’t do that anymore, unless those bench guys are rolling.
In the playoffs, our 2nd unit is not going to be going up against the other team’s full 2nd unit. So it’s important for Drew to play only his most productive bench players, while extending the minutes of key starters.
Hinrich has shot the ball well playing alongside JJ, specifically when the ball is rotated back to him for an open jumpshot. But playing him at PG these days is almost the offensive equivalent of playing Jamal at the point, and expecting defense.
Doc Rivers is a championship level coach. Drew is NOT going to outcoach him. So what Drew needs to do, is keep his most talented players on the floor as much as possible.
OPEN YOUR EYES
May 3rd, 2012
2:06 pm
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
IT DOESN’T MATTER THE HAWKS WILL GET BLOWN OUT TOMORROW!!!!
doc
May 3rd, 2012
2:23 pm
sautee, i dont think hinrich was in his “starter” position of two but was at the one with green in the game technically he was not being a starter. also i dont ever consider twin a starter as i didnt consider royal one. the bottom line is, as you know, i like finishers and we have had this conversation before.
none of the guys out there have been finishers this year for the most part as hinrich’s role was diminished when all healthy. it was a weak line up and we went form 11 ahead to 7 behind in the time he put non-finishers in there to play the front line players of boston and finishers that doc went with almost the whole game.
i think ld got complacent and thought his guys could turn it on. we saw they cant late against boston over and over this season and then they had almost lost game one because of his over reliance on twin to “guard” kg. so if you want to say it on tech terms they were a few starters and ignore maybe hinrich was a starter in a different position, ok, only you cant deny we had way too few finishers as we wasted away an 11 point lead at the 3 minute mark in the third.
Sautee
May 3rd, 2012
2:35 pm
“Hinrich has shot the ball well playing alongside JJ, specifically when the ball is rotated back to him for an open jumpshot. But playing him at PG these days is almost the offensive equivalent of playing Jamal at the point, and expecting defense.” – northcyde
But if you noticed, my defense of LDs using that group included the caveat that Hinrich shouldn’t have been at PG. Don’t get that twisted. I wasn’t defending LDs strategy, just the accusation of not having any starters on the floor.
Hawks Blog Legend Worldwide Clyde
May 3rd, 2012
2:40 pm
BIG IVAN FOR PRESIDENT
Hawks have nothing to lose right now. They have to play small ball and wear the Celtics out. Our depth at the 2 and 3 positions is where we have our only advantage.
JOE JOHNSON ITS TIME TO EARN YOUR MONEY
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
2:43 pm
Jamal – His ideal role is a volume scorer off the bench. Most teams have that type of guy – Miller in Miami, Korver/Brewer in Chicago, Reddick in Orlando etc.
The key is off the bench. Jamal will be playing against lesser players, and making up for scorers (starters) who are on the bench. He won a 6th man playing in that role.
It’s when LD began (mercifully) to see Bibby was losing it pretty badly – he still wouldn’t play Teague, so he tried to turn Jamal into a 1. Who many times, not just at the end of games, was on the floor against starters. It didn’t work.
But let’s face it, Jamal is better than Willie Green. Jamal gets 10m per year contracts. 5 mill this season. Willie is on the vet minimum. There’s a reason for that. Would Jamal help us this year? Yes, of course, if used properly. He would school a guy like Avery Bradley many times. But we would have had to give up Stack, Damp, Green, Vlad, Pargo, and either TMac or Collins to sign him. We only pay those guys 854,000 per, with the League picking up the remainder of the tab. And then we would have had no money with ASG to fill out the remainder of the roster – it would have been DLeague, 2nd round pick types to even come close. And not every DLeaguer is like Ivan.
Sund probably did about the best he could with what he had to work with.
Hawks Blog Legend Worldwide Clyde
May 3rd, 2012
2:46 pm
WE’VE COME THIS FAR MY FAITH
Folks said we were finished when Horford went down but others stepped up. Folks said we were finished when Zaza went down but others stepped up. With Josh going down its no different. Someone has to step up and find a way to win 2 in Boston.
BIG IVAN FOR PRESIDENT
doc
May 3rd, 2012
2:48 pm
sautee, let me put it another way. i looked down at what ld had on the court vs what doc had placed out there and thought then politely said we aint got nothing in there. the response form eva, having seen fewer than 25 games of basketball in her life was, yes, we need 2 and 5 out there quick. we didnt say starters or finishers but said ld has left us crippled in essence. everyone saw it except the guy who counted, ld.
Hawks Blog Legend Worldwide Clyde
May 3rd, 2012
2:49 pm
Excuse my typo in my last post
WE’VE COME THIS FAR BY FAITH
LEANING ON THE LORD
HAWKS IN 6
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
2:50 pm
I’m not so sure that if Josh is out, instead of just resting our starters like Najeh suggested, we don’t go back to our regular season rotation, and give Pargo and Green some major burn. If they’re crazy on the 3 ball like they sometimes are, we push Boston, while resting our starters. If they’re off, well, we’re still resting our starters, and maybe giving these guys a way to get in rythym for the series.
Just a thought.
Sautee
May 3rd, 2012
2:55 pm
“it was a weak line up and we went form 11 ahead to 7 behind in the time he put non-finishers in there to play the front line players of boston and finishers that doc went with almost the whole game. ” – doc
Actually doc, that’s not factual. Go back and look at either my 3:37pm post, or the play-by-play. The first 5 points of the 11 point lead were lost to a lineup of Josh, Joe, Jeff, Ivan and Marvin. Then he put the “subs” in. By the time LD called timeout at 9:37 of the 4th and put the starters back in, we still had a 2 point lead.
We were never down 7 in the 4th until Pierce hit that 3 with about 3:30 to go. Starters (or finishers if you wish) had been back in for over 6 minutes by then. Other than Josh, who left at 4:20 with his knee.
Good point on Kirk not playing his “starter” position, though. And like you, I think of Ivan as more of “starter material” than Twin.
As I posted before, the lineup everyone has complained about (Kirk, Willie, Marvin, T-Mac, Twin) only lost 3 points off the lead in their time on the floor. But the biggest impact was how inept they were offensively, which gave Boston defensive confidence. After their stint, the Celtics D was suddenly smothering. And that was because Kirk was failing at PG. Shoulda left Jeff in with his young legs.
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
2:58 pm
So finally we find out ZaZa’s foot wasn’t day to day, a sprain, a strain or anything else.
From MC’s twitter – ZaZa “says he has bone chip in foot. Timetable for 4/13 injury was 4-6 wks. He’s out for GM 4 & 5 and likely 6 (if necess.).”
So best case, ZaZa is back May 10th or so. Since Game 7 if necessary will be May 11th, it’s not looking to good. So we better plan on beating these guys w/o ZaZa in our lineup.
This changes the dynamic – now I’m not trying to steal one in Boston to wait for ZaZa to come back – I gotta just go for the jugular full throttle and try to win this thing with what we got.
If LD can do this – he deserves some kudos in my opinion.
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
3:01 pm
Man, having a rested Rondo just is terrible. If we were going to lose the game anyway, I wish he would have played 40+ minutes in game 2.
northcyde
May 3rd, 2012
3:01 pm
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
2:43 pm
Jamal – His ideal role is a volume scorer off the bench. Most teams have that type of guy – Miller in Miami, Korver/Brewer in Chicago, Reddick in Orlando etc.
***************************
SteveW . . those guys you named are not volume scorers. They’re high 3 point shooting spot up shooters. And God knows that Jamal is not that.
Jamal is a volume scorer. That means that he’s going to take a high volume of shots to get his points. Guys like Korver and Redick don’t normally need 9 shots to score 9 points.
MsDee
May 3rd, 2012
3:01 pm
So EXACTLY when do LD suppose to rest these guys?? I STILL dont understand why we cant play the bench for a COUPLE, AND I DO MEAN A COUPLE AS IN 2 possessions to SEE if they have their “A” game going b4 automatically leaving our main guys out there. Look, we have been playing all season with players dropping like flies, Horford being a key starter out, now it has continued with Zaza and NOW Josh. LD dont need to get all caught up with “hay I GOT to keep Joe out there and oh my, Jeff hasnt rested all quarter, but oh well he got to stay out there but now Josh sat all but one time and we allowed them to score A BASKET or 2″. STOP WORRYING!! Some key facts was mentioned by northcyde about Boston being dead last in rebounding and what not..Look, all we need to do, NO MATTERS WHO ON THE COURT, is BOX OUT, REBOUND, and DRAW FOULS. If those on the floor know we have some key starters resting up, DRAW FOULS BY TAKING IT TO THE HOLE OR SETTING UP IVAN DOWN LOW WITH HIS SHOUT FRAME TO DRAW FOULS. HE SHOULDNT BE TRYING TO SHOOT OVER NOBODY CAUSE HE IS SHORTER THAN KG.
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
3:02 pm
If we could somehow steal this series, getting ZaZa and maybe Al back for Round 2 would be quite a lift for this team.
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
3:03 pm
LD’s just gotta turn TMac loose and let him play.
northcyde
May 3rd, 2012
3:06 pm
And what is all this talk about “rest”. Rest for what? These are the playoffs. We can’t afford to just give away a game. JJ and Teague are not hurt. Ivan isn’t hurt. Marvin isn’t hurt. Tell those guys to step up the way Boston stepped up on Tuesday.
Give Ivan 30+ minutes and let’s see what he can do.
MsDee
May 3rd, 2012
3:06 pm
CORRECTION: DRAW FOULS BY TAKING IT TO THE HOLE OR SETTING UP IVAN DOWN LOW WITH HIS ‘SHORT’ FRAME TO DRAW FOULS. HE SHOULDNT BE TRYING TO SHOOT OVER NOBODY CAUSE HE IS SHORTER THAN KG.
Hawks Blog Legend Worldwide Clyde
May 3rd, 2012
3:06 pm
Willie Green, Stackhouse, Vlad, T-Mack get ready.
Hawks Blog Legend Worldwide Clyde
May 3rd, 2012
3:07 pm
“Give Ivan 30+ minutes and let’s see what he can do.” – northcyde
BIG IVAN FOR PRESIDENT
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
3:08 pm
NC – I know what your saying. But at the same time, Jamal could also take it to the hole if he wanted to, and draw some FT action. I wasn’t trying to say that all those guys games were identical – Miller can actually play some D and rebound if he wants to (but that guy can get hurt walking onto the court), but they all serve kinda the same purpose – score while your starters are sitting, whether it’s by 3 or whatever.
And I’ve seen enough statlines out of Korver and Reddick with some o’fers to know they many times take quite a few shots and score nada, zero, as in 0, no points. And they’re deadbeats in basically every other area of the game.
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
3:09 pm
And Brewer with Chitown is more like Green for us, except he can play a little D.
MsDee
May 3rd, 2012
3:12 pm
northcyde
May 3rd, 2012
3:06 pm
“JJ and Teague are not hurt. Ivan isn’t hurt. Marvin isn’t hurt. Tell those guys to step up the way Boston stepped up on Tuesday.
Give Ivan 30+ minutes and let’s see what he can do.”
Yeah so lets keep it that way..no need to kill these guys like that, KNOWING we dont have what it takes AT THIS PRESENT TIME to win it all. Boston can take that chance for several reasons: 1) They have rings, 2) three Hall of Famers on their team, & 3) Its a strong possibility that this is their final year as the ‘Big Three” so they have many reasons to go all out and burn themselves out cause at the end of the day, “THEY ARE TRUE VETERANS”. They know how to win with or w/o their ‘ideal’ line-up.
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
3:16 pm
NC – All I know is when I had a pure scorer on the bench, when I put him in, I would tell him, speaking of the other teams worst player on the court, “guard him”. It’s a risk, but sometimes your team needs some juice, somebody to just put the ball in the hoop.
Even Pops knows this, and got the ever risky Stephen Jackson back for another run. It just is what it is.
Don’t let your antipathy for Jamal, or a feud with Rod or whatever, ruin your objectivity. Your a brilliant guy, and great with reasoning and stats. But Jamal’s and Jordan Crawfords, and Stephen Jacksons and those guys serve a purpose, or they wouldn’t be playing in the highest level. Reddick, Korver, Young, Mayo, they serve a purpose, even if they’re not all around ball players.
But yes, D and rebounding always win championships – but not alone – you gotta put the ball thru the hoop and not just on transition or cause by your D. You gotta be able to score. You just have to.
D
Rebounding
O
In that order is the way it is taught by good Coach’s. And yes, Wooden and Coach K where my teachers from afar.
doc
May 3rd, 2012
3:17 pm
ms. dee this is the playoffs, you lose you go home. everything is on the line. you rest the next day. old men pp and kg were on the court a full 4.5 minutes more each than jj and josh. in that time they are able to wipe out a deficit in a blink. got it, 4.5 minutes is a lifetime in the playoffs as every possession is one to be treasured and where the celts are masters? no rest for the weary, you just got to suck it up and ride harder.
Sautee
May 3rd, 2012
3:18 pm
“everyone saw it except the guy who counted, ld.”
If LD didn’t see it, why did he call timeout and get JJ/JT/JS back in the game? We’re talking about 2 minutes and 23 seconds. For LD that’s pretty fast reaction time. Particularly since the reserves never lost the lead, though they DID lose some of the momentum. During the early 4th when the lineup you objected to was in, the Celtics had 5 possessions, and scored 3 points. We had 4 possessions, and failed to score. Somehow to much of the blog, that 2:23 stint lost the game. Not the late 3rd when the starters lost 5 points off the lead. Not the poor D by the starters when they came back. Not the lack of execution on offense in the last 9 minutes. But a 2 minute and 23 second stint by a group of “less than starter material” that lost 3 points to the lead in 5 possessions. And STILL had the lead when the starters came back.
Puzzling, to say the least. Maybe the blog needs LD as a scapegoat.
SteveW
May 3rd, 2012
3:20 pm
I like Josh and Al, and I have no idea how he would fit on this team, but my 1st move this off season, besides securing Ivan, would be to sign Kevin Garnett. He has the toughness this team is lacking. I think he could back slap Marvin, kick Teague, maybe even slap JJ a little bit, and get these guys the edge they need to go to the next level.
Sometimes it’s not so much talent as attitude. When talent is near equal, attitude can take you over the top.
If we’re building on the Detroit model and everything, tell me that team didn’t have attitude.
DD
May 3rd, 2012
3:22 pm
McGrady was running with the starters in practice today,..so expect a change in l the ineup on friday
Sautee
May 3rd, 2012
3:22 pm
“If we’re building on the Detroit model and everything, tell me that team didn’t have attitude.”
They also had a HOF coach. We do not.
Rod from College Park
May 3rd, 2012
3:22 pm
“We’re facing the #1 defensive team in the NBA who is 2nd in least points given up . . but you think we can beat them with good offense.”
Yes that would be correct. We can beat them with good offense. We can’t beat them running iso Joe plays and having the ball in Ivan Johson’s hands with the shot clock runnung down. The # 1 defensive team in the league gives up on average 91.8 ppg, we are averaging 81.5 in the playoffs and our season average was 96.6. It’s pretty obvious that offense is the problem except to you two clowns.
“Yet, you think the formula to beating the Celtics is to throw one dimensional scorers at them to win games?”
Yeah, it would not hurt is to have a scorer on the floor with Joe and Josh. Who would stop the from scoring, Paul Pierce or Avery Bradley (LOL).
“Hawks are #6 in points and 6th in points given up. We are a DEFENSIVE TEAM Rod. We beat teams when we’re able to limit what they do best, just like how Boston wins. While we do need to be better on offense, we also can be better on defense.
Get stops when you NEED to get stops, and the Hawks can beat the Celtics in this series. Drew needs to stop holding people back, and simply let them play their game.”
In case you have not been watching the games, Paul Pierce and Garnett have been beating us from the perimeter and from the foul line. Pierce, Garnett and Bass have been knocking down jumpshots. Rondo has been the only guy really penetrating. Please help me to understand what we can do better defensively to stop Paul Pierce, and Garnett from hitting midrange jumpshots.