Atlanta Hawks at Celtics: Game 6 thread
Boston–The Celtics said Paul Pierce has a sprained left MCL. Doc Rivers: “It’s not the best situation but he’s going to play. We have to find out what he can do on the floor. We have to find the most effective way he can score. He said he has more life energy-wise [than Game 5], but the knee is the same.”
- Same starting lineup for Hawks. Larry Drew on the lineup in Game 5: “It did pretty much what I expected. We’ve been waiting on Marvin [Williams] to make some shots. He’s had some good looks.”
- Drew on Hawks’ health: “They are holding their own. We have got some guys that are a little banged up. But looking around the league, other teams do as well. It’s playoff time. The play has been very physical. We have just got to push through it.”
- Drew on Josh Smith: “I think he’s getting better. He’s been battling a sore knee pretty much the whole season. He’s been quiet about it. He knows we need him and he has to play hurt, so that’s what he’s doing. I give him a lot of credit for that. I do think he’s showing signs of the knee improving.”
- Josh said he would spend extra time pregame getting warm: “I feel a little better. It takes a little bit of time for the knee to get warmed up.”
- Zaza Pachulia got up some shots at shootaround for the first time since he injured his foot. “It went well,” he said. “Honestly I wasn’t expecting to participate in the shootaround. Mindset leaving hotel was kind of watch it. Went up to doctor, he ran a couple tests and said, ‘Why don’t you try to shoot?’ Body was feeling great. I was able to finish.”
- Zaza said a return in the second round if the Hawks advance is “more realistic” than playing in Game 7 Saturday if they win tonight.
- Drew on minutes for Al Horford and the other starters: “These guys have been piling up a lot of minutes. It’s just a situation where we are trying to win a game. If the game is getting away from us, I have got to get my starters back in there. This is do or die for us.”
- Al said he feels like his defensive timing is off in help situations but “on the ball I feel strong.”
- More Al: “For sure I have fresher legs but I don’t know if that’s totally an advantage. These guys have been in a rhythm. I’m just trying to make it work for me.”
- Josh on Al: “He has fresher legs than everyone in the series. Why not play him?”
- Drew on Kirk Hinrich’s limited playing time after halftime in Game 5: “I anticipated playing Kirk more in the second half. But Jeff [Teague] has the speed and we needed that. As long as [Rajon] Rondo is in the game, Jeff will be in there defending him.”
- More Doc Rivers on Pierce’s knee: “He’s not going to get to the line as much. That’s just the way it is. We have to create other ways. We can get Kevin to the post more but they are doubling him so it makes it hard for him to get to the line, too. We have to create other ways.”
- Don in Mickael Pietrus’ shooting struggles: “When your shot doesn’t go in and you are not a great player, then it can cause your confidence to drop.” Doc said Marquis Daniels could take some of Pietrus’ minutes: “He can guard Joe [Johnson] almost as well. But the thing with ‘MP’ is they still guard him at the 3-point line. With Marquis, they would not. It would be another guy they could leave.”
- Drew on the keys to getting off to a better start here than in Game 4: “Shot selection and not turn the ball over. We were in a hurry last game. We made a lot of early, ill-advised passes. We didn’t explore our options. We were looking to one side, and Boston is too good for that.”
- Josh on the Celtics: “I see them trying to come out early and establish themselves and get the crowd into it and try to make it into a physical game.”
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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1,540 comments Add your comment
cp
May 10th, 2012
11:03 pm
Yea slim its crazy how bad draft choices by BK still haunt this team.Im not a big Marvin fan but dude had a good game. I thought LD took him out when he was hot then left him on the bench too long. He should have gotten more attempts but that would take having a coach who has a clue.
omar
May 10th, 2012
11:03 pm
That Rondo jumper right before halftime really hurt
Luke Cage
May 10th, 2012
11:03 pm
@Najeh,
Give it up man, these guys are just frustrated right now, Josh had no choice but to shoot it, they shouldn’t have put him in that position….Josh Haters will feed off this the entire offseason.
Grandmaster JeJe (GM)
May 10th, 2012
11:03 pm
BIG DOG
May 10th, 2012
11:03 pm
That was not Josh falt at the end, somebody dribble dribble dribble the ball then past it Josh with only 5seconds left what should he have done ?
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
LinkReport this comment
***
drive to the hoop
Did we lose?
May 10th, 2012
11:04 pm
2013 predictions……
1. Team will be back with a few old washed up guys as off season signings.
2. Drew will be head coach.
3. Slogan will still be worn out “highlight factory” when it has not been this since the 2007 Celtics series when everyone thought the Hawks were going to be what the Thunder are.
4. Hawks make playoffs and get ousted in round one.
Someone change the F-ing channel. Please!!
drmaryb.(*_*).
May 10th, 2012
11:04 pm
Congratulations to The Hawks for an ENTERTAINING & hard fought, well played season!
GET WELL for NEXT SEASON
PER
_______
Josh -9
Joe…-6
Jeff…-3
Kirk..-5
That’s your deficiency right there
_____________
G-Note Cohorts!
I’m out till next year, can’t waste any more precious time on here this Summer.
Follow me on twitter: https://twitter.com/#!drmaryeb/
keepinitreal
May 10th, 2012
11:04 pm
“keepinitreal… you may be keeping it real but you don’t seem to watch the game with any acuity.”
That’s fine. What about my analysis do you disagree with?
Grandmaster JeJe (GM)
May 10th, 2012
11:05 pm
Marquis Daniels fouls like a girl
Big Ray
May 10th, 2012
11:05 pm
I think it is time for Joe to go. He will get more and more untradeable with each passing year. They need to move him while he still has value. They went 4-2 this year without him, with three wins over playoff teams. I think they will be fine, and will have much more salary cap flexibility.
If they can trade Joe and amnesty Marvin, they will be in very good shape to retool on the fly without having to blow things up.
I’d be willing to take on a Kirk Hinrich-like “bad contract” and a role player (a useable one, mind you) to get this done. Maybe that’s not the smartest thing in the world, but change is hard and sometimes quite painful. And it has to be done.
Joe’s got to go. But will the stinking idiot owners we are stuck with going to get this done? If not, I’m done with these fools. They’ll not get another minute of my time….if they can’t change the core.
Lacsho
May 10th, 2012
11:05 pm
The Hawks need to give the keys to Teague.
Peace to my man Big Ray
kwooden
May 10th, 2012
11:05 pm
SBNation, with great footage of KG constant grabbing and holding, but Josh has to drive on that play. Even though he’s starting from farther away, he still has to do it. They wasted two previous possessions doing nothing also.
northcyde
May 10th, 2012
11:05 pm
RA
May 10th, 2012
10:58 pm
And another thing, the Hawks showed up. They could have laid an egg. They could have got blitzed by 50 (as some of you predicted), but they didn’t. They played, they competed, and they lost, and that happens, but they played with all the heart and all the fire and all the determination that the best Hawks fans had expected, and my hat’s off to them.
**************
I agree . . but you still have to trade one or two of our top 3 players.
This team is talented, but fundamentally flawed. And it’s because we don’t have a playmaker at PG that can maximize the offensive abilities of these guys . . . or a low post scorer that can score the basketball consistently down on the blocks and/or get to the FT line.
That, and the fact that we aren’t a consistently good rebounding team, kills us vs elite competition.
Good, but not great. And at some point, good simply isn’t good enough. If you’re not striving for greatness after you become good, then why are you even in the game? ( talking mainly about management )
Definitely not mad at Teague, although he did have a poor game. But without a true pass first PG, these group of guys were never maximized. Blame that on management.
Just get somebody in that front office that knows how to build a TEAM. That’s all I ask during the off-season.
When does the embarassment end...
May 10th, 2012
11:05 pm
When does it end? 5 straight seasons of getting into the playoffs…. No ECF appearence. This was the best team that they’ve had in the pass 15 years.. and they blew it. When does it stop?
Slimjr
May 10th, 2012
11:05 pm
Greyhound is waiting Larry! Outta your league dude..Go coach Highschool..
YOU LOST THIS SERIES….
Loserville USA
May 10th, 2012
11:06 pm
I see people here thinking Smith is a keeper. What a joke. What the hell are any of you watching? He’s never accomplished a thing in the NBA. Nothing.
Only Hawk worth keeping is Horford. Teague is a backup. Ivan is decent. Pargo for shooting.
BLOW UP THE REST
Smith – most overrated player in the last 25 years
Williams – joke.
Johnson – Koncak II
Zaza – Euro. Enough said.
Radmanovich. Euro. Enough said.
McGrady – old and done.
Stackhouse – Ditto
Dampier – Ditto
Collins – Worthless
Green – Ditto
By the way, where in the hell was Ivan? Can’t he bang with these guys.
Ax Drew as well. He’ll just want to watch his overrated kid at UCLA anyway.
BLOW IT THE HELL UP.
RA
May 10th, 2012
11:06 pm
Najeh, you’re speaking the truth, but blowing up this team, out of frustration, isn’t going to bring that game back, and it’s not going to get them into a position where they can do better next year. They’ve got the players and the talent, and I believe they’ve got the coach. They just need to be healthy. Just give this core a chance with everybody healthy. I swear on the graves of my grandparents, if we see that, we’ll have a team that beat Boston and god knows who else.
Luke Cage
May 10th, 2012
11:06 pm
I still LOVE my Hawks even though they break my heart year after year, unless a draft trade happens this team will basically stay intact with new bench players. Will continue to root for them no matter who is in a Hawks uniform, and yes that means you too HOE JOHNSON!!!
mountain_jim
May 10th, 2012
11:07 pm
Teague, Josh, Joe all missed shots in last 2 minutes – Al missed crucial free-throw, but Hawks still got hosed on the out-of-bounds call and several others in that final 2 minutes.
At least it was not an egg like previous game there….
Section 303
May 10th, 2012
11:07 pm
This one really stings.
If you’re going to rip Josh, rip him for that stupid technical when he was not allowed to check in. That one point was huge. That guy has to learn to knock that crap off.
I have nothing to say. This sucks.
Grandmaster JeJe (GM)
May 10th, 2012
11:07 pm
Besides Dwight trade, who else would possibly want Joe?
SWATS NATIVE
May 10th, 2012
11:08 pm
@RA
Hawks fans are tired of that lame “at least they played hard” statement. The fans deserve a team that will play hard, compete, but most importantly, WIN!
W.R. Terrell
May 10th, 2012
11:08 pm
The AGONY is over and I am personally looking for some ECTASY. When you live by the JOSH you die by the JOSH. There was a reason Phillie chose a Elton Brand who had lost a step and some leaping ability over the JOSH and it was simply basketbaall IQ. The draft is coming and it is time to look for a trade, a mid to late 1st round pick for the JOSH. ISO ’s contract is coming up to be renewed, a 14 mill offer and if he turns that down then it’s time to sing a Ray Charles song….”Hit the road Jack”. Marvin is Mr. Amnesty we all know that and Kirk, it was nice knowing ya.
The HAWKS need to resign Jeff, Ivan, T-MAC, Janero, Willie, Damp and Twin and with the extra dollars the HAWKS will have, there will be at least 2-3 damn good players that could be added to go along with Al and Zsa Zsa. I am glad this year is over and looking forward to next and hopefully managment will be wise enough to figure out that a change is definitely needed. LD managed somehow to keep this limp wristed team in contention but I won’t cry if another coach is chosen over him. See ya’ll next year.
GoCelts
May 10th, 2012
11:08 pm
Go Celts!!!!! I knew that those bums would self destruct in the end!
BIG DOG
May 10th, 2012
11:08 pm
I wonder if Magic would take Joe, Marvin and Zaza for Howard and Turk.
Magic must Trade SUPERMAN.
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
Dawg in Cali
May 10th, 2012
11:08 pm
hey RA,
I’m proud of them boys too. They played like they wanted to win. Refs hosed them though. I listened to the celts broadcast to hear their side. Even their crew was saying the refs blew call for the HAWKS! Aint that a bitch. The other team actually saying the no calls were wrong. Proud of my Hawks!
MistaGamer
May 10th, 2012
11:08 pm
JeJe…
are you serious? trade Josh for Al Jeff? Man, i know you don’t like Josh but that’s just going a bit overboard lol
the hawks is the word
May 10th, 2012
11:09 pm
Do you think this trade would help us http://espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine
Marcus
May 10th, 2012
11:09 pm
Emotions aside … we had a good season, better than expected given Boss was hurt since before MLK Holiday.
I esp. hate losing to BOS but they kept going to the well, and we could not stop Garnett all night with him posting up Smoove or shooting over the top. We had them on the ropes but didn’t cash in on a couple of possesions to extend the lead. Give them credit.
The thing I hate the most, on top of losing the series, is that we have now justified all the vitriol aimed at our team from all of the national NBA pundits, regardless of how tough we played. Game Nos. 2, 3, 5, and 6 were in the mid-to-low 80s and came down to the final 2 minutes or less. That is where the series was lost as we went 1-3 in those.
Luke Cage
May 10th, 2012
11:09 pm
You guys keep talking about blowing it up or trading people, what are you going to get in return, and don’t put up fantasy trades that you make in NBA2K, would you rather they go back to 13 wins??
I rather have a team in the playoffs that lose trying than just a team that just loses aka Wizards
tjhook
May 10th, 2012
11:09 pm
Do the Hawks suck? Still thinking about that one . . . Boston did play us tough tonight. I’m just thinking about that Game 2 crap . . . LD did not have the team mentally prepared to execute and establish a firm lead.
Grandmaster JeJe (GM)
May 10th, 2012
11:10 pm
Horford is too athletic for their bigs. It’s obvious he was destroying them but we went away from that.
Offense was clearly the issue in this game. There’s no way you can stop KG. Sorry, northcyde.
Offense was pathetic at beginning and end of 4th. Horrendous possessions
BIG DOG
May 10th, 2012
11:10 pm
http://games.espn.go.com/nba/tradeMachine?tradeId=8×8xfwt
BIG DOG IN THE HOUSE
northcyde
May 10th, 2012
11:10 pm
And Josh DID have an option. I show that Shawn Kemp dunking on Alton Lister play all the time. It took Kemp all of 2 seconds to get to the rim.
The point is if Josh catches that ball and attacks the rim, they either have to foul him, or he’s going to have one of the more spectacular playoff dunks in history . . in the Boston Garden.
But Josh ALWAYS settles for that 20 foot jumper . . just like JJ ALWAYS settles for that floater, instead of going hard to the hole.
It’s just what these players do. I’m not mad at them for this game, but they simply can’t elevate their games to elite level. Not without significant help.
So yes, even with 3 seconds, Josh could’ve easily gotten into the lane at least, if not the rim.
That’s not what lost us the game . . it’s just what people will remember the most.
yodaddybrother
May 10th, 2012
11:10 pm
I’m not sure if I would have preferred a blowout loss….this type of loss is depressing
ATL2467
May 10th, 2012
11:10 pm
Bunch of thugs. Need a tatoo machine at the scorers table.
RA
May 10th, 2012
11:11 pm
northcyde, you got a point, but I Teague is our guard. Remember, this was really his rookie year! I don’t why Woodson and Drew kept him on the bench, but the one thing that he showed me this year is that he’s got the potential to be on the best. He went toe to toe with Rondo, who for my money, is the best guard in basketball, and he held his own…mostly. Teague is the guy. I’m not saying don’t trade under any circumstances, but I am saying it needs to be a good one and thought out, not just trade for trade sake.
Grandmaster JeJe (GM)
May 10th, 2012
11:12 pm
Mistagamer,
Get a package maybe around Millsap. Idk. We have to be careful. I don’t want to turn into GSW or SAC. Those teams have sucked for ages.
Wonder what Joe’s thoughts are on players we need.
And yes, I will trade Joe and Al or Josh for Dwight and Hedo/JRich in heartbeat
yodaddybrother
May 10th, 2012
11:12 pm
GAME 2….hook line and sinker
“It feels like we’ve already won the series” Rajon Rondo after Game 2 in which he didn’t even play.
Najeh Davenpoop
May 10th, 2012
11:12 pm
“So if Josh wants out, we have to find a way to let him go, but getting something worthwhile in return. I think we can forget getting equal value, but we can’t go with just trash and bad contracts.”
That’s just not going to happen. When good players get traded, more often than not the team trading the good player ends up with trade exceptions, non-lottery picks (because the team receiving the good player gets better), and expendable young players. The Deron Williams and Carmelo Anthony are rare exceptions, and Josh isn’t going to command anything like that on the trade market. More likely, the Hawks get something like what Minnesota got for Al Jefferson or Memphis got for Pau Gasol. And Memphis got lucky as HELL that Marc Gasol developed into what he is now, because nobody had him projected for that.
Big Ray
May 10th, 2012
11:12 pm
I thought LD took him out when he was hot then left him on the bench too long. He should have gotten more attempts but that would take having a coach who has a clue.
Freakin’ Woody Pt. II….should have known….
Atlanta Spirit Does It Again
May 10th, 2012
11:13 pm
Now cue the entrance of all the morons who say, “Don’t blow it up…Just add a little here and take a little off here because we’re REAL CLOSE to having a Championship team.”
Same idiots who’ve said the same things at the end of every season since 08-09 when the Hawks (led by No-Show JJ) were ripped a new one by the Cavs and they didn’t even CARE.
When the team “leader” is only interested in a Max Contract and has NO HEART WHEN IT COUNTS ON THE COURT, it will NEVER get any better….Why is that so hard to understand?
I HATE THE ATLANTA SPIRIT….Don’t they even realize just how HATED they are in this city?
Grandmaster JeJe (GM)
May 10th, 2012
11:13 pm
Cosign northcyde 11:10pm.
However, OFFENSE was the issue tonight. Just watch the 4th quarter again. The beginning and end
Luke Cage
May 10th, 2012
11:13 pm
BIG DOG,
Otis Smith would be fired on the spot for that trade.
Mike D
May 10th, 2012
11:13 pm
Trade Marvin an Al for Dwight I think Orlando would take that deal. An the only way TMac comin back is if the Hawks fire LD you could see the look on Tracy face during the tnt inside the huddle like this dude has no idea what he is doing! I knew they would lose when Marvin came back in during the fourth it was over the coaching staff choked! An somebody shoulda grabbed Josh before that last jumper an slapped an told em be aggressive.
Lacsho
May 10th, 2012
11:13 pm
@ RA, thanks bruh. I remember you from back in the day. I think the BASG should invest in a Veteran Coach, and a good GM. Put a good coach with this team, and they can contend for the eastern conference finals. Furthermore, I think they can go all the way.
Peace
ntrigue
May 10th, 2012
11:13 pm
Last play of the gm was a foul based on the way they called the whole gm…the al Horford foul was a flagrant if damps elbow justified a tech….and lastly drew should’ve started 4th qtr wit josh not damp
Grandmaster JeJe (GM)
May 10th, 2012
11:14 pm
SLOAN
JVG
SVG WHEN HE GETS FIRED
GET A REAL HED COACH
JERRY SLOAN PREFERABLY
Najeh Davenpoop
May 10th, 2012
11:14 pm
“Just give this core a chance with everybody healthy.”
This core’s ceiling is the Eastern Conference Finals, and that is with good coaching.
I’d like a core that can seriously contend for a title.
northcyde
May 10th, 2012
11:14 pm
RA
May 10th, 2012
11:06 pm
Najeh, you’re speaking the truth, but blowing up this team, out of frustration, isn’t going to bring that game back, and it’s not going to get them into a position where they can do better next year. They’ve got the players and the talent, and I believe they’ve got the coach. They just need to be healthy. Just give this core a chance with everybody healthy. I swear on the graves of my grandparents, if we see that, we’ll have a team that beat Boston and god knows who else.
*****************
Keeping this team together is the equivalent of the Dallas Cowboys keeping Tony Romo at QB. Romo ( statistically ) is one of the best QBs in the league. But you’re not going to win with him.
It just may be time to accept that we’re not going to win with Josh or JJ or Al, and need a new “leader”. It’s been 5 years. How long are we NOT going to take a risk on trading a player, for another star or borderline star that maybe just needs a new team to play on.
Would I trade Al Jefferson for Josh Smith? In a heartbeat
Would I trade Joe Johnson for Eric Gordon? In a heartbeat.
It is what it is now. Just break them up for the sanity of the few Hawk fans they have.
BeCarefulWhatYouAskFor
May 10th, 2012
11:14 pm
Nuking these guys could send the team into the lottery for the next 5 years. As it stands they are at least a playoff team. Would you rather have the Wizards??? True enough there are changes needed but a complete meltdown would be insane. New voice in GM office needed BAD. Coach needed BAD. One Key trade needed. Retire the Medicaid over 33 crew. Get a SHOOTER!!. The biggest situation is to deal with Joe’s contract. Let him prove he cares about the city and the team. Cancel the deal and put him on the wire. Nobody can afford to pick up the contract. Sign him back when he clears. Will these items win a Title, mmmm maybe not be it won’t put the team and the city in the craper for the next few years for basketball.