Atlanta Hawks Game Thread: Rockets vs. Hawks
Vivlamore reporting following the Hawks’ morning shootaround. Here is an early start on your game thread.
The Hawks will be challenged defensively on the perimeter right off the bat. For here comes the Rockets and newly acquired guard James Harden for tonight’s season opener.
Harden lit up the Pistons for a game-high 37 points, on 14 of 25 shooting, in the Rockets’ 105-96 season-opening victory Wednesday at Detroit. He also had 12 assists making him the first-ever NBA player to score 37 or more points and have double-digit assists in his team debut. The 6-foot-5 Harden could present problems for 6-3 Devin Harris and 6-5 DeShawn Stevenson, two who figure to draw much of the defensive assignment.
“I did,” Harris said with a slight smile when asked if he watched the Rockets-Pistons game. “He’s a good player. He’s a max (contract) player for a reason. He’s tough. We’ll throw a lot of different guys at him. The main thing is to try to keep him off the free-throw line and keep him out of the paint.”
Harden was acquired by the Rockets from the Thunder earlier this week. He also signed a contract worth a reported five years and $80 million. Stevenson said Harden will be brimming with confidence after signing such a deal.
Hawks coach Larry Drew said the challenge will be stopping the Rockets’ predominately pick-and-roll offense with Jeremy Lin and Harden.
“The best we can,” Drew said when I asked how he will defend Harden. “He is really good. We have to do a good job collectively. As I told the guys today, he won’t be just one man’s responsibility. We have to make sure that we zero in and just be solid. We’ve worked on a lot of different things over the preseason, particularly playing against guys like him. We have to stick with our concepts and stick with our principles.
“It will give us a good chance, as a measuring stick, to see where we stand, particularly defensively. You won’t play against as many guys as good and as aggressive as James Harden. It will be a good test for us.”
The Hawks will be without back-up center Johan Petro, who is out with a sore back. Drew said Petro is “getting better and better” but held him out for precautionary reasons.
That leaves the task of stopping the Rockets’ 7-foot center Omer Asik to Al Horford and Zaza Pachulia.
“With Asik, he’s a load,” Drew said. “He takes up a lot of space in the middle. We are just going to have to do a good job on him. When he was in Chicago, he did really well for them and he seems to have found on home with (the Rockets). We may not be able to match size right off the bat, but we have to be able to match physicality. We really focus on what we need to do and if we do that, we should be OK.”
Drew, once again, declined to announce his starting lineup saying it was a “game-time decision.”
Check back before the game for updates.
- Chris Vivlamore
LATEST NEWS
* Smith on verge of statistical milestone
* Smith, Horford are interim captains
* Five things we learned from the preseason
* Teague, Pachulia return to full-contact practice, ready for opener
* Failure not an option for Tolliver
* Hawks ownership ‘extremely’ fortunate to keep stake in team
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702 comments Add your comment
Slimjr
November 2nd, 2012
9:30 pm
FEAR THE BEARD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
tank
November 2nd, 2012
9:30 pm
Larry is a sign of the last Regime. Get him out of here after the season
cp
November 2nd, 2012
9:30 pm
Why has Tolliver played so much? Dude hasnt done anything out there
stizz
November 2nd, 2012
9:30 pm
I’m glad Tolliver’s teammates see what we see.
Slimjr
November 2nd, 2012
9:30 pm
Guess Harden was not overrated by some? Hmmmmm
Najeh Davenpoop
November 2nd, 2012
9:30 pm
Big Baby Davis – 29 points, 10 boards, 2 blocks. Orlando is beating Denver by double digits. Whoever got him in fantasy basketball is getting a major steal this year.
Slimjr
November 2nd, 2012
9:31 pm
Has that Greyhound bus been assigned to Larry Drew yet????
Stop Ignoring Reality
November 2nd, 2012
9:31 pm
“The last man(Tolliver) to make the team is getting a lot of burn at the expense of Ivan who proved himself last year on the boards.”
——————————————–
Exactly!
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What did harden do last year with Joe guarding him tho? Give JJ his credit where it’s due…
Melvin
November 2nd, 2012
9:32 pm
Now LD is going to put Josh at SF, SMH….
Big Ray
November 2nd, 2012
9:33 pm
Haha @ Joe laughing. The Hawks could go 0-82 this season and the Joe and Marvin trades would still be successes. That team had to be broken up and Ferry made it happen.
TRUTH.
Najeh Davenpoop
November 2nd, 2012
9:33 pm
Keep getting inside, Josh…
Najeh Davenpoop
November 2nd, 2012
9:34 pm
Zaza doing WORK on the boards…
Big Ray
November 2nd, 2012
9:34 pm
Hated that shot by Al…worst one in this game.
Slimjr
November 2nd, 2012
9:34 pm
Al added the step back???
Mr.E
November 2nd, 2012
9:34 pm
Comeback!
Melvin
November 2nd, 2012
9:34 pm
Now Josh, that’s where we like you on the break. As a finisher…
Luke Cage
November 2nd, 2012
9:34 pm
Gotta take back what I said, looks and hopes this will be a scrappy bunch
cp
November 2nd, 2012
9:35 pm
There you go. We really need another quality big so we can start Zaza
Tremaine
November 2nd, 2012
9:35 pm
Can’t believe we are winning this game. Zaza is the MVP.
DawgNole
November 2nd, 2012
9:35 pm
Made it all the way back. Don’t blow it now, boys. Starting the season with a win is big.
Slimjr
November 2nd, 2012
9:35 pm
Heat check for Al!
Big Ray
November 2nd, 2012
9:35 pm
Zaza gets to star on any remakes of “300″ because dude has been waging an outright war in the paint/on the boards.
Josh does what we need him to do – fill the lane and finish on the break….please keep that up!
FreshFromATL
November 2nd, 2012
9:35 pm
Hawks have ran Asik out the game, dude is tired.
Najeh Davenpoop
November 2nd, 2012
9:35 pm
Lou +12, DeShawn +7, Zaza +5. Bench has sparked this rally — Lou by getting to the line and Zaza by stopping the madness on the glass.
Shamrock
November 2nd, 2012
9:35 pm
Najeh, how those little boys behinds taste?
cp
November 2nd, 2012
9:35 pm
Lol@slim. I just shook my head when Al took that shot
stizz
November 2nd, 2012
9:36 pm
If this team can win this game, goes to show that they can beat (what looks like) high caliber teams playing at 50%. Already see much more fluidity without Joe. Gotta get some help on the boards though.
Big Ray
November 2nd, 2012
9:36 pm
Still hating that step-back shot by Al…awful…
tank
November 2nd, 2012
9:36 pm
Josh for All star team campaign
Tremaine
November 2nd, 2012
9:36 pm
Zaza has to start agains OKC. No way they are going to let us hang around like Houston did.
Stop Ignoring Reality
November 2nd, 2012
9:37 pm
Let’s be real though, Jeff Teague got us back in this game. Game ball goes to him. Credit where credit is due….
Mr.E
November 2nd, 2012
9:37 pm
Starting front-court should be Zaza-Al-Josh
Go BIG
atlfalconsfan0125
November 2nd, 2012
9:37 pm
Hawks gotta find their identity. Gonna take some time. This season is already more exciting that the previous ones.
Astro Joe
November 2nd, 2012
9:37 pm
I was thrilled to see josh not force the hero shot when he was in the post a few possessions ago (that led to Al’s air ball). Joe would have forced an awful shot to try and be the hero to grab the lead. And Josh still got to be the hero by filling the lane (as opposed to running the break). Very encouraging sequence.
Big Ray
November 2nd, 2012
9:37 pm
Sweet…more defense…McHale is scowling like hell…
DawgNole
November 2nd, 2012
9:37 pm
Najeh Davenpoop
November 2nd, 2012
9:27 pm
Let the record show that with 9:53 left in the fourth quarter, Nique said “nimber” for the first time this season.
___________________
Aw, I’ll bet he slipped a few in there on you when you dozed off.
Tremaine
November 2nd, 2012
9:38 pm
Jump shot shawty!
Big Ray
November 2nd, 2012
9:38 pm
C’mon man…this is no time for “midrange shawty”…..
Good defense, I thought….but Lou called anyway.
cp
November 2nd, 2012
9:38 pm
wtf Josh
DawgNole
November 2nd, 2012
9:38 pm
Can you believe Smith threw that trash up there?! Every time the guy gives you hope, he pulls some crap like that.
Jay Dubu
November 2nd, 2012
9:38 pm
Josh, Josh, Josh!!
Big Ray
November 2nd, 2012
9:39 pm
ZaZa again ….
Horford with the 10 second jab step…buta good pass….
Astro Joe
November 2nd, 2012
9:39 pm
Nice pass, Al.
phil
November 2nd, 2012
9:39 pm
Idiot Josh…..moron
DawgNole
November 2nd, 2012
9:39 pm
Keep working it inside, guys. That’s the only way you’ll win this one.
Luke Cage
November 2nd, 2012
9:39 pm
Sweet pass from big to big
Najeh Davenpoop
November 2nd, 2012
9:39 pm
Nice pass by Al but more importantly good job by Zaza to cut to the basket to give him someone to pass to. Al and Josh both need to cut more, especially in this offense.
tank
November 2nd, 2012
9:39 pm
mid range shawty!
Big Ray
November 2nd, 2012
9:39 pm
jumpshot university…
DawgNole
November 2nd, 2012
9:39 pm
So Teague promptly throws up a 3.