Atlanta Hawks: Pistons 85, Hawks 84 (updated)
Vivlamore reporting.
AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — The Hawks almost stole one.
The Hawks nearly erased a 19-point deficit against the Pistons but came up a point short in an 85-84 loss Friday night at the Palace at Auburn Hills.
The Hawks went on an 18-2 fourth-quarter run to pull within one point, 83-82, with 3:13 remaining. Kyle Korver and Lou Williams hit 3-pointers to cap the run. The Pistons got a basket from Rodney Stuckey and the Hawks had a couple costly turnovers in the final minutes including one with 42.9 seconds remaining and still trailed by three points.
Al Horford then hit what was first ruled a 3-pointer with 5.6 seconds remaining that would have tied the game at 85-85. After a video review, the basket was changed to a 2-pointer.
It wasn’t over.
The Pistons turned the ball over as Jeff Teague intercepted a pass and the Hawks called timeout with 4.1 seconds remaining. The Pistons fouled Horford with 3.1 seconds left on the inbounds play and a Williams shot at the buzzer hit the side of the backboard after being blocked by Andre Drummond.
“We had drawn up one play and they had a foul to give,” Williams said. “The actual play that we drew up they fouled us on it. After that, me and Al kind of made eye contact just to do a dribble handoff. They had been cheating on our dribble handoff all game and I faked it to the corner. Al felt like both guys were going to go with me but they actually did a good job defensively.
“No idea (if the final shot was blocked). I was just trying to get it toward the rim. I figured the clock was down at that point and I just wanted to get a shot toward that would count if it went in.”
It was the Hawks who lost a 22-point lead but ended up with a double-overtime win over the Pistons on Dec. 26 at Philips Arena.
The Pistons would nearly relinquish their big advantage.
“It’s tough to digest,” Horford said. “I’m proud of the guys for fighting. We could have easily have folded and focused on tomorrow but this is a different Hawks team. We are still learning. There are things we have to clean up. We didn’t play very well the first half. You can’t spot a team 19 points, especially on the road. It’s just too hard to recover. The fact that we were even in the game was amazing.”
Horford said he thought he was behind the 3-point line on the potential game-tying shot. Although it was not the designed play, Horford was trying to give Teague an option as the shot clock wound down.
The Hawks (20-11), third in the Eastern Conference, lost for the second time in seven games. They had erased a 14-point deficit for a win over the Pacers earlier this season.
Horford led the Hawks with 18 points and 15 rebounds. Josh Smith added 20 points, Williams had 17 and Korver 10.
The Hawks did not have a field goal from a bench player through three quarters, not getting a basket until Zaza Pachulia scored early in the fourth.
“It was day and night honestly,” Pachulia said of the difference between the first three and final quarter. “That’s how I felt at least. Both ends of the floor, we were more aggressive, doing a better job on the pick-and-roll and communicating. Offensively, we were moving the ball. The first half, maybe one pass and that was it. We weren’t running it. We weren’t hitting our spots. I don’t know if we were playing basketball. I didn’t feel right. That’s not us. The fourth quarter, that was beautiful.
The Pistons (13-22) won their fourth straight. They have won six of their past seven games with the only loss in the stretch coming against the Hawks. Austin Daye led the Pistons with 20 points, 16 coming in the second quarter. Greg Monroe added 18 points.
The Pistons enjoyed the 19-point lead in the third quarter. The Hawks managed to cut into the deficit. The trailed by 11 points, 66-55, after three straight 3-pointers.
“You dig yourselves a hole and it’s tough to overcome, particularly on the road,” Hawks coach Larry Drew said.
The Pistons led by as many as 18 points in the second quarter and held a 51-36 halftime advantage. After the Hawks had cut a 14-point deficit to nine points early in the quarter, the Pistons went on a 13-4 run to increase their lead.
The Hawks shot just 31.6 percent (6 of 19) in the second quarter. By intermission, Smith (14) and Horford (10) accounted for two-thirds of the Hawks’ offense.
In fact, the duo combined for all of the Hawks’ 20 first-quarter points. They combined to shoot 9 of 13 while the rest of the team went 0 of 7. Another Hawk didn’t score a point until a free throw by Ivan Johnson with 9:27 remaining in the second quarter.
Smith aggravated his right hip flexor and played only 12 minutes in the second half.
The Hawks return home to host the Celtics Saturday.
- Chris Vivlamore
LATEST NEWS
* Hawks wary of Pistons’ bench
* Williams to remain in starting lineup
* Behind the scenes photo gallery
* Drew named Eastern Conference Coach of the Month
* Drew looking for more minutes for Jenkins
* Drew concerned Hawks settling for 3-pointers in transition
* Harris, Morrow not on trip to Houston
* Williams wants to remain starter
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157 comments Add your comment
keith
January 4th, 2013
11:50 pm
Clippers currently schooling the Lakers right now……..
Slimjr
January 4th, 2013
11:54 pm
The Hawks do a piss poor job boxing out. It maybe magnified against Detroit because their Bigs are more athletic, quicker, larger, and stronger. Perhaps?
You give up 17 offensive rebounds, you are supposed to lose..
O'Brien
January 5th, 2013
12:00 am
From the new orleans paper;
The New Orleans Hornets waived backup forward Dominic McGuire on Friday after he played in nine games. McGuire, 6 feet 9, 235 pounds, averaged 2.1 points, 3.1 rebounds in 16 minutes per game..
If I am the Hawks, I am giving him a call, see if he can help at SF
B Smoove
January 5th, 2013
12:01 am
Check out some player profiling I put together before the game.
http://texastoatlanta.wordpress.com/
Slimjr
January 5th, 2013
12:02 am
Lakers are an 11th seed out West? hahahaha
BTW, Josh is shooting 25% from [Mid-range].. Ken S. was on the money with that one.
He is shooting 21% from the [Corner 3].
He is shooting 31% from [In the Paint (Non RA)]
Yes, he has to get in the gym and work on his shooting for sure..A shooting coach could help yesterday.
Slimjr
January 5th, 2013
12:06 am
Cousins goes for 31 and 20 on the road against the Raptors!
Nice!
SteveW
January 5th, 2013
12:07 am
Sigh, I guess all of our preseason fears are coming true with this team the last couple of games.
Waxed by Houston, and lose on the road to the pistons.
Maybe Devin and morrow give us a boost when they get back.
Sigh
Losing kinda the way we thought we’d be vulnerable also. Nobody to stop Austin daye types. Wiz give us fits also with the long 3 players.
O'Brien
January 5th, 2013
12:08 am
Slim,
Speaking of Cousins, check out his last 5 games;
15 and 10, 12 and 10, 21 and 14,18 and 16, 31 and 20. Monster numbers.
If he keeps it up (and stays out of trouble), Kings probably wont trade him, unless a team is willing to overpay.
Sameba
January 5th, 2013
12:09 am
A. Daye with a career high 20 points? A.Daye is a small forward? Hmmm….
SteveW
January 5th, 2013
12:11 am
Slim – Rebounding is an issue. I still say start ZaZa, al, josh, Lou, and Teague on a consistent basis, see what happens
OB – suggested McGuire get a look earlier today. About he same size as tolliver though, idk if he helps.
Trade deadline may be interesting
Melvin
January 5th, 2013
12:15 am
Marvin Williams played 20 mins for Utah tonight and scored the same amount of points as Devin Harris did for the Hawks tonight…. SMH, this guy may be on his way out of the league when his contract is up….
Sameba
January 5th, 2013
12:17 am
Pistons’ SF Daye+Prince=26 points & 12 rebounds.
DF, when will you stop this ugliness??!
SteveW
January 5th, 2013
12:17 am
From jan. 8-27 we play 12 games, with no more than 1 off day between games during that stretch.
The grind is about to begin in earnest
Sameba
January 5th, 2013
12:19 am
SteveW
January 5th, 2013
12:11 am
Slim – Rebounding is an issue. I still say start ZaZa, al, josh, Lou, and Teague on a consistent basis, see what happens…
———————————————————————————————-
For LD this is a higher algebra. May be someone will explain him that unless we do not slow down opposing SF’s the Hawks will be in a big trouble?
Melvin
January 5th, 2013
12:24 am
Slimjr,
The Hawks have beaten the Thunder, Clippers, Nuggets, Grizzlies, Trailblazers and Nuggets….
Slimjr
January 5th, 2013
12:24 am
OB and SteveW Cousins is a beast!!
Wish we had him…Sheesh..
Agree, Rebounding is a real issue for sure..Go Big and let it ride..
“From jan. 8-27 we play 12 games, with no more than 1 off day between games during that stretch.”
Hey Rev, you asked for more games? Your wish is coming true! Hold on Sir!
Slimjr
January 5th, 2013
12:26 am
Houston is 12-2 against the East…
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Slimjr
January 5th, 2013
12:27 am
Houston has smoke the Hawks twice…
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Slimjr
January 5th, 2013
12:34 am
Got smoked by Golden St.
Looks like the NBA is catching up..
The Clippers would run them out of the gym [today].
Hawks are 6-5, last 11..Hmmmm
Melvin
January 5th, 2013
12:37 am
Slimjr,
I said on previous blogs that the Hawks have trouble with teams that have good perimeter/wing players. Houston, Golden State, Philly to name a few….
O'Brien
January 5th, 2013
12:39 am
Watching CP3…and Marvin…it still hurts knowing the Hawks passed on him, when in reality we needed a PG and not another wing.
Thanks BK SMH
Rusty
January 5th, 2013
12:40 am
LD is a horrible coach. The teams offense looks horrible and the defense looks like they couldn’t stop an old lady . LD has to force JS to get his azz under the basket. How the hell is he going to get an offensive rebound if he is camped out at the three point line. Is it me or does it seem that LD is throwing the white flag way to early in the game.His substitution patterns are still horrible.
Melvin
January 5th, 2013
12:45 am
If the Hawks could acquire a true SF, then they will become a more balance team. It’s hard for them to cover for Lou, Korver and (shocking) Teague short comings on the Def end….
JaeEvolution
January 5th, 2013
1:12 am
Otto Porter folks, remember that name come June…
O'Brien
January 5th, 2013
1:14 am
Just for you slim;
Al Horford and a first round pick for Tyreke Evans, Travis Outlaw, and DeMarcus Cousins.
Why would Kings do it? They have 3 SF (Travis Outlaw, Francisco Garcia and John Salmons). And it is rumored that Tyreke is on the trading block, because they did not offer him an extension, and don’t want to risk losing him for nothing at the end of the year. And despite Cousin’s talents, he is a head case, while Horford is a solid player, and a PR dream come true. Plus they get a 1st round pick.
Why would Hawks do it? We need a SF. Also, despite his issues, Cousins has the potential to be a top 5 center if he keeps his head in the game. And we should have Houston’s pick so we would still have a pick in the draft (which is already rumored to be a weak draft). Tyreke will be a FA at the end of the season, but he has potential (dude averaged 20-5-5 as a rookie).
Plus none of the contracts would hamstrung us. What do you think?
Melvin
January 5th, 2013
1:21 am
Jae,
Otto will be long gone before the Hawks pick. That’s if he enter the draft this year…
Big Daddy
January 5th, 2013
1:25 am
What became obvious to me is that we need a post presence. Early in the game, the ball and the players went inside. For some reason, they changed and everybody became jumpshot happy. And not just jumpshot happy, 3pt shooting happy. If Al and Josh are not going to be a post presence and Zaza is not a back to the basket player, we need to get someone in who can play that part.
We don’t get offensive rebounds because everyone is way outside. You saw fighting for the ball on the glass from the Pistons. Not so much from the Hawks. When their outside shot is falling, they are a force to be reckoned with. When it is not falling, they look just awful. I am sure DF sees that and he may make some type of change before the deadline. Also, I know his role is to distribute the ball, but Jeff has to look for his shot more. He passes up too many open shots and the defending teams stay off of him because they know he won’t shoot.
JaeEvolution
January 5th, 2013
1:30 am
“Jae,
Otto will be long gone before the Hawks pick. That’s if he enter the draft this year…”
Otto will almost surely declare he stayed around for his complimentary sophomore season to further his development and will look to move onto the NBA. Also the Hawks will more than likely have two first round picks this year and we could easily lump them together to move up in the draft and select Porter who will likely be somewhere between 9-14.
zeyfromtheay
January 5th, 2013
2:25 am
Josh Smith for Pau Gasol STRAIGHT UP. Simply. Gasol shoots, Gasol has a post game, Gasol can rebound just as well. He’s not as good on defense, but his consistent offense makes up for that. His time with the Lakers seems to be up; I think both players and both teams would benefit from this trade.
Melvin
January 5th, 2013
2:25 am
Jae,
I’m all for Otto if we can get him but Shabazz is my 1st choice… Gifted scorer. Just what the Hawks need.
EmirS.
January 5th, 2013
2:35 am
Question:
Let’s say we get Cousins…..who do we have on our bench (player or coach) that would keep Cousins in check and his head in the game?
Cousins has so much potential, but he’s even more immature than Josh.
I think we could do better than Evans/Cousins for Horford.
EmirS.
January 5th, 2013
2:38 am
And whats with Teague these past few games. Shooting around 20%? Thats a no-no. It’s a shame because he has been dishing the ball at a very steady rate.
Sameba
January 5th, 2013
3:30 am
Josh has to rest and take care of his injury for good. Now, if the Hawks play well against the Celtics, and Teague has a great game again, that will be an important thing to learn…
Sameba
January 5th, 2013
3:41 am
zeyfromtheay
January 5th, 2013
2:25 am
Josh Smith for Pau Gasol STRAIGHT UP. Simply…
————————————————————————————-
Simply, P.Gasol today vs Clippers in 27+ minutes:
2 pts & 4 rebounds on 1 for 6 shooting, -20.
Sameba
January 5th, 2013
3:47 am
LD goes from one kind extreme behaviour to another one. First, he did no play JJ2 at all. Now he plays him surprisingly often. JJ2 was so terrible on both ends that finished with -18 in 12 minutes. It was obvious he had serious problems on D and LD should have pulled him out much quicker.
Sameba
January 5th, 2013
4:00 am
It was already noted on this blog a few times that Zaza, Al, and Josh play very well together. There are even statistical data on this subject. Is it possible that our coach of the month, as well as all his personnel, is not aware of this fact? Can someone please e-mail him the corresponding link.
Playing big lineup is especially reasonable now that our Morrow and Devin are injured. This would take quite some load off from the remaining guards too.
Simba
January 5th, 2013
5:53 am
Some people probably aren’t going to agree with this, but we actually miss Devin Harris right now. Harris is actually rated as a good defender (has been for his entire career), and could definitely help stop the dribble penetration problems that the Hawks are having on defense.
As far as small forwards go, we really don’t need another one of those. I think Ivan could use some PT there (he played there in D-League), and the lineups with Korver or Josh at the three are actually some of our best defensive lineups. In fact, Korver isn’t a liability on defense at all: http://hawkshoop.com/kyle-korver-plus-defender/
Really, this is all on our guards right now. They HAVE to be able to keep their man in front of them, especially when DeShawn and Devin aren’t in the lineup. Otherwise, we’re forcing Josh and Al to help too much, meaning that they’re going to be out of rebounding position. Seriously, I think our only losses where guard penetration hasn’t been a problem were the ones against Miami, and that’s because of LeBron James. Otherwise, Paul, Curry, Harden, Holiday, Westbrook, and frikin Jeremy Pargo? All of those guys disrupted everything by living in the paint.
B Smoove
January 5th, 2013
6:08 am
http://texastoatlanta.wordpress.com/
W.R. Terrell
January 5th, 2013
7:13 am
The HAWKS play Boston tonight. The starting lineup should be ZaZa, Al, Ivan, JT and Lou and the game will be competitive with a possibility of The HAWKS winning. LD will start Al, Josh, Kyle, JT and Lou. That is a formula for losing. Last eve should have been a reality check for fans. Folks talk about defense but in talking about defense they relate to blocked shots. Rebounds go along with good defense also, boxing out is another aspect of good defense. Offensive rebounds is another example of good defense. The more a team control the ball on their end of the floor the better their chances of scoring. Good defense is a lot more then steals and shot blocking, we can add turnovers into in to that category also as far as defense and i’m talking about turnovers on the HAWKS part, shot selection is another aspect of playing good defense. Bad shots can be equivalent to poor defense, bad shots allow the other team an opportunity to score. As bad as some fans believe Al plays he sucks up rebounds and scores, so does ZaZa. Neither one is flamboyant or a highlight reel but they work, their shot selection is good and they bang the boards, Ivan fits that mold also. Those 3 are a frontline that’s formidable and will play their hearts out against any team in the league, it’s not all about points and the highlight reels with them, just hardcore B Ball. The HAWKS will lose this game tonight with the “Smoove” on the floor and that’s reality that was seen last eve and every lost the HAWKS have had.
W.R. Terrell
January 5th, 2013
7:13 am
The HAWKS play Boston tonight. The starting lineup should be ZaZa, Al, Ivan, JT and Lou and the game will be competitive with a possibility of The HAWKS winning. LD will start Al, Josh, Kyle, JT and Lou. That is a formula for losing. Last eve should have been a reality check for fans. Folks talk about defense but in talking about defense they relate to blocked shots. Rebounds go along with good defense also, boxing out is another aspect of good defense. Offensive rebounds is another example of good defense. The more a team control the ball on their end of the floor the better their chances of scoring. Good defense is a lot more then steals and shot blocking, we can add turnovers into in to that category also as far as defense and i’m talking about turnovers on the HAWKS part, shot selection is another aspect of playing good defense. Bad shots can be equivalent to poor defense, bad shots allow the other team an opportunity to score. As bad as some fans believe Al plays he sucks up rebounds and scores, so does ZaZa. Neither one is flamboyant or a highlight reel but they work, their shot selection is good and they bang the boards, Ivan fits that mold also. Those 3 are a frontline that’s formidable and will play their hearts out against any team in the league, it’s not all about points and the highlight reels with them, just hardcore B Ball. The HAWKS will lose this game tonight with the “Smoove” on the floor and that’s reality that was seen last eve and every lost the HAWKS have had.
rk
January 5th, 2013
8:19 am
Wow, a coach worst than LD. Detroits second five is better than thier starters. Why is Kyle Singler in the NBA? Daye was unstoppable and sat out most of the third quarter. Thank the coach for keeping this game close.
ejh
January 5th, 2013
8:55 am
I have a few points to make about the hawks. Last night’s game was turned around by zsa zsa, his size and physical strength bothered the pistons bigs. the pistons offensive rebounding ceased after zsa zsa entered the game. Good job zsa zsa; LD stick with the big lineup or Teague, Korver, Josh Al and Zsa Zsa. Lou should return to the bench. With Jenkins getting minutes Lou should play minutes at the pg spot to backup Teague with jenkins backing up Korver.
ejh
January 5th, 2013
9:00 am
Also there seems to be a correlation to Teague’s decline in production since Lou Williams has entered the starting lineup. Teagues agressivness has dipped, because he is now sharing the ball with Lou and is beginning to defer to lou. Harris plays better with teague in the backcourt than lou, and we miss lou’s scoring punch off the bench. Change the lineup LD we are getting beat on the boards, and we need to be more consistent with the starting lineup to continue to build cohesivness.
keith
January 5th, 2013
9:40 am
zeyfromtheay
January 5th, 2013
2:25 am
Josh Smith for Pau Gasol STRAIGHT UP. Simply. Gasol shoots, Gasol has a post game, Gasol can rebound just as well. He’s not as good on defense, but his consistent offense makes up for that. His time with the Lakers seems to be up; I think both players and both teams would benefit from this trade.
DITTO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
JOSH SMITH IS HOLDING THIS TEAM BACK….STEVIE WONDER CAN SEE THAT…..WE MUST CUT BAIT WITH JOSH SOONER THAN LATER AND MOVE FORWARD!!!
AND SEND DEVIN HARRIS ALONG WITH HIM TO MAKE THE MONEY WORK…I WOULD HATE TO LOSE DEVIN,,HOWEVER, TO GET RID OF JOSH….IT’S WORTH IT!!!!!
doc
January 5th, 2013
9:45 am
najeh, said will finish the season about 8 to 10 games above 500 when they were floating at 8 games i over. that means they have to keep their heads right at what they have been doing and you pointed out. they might pick up some trash games along the way as wins to boost it a bit and push towards “elite” 50 heh heh.
their early surge is what has been their modus operandi since woody’s years. it is good enough then and now to grind it into the playoffs, maybe sneak by the first round into the second.
then comes either the summer of ascension or discontent.
keith
January 5th, 2013
9:51 am
I have “flip-flopped” on this Pau Gasol for Josh Smith trade thing…However, Josh has approached “JOE JOHNSON” status where he is not ‘WORTH” the positives that he brings to this ball club…
JOSH SMITH’S negatives far outweigh his positives…No way I give this clown a Max contract going forward!!!
There are numerous 1st and 2nd year players who get the game better than Josh…Josh should not be ALLOWED to take a shot outside of the painted area…PERIOD!!!
I PREDICT we will lose Josh Smith without acquiring any assets.. This would be a horrible outcome…TRADE his “scrub behind” now and acquire assets..DANNY FERRY…
Grandmaster JeJe (GM)
January 5th, 2013
10:00 am
Al Horford’s comments –> “Moral Victory
FIRE LD
keith
January 5th, 2013
10:17 am
(C) JEFF WITHEY Kansas….
This guy is the “Big” who is most NBA ready…Most mock drafts have him potentially being there when the Hawks pick…He is an ELITE shot blocker…He holds the NCAA Tournament record for
blocked shots…
Jeff Withey is precisely what the Atlanta Hawks need to man the POST for the next 10 years!!!
W.R. Terrell
January 5th, 2013
10:48 am
Folks are beginning to see the light. The HAWKS will never have a cohesive unit as long as the “Smoove” is on the floor. Devin Harris will always be injured but combine him with the “Smoove” and the HAWKS may get something and it has to be by the trade deadline. DF is a B Ball man he is not going to pay big dollars for a player who cannot play to his strengths (J. Smith) if last night was not an indication that the HAWKS do not need the “Smoove” then continue to ramble on about what he brings to the floor then look at his stats and how the team seems to lose focus when he starts jacking up bad shots. Everyone here is aware of his athleticism and what he could be but the man is B Ball DUMB!!!! He is the same show and the biggest liability the HAWKS have on the floor. Defensively other teams will back away so he will take those outside shots because they know the chances of him shooting 50% or even 44% or nill and that becomes a positive for them and a detriment for the HAWKS. If he gets crazy tonight the HAWKS will be fighting to lose by 10. LD has misguided loyalty and that will be the reason he is fired. The “Smoove” will always be a potential starter but after years of seeing him with slow growth it is time to move forward.
cdog
January 5th, 2013
11:13 am
terrible coaching. why was za za pachulia on the floor instead of josh smith.pachulia was one of the reason atlanta got behind.avery johnson was coach of the year but look what happened to him.its been these situations costing the hawks in big games.that was a game they could have gained on miami but larry drew doesn’t care as long as he plays his buddies.lou williams was grinning before and after the loss which tell me how much he cares.jeff teague played a great games especially on defense.i don’t view practices but i believe if you give johan petro a chance, he would help better than pachulia, anybody would.i couldn’t believe the length of minutes he played especially in crunch time and not smith. but with drew its about keeping your buddy happy instead of wins. he must be buddies with freddie gonzalez of the braves?well, the ball is in danny ferry’s hands. he need to pull the switches needed to make the hawks into a championship team now or else suffer losing