Josh Smith wants out of Hawks — and it’s hard to blame him
Josh Smith's 30 points led a recent upset of Oklahoma City, and he has been the Hawks' best player this season. (AP photo)
By the end of last season, the criticism had started to become too much for Josh Smith.
When something went wrong, he got blamed. When the Hawks lost, he got blamed. Certainly, any time he did something silly and made one of those pouty, lower-lip-touches-the-tip-of-the-nose boo-boo faces, the city’s basketball fans held their nose in disgust and screamed, “Feh!”
At some point, it all figured to be too much for the hometown kid – and now it is.
Smith wants out of the Hawks. Out of Atlanta. I don’t blame him. I wrote a column following last season’s playoff exit that it might be best if the two parties went in opposite directions, and that was meant less as criticism of Smith than it was a read of the unhealthy situation. It was clear how he and those in his camp felt about the situation.
Our Michael Cunningham reports that, while external criticism of Smith has significantly diminished this season, the forward wants a fresh start with a new team, and he has let the Hawks know of his desire to be dealt before the NBA’s March 15 trade deadline.
The irony here is that Smith has had the best season of his career. He has averaged 17 points, almost 10 rebounds, 3.5 assists and two blocks. When center Al Horford went down early this season, Smith stepped up and took on a bigger role. When guard Joe Johnson went down, Smith went on to carry this team.
Is Smith great every night? No. But what we’ve witnessed this season is a smarter, far more mature and polished player than at any time in his eight-year career. When training camp opened following the league’s lockout, Smith showed up 25 pounds lighter, wearing a smile and having a seemingly new perspective on things.
He denied that criticism ever prompted him to ask for a trade in the offseason, but cracked that at times he was tempted to “get lost. Punch the GPS a few times.”
“I’ve been here a long time,” Smith continued. “I’ve never lashed out at the organization. All I ask for sometimes is, when I raise my hand, maybe somebody can help me up, so I’m not always the person who’s trying to [defend me from criticism]. It would be nice if somebody else said, ‘This guy’s a pretty good player.’”
He certainly has shown that this season. Now he wants out. Figures.
How does this look if you’re the Hawks?
The kid from College Park doesn’t want to play for the hometown team. Dwight Howard, an Atlanta native, doesn’t want to play here, either.
It’s one thing when hockey players from Russia (Ilya Kovalchuk) and Slovakia (Marian Hossa) want out. But two guys who grew up playing pickup games on the city’s black tops?
Neither Smith nor Howard have a problem with Atlanta itself. It’s more about perceptions of the franchise and the ownership. As players move on in their career, winning titles becomes more important. Smith wants to play for a franchise more committed to winning a championship — or at least one that leaves the impression it knows what it takes to get there.
The Hawks have been an undersized team with Horford as their center, but their inability to make significant roster fixes can be traced directly to ownership’s decision to give Johnson a $123.7 million contract.
Smith has been the Hawks’ best player this season. He got jobbed in All-Star game selection twice — first when Eastern Conference coaches picked reserves, then when commissioner David Stern inexplicably chose the suspended Rajon Rondo over Smith to replace the injured Johnson. Smith apparently holds the Hawks at least partially responsible, believing the organization didn’t do enough to promote his candidacy.
My guess is that perceptions of the younger, immature, underachieving Smith still linger with some and had more to do with his exclusion. But Smith has been a treasure to watch for most of this season. Now he wants out. It was easy to see coming.
By Jeff Schultz
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185 comments Add your comment
zorba
March 8th, 2012
8:57 pm
Jeff, please write about what the Hawks gave up for Hinrich, who is now our fourth best guard. Even Pargo is outplaying him. And what did Pargo cost. And, if the Hawks trade Smith, our best and hardest working Hawk, day in and day out, I’m finished with any interest in the boring Hawks with their lack of management expertise. Knight was atrocious, and the present guy has done nothing but overpay JJ.
Disgusted
March 8th, 2012
8:59 pm
I don’t want Favors, he is a bust. He was not even that good in college and he would have been smarter to stay in school another year.
favors has stunk in the NBA. The numbers speak for themselves.
Disgusted
March 8th, 2012
9:01 pm
Can we just lose the Atlanta Spirit LLC for good? And get thenm out of the arena management business too, a still fairly new building that is aging before its time.
Slimnjr
March 8th, 2012
9:02 pm
“People miss this over and over again… There is on the book value, and then there is real value. None and I mean none of the Atlanta movie magnets, song impressarios, performers have “real value” needed to pull off a deal, that includes the Foxworthy’s, Tritt, and Jackson’s too for those who like to play the race card or Anti-Atlanta demographic card. It is the one real why no minority owners have stepped up to purchase either the Hawks, Phillips Arena, or the the departed Thrashers… Oh by the way, there were minority “rich” hockey fans. But the fracture in Thrashers fans scared them away…”
JSS, your the man full of wisdom and reason.. What you just said probably went right over Neanderthal Larry’s head… What an embarrassment to his Mother….
froggy
March 8th, 2012
9:03 pm
Part 2 of Jeff’s economic education: Rankin Smith bought his NFL franchise in 1965 for $8.5 million, considered an outrageous price at the time. His heirs sold the Falcons 37 years later for $545 million — a CAGR of over 12 percent. And they extracted a profit all along the way. A darned good investment for you or me…
The Truth
March 8th, 2012
9:05 pm
“Neither Smith nor Howard have a problem with Atlanta itself. It’s more about perceptions of the franchise and the ownership.”
Jeff, I know you love to jab at the Hawks owners so here’s your chance again. I’m no fan of them either but don’t give the readers the notion that Hawks ownership are cheap, they are not. As the list below show, the team payroll is ranked 9th in the league so don’t suggest they are cheap. A better description of them is unwise for keeping their asset management (GM) Rick Sund around for so long. Like his predecessor BK, he’s been horrible at trading and drafting players. He get paid to manage, consult and give his advice (among other things). He has lead ownship to their current cap problem.
Team Payrolls
1. Boston Celtics $86,819,383
2. Orlando Magic $85,155,030
3. Los Angeles Lakers $84,960,538
4. Miami Heat $79,383,475
5. Portland Trail Blazers $76,495,430
6. New York Knicks $75,652,328
7. San Antonio Spurs $74,674,863
8. Dallas Mavericks $71,082,003
9. Atlanta Hawks $69,239,904
poondaddy
March 8th, 2012
9:09 pm
asg are a group of idiots instead of building this team around jj it should have been built around josh smith hes a way better player then iso joe…. if they trade josh it would be crazy he has more energy then anyone else on the team…. yes he takes wild shots but hell were is the center to rebound.. id trade joes bad contract and keep josh. marivn sucks to dump him, hinrich and collins play mcgrady more with stack and they would be a decent team to watch they lost to miami by 3 without joe and lost by 20 with him that tells you something
Dawg A
March 8th, 2012
9:20 pm
The Atlanta Spirit group are idiots! Please sell the team before we lose all of our players! Jeff… what type of player would Josh Smith bring in a trade? Any names?
Yawn!!!
March 8th, 2012
9:24 pm
Atlanta Sports scene:
Hawks…..What?? Atlanta has a NBA team?…..never noticed….go figure. I hear the owners suck
Braves…..the owners suck there too, just never know who they are. I hear Chipper will be paid $14 million per year until he hits 65 and collects social security
Falcons….great owner, overrated GM, clueless coach, franchise QB that can’t throw more than 15 yards
Bulldogs…..greatest potential, but you got Boss Hogg (president Adams) and Roscoe P. Coltrane (Mark Richt) running the program…..hopeless
Other than that, city has a GREAT sports scene…..
Mr Charlie
March 8th, 2012
9:34 pm
Does Atlanta even have a basketball team? I did not know.
Mr Charlie
March 8th, 2012
9:36 pm
Yawn, lets not forget the team with the genius coach, and the stool pigeon students who get robbed by the natives daily.
Josh Smith
March 8th, 2012
9:55 pm
Hey, Hawks fans,
Thanks for all the support over the years. I may be playing on another team in the future, but I wanted to thank you for the advice about not shooting so many 75-footers. ‘Preciate it.
Slimjr
March 8th, 2012
9:57 pm
“Yawn, lets not forget the team with the genius coach, and the stool pigeon students who get robbed by the natives daily.”
Funny, sounds like a perfect description for that chop chop organization called the Braves…..lol
Slimjr
March 8th, 2012
9:59 pm
Braves= 40 year old collecting 14 million to play what, maybe 80 games?
Figures……..
Long Time Fan
March 8th, 2012
10:04 pm
I for one am sick and tired of these millionaire cry babies. Your signed to a contract, paid to do a job, its not your option to whine about being traded. Shut and play ball!
KevinM
March 8th, 2012
10:17 pm
If you’re going to consider trading Josh, the time to do that is now. You aren’t trading a hurt Al and you aren’t trading a ‘taking it easy for now’ Joe. You have to get the most you can for Josh.
It would be best to send him to the West where he won’t come back to haunt the ‘Highlight Factory’ too often.
And the HF will cease to exist because Teague won’t be able to do it alone.
And its not a PG we need; we need a C, SF and backup shooting guard more than a PG.
Waiting on Rick Sund to make a decision….like the one last year that cost us Jordan Crawford and a #1.
We are best at squandering cheap assets.
Give the current roster more ammunition, even if it takes Kirk and Joe to do it. I’d consider Rashard Lewis’ monster deal if it meant Joe and Marvin would be jettisoned. We rid ourselves of bad decisions much sooner than standing pat.
As we stand today, we will pay 6 players roughly 87% of next year’s cap.
So we need to find 7-8 guys with the remaining 8-9M.
More of the same next year, so no one on the lower part of the roster should expect a raise from this team.
Jeff Schultz
March 8th, 2012
10:24 pm
Diego — Josh has been very good last two years. He could’ve made the All-Star any of the last three seasons (including this one). But this year HAS been a huge leap in terms of maturity. Ask anybody on the team or his coach. And the fact that you would spin this into a “negative” column on Josh affirms that actually you’re the one who doesn’t know what he’s talking about.
Jeff Schultz
March 8th, 2012
10:29 pm
Froggy — The NFL is on another level from the NBA. Don’t compare the two. Huge differences in rights fees, merchandising, etc.. .. Sorry, am I going to fast for you? I can use smaller words if you like.
Brad
March 8th, 2012
10:29 pm
How can the 9th highest payroll be considered cheap?!? They’ve made mistakes, biggest being not drafting Chris Paul, but EVERY franchise has made mistakes and bad draft choices.
Jeff Schultz
March 8th, 2012
10:31 pm
The Truth — In the case of the Hawks, it’s not about total dollars spent on payroll but rather how it’s spent. Ownership/management made a huge investment when they signed Joe to that contract, but it was the wrong investment. And now, any significant move they would make would put them well into the luxury tax, which they won’t pay. So they’ve got no flexibility.
Jeff Schultz
March 8th, 2012
10:33 pm
Brad — Asked and answered.
heartofdarkness
March 8th, 2012
11:14 pm
Did Victor Hugo write this tale of woe?
JSS
March 8th, 2012
11:16 pm
Slimnjr
March 8th, 2012
9:02 pm
“JSS, your the man full of wisdom and reason.. What you just said probably went right over Neanderthal Larry’s head… What an embarrassment to his Mother….”
Larry and I have a truce, I have no comment…
BulldogBen
March 8th, 2012
11:26 pm
Flaming tire fire of a franchise.
I don’t blame Josh one bit.
Crusted
March 8th, 2012
11:34 pm
Can we just get rid of the whole team?
welikebaseball2
March 8th, 2012
11:35 pm
I hear you guys talk about letting Josh go & trading Marvin & getting someone to build around. My problem is this: No one worth building around wants to come hear thanks to the buffoonery that is ASG. Secondly, even if they did, I’m sure ASG would find a way to screw things up to where we wouldn’t have the available resources to get the pieces to surround that player with. Thirdly, even if ASG openned their pockets in attempt to make up for the mistake of signing Joe to a max contract, I’m in no way convinced Sund has the ability to assemble a championship roster. Basically, I’ve relinquished hope of the Hawks being a true contender as long as ASG is at the helm.
welikebaseball2
March 8th, 2012
11:35 pm
oops…”here” not “hear”…LOL
Joey
March 8th, 2012
11:41 pm
Watch him go to the lakers and lead them with kobe to the finals and win it all and win the finals mvp and he didn’t make the all star team. lmao
Slimjr
March 8th, 2012
11:43 pm
Trade Chipper..
IlliniDawg
March 9th, 2012
12:12 am
Hey Schultzie:
Any sense that Joe Johnson has any understanding or at least recognition of the fact that his stupid max contract has killed, is killing, and will continue to kill this team? I don’t expect the guy to do a Warren Buffet and offer to give up a huge chunk, but it would be nice to see him do what Chipper did twice and offer to restructure. If things don’t change he will be the scapegoat for everything going wrong with the franchise.
Whopper Dawg
March 9th, 2012
12:14 am
Any player of note should want to get away from the Hawks.
froggy
March 9th, 2012
12:24 am
Oooh, Jeff, methinks you’re getting a little agitated. I think you meant to type “too”, not “to,” I hope. You made a broad comment, originally, about all franchise owners — I believe that would include the NFL. But NBA owners have done quite well, too. Just look at the data. I was taught at the Grady J. School 35 years ago to learn the material. That’s all I’m saying — not a cause to insult your readers, friend.
4 Jacks
March 9th, 2012
12:32 am
Who cares, sell the Hawks. With the ownership that is in place they will never be contenders for anything other than a 4th or 5th seed in the playoffs and that is as good as it gets. Wish the ASG and Guerin and the crew would sell the team and they would all pick up and move out of the ATL. The ASG are all idiots and liars and have ruined this city’s chance for ever having another hockey team and they have proven that they have no effing clue or committment to bringing a championship calibre team to Atlanta…wish they would all eat s&$t and die. These are the guys that have given Atlanta a bad rap in the media as a sports town.
The Truth
March 9th, 2012
2:00 am
“The Truth — In the case of the Hawks, it’s not about total dollars spent on payroll but rather how it’s spent. Ownership/management made a huge investment when they signed Joe to that contract, but it was the wrong investment” – Jeff Schultz
Once you added Ownership/management than I really can’t disagree. In fact it’s no different than what I’m suggesting. Ownership is correct when they say they are top spenders but they seem to be unaware that they don’t spend wisely; the JJ contract maybe but one example. The Marvin contract is certainly another.
I jab at GM Rick Sund because technically these types of responsibilities (drafting, trades, etc.) should fall under the GM job title. Any owner influence into this process would be speculation unless you or I have inside information about such matters. Assuming we both don’t, perhaps we should avoid suggesting things we know little about.
Technically the owners should just write checks and set goals. But the owners’ bad PR from their court drama and botched sales doesn’t help their public imagine. Perhaps this is really your “bone of contention”. Far be it from me to defend them.
However, beware that these owners are not the only stakeholders in these Hawks. The communities of Metro-Atlanta are as well. Be careful with your representation of these Hawks because WE CARE.
David Beall
March 9th, 2012
5:34 am
If the NBA went bankrupt tomorrow I wouldn’t blink an eye. I do not watch it and haven’t for years. The league is full of thugs who couldn’t find a coherent sentence with both hands and a flashlight.
dmr
March 9th, 2012
5:56 am
Let’s see Michael Gearon, Jr. go ahead and lay this on the fans….again! In Gearon’s mind, the fans don’t understand ownership or how basketball works or the fact that Smith should have been playing alongside CP3 a few seasons ago. This ownership group sucks. This is not Smith’s fault and I don’t blame him.
GTT
March 9th, 2012
6:19 am
I’ll bet the Yearwood-Brookses have the real value to buy the team.
Paddy
March 9th, 2012
6:46 am
rollo lawson……you can’t sell the Hawks quick. It is not that the Hawks are not a saleable team, nobody with money is interested in buying a NBA product. The sport itself is very unattractive in its present form. It is too bad, it used to be a fun sport to watch, not anymore!
Josh Smith | NewsTrendr
March 9th, 2012
7:13 am
[...] Atlanta Journal Constitution (blog) [...]
Road Scholar
March 9th, 2012
7:59 am
Package Smith and Joe Johnson…
LA Bound
March 9th, 2012
8:17 am
josh need to head to LA with dwight–partying 24/7, with wild hollywood chicks everywhere, parties at beach mansions, record and movie execs at courtside every night, endorsement millions…. Head to la josh!!
Billy
March 9th, 2012
8:19 am
why would anyone wanna play for the Hawks?!
Bill
March 9th, 2012
8:29 am
The Joe Johnson contract would cause even competent ownership problems.Let alone the ASG.Then again competent ownership would not have made that contract.
I know this is not Sund’s fault but every time I see Chris Paul light it up I feel like running to the liquor cabinet..
Jeff is the price for the Hawks so prohibitive no one is interested beyond the failed attempt last year?
juice sourcer
March 9th, 2012
8:34 am
As I have said over and over, the Hawks are just a pathetic organization. Here’s another example.
Spud Webb
March 9th, 2012
8:36 am
Let him take his 3 pointers for someone else!
Can he take Marvin with him?
rollo lawson
March 9th, 2012
8:52 am
Paddy, explain why basketball is “unattractive”?
Sonny Clusters
March 9th, 2012
9:10 am
Bernie Casey wanted no part of the Falcons and Atlanta. Greg Olson got his opportunity here because a LA Dodger catcher refused to come to the Braves and Atlanta. What’s a big deal about a player wanting out? We was thinking how the franchises are better than they were but still not storied and still not top-tier. Give Arthur Blank time. The Braves will need new ownership and so will the Hawks. The proof of a great organization is in the results, not the little signs in the outfield. “Wild Card Champs.”
Jcard120
March 9th, 2012
9:26 am
Josh Smith is the most exciting player on this team and puts fans in the seats. The team is more fun to watch when he’s the number one option instead of ISO-Joe. Trading him now would be rediculous unless the return value is impossible to turn down.
Eraserhead
March 9th, 2012
9:35 am
Ship Josh to the Lakers for Gasol.
ATLien
March 9th, 2012
9:40 am
Has anyone else noticed how much more the team plays together without Joe Johnson? They’re putting up just as many points, the offense doesn’t seem to stall at times while Joe dribbles around, and he’s no more consistent than Josh was early in the season. Why isn’t ATL even considered in trade talks for D. Howard? He’s an ATL native, who I’m sure would love to play with Smoove (his boy)! Trade Johnson, another player(s) & draft pick(s) for Howard. It’s not like our picks are ever good, because this team is just good enough (in a weak Eastern Conference) to make the playoffs, resulting in late picks that never make an impact! For 5 years, if not more, ATL has NEVER attempted to bring in a true center, which I feel is the missing piece for us to have a championship team! Trade for Howard. Move Horford to PF. Smith stays at SF. Teague @ PG. Fill in SG with role players (McGrady, Stackhouse, Heinrich) until next free agency and then sign a SG.
However the best off-season acquisition would be a new owner(ship)!!!!!!!