Johnson needs to step back for the Hawks to step forward
Much has to happen. The Hawks need to re-sign Mike Bibby, to work a sign-and-trade with Marvin Williams and to draft a guard, preferably Eric Maynor of VCU, in Round 1. But for this team to climb from pretty good to really good, something more must be done.
The Hawks must wean themselves from their reliance on Joe Johnson.
Almost every bit of the Hawks’ offense since 2005 has run through Johnson, and it’s past time for an adjustment. It’s not that he isn’t a fine player; it’s that this team has two younger players who require room to grow.
Come 2011, Josh Smith and Al Horford should be the Hawks’ best players. (And this assumes Johnson re-ups next summer.) Together, Smith and Horford took 1,443 shots this regular season. By himself, Johnson took 1,420. Save the occasional lob, the team doesn’t run many plays for Smith. It runs almost none for Horford.
Johnson isn’t a ball hog – he led the team in assists, ahead of Bibby – but he’s the focal point. You can be a focal point if you’re LeBron or Kobe or D-Wade, but Johnson isn’t quite. The Hawks would be better served if he played fewer minutes – he led the NBA in those – and took fewer shots.
Would Johnson be amenable? “I would,” he said Tuesday. “But I don’t know if that’s going to be the case. I have a passion and love for the game. Sometimes the coach tries to take me out, and I tell him to leave me in. It’s not that I’m selfish – it’s just my passion for the game.”
Is the goal to stoke Johnson’s fire or to win more games? He was demonstrably fatigued in the postseason and admitted as much. Save for the final three quarters of Game 7 against Miami, he was never the Johnson whom co-owner Michael Gearon Jr. calls “the greatest Hawk since Dominique.”
Sorry, there are no polls available at the moment.Johnson has filled an essential role. More than anyone else, he lifted the Hawks up from squalor. For this team to go further, he needs to work as well with Smith and Horford as he does with Bibby. He needs to become a leader, not just a scorer.
Horford won two NCAA titles with a team famous for sharing the ball. He’s not one to make requests. But here was his reaction when asked if he’d like more shots: “Yeah, every player would. Count me in for that.”
Do the Hawks run much for him? “They don’t,” said Horford, who took fewer shots than Flip Murray. “But I understand. I know what it takes: I have to work on my game and make them give me the ball a little more.”
Would Mike Woodson be willing to work Johnson less? “Without a doubt,” the coach said. “Did I wear him down? Sure. But I needed to ride him to get us where we needed to go.”
For this team to reach the next level, Smith and Horford must pull more of the load. They’re 23. (Johnson is 27.) They’re the future.
Williams is not. So long as he’s here, he’ll always be the guy who isn’t Chris Paul, and there should be teams willing to work a sign-and-trade. Bibby should stay because the Hawks went too long without a point guard. And another guard should be the focus of this draft because there won’t be a big man around when the Hawks pick.
But the big transition has to be internal. Johnson cannot be the lone star any longer. For the good of all, he must become one of the gang.
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259 comments Add your comment
newkid
May 13th, 2009
6:02 pm
The Smith deal that I’d like to hear discussed more is Smith/Speedy to Phoenix for Amare’. He’s likely to opt out of his deal with the Suns after the next campaign, and the Suns will likely want a young athletic PF to replace him if they’re going to re-sign Nash and continue to run the floor with Barbosa and others. Can’t be certain Amare’ wouldn’t bolt Atlanta after next season, but pairing him with Joe – and perhaps a re-signed Bibby – just might give the Hawks the best chance of retaining them both beyond next year.
With a 2-3-4-5 quartet of JJ, Hedo, Amare’, and Horford, a moderately priced Bibby, a few solid complementary pieces, and a good draft and we’re perhaps ready for the next leap.
ayersling
May 13th, 2009
6:44 pm
I strongly disagree with trading Marvin Williams and strongly agree with weening off of Joe Johnson. Johnson is an All-Star but Williams won’t reach his full potential with Joe dominating the ball. Williams has the skill set to be our best player. He needs to work on his handles and eventually on being a leader. I don’t think we’ll need to draft a guard either if Acie does what Marvin did last year which work on his range and as mentioned earlier, we do still have Chills. The inside is where we’re getting killed. We need a center that is a legit size and more athletic than Pachulia. No offense to Big Z but he just doesn’t have a lot of lift in his legs.
HawksFan
May 13th, 2009
7:30 pm
Najah Davenpoop…..
Sorry I didn’t get back to your retort before now, but did you actually compare Josh Smith’s overall situation to Rasheed Wallace? Are you serious?
While Rasheed seems chemically imbalanced at times with his obsessiveness for getting T’ed up, he was also a very developed PF unlike Josh Smith who is just a good athlete with zero offensive game other than put backs, finishing in transition when no one pressures his dribble, and general offensive situations where he’s set up by someone’s elses dribble penetration.
“How is Marvin better than Josh other than outside shooting.”
…. Again, do you even watch basketball. The fact that Marvin can dribble and chew gum at the same time qualifies him to be a master of dribbling compared to Josh. The fact that he’s the best FT shooter on the team makes him a HUGE asset to this team in the 4th quarter in tight ball games or with the lead. The fact that he’s got a mid range game and developed his 3 point shooting to a moderately high level. The fact that he’s shown when given opportunities that he can score in the upper 20’s when Joe was out and he was given more opportunities. Translation: The offense could be run through him because he has MUCH better decision making abilities than Josh AND because he’s a much better passer than Josh.
Need I go on or is your sophomoric understanding of the game going to present some actual challenge.
Josh Smith is a tremedous athlete who can impact the game on the glass and defensively when he actually decided to play with effort. He also is a turnover waiting to happen, a bad decision waiting to happen, and only God knows what you’re going to get out of him every other night and yet we’re supposed to build around him.
Truth be told, I’d be for keeping him if we brought in the right coach who knew how to actually use the weapons that are on this team.
It’s nothing short of funny for anyone to throw stats out in a comparison like this because it’s all based on the opportunities that you’re given. Both Marvin and Josh would be benefited greatly if they were put in a better position to be successful. But they’re not and that’s the real point.
However, this part of the dicussion started with trying to figure out how we could add the pieces to actually beat Cleveland challenge for a championship. If we have to let someone go, either Josh Smith or Al Horford would be the guys I’d consider because every team needs a better guy at the 5, and a PG who can get it done. To me, those guys would bring enough value to possibly go after someone to fill those voids.
Simpdawg
May 13th, 2009
8:12 pm
The problem with the Hawks is they have too many players, playing out of their natural position. They need to decide, which player there’re going to build around, whether it is Josh Smith, Joe Johnson or Al Horford? They really need to figure this thing out. I think they need to make a decision on maintaining either Josh Smith or Marvin Williams. A decision need to be made regarding Acie Law’s future in Atlanta? They need to acquire Josh Childress and David Andersen. I would allow Mike Bibby to walk as a free agent and go after Ramon Sessions or Jarrett Jack, resign Flip Murray and ZaZa Pachulia and draft a center or low post power forward who can draw double teams.
Take your time Hawks, do it right! | Hawks Blog
May 13th, 2009
11:48 pm
[...] larger problems (their paper-thin depth, their flawed offensive scheme the wordsmith Mark Bradley nailed in his recent column and their inability to get ball pressure on the ball at the outset of offensive possessions, just [...]
house divided
May 14th, 2009
12:23 am
Sign and trade Marvin Williams with Utah for Paul Millsap and then sign him, resign Murray, trade Acie and Childress’s rights to Indiana for Jarret Jack’s rights and then sign him, resign Pachulia, let Bibby walk. Draft Eric Maynor or Paul Harris. Starting 5: Jack, Johnson, Smith, Horford, Millsap. Bench Murray, Pachulia, Evans, Maynor,and in free agency sign a guy like Francisco Elson. To compete we need a relentless player who never gives up inside. Paul Millsap is a force and he plays with the biggest heart of any available bigman and he is far better than his teammate Boozer in value and heart.
Hawks Fan 90
May 14th, 2009
1:12 pm
Mr. Bradley, your silence amidst all the calls for Mike Woodson’s head is conspicuous. You have evaluated every player, but not so much the coach. I think we can read between the lines that you think he’s taken the team as far as he’s going to take it and that the Hawks would best be served letting him go now. I say this because you change the players all you’d like, but Woodson is going to be Woodson and that means he’s not going to do things differently than what has got him this far.Are you holding your tongue on Woodson because of an access thing?
Thanks.
Gilley
May 14th, 2009
4:13 pm
First I will say GREAT ARTICLE and talking points Mark Bradley and I am glad you actually talk with the bloggers and have the discussion. I appreciate that.
Furthermore, I agree Joe Johnson is NOT a superstar. That is obvious. Superstars get double-teamed often and still finish with 20 plus points, because they force their will and are aggressive and find other ways to get their points, i.e. free throws, fast break, etc. Joe Johnson does not have that knack to get any shot he wants and to takeoever a game at will. He showed a small flash of it last year against Boston when he scored 35 points and he also showed a small flash once against the Cavs in Game 3 when he got aggressive and angry and was pushing and shoving LeBron and driving. But he is far too inconsistent to even be considered a Superstar and whoever says otherwise needs to watch some more Hawks game.
Furthermore, I think Marvin is a good player and has a nice stroke and has the talent to be a 20 ppg scorer in this league but he is expendable and has become injury-prone. He can do without him and the problem of too many wing players come to mind when we consider re-signing him. I like Marvin but a trade and sign deal with him is in the horizon and I think we can get good value off of him and I hope to see him flourish on his future team. I like Acie Law and feel Mike Woodson and injuries are the reasons why he has yet to flourish. Lack of minutes and injuries = Lack of confidence. The same thing occured with Salim Stoudamire. Sometimes Mike Woodson can be a player killer and hurts the development of his players. Which brings me to my next point.
Does Mike Woodson deserve to stay or go?
I personally cannot stand him as a coach because he is too stubborn and he hasn’t even accomplished anything. He overplays Joe Johnson and is way too hard on his younger plays and it impedes them from growing. Josh Smith has grown but he still hasn’t reach a level where he should be and I think Mike Woodson has something to do with that. Smith has overcome but other players (Salim, Acie, Solo, etc) have not.
I think the Hawks are headed in the right direction and I think fans should not expect us to defeat the Cavs when we just got our first winning season in years. Not saying have low expectations but be real. We have come a long way and we must make adjustments and changes to make us better each year.
But great dialogue guys and discussions
Mark Bradley
May 14th, 2009
5:00 pm
Thanks, Gilley. Glad to be of service.
As for Woodson: There was a time when I thought he should be fired, but I’ve changed my mind. He did just fine this season.