Live from NASCAR … er, Game 4: Hawks look to drive safely
Milwaukee — You’d think this would be the last place to come for a traffic accident, there being little traffic downtown the Brew City. But by now you’re aware the Hawks’ bus was hit by a car leaving the Bradley Center after shootaround today at noon. We’re happy to report that nobody was hurt. Everybody, however, had a story.
The bus was struck by a driver who would later tell police her brakes failed, and the Hawks could believe it. Those seated in the front of the bus saw the car screeching around a curve. It hit side of the bus. The car’s front was crumpled. The bus was dented and suffered cracked — but not shattered — windows.
Mike Woodson was first off the bus — head coach sits up front — and reacted like an action hero. “I saw the smoke,” he said, speaking of the car, and he unbuckled a little boy from the back seat.
“He was about 3 or 4,” Woodson said. “He said, ‘I want my mommy.’ ” [The boy's mother had been driving the car.]
Then it got kind of funny. The Hawks milled around taking pictures of the dented bus. [Josh Smith showed me three on his cell phone.] Then they started looking for cabs. Five of them — Smith, Joe Johnson, Mike Bibby, Jason Collins and Randolph Morris — found one and piled inside, only to discover that it was already occupied.
“There was a lady in there,” Smith said. “She was going to the hospital. [This lady wasn't the one involved in the mishap.] We dropped her off there. She tried to pay for all of us, but we said, ‘No, we’ve got it.’ ”
It must be noted that the Bradley Center is maybe a 10-minute walk from the Hawks’ hotel. Did Smith consider walking? “No. It was cold. I was shivering.” [It was in the mid-50s today here, the balmiest day of the Hawks' stay.]
Besides, it just wouldn’t have looked right for a bunch of big-time ballplayers to be hoofing it in their sweatsuits. “You never know who you’re going to meet on the streets,” said Al Horford, laughing. “It’s rough up here.”
Said Hawks publicist Arthur Triche: “We were wondering if the Bucks’ mascot had anything to do with it.”
And that would have been truly weird. The Bucks’ mascot is named Bango and wears a deer costume. Deer strikes bus?
Oh, yeah. They’re also playing a game here tonight. It’s kind of important. If the Hawks win, they can clinch the series at home Wednesday. If they lose, they might not clinch this series anytime anywhere.
I’ll be happy to step away from my duties as Captain Herb to discuss Game 4 as it plays out. But first y’all have to promise to drive safely. Deal?
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437 comments Add your comment
Go bucks!
April 26th, 2010
11:00 pm
We have all the momemtum now. Hawks will be playing scared on Wednesday. They lose, they are done.
Hawks vs. Bucks
April 26th, 2010
11:00 pm
gah, stop fouling already you’ve already lost ….
ATL embarassment
April 26th, 2010
11:01 pm
It is tough being an Atlanta sports fan. Here’s a sobering thought. The city of Raleigh has as many professional sports championships as Atlanta…ONE!
Peter
April 26th, 2010
11:01 pm
Small front line pushed around yet again…..say all you want about the athleticism of the Hawks…..but when are we going to get a legit Center, and get rid of Marvin the boy amongst men ?
ATLBadger
April 26th, 2010
11:01 pm
Hope Smith enjoys being back in Milwaukee Friday night!
Plenty of tickets still for sale for Wednesday night in Atlanta…What a pathetic franchise in a pathetic pro sports town.
RA
April 26th, 2010
11:01 pm
You’re surprised because this shouldn’t have happened Bradley. It’s as simple and as complicated as that.
Greg
April 26th, 2010
11:01 pm
Where would the Hawks be now if they’d drafted Deron Williams or Chris Paul instead of Marvin “the franchise” Williams with the #2 pick in the draft a few years back?
Peter
April 26th, 2010
11:02 pm
Terrible coaching….no passing……lazy D……. Special !
Greg
April 26th, 2010
11:03 pm
One thing is for sure. The Magic are going to sweep round 2…just a matter of who the victim will be.
Brett
April 26th, 2010
11:03 pm
the hawks could have learned something about rough and tough defense from that car that hit their bus. jennings cannot be allowed to enter the lane without getting knocked down!
PMC
April 26th, 2010
11:03 pm
and this is why no one truely invests in Atlanta sports teams… the payoff….. never comes.
ATL embarassment
April 26th, 2010
11:03 pm
Do you get your value from watching “your” teams win while you sit on the couch, burping and farting?
Atlanta is the only city the Union wishes stayed Confederate
April 26th, 2010
11:03 pm
Oh ye of no respect. You guys thought we’d be a pushover without Bogut. Here’s the thing, we’re missing our best player and we’re still competing with you.
You want to know the worst thing about your franchise? Until the last two games in Milwaukee, all of your road games in the post season had a scoring margin of about -24 points… That’s right MINUS 24 points. So the saddest thing about your aweful, inconsistent franchise is the fact this loss is kind of a “win” because you didn’t get the complete snot beat out of you.
Atlanta still has to prove they can win on the road… even if they get past the Bucks, they will eventually run into a team that has homecourt advantage… and that means you’ll be effed.
bobby
April 26th, 2010
11:03 pm
Hawks and Braves suck, we are loserville!!
Hawks vs. Bucks
April 26th, 2010
11:03 pm
and yet another gem from the Bradley Curse: “Hawks-Bucks in Round 1: It’ll be over in five games, max”
ATL in 7
April 26th, 2010
11:04 pm
Greg
April 26th, 2010
11:03 pm
One thing is for sure. The Magic are going to sweep round 2…just a matter of who the victim will be.
Dream on.
TruthSeeker
April 26th, 2010
11:04 pm
Hawks will win this series in seven games, get their doors blown off by the Magic and Woody will be long gone.
This team is just maddening. How can we be so good at home and so bad on the road? We’re like a freakin’ college team.
Peter
April 26th, 2010
11:04 pm
The saving grace is we have one legit franchise in town……..Football season can’t come soon enough.
whowhatwhen
April 26th, 2010
11:04 pm
WELL THE ORLANDO MAGICS WILL DEFINITELY EMBARRASS THE HAWKS NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!
bobo
April 26th, 2010
11:04 pm
Being out of town the only report I have is you guys. Thanks for a most interesting “game.” I actually got frustrated and mad with you all. This blog made and hurt (with the lost) my day.
Sid
April 26th, 2010
11:05 pm
at least Bucks fans are willing to stand and yell for their team. Poor Hawks fans have to have the PA announcer plead for them to yell. I guess 40 years of futility will do that to you.
PlusSizeModel
April 26th, 2010
11:05 pm
Has a sh*tty NBA coach ever resigned because he knows the only reason he’s still there is because the ownership is too cheap to fire him?
Adam
April 26th, 2010
11:05 pm
HAHAHA Haven’t you learned to not diss milwaukee? “there is no traffic downtown” GET REAL FAIRWEATHER LANTA… SERIES IS TIED FEAR THE DEER!
brian broughton
April 26th, 2010
11:05 pm
maybe the bucks are a little better than most people realize
Whopper Dawg
April 26th, 2010
11:05 pm
too bad, I couldn’t get the game, so I can’t comment on anyone’s play, but if anyone believes in this team, this is an enormous setback. The Bucks are shorthanded. What if they were at full strength?????
Maybe the illusion was playing Boston tough last year.
falcons pick(ed) spoon
April 26th, 2010
11:05 pm
I have been the number one advocate of Woody but this has gotten out of hand. Even if we do beat the Bucks in the series, how the hell are we gonna get past Orlando playing like that. Joe played his tail off today and there is no doubt in my mind he should stay, but Woody is beginning to irk me with this switch defense. It’s not working at all and now the Hawks are in serious danger. If we lose this series, you can bet Woody is out the door and i’m not so sure Joe won’t be right behind him.
Donald W
April 26th, 2010
11:06 pm
Fear the Deer. This is a brand new series my friends.
PlusSizeModel
April 26th, 2010
11:07 pm
Hey Buck fan: say what you want, but I bet all of us can spell a simple word like “awful”.
brian broughton
April 26th, 2010
11:07 pm
Enter your comments here
Loserville
April 26th, 2010
11:07 pm
bobby
April 26th, 2010
11:03 pm
Hawks and Braves suck, we are loserville!!
A comment from yet another fool who thinks the professional’s playing sports give a damn about what city they play in. This same fool defines his self worth based on if a guy getting paid 10 million dollars can make a basket.
JR
April 26th, 2010
11:07 pm
AS USUAL WE ARE HORRIBLE ON THE ROAD
Peter
April 26th, 2010
11:08 pm
Joe is out the door………… the ownership sucks……. I have tried to do business with them, and they sucked.
ajw
April 26th, 2010
11:08 pm
Well if it wasn’t for the cheating that wasn’t called, the Hawks would have won. Unbelievable how many flops were called offensive fouls. How can they live with themselves? Pathetic to resort to that.
crabapplejoe
April 26th, 2010
11:08 pm
Thank goodness Bogut is out hurt or this series might be over….
TheAntiMe
April 26th, 2010
11:09 pm
I’m glad that the Hawks are making such good use of their advantage in the front court. So tell me again why they barely even tried to get the ball inside on offense for the entire freaking game.
Brett
April 26th, 2010
11:09 pm
if we make it to the second round, sadly they won’t fire woody. need some shake-up with the mental aspect of this team. definitely plateaued with this bunch. something ain’t right. same issues all season.
brian broughton
April 26th, 2010
11:09 pm
brian broughton
April 26th, 2010
11:05 pm
maybe the bucks are a little better than most people realize
Nope, just a terrible defensive strategy by the hawks “coach”. Same strategy as last year.
Adam
April 26th, 2010
11:09 pm
“Hey Buck fan: say what you want, but I bet all of us can spell a simple word like “awful”.
Have fun down in that horrible atmosphere you call the playoffs..
Peter
April 26th, 2010
11:09 pm
Where is the heart, where is the leadership………where is the game plan ?
Greg
April 26th, 2010
11:10 pm
Have a feeling we’re going to see a good number of Bucks fans in the stands at Philips for game 5. They are excited and the Hawks confirmed to Atlanta sports fans once again that they are pretenders.
When the Hawks either lose to the Bucks or get swept by the Magic(one of the two is going to happen), Woodson will obviously be fired and I think it also makes Joe Johnson’s departure almost a certainty. JJ might not be one of the elite, but he is an all-star and losing him sets the Hawks back considerably even with a substantially better coach.
Peter
April 26th, 2010
11:11 pm
Bibby is not a leader, and can’t play D….Marvin is just a waste of money !
Tell me what Marvin did tonight or any of the playoff games that make him a legit starter ?
Peters peter
April 26th, 2010
11:11 pm
Peter
April 26th, 2010
11:08 pm
Joe is out the door………… the ownership sucks……. I have tried to do business with them, and they sucked.
Yeah, the owners should have paid more money to josh smith, marvin williams and mike bibby.
And just because they didn’t want to buy “hawks whoppeee cusions” from you doesn’t mean they suck.
rob1
April 26th, 2010
11:12 pm
let joe walk, we will be a 6-8 seed next year with no joe
jcw_ATL
April 26th, 2010
11:12 pm
FIRE MIKE WOODSON!!!!!
HIRE LARRY BROWN!!!!!!!
Peter
April 26th, 2010
11:12 pm
Yes they do suck……..take advantage and lied……
Skip
April 26th, 2010
11:12 pm
Braves lose, Braves lose, Braves lose…..
Atlanta is the only city the Union wishes stayed Confederate
April 26th, 2010
11:12 pm
@Sid
The reason Bucks fans holler for their team is because of Squad 6. Bogut bought 100 seats for each home game and told the Bradley Center to audition for 100 fans to get them. So there is a corner of 100 fans who just make noise and heckle the away team all game.
Say what you want about that deal… I think it’s cool as hell a player did that.
TruthSeeker
April 26th, 2010
11:12 pm
LOL @ Bucks fans coming out the woodwork. The Hawks might be colossal underachievers, but until you win a game at Phillips this is still their series. If you win Game Five, then you can start popping your gums.
Greg
April 26th, 2010
11:13 pm
ATL in 7….Dream on? What are the chances that either the Bucks or Hawks take a game from the Magic? Not likely at all in my opinion.
PD
April 26th, 2010
11:16 pm
Why sign Joe Smith for the playoffs and not play him in the playoffs? He would have been great against Gadzuric.
Man, I have been supporting Woody’s tenure here in Atlanta but it may time for him to go like the switch defense.