ESPN’s Hollinger: Larry Drew blew Game 2 for the Hawks
The Hawks have rattled the Magic. But they missed a chance in Game 2. (AP photo)
The Hawks had a chance to come home leading 2-0. They failed. According to John Hollinger, the ESPN Insider, they failed because Larry Drew failed.
To recap: Al Horford was called for two fouls in the game’s first 131 seconds. This prompted Drew to sit him for the rest of the first half. This is not a new Drew policy, nor is it peculiar to him. Other coaches have the same two-and-you’re-out rule. But there are times for rules to be bent, and a night when you’re seeking to take a 2-0 lead would seem to be such a time.
But no. With Horford playing not at all in the second quarter, the Hawks went from 10 points ahead to six behind. They would never again lead. An opportunity had gone a-wasting.
Writes Hollinger (link requires registration):
I’ve ripped coaches for extreme conservatism with foul trouble before, but what Larry Drew did Tuesday night in Orlando takes the cake. It may very well cost the Hawks the series …
There is no way to sugarcoat it: This is the most indefensible coaching decision I’ve seen this season. Horford played the entire second half and finished the game with — you guessed it — two fouls. This didn’t come as a surprise to anyone who watched the Hawks this season. Horford has one of the lowest foul rates in the league at his position — just 2.85 fouls per 40 minutes — so even if he had stayed in the game with the two fouls he was at virtually no risk of fouling out.
Overall, when a real center was on the court the Hawks won Game 2 by 10 points. Unfortunately, Drew’s personnel choices sabotaged them so badly in the second quarter that they missed a golden opportunity to grab this series by the throat.
This coaching choice must be categorized as utterly Hawk-like. Drew has found the method for beating Orlando, something predecessor Mike Woodson could not. (It hasn’t hurt that the Magic diluted its own strength via two December trades.) Drew’s way — make Dwight Howard score 40 points — worked in Game 1 and might have worked in Game 2, but his benching of Horford for those two fouls undid it.
To remove Horford after two-plus minutes was prudent. You can’t have him getting a third foul in the first quarter. But when the Magic began reducing the deficit in the second quarter, Horford needed to return. If he incurs No. 3 before halftime … well, you still get six. And it isn’t as if he has to bang against Howard: The Hawks are willing to put Hilton Armstrong on the court for that chore.
That said: The Hawks are still in position to win this series, which comes as a surprise to most but not necessarily to this correspondent. The Hawks are better than the Magic. But here’s the tricky part: They’ll need to win two games at home this weekend, and they lost 17 times at Philips Arena this season. Among teams that finished above .500, only the 42-40 Knicks lost more at home.
So I guess what I’m saying is: Even when they’re sitting pretty, these remain the Hawks. Even as we hope for the best, we have reason to expect something less.
By Mark Bradley
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134 comments Add your comment
Reid Adair
April 21st, 2011
1:38 pm
Unfortunately, I would disagree that the Hawks are better than the Magic.
That being said, I wholeheartedly agree that Larry Drew made a disastrous decision with the extended bench time for Al Horford Tuesday night.
SWAT Native
April 21st, 2011
1:40 pm
We need to move past this. While I don’t agree with the Horford move, the Hawks were down 2 with 2 minutes left. It was anyone’s game at that point. The game was really lost in the final two minutes.
Stuart
April 21st, 2011
1:41 pm
Yeah, I agree it was a bad move. The 16 point swing at the end of the second quarter cost the Hawks the game, and probably the series unfortunately…
And, as some have mentioned, there have been some horrible calls / no-calls in the series so far, pretty much all of which have favored the Magic. Larry Drew doesn’t seem to be that upset about it. If the coach isn’t fired up, how can the team be?
mountain_jim
April 21st, 2011
1:49 pm
I agree that LD does not work the refs or let them know when Hawks are getting reamed. He just sits there and takes it with a smile.
no justice
April 21st, 2011
1:54 pm
Please! Expert on Espn and expert on this blog, you have got to be kidding me. First you say the hawks has no chance, we will be swept, we suck and a lot of other unkind things. Now we have home court advantage (1-1)going back to Atl. Pretty good for a team which you gave no chance!! You guys are still complaining. You notice I didn’t call you fans. Then you have the audacity to quote an analyst on espn. The network which work for the NBA doesn’t give the hawks any credit for being a good team. Yeah. that’s the analyst we should listen to. Horford knows the policy on fouls. Whether you believe it smart or not, LD is the coach and it his job that on the line, not yours. He was stupid before the playoff began, then genius after the 1st game and now stupid again. Why don’t you wait until full body of work is revealed to you.
SWAT Native
April 21st, 2011
1:54 pm
Now, I agree with Stuart and Mountain Jim taht Drew needs to work the refs more, SVG stays in their ear and Drew seems to take the calls as they come.
Joey
April 21st, 2011
2:06 pm
I’ll tell you who will the series – whoever the refs want to win the thing. It was sickening Tuesday night.
Groover Gaddis
April 21st, 2011
2:11 pm
Drew Blew. What a wonderful play on words Markie. Also sounds like a great brand name for a commode cleaner.
Brandon from Warner Robins
April 21st, 2011
2:12 pm
Uh, if I remember correctly Mr. Bradley picked these Hawks to beat the Magic.
DeepDiver
April 21st, 2011
2:15 pm
Totally agree Mark, but the way you’ve written this is a little disingenuous. You’ve led us to believe that the Hawks were up 10 when Horford went out and then crumbled afterward. This is not the case, as they built that spread when Horford was not in the game.
HOWEVER, removing Horford for the half was total tomfoolery, but who among us was surprised? We have seen this since the beginning of the Woodson regime. Horford has one of the lowest foul rates among centers in the league, was guarding Brandon Bass, and indeed finished the game with those same two fouls.
LD deserves every bit of heat he gets from this.
MrDan
April 21st, 2011
2:15 pm
Could care less about the NBA unless the Hawks are in it at the end. Good observation Mark regarding home record. The real game comes tomorrow night and can they do the job at home. It seems to me this has been the bane of all Atlanta teams. You think there’s a curse still lingering around from the ‘96 World Series? Hmmmm?
JeJe
April 21st, 2011
2:18 pm
Did Hollinger read my posts?
I was spamming on this damn site that HORFORD FINISHED WITH 2 FOULS. THIS IS NOT THE FIRST TIME THIS HAS HAPPENED THIS YEAR. HE HAS HAD 2 FOULS IN A HALF BEFORE, SAT THE REST OF THE HALF, AND FINISHED WITH 2 FOULS
We could be up 2 F’ING GAMES RIGHT NOW
FIRE LD
Freshfromatl
April 21st, 2011
2:29 pm
All I’m going to say is…I hope Larry learns from this mistake and don’t repeat it.
GT
April 21st, 2011
2:32 pm
Drew looked like a funeral director, all dress up, but no real interest in the outcome of the game. We get too many people making a extravagant living now days being politically correct. It is not how they feel or what the situation calls for, but it is safe. You see it quiet often with guys that have been in the league or occupation a long time. They have survived not by being a genius like Steve Spurrier, making people mad all the time, but being too talented to fire. They have made it being a mouse in the corner that memorizes all the language of the game, but really are not smart enough to know what it all means. They try hard to get along with the players because they need someone to watch their backs. They are like drunk babysitters handing out candy to the kids ,for a promise not to tell. Not enough good coaches to go around, like there are really too many teams in the NBA, many cannot support their weight. It is a watered down product with lots of people over their skis.
dub366
April 21st, 2011
2:32 pm
what game were you all watching. the ref didn’t need no dinner or snack , because they swallow the whistler.
joey1
April 21st, 2011
2:33 pm
1
phil
April 21st, 2011
2:34 pm
Of course it was a terrible move. But Atlanta isn’t gonna win another game so what does it matter? They let Howard kill em down there, and you rest assured that he’ll do it up here, and then some, while the rest of the team starts hitting all of those WIDE OPEN THREE POINTERS they kept missing down there…
Magic by 25 in game 3…
w8102cATL-HAWKS
April 21st, 2011
2:36 pm
Does anybody think Teague can’t gaurd Nelson for 10 min?
DHD
April 21st, 2011
2:50 pm
No comment
Veteran Fan
April 21st, 2011
2:50 pm
Give it a rest! Joe Johnson couldn’t cover anyone in the final 3 minutes of the game and he kept passing to others in crunch time when he had Howard with 5 fouls and a total mismatch with his own man! JJ needs to step up and quit counting his MONEY and play ball period!!!!!
gcs
April 21st, 2011
3:06 pm
3 more games and the Hawks can fire Drew.
k-dub
April 21st, 2011
3:14 pm
the game change people when drew put in the nobody’s and did not put the starters back in till 6 minutes left in the half that was the dumm move.
bird
April 21st, 2011
3:29 pm
Well we can’t change it now.. Move on to game 3.. Go Hawks!
wareagle0904
April 21st, 2011
3:33 pm
Orlando looked terrible and they were at home. Hawks are very immature but they will win this series simply because the magic stink. Turkoglu, Bass and Nelson all looked bad. I am not a Hawks fan but they will take this series then get hammered in the next round.
O'Brien
April 21st, 2011
3:37 pm
During Game 2, I heard Bob (on Sports South) say game 3 is a white-out (or as he put it, Dwight-out). Can anyone confirm that?
LakeDawg
April 21st, 2011
3:38 pm
Doesn’t everyone know that Hollinger and all the other self important gurus at ESPN are geniuses. These guys should be coaching teams to world championships, not analyzing games.
Mark Bradley`s Booster
April 21st, 2011
4:01 pm
The majority of these post indicate most of you agree with Hollinger and Mark in their assessment that LD blew the game. I don`t agree or disagree because I did not watch the game.
However, I generally do not have much good to say about those media people who are not professionals who constantly write negative stories about coaches. I realize that some broadcast analysts have been coaches and their opinions are more valid. It just bugs me that
coaches get the unwarranted wrath of the media when they need a story that will catch their readers or viewers attention.
KD
April 21st, 2011
4:18 pm
I agree with Hollinger. I am not saying that benching Horford cost the Hawks the game, but I would not have taken him out of the game. This is the playoffs and we could have possibly taken a commanding 2-0 lead; therefore, I would have reminded him of his two fouls and informed him that we would not win this game or series without him (be smart). Personally, I think his basketball IQ is one of the highest on the team, if not the highest.
The Real Hawk
April 21st, 2011
4:25 pm
Drew is a joke!
SWAT Native
April 21st, 2011
4:50 pm
@ O’Brien – it is supposed to be a “White Out” game. I believe the Hawks will be giving out T-shirts for everyone to wear.
DK
April 21st, 2011
4:50 pm
The refs were ones responsible for this loss, not the Hawks and not Larry Drew. I doubt the Magic would have had a foul called on them if they’d defended the paint with baseball bats.
However, I do agree that Horford should been put back in the game earlier than the second half. I would have put him back in the game no later than the middle of the second quarter.
SWAT Native
April 21st, 2011
4:54 pm
@LakeDawg,
I can remember years ago Bill Walton criticized Dale Brown (who was LSU’s coach) for holding Shaq out of a game too long in the NCAA tournament. Dale Brown flew to New York at his own expense so that he could tell Walton to his face “that’s why your an analyst on TV and I’m a coach”.
JoeFann
April 21st, 2011
5:01 pm
I missed the first part of the game. Were the Hawks up 10 after only 131 seconds? That’s only two-plus minutes, and seems unlikely. If not, then the Hawks built a portion of that lead with Horford on the bench, too, so the argument doesn’t hold water. Saw much of the second quarter. When the Hawks quit making jumpers, the lead wilted. That, and nobody manned up against Howard. The Hawks biggest problem is the lack of a true big man. I know they’re rare, but you don’t win in the playoffs without one. (Or either a true superstar (see Kobe) or three “almost” big men in the game at the same time–see Boston and others.)
The Game Has Changed
April 21st, 2011
5:01 pm
Swatt made a valid point. We were down by 2 with 2 minutes to play. Yall talking like when Al went out we got down by 20 points. Give me a break. If Al would have stayed in the game we dont know what would have happened. Phil Jackson said this morning you cant win a game in the first half unless you are up by 40 and then thats questionable. So lay off Drew and lets just prepare for game 3 tomorrow. If Hinrich would have made a couple of shots and Josh not get that dumb tech then this wouldnt even be an issue
UGASlobberknocker
April 21st, 2011
5:07 pm
It is not news that Drew is a bad coach. he has sucked all year..in strategy, in player rotations, and in his inability to motivate the team to play hard every night. The only way he has a job is that the awful owners are too cheap to hire a real coach.
UGASlobberknocker
April 21st, 2011
5:07 pm
test..cant seem to get a comment to go thru
UGASlobberknocker
April 21st, 2011
5:09 pm
this blog has a major glitch..about half of the time the post wont register, but when you go back to re do it it says “looks like youve already said that”
well yeah!! so aggravating..and for me it is only on this blog but it happens all the time what is the story..have I been banned for my normally smart a$$ed but often witty comments?
I am probably blogging this to myself..but here goes….
The Game Has Changed
April 21st, 2011
5:11 pm
@The Real Hawk-You are gonna eat those words tomorrow night. Also most series are 2-0. What other coaches are yall trying to get rid of. Maybe Denvers coach, maybe the Knicks coach maybe portlands coach maybe 76ers coach, maybe indy coach. All the coaches have yet to win. So why are yall trying to kill Drew so fast even before he coaches his first home game
UGASlobberknocker
April 21st, 2011
5:11 pm
It is not news that Drew is a bad coach. He has proven it all year, with bad strategy, bad rotations, inability to motivate the team to give 100 pct every night. He is coach only because the Hawks are too cheap to hire a real coach.
UGASlobberknocker
April 21st, 2011
5:14 pm
ok thats 4 times my blog had not registered..what is the prob?. I give up.
just on the off chance that this goes thru here is the brief synopsis of my previously longer and more insigntful post…
DREW IS AWFUL…WHO DIDNT KNOW THAT?
Larvell Blanks
April 21st, 2011
5:17 pm
I’ve never really understood the “sit ‘em if they’ve got a couple of fouls” rationale. The reason for sitting them is fear that they’ll foul out and have to sit. So you sit them, thereby guaranteeing the result you’re trying to avoid — they’re just sitting down in the first half, rather than (maybe) at the end of the game. I suppose it’s arguable that 4th quarter minutes are more important than 2nd quarter minutes, but a point is a point, regardless of when it’s scored. And by sitting them, you’re eliminating the possibility that they might not foul at all if they kept playing. I can see sitting someone for a short period of time just to get them out of the “groove” of fouling. But sitting someone for any real length of time is counterproductive — you’re basically acting as if they’ve already fouled out for a portion of the game, when they might not foul out at all if you let them keep playing.
moorman
April 21st, 2011
5:20 pm
classic example of monday morning quarterbacking, or coaching, or whatever they call it, lol. drew played by the book, didnt work, but hey, like was said before, if he left horford in and horford picked up a another foul and got benched, people wouldve complained. the problem isnt horford or drews decision, its the suck big men the hawks have in general. how can your team have 4 or 5 bigs and they ALL get abused by howard like that??? thats the real problem, the hawks just suck in the middle………….
Just saying
April 21st, 2011
5:20 pm
No fire in the coach’s gut, no fire on the court!
Scott
April 21st, 2011
5:29 pm
That braves offense is so awesome! 1 run again! Wow. Impressive!
theight
April 21st, 2011
5:29 pm
The way these guys have played these past two game is the way i believe LD has been trying to get them to play all season. I still don’t want to put too much on LD because he is a rookie coach. Next year is a different story. My cousin and I was discussing the samething about drew leaving Horford on the bench in the first half and how he left Josh on the bench in the second half. I do want to see Wilkins play for his defense.
Flint Tropics Ball Boy
April 21st, 2011
5:30 pm
Ya can’t fix SUCK…
Flint Tropics Ball Boy
April 21st, 2011
5:36 pm
The ASG Spirit, sounds like a liquor/beverage distribution company, should get out of the sports franchise game focus on their other “Spirit” stuff and leave the running of Professional Teams to REAL Professionals, not Daddy’s Money Bought Me This Toy Boys…Where is that Miller High Life guy from the commercials, He needs to take the Hawks and their HighLife back, becasuse they definitely are not worthy of either..
Gamer
April 21st, 2011
5:45 pm
I AGREE, LD’S DECISION TO SIT HORFORD WAS A TERRIBLE ONE. CAN THE HAWKS RECOVER FROM LD’S AWFUL DECISION OR IS THIS THE SECOND CHANCE THE MAGIC’S NEEDED TO GET BACK INTO THE SERIES?????
IMAGINE, THE HAWKS UP 2-0 ON MAGIC’S….RETURNING TO HAWK-NEST….IT COULD HAVE BEEN THE HARD BLOW TO CRUSH THE ORLANDO MAGIC’S CONFIDENT.
OH WELL, LD HAD A WOODY MOMENT….HOPEFULLY, THAT HIS ONLY COACHING BLOOPER FOR 2011 POSTSEASON!!!!
The Game Has Changed
April 21st, 2011
6:05 pm
The last coach that didnt take his players out the game even with 3 fouls in the first half was KC Jones. And that was the mid 80,s. So why dont yall get off Drew for something that every coach does. I can see if we got down by 20 points but we had a chance to win this game. What about that dumb tech Josh got or the bad shooting night from Hinrich. Drew is 1-1 in his first playoff series. The same series yall said we would get blown out four straight games. Please find another coach to fire. How about starting with all the coaches that are down 0-2 in the first round.
LakeDawg
April 21st, 2011
6:14 pm
@ SWAT Native
I don’t remember that one. Good story.