Hawks beat east-worst, fresh-fired Eddie Jordan Wizards, like we're supposed to

Hawks 102 Wizards 98
28 27 25 22
17 28 26 27

BOX SCORE


Test.

Its actually pretty sad, the situation for the Wizards. They have, what they feel, one of the best scoring guards in the league, a guy that can score 30 ppg and legitimately lead his team to being a title contender, a guy that signed a 6 year 118 million dollar contract 3 months ago...and he is recovering from his 3rd knee surgery in 3 seasons.

i mean, shout out to Hibachi 2.0 blogspot, that boy Moose is a fantastic blog writer, but Gilbert Arenas was one of my favorite players for a while, alot of people say he will never be the same player again when he returns, we can only imagine what Gilbert himself is going through as his team sucks and his coach gets fired. I can't wait to hear Agent Zero prove himself again when he returns, but until then, and even after, still, the Hawks needed this win.

Mike Bibby led the Hawks in a balanced scoring team performancewith 21 points (8/14 FGs 3/6 3pt FGs 2/2 FTs) 5 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals. Joe Johnson was good, 18 points (7/18 FGs 1/5 3pt FGs 3/3 FTs) 3 rebounds, 3 assists, but Mo Evans and Al Horford were the reason the Hawks won this game.

Mo Evans scored 19 points (6/14 FGs 4/7 3pt FGs 3/5 FTs) 9 rebounds, and Al Horford scored 19 points (7/10 FGs 5/6 FTs) 13 rebounds, 6 assists, and 2 steals, and the play-of-the-game definitely goes to Horford.

The Wizards tied the game at 98 after a Caron Butler 3 pointer with 1:10 left to play, Mike Bibby dribbles up the court, passes to Marvin Williams, he drives, dishes to Al, Al dunks with dominating fashion to get the bucket and the foul. Makes the free throw.

The Wizards played well though, Caron Butler is a great player, Antwan is okay, but the Washington Wizards organization might as well be rebuilding, because they surely will not be competing for a playoff spot this season.

Hawks outexecuted down the stretch - Bosh beasts, Raptors win

Hawks 88 Raptors 93
21 29 15 23
24 22 23 24

We didn't have to lose this game.

Seems like every time i give Coach Woodson credit in a game, the next game the Hawks lose and Woodson is blamed for one reason or another, but in this game, Woodson is rightfully blamed.

and no one knows better than Brett LaGree at PeachtreeHoops, see how he breaks it down:

"With 3:32 left in the third quarter, Zaza Pachulia went to the bench. The Hawks were up 2, in no small part thanks to the 8 offensive and 9 defensive rebounds Pachulia had already grabbed. By the end of the third quarter, the Hawks would be down by 4 points. In the fourth quarter, the Hawks would never regain the lead. As a team they would grab, in the fourth quarter, just 7 defensive rebounds. Toronto would grab 15 fourth quarter rebounds, 4 of them offensive. Pachulia would never leave the bench."

Why, Mike? I was watching the game from home with friends and we were all saying "Wow! ZaZa is getting like ALL the rebounds!" but of course, Bosh was beasting, Al Horford can't contain that beast, and the Raptors won, like they were supposed to, but ZaZa could have definitely got a few of those rebounds, he has been outstanding in rebounding and defense since Josh has been out, he should have played more minutes than 0.

Now, after every game, everyone knows the coaches and players talk and give their analysis from their perspective, which is always an interesting thing, because analysis of the game is a whole different sport than playing, lol, and Mike Woodson is undoubtedly an expert, we cannot understate or undervalue the career this man has had with basketball, google him, but peep what Woodson said after the game:

"We hurt ourselves because we settled too much for 3s. We were just too selfish tonight. Sometimes those shots are appetizing and they look good, but if you're not making jump shots, you've got to get to the free throw line.''

Come on, the Hawks are the #1 3pt shooting team in the NBA, they were 6/13 in the 1st half, but in the second half went only 2/13, that does not mean the shots were bad or selfish, just not enough was going in, this was not a "get-to-the-line" kind of game, when you play a team like the Toronto Raptors, they are Chris Bosh and shooters, that is it, and Jose Calderon, who had 11 assists, but seriously, they are not a physical team, and surely Jermaine O'Neal doesn't make them that if/when he returns, no one cares.

Anyway, Al Horford has got to do better, Marvin Williams has got to do better, and we are on our way to Washington D.C., this way not a bad loss, the Hawks are still a better team than the Raptors thus far, and we will continue to prove that, especially after the return of JOSH SMITH.

Going into December 10-6. 4th in eastern conference.

believe that.

No Redd, Bogut, Hawks beat Bucks at Phillips Arena

Hawks 102 Bucks 96
24 24 19 29
28 20 23 31

BOX SCORE

Joe wanted to rebound well from the lowest scoring effort surrendered all season, and he did it not by scoring 30 points, but by scoring wisely, assisting well, and leading in every since of the word his team to victory with 15 points, 9 assists.

Al Horford led Hawks scoring with 21 points(9/12 FGs, 3/5 FTs), 9 rebounds, 3 blocks, 2 assists, 2 steals, he has been outstanding in the absence of Josh, Mike Bibby was good as usual, 18 points (6/14 FGs 4/9 3pt FGs 2/4 FTs) 5 rebounds, 2 assists, and Marvin Williams had an idential stat line, but a more efficient 18 points (4/8 FGs 1/3 3pt FGs 9/10 FTs) 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks.

"Flip-Switch" Murray was ON tonight after having been OFF for the past 3 games, although Mo Evans always steps up if and when Flip is OFF, and even some games where Flip is ON Mo plays big off the bench, we are going to soon start counting how many games we have both Flip and Mo is double figures, Sekou calls them "FlipMO Squad"

Busta Rhymes said no, lol.

In other news, this was the reunion of the the Hawks and Tyronne Lue, in which tried so hard to play well against his old number 10, Mike Bibby, but Bibby showed exactly why he was traded for, and why the Hawks were never successful with Lue, in that game. The Hawks are winning, and Hawks are being expected to win certain games and winning, this is such a far cry from even just last season, let alone the 2 seasons previous, even though Mike Woodson has been a fool more often than not in his head coaching career with the Hawks, but he deserves some credit this season, seriously, if the Hawks win 50 games, Mike Woodson Coach of the Year.

see you in Toronto.

Hawks spanked by Cavs, and LeBron, Joe held to 4 pts..bench shined though

Hawks 96 Cavs 110

12 20 26 38
28 21 30 31

BOX SCORE

Even though the Hawks are just getting used to being a "good" team, just now hearing of these "expectations" even after playing 9 games without Josh Smith(which is the total number of games missed HIS ENTIRE CAREER before this), and even though their previously outlandish goal of winning 50 games has become slightly believable, they are still quite a ways to go to defeat a LeBron-led team, and at since at this point its the Cavs, i guess it helps that the rest of the team is pretty good too.

Seriously though, the Hawks could not have come in with a game plan, couldn't have had a #2 option in case Joe was off(and boy was he off). There was one sequence in the game that had me very mad at Marvin Williams. After having 2 straight GREAT games (21/14/4 - 22/10/1) i was hoping he would have the confidence to go up against the greatest individual talent in the game today, he did not. With 0:42 left in the 2nd, Marvin drove toward the basket, now, he DID lower his shoulder, but LeBron was moving, and James was called a blocking foul. James was PISSED, dude smacked the floor stormed up and said some curses (away from the ref), so Atlanta gets the ball back, Bibby throws it into Marvin Williams in his opposite favorite corner with LeBron James in his face. So what does Marvin do? He fakes a shot, pivots right, then fakes a shot again, and pivots again. You know, a wise man said, "indecision kills confidence, exploits weakness" and Marvin Williams got EXPOSED on that play, LeBron just TOOK the ball from Marvin, shoved him to the floor, and threw the ball to a very bad player, Sasha Pavlovic for an open court layup. and of course by this time, the score is 29-50....Marvin later picks up his face and makes a jumpshot so the halftime score is 31-50.

Whats goin on with Joe?
whew, i dont think i've ever seen Joe this bad. 4 Pts on a layup and 2 free throws? missing 7 FG attempts and 2 threes? It would be one thing if we were playing, say, the Bulls and Al Horford was beasting to make up for some of that missed scoring, but yeah we would definitely need Joe to score at least his 20 pts to beat the Legend of LeBron's 30/8/8 or close every game. This was Joe Johnson's lowest scoring output since a game against the Championship Pistons in the 2005-2006 season. It's all good, every great player has a bad game or two in the season, let's just hope that was the one.










Law IV

Of course there is always credit given to a good player performance in a win, but there is also always a bright spot in every loss too. Acie Law played his heart out for a season-high 23 minutes for 20 pts (6/11 FGs 1/1 3pts 7/10 FTs) 6 rbs 7 asts, but besides his stats it was the advantage the Hawks had when he was on the floor, his speed and quickness off the dribble and in the open court has not been seen in Atlanta since, ummm, Jason Terry? ew, anyway there was only one sequence that i was upset at him for and that was a fastbreak in the 4th quarter, a 2-1 advantage, all he had to do was feed Mo Evans for the layup, he attempted his own layup, missed got the rebound and then tried to feed Mo, which the pass went out of bounds for a turnover. Can't do stuff like that against the Cavs, but he played a great game.

Marvin Williams is still playing great, the Cavs are a team cemented in the top 3 Eastern Conference, and will be as long as LeBron is employed there, however, we can beat this team with our speed, versatility, and athleticism, no player or team can STOP LeBron, but if you can hold him to his averages our team defense can overcome their other players offense, and the Hawks bench is better than the Cavs anyday. Its okay, they were expected to win this one, but when they come to Phillips Arena on December 13, Hawks and JOSH SMITH will be ready.

Joe scores 30, Hawks beat Bobcats, though it should have been easier...

Hawks 88 Bobcats 83
24 19 20 20
16 31 15 26

Hawks win, but it was an ugly one.

the Hawks got off to another bad start in this game, allowing the Bobcats to race out a 13-4 lead in the first 5 minutes, and the 1st quarter score ended at 24-16.

In the 2nd quarter, the Hawks got right though. Starting it off with a Mo Evans 3-ball, the Hawks scored 31 pts in the 2nd for a 47-43 halftime lead.

3rd quarter problems started showing again, the Hawks are really lucky to win this game, if we had been playing any other team we probably would not have come back, but the Hawks scored a mere 15 pts in the 3rd, and the Bobcats led 63-62 going into the 4th.

4th quarter Hawks crank it up like we are supposed to, Joe goes to work like he is supposed to, scoring 7 pts, but assisting 2 HUGE 3-pointers back-to-back by Mike Bibby, after 2 Joe Johnson free throws, Bibby hits a THIRD 3-pointer on a Johnson assist, and the Hawks were up 77-73, but this kid D.J Augustine, who had been beasting for the Bobcats (hit 7/11 3pt FGs), hit 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions, making the score 79-77 in an instant. That's when Joe went to work, immediately after the inbound Joe Johnson launched a 3-ball, swish to make the score 80-79 with 4:13 left. Bobcats score to make the score 81-80 with 2:33 left. Marvin Williams, this kid is brand new this season, his improvement has been totally under the radar in the NBA. Marvin Williams, the 3rd leading 3pt FG% leader in the NBA, gets in position in his favorite corner, he gets a great pass from Maurice Evans and launches a 3-ball. Swish. 83-81 with 2:12 left.

It was a great game where it should have been a 10+ point win, but a few things could be learned here:

• Although Brown started probably the shortest backcourt of all time D.J. Augstine might be pretty good as a scoring point guard
• Marvin Williams is a significantly better player than this time last season
• Flip Murray is a great 6th man some nights, the element of cancer itself, frustration itself other nights
• Mo Evans is rock solid
  

No Josh, No Al, and even though Joe struggled the Hawks are too deep, Williams, Bibby & ZaZa Shine

Hawks 91 Wizards 87
26 24 17 20
28 16 26 21

With 6:27 on the clock and the Hawks up by 2, Caron Butler launched a 3. Bang. Joe Johnson dribbled down court and seemingly half-heartedly drove in the lane into traffic, the ball was stolen by Caron Butler. In transition, Butler looking, looking, pulls up for three. Bang. Now, with the score 79-75 Wizards up by 4 with 5:37 Woodson calls a timeout.

Oh, no Hawks, we can't have this happen again, its one thing for the Hawks to lose Al Horford in the 1st quarter of a game and lose, having not been prepared not to play with the starting PF/C, but the Hawks cannot get outexecuted down the stretch at Phillips Arena by the bottom team in the EC. Wait, that scene seems very familiar, oh yes, Last season, the Wizards had stared 0-5, and the Hawks had gained some attention with 2 convincing wins early in the season against Dallas (first game of the season) and Pheonix (sans Amare) both at Phillips Arena. I'm sure Hawks fans don't want to recall that because that was the Hawks first home loss of the season, by 11 points no less, despite getting 20,22,23 from Marvin, Joe, and Josh, respectively.

So, Woodson subs in Evans for Flip, and ZaZa inbounds the ball to Joe, and after an exchange of bricks and ZaZa's 15th and 16th rebounds, he hits 1 of 2 free throws and then Mike Bibby gets a layup to make the score 78-79, and after Nick Young misses an ugly wild shot, Joe Johnson abuses him off the dribble and shoots a turnaround 17 footer, it bounced up off the rim once, twice, and dropped in the bucket to give the Hawks a 80-79 lead. Blatche layup 81-80, Joe assists Evans for a 3 to make it 83-83. AND THEN we let Stevenson pull up for an uncontested-enough 2, Joe dribbles it down and fires off a bad pass that gets stolen, and the same stevenson hit another shot, almost hit a 3 but it was a 19 footer, score 87-83 with 1:05 left, Wizards bench celebrating.

At this point im thinking about that promise i made, lol, the future of me and this blog, i had wondered if i did shut this blog down if anybody would miss it, but i feel this. i do this for the love of the sport of basketball, i will always love basketball but i also do it for the lack of love my city and my team gets from the mainstream media, i cannot sit back and watch other people miscover the players and personell of this team, even if i was getting no comments and readers id still write to creative express what i, with this blog, have become a part of, and i want you, reader, to know that i appreciate the comments and feedback from this passion i express here, all my other sports/news bloggers, i appreciate u.

Sorry, i had to aggrivate some of those fuzzy emotions inside because this was an epic ending to this game, it was vindictive on the attitude and abilities the Hawks have this season, this is such a better team than last season.

After a mispossession on the inbound, Hawks passed it into the great Joe Johnson who stepped right into his shot and launched a 30 footer. Swish. 87-86. Hawks defense. Swarming, ball being whipped around, shot clock dwindling, Stevenson launched an ill-advised 30 footer that hits no rim, shot clock expires, great defense. Still not over, with 32 seconds left, Joe dribbles up the floor, he finds Marvin Williams in the right corner, steps right into his shot (its amazing, the way he shoots, that ugly form he used to hit that midrange semi-consistently last season, is the same form he uses for that three, of course). BANG. 89-87 Hawks, 25 seconds left. Wizards miss, foul Flip Murray, both free throws and game over 91-87.

PLAYER OF THE GAME

21 pts (7/14 FGs 6/6 FTs 1/3 3pt FGs) 14 rbs 4 asts 2 stls

Its beautiful i wrote that monday article praising Marvin, i felt he would be the deciding factor in this game and during this time where we are without Josh and Al, and Marvin stepped up big time, scoring and rebounds, and a nice assist night, all while defending Antwan Jamison, or, he was able to do it because Antwan was "defending" him, lol.

19 pts (7/22 FGs 2/8 3pt FGs 3/4 FTs) 8 rbs 8 asts 1 stl 2 blks

Joe Johnson was no slouch in this game, if 19/8/8 is below average that is quite something to say about that players ability, and Joe Johnson has that ability, he is a true superstar, great player, top 5 guard in the league definitely.



25 pts (12/22 FGs 1/4 3pt FGs) 6 rbs 3 asts

Bibby was good in this game, he played his game, took the opportunities that came and made plays, he did not distribute the ball especially well, but Joe did so thats fine, he played well.

4 pts 18 rbs 4 asts (1/4 FGs 2/6 FTs)

And of course the Zealous ZaZa, he played his heart out last night, much better than last game, i think he plays best when concentrating on defense and rebounding, he has some offensive post skills, but far and few often, let him average 6/6 off the bench, he is a very important part of this team.











So that was a good win, now lets dominate Charlotte on Friday and get ready for LeBron on Saturday, that is the big one.

Atlanta Hawks VS Washington Wizards Preview

i wonder, what does it feel like to be 1-7? We hawks fans are all too familiar with an ugly start, but in Hawks franchise history we have never started 1-7, so what does a man that last season was the coach of the Eastern Conference all-star team look like when his team is 1-7?

LOL, priceless

Here is the article where this picture came from, this man looks like the brother of Terrence Howard.

Starters

Mike Bibby Juan Dixon
Joe Johnson Deshawn Stevenson
Marvin Williams Caron Butler
Zaza pachulia Antwan Jamison
Randolph Morris* Etan Thomas

Bench players

Flip Murray Nick Young
Maurice Evans Andray Blatche
Acie Law IV Darius Songalia
Solomon Jones Antonio Daniels
Mario West Dee Brown
Othello Hunter Javale McGee

Anyway, if the hawks lose this game, im shutting down this blog, returning my Hawks season tickets, and im becoming a Vegan for the rest of 2008..so hawks better not lose this game.

That's what this short season has become, previously, it was, "Hawks are great! i know we are going to win this game." to "arrggh! man we could have won, but what a great game, the hawks are serious" to "what the f*ck is wrong with the Hawks man, damn, didn't we used to play defense?"

So i fully expect the Hawks to pick up strong tonight, with or without Al Horford.

Hawks win 102-90

Maann...Hawks better crank it up, Hawks lost all defense in Pacers drubbing, Joe Johnson is pissed

Hawks 96 Pacers 113
25 23 25 23
32 29 27 25

BOX SCORE

People of Atlanta, fans of the Atlanta Hawks and the NBA, its not quite time to panic, but if the Hawks ever play like that again against anybody it might be safe to start panicking. the Atlanta Hawks entered the game against the Indiana Pacers on a 3 game losing streak, all season, thus far, we had only lost to the Celtics (epic), and those Nets back-to-back losses (we really should have at least got 1 of those), so the Hawks were eager to get their swagger back and win another one on the road against a pretty good team in the Pacers.

Although the events that transpired in that game, such as the injury of Al Horford in the first quarter (prayers and blessings from Heaven that he will be back for tonights home game), could not have been prepared for or easily overcomeable (new word), but they had soo many opportunities and each one of them were squandered away seemingly carelessly especially in the 4th quarter, PeachtreeHoops sums it up so sadly:

Without both Josh Smith and (for the final 41 minutes) Al Horford, Atlanta's primary defensive deficiencies shifted from limiting dribble penetration to keeping any Pacer over 6' 8" from doing whatever he wanted. Rasho Nesterovic scored 21 points. Troy Murphy had 19 rebounds. Jeff Foster had 12 points (5-6 FGA) and 5 rebounds in 22 minutes. Fox Sports South must have chosen not to show Roy Hibbert begging Jim O'Brien to put him in the game.

Joe Johnson and Mike Bibby did what they could offensively* but they barely combined to match Danny Granger's production. Acie Law IV took advantage of his late introduction to the game and fueled a run that got the Hawks within 7 with 7:59 to play. Atlanta had three chances to cut the lead further (four if you count Maurice Evans' missed tip on Joe Johnson's three-pointer) but could only muster an off-balance Marvin Williams jump shot, a Joe Johnson runner, and a Joe Johnson three-point attempt.

Al Horford tonight?

Al Horford is listed as day-to-day, but the question is, if he doesn't play who starts in his place? Randolph Morris? Othello Hunter? we need a banger down there, someone just to protect the paint, get rebounds and blocks, someone who only shot he will take is a putback. Also someone who will NOT shoot 0-6 in a critical game on the road while starting in place of the best forward on the team...oh wait, he is still starting, could we possibly start the worst frontcount in NBA History tonight?

Mike Bibby - Joe Johnson - Marvin Williams - ZaZa Pachulia - Randolph Morris

Mr. Morris has not earned my trust yet, he played a good game that one time in the preseason, but in all of his minutes thus far this season he has been an incredible liability, and his on-court demeanor he seems to be emotionless or careless, even if of course he cares and loves basketball, in not expressing that he will not be able to seize moments and opporitunities like a clutch, veteran player would.

(6-3) Atlanta Hawks are doing fine, This week in the NBA

The Atlanta Hawks started the season with a 14-point drubbing against the Orlando Magic, a game which Marvin Williams couldn't play in, serving his one game suspension from his Rondo-clothesline in game 7(single most priceless defining moment of the series), in Marvin Williams return, the home opener against the Philly Sixers, the Hawks won handily 95-88, but Marvin struggled to get his groove on offense (19 minutes 2 pts 1-7 FGs). But in every game since then? Marvin Williams is leading the NBA in 3pt FG at 64.7%(11-15).....UPDATE..thanks to those 2 losses to the Nets, in which Ryan Anderson was 3-3 from 3pt BOTH TIMES (that is the most disappointing statistic out of everything in those 2 losses) and because of that, RYAN ANDERSON is leading the league in 3pt FG at 66.7%,. this is a ROOKIE, and we do not expect or he had better not keep this up, because as of now, nobody else is threatening Young Marvin's 3pt FG%, and of course, Marvin may not keep up a 60+ 3pt FG%, but he has unlimited potential after working all summer with the new Hawks assistant coach Mark Price. We all know Mark Price is one of the NBA's greatest shooters of all time, and his time working with Marvin has been priceless. Jon Cooper, a freelance writer for Atlanta teams, wrote a great article detailing Marvin Williams' relationship with the 3pt shot.

The reason i am writing this praise for this Hawks season and Marvin Williams is because I, like many other previously shallow Hawks fans, hated on Marvin Williams. I felt he was disgustingly average, he did nothing special, and he would have been Chris Paul, i mean here we have a guy that will probably never be an all-star, we drafted instead of a guy that will always be an all-star, MVP-candidate, and if the Hawks HAD drafted Chris Paul in the summer of 2005 and we built around Paul-Johnson-Smith.. it is unfathomable to think what the Hawks would have been those 06,07, and 08 seasons, but its not outrageous to think the Hawks would be the best of the eastern conference, winning 60+ games, Hawks praised, Johnson MVP for going from PHX 62 wins to Hawks 62 wins, things of that nature, SOO we never gave the kid a chance from the day we drafted him, even before we knew Chris would be the Legend he is now, we knew we should have picked Chris Paul or Deron Williams.

right now Marvin Williams is averaging 13.1 ppg 5.3 rbs 48.8% FGs 67.4% 3pt FGs 76.2% FTs
if he can average at least 15 ppg 5 rbs 47% FGs 40% 3pt 80% FTs - he will be an intricate part to the Championship level Hawks when we get there, could be sooner than people think..

ESPN has ranked Atlanta Hawks (8) in the weekly power rankings; over the Rockets, Hornets, Jazz, Raptors, 76ers

The Journey of the Great Ronald "Flip" Murray by Sekou Smith

Great blog entry by the same man, Sekou Smith about the Ups and Downs of the NBA Season





THIS WEEK in the NBA, Hawks

1. Hawks VS Pacers (11/18/08) - the Pacers are in a rebuilding season but what they have thus far ain't bad. That boy Danny Granger is good, with potential to be great, i mean, i dont know how much greater a 25 year old 5th year player averaging 24.3 ppg 5.3 rpg 2.1 apg

the Hawks have to regain their defensive prowless, even without Josh Smith, the hawks are coming off three straight losses, twice by the Nets, we have got to reestablish ourselves at the upper echelon of the Eastern Conference by winning on the road, we must.

2. Hawks VS Wizards (11/19/08)- the Wizards are the worst team in the Eastern Conference, this should be easy, SHOULD BE.

3. Hawks VS Bobcats (11/21/08)- the second worst team in the Eastern Conference, we should practice dominating that team so when we go in for the next huge game, we can have that winner swagger, because..

4. Hawks VS Cavs (11/22/08) - Mann..if we had Josh Smith for this game, this would be a better game than that Boston game, and it still could be, but we have got to figure out how to tame the beast of LeBron, i truely believe only someone like Josh Smith, TayShaun Prince, Andrea K can at least slow him down, this is a HUGE game and opportunity to make a statement against a championship-level team and one of the best players in the world, unfortunately, Marvin Williams will be the deciding factor in this game, if he can bother James and hit a few three's, Joe Johnson will do the rest, Hope.

OTHER GOOD GAMES THIS WEEK:

(11/19/08)
Cleveland at Detriot
Chicago at Portland

(11/20/08)
Detroit at Boston
Lakers at Phoenix

Hawks REVENGE bid fails, Devin Harris unstoppable, the potential of Vince Carter may still exist, does our bench? Johnson still magnificent

Hawks 107 Nets 119

29 26 30 34

28 22 23 38

ESPN AP Atlanta Recep

The 2008-2009 Atlanta Hawks had one of the best starts of franchise history but they have also proved to be one of the elite teams in the league in these early tests, situations in games. Of course we had a great start of 6-0 but even with these three losses, it only proves the Hawks power more.

In this game, the Hawks came out defensively determined to stop or slow down Devin Harris, the same Devin Harris that had shredded Iverson-debut Detroit and their defense for a career-high 38 points, and unfortunately, the Hawks became victims of this new phenomenon of the Devin. I mean seriously, in his past 3 games, Devin Harris has averaged 33.6 ppg 4.6 rbs 6.6 asts, and it wasn't at the fault of the Hawks defense, although it seems like ever since that Boston loss, we have been playing less than the great we had been playing those games prior to that loss, it might just be New Jersey had the advantage in this 2 game situation with Harris beasting and Vince Carter rare vintage, but the Hawks must understand this was a playoff type test, back-to-backs are very indicative of the power, skill level of the teams, and we can't let teams figure us out like the Nets did in these 2 games.

But we certianly HAVE lost some swagger in the defensive department these past two games, so we are going to go after Indiana in dominating fashion, then beat Wizards in Atlanta, then Bobcats in Atlanta, then the next "biggest test of the season" is the return of Josh Smith against the Legend of LeBron, but we absolutely must beat these other lil' sub-par teams before we face the big dog.

Can We Fit NEW JERSEY NETS into the Nu East Order?

It will be interesting to see at what pace Devin Harris continues to impress and improve, Nets are looking real smart for trading for him, it will be funny if the Nets make the playoffs and the Mavs don't (which they wont, and they can blame John McCain). But, the Nets making the playoffs is beyond a longshot, its beyond unlikely, but it is not outside the realm of possibility, especially if Devin Harris keeps averaging around 30 ppg 6 apg, Vince Carter 25 ppg 5 rbs 5 asts, and i guess Brook Lopez should average about 15 pts 9 rbs, i think there's a guy named Yi on that team but i'm not sure, Nets got a few key bench players; Ryan Anderson, Keyon Dooling, Jarvis Hayes, lets look at the east, hypothetically:

1. Celtics
2. Cavs
3. Hawks
4. Pistons
5. Magic
6. Raptors
7. 76ers
8.

bulls, knicks, nets, bucks will all battle for that 8th spot, teams trying to make that Hawks-leap, lol it aint happenin, but good luck in the playoffs.


Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Devin Harris?


Over the last 3 games, Devin Harris is averaging 33.6 ppg 4.6 rbs 6.6 asts on 55.6% FGs 40.0% 3pt FGs 87.5% FTs, he has been playing the best basketball of his young NBA career recently. Can he join CP3 and Williams as the top tier PGs in the NBA? If he averages more than 22 ppg 6 asts, he's an all-star, no doubt, a place Deron Williams has not been yet, lol.

Devin Harris, Vince Carter Homecourt Advantage, Robin Lopez season high, but Joe Johnson is magnificent, Hawks 108 Nets 115

Hawks 108 Nets 115

22 28 26 32

27 22 24 42

Great game.

it wasn't an outstanding performance defensively for the Hawks, especially in the 1st quarter, but the Nets played flawless offense this grand return game for Devin Harris to break a 3-game losing streak.

PeachtreeHoops, the #1 unofficial hawks blog gave some great statisical information that pretty much sums up everything:

I think it's fair to expect that if the following things occur the Hawks should win the game.

Joe Johnson scores 32 points on 16 shots.
Joe Johnson scores 21 points and does not miss a shot in the fourth quarter.
The Hawks make 15-27 three-pointers.
Marvin Williams scores 21 points.
Flip Murray scores 21 points on 13 shots.
Acie Law IV (welcome back) scores 9 points and has three assists in ten minutes.
Mike Bibby makes 4 three-pointers and doesn't turn the ball over once.

How did the Hawks go about wasting their broad offensive success last night?

By letting the Nets shoot better than 50% from the floor.
By also letting the Nets rebound more than 35% of their own missed shots.
By sending the Nets to free throw line almsot twice as often as the Hawks visited the stripe.
By forcing just 8 turnovers on roughly 90 Net possessions.

Give the Nets credit, they played a running game and made more shots than than the Hawks down the stretch. Rookie Brook Lopez had previously been as average as his brother, Robin Lopez on Suns, but tonight he hit a career-high 25 points on 11-17 FGs, doing most his scoring in the 1st half. Devin Harris was very good in this game though, 30 pts (8-17 FGs 2-4 3pt FGs 12-12 FTs)6 rbs 8 asts, and Vince Carter was a shadow of his former self scoring down the stretch in the crucial 4th quarter, 30 pts on 7-20 FGs 12-16 FTs. and who the hell is this guy, Ryan Anderson scoring 15 pts 4-4 3pts, but ive always hated this Dooling fool in Magic and he scored 10 pts

But the Hawks played great, Marvin Williams had an outstanding scoring output, 21 pts on 7-17 FGs 3-4 3pt FGs 4-6 FTs, Flip Murray played more minutes probably than he should have but was clutch, scored 21 pts in 37 minutes, but Acie Law IV was more clutch, scoring 9 pts in 10 minutes. The other starters didn't really have a good night, Bibby's 12 pts 4-11 fgs is about average for him, he may do better every once in a while and he will be more often than not, Al Horford is great in the making, but he as of 8 games into the season and 4 without Josh Smith he is not the strong low post threat he could-will be for the Hawks (safe for that crazy 27 pts 17 rbs 6 blks roadkiller), because in this game it was all offense. Which brings me to my next section:

isN't JOE JOHNSON at least the 3rd best SG in the NBA?!

32 pts (11-16 FGs 5-8 3pt FGs 5-6 FTs) 9 rbs 5 asts 2 stls
Those stats don't even begin to tell the story of the great that is Joe Johnson, as a PG he is the best floor leader, decision maker any team could have, his courtvision is seldom hindered by even the best defense at PG, on offense, it will take at least young Jason Kidd defense just to slow him down, and please do not let Joe back you down, he is among the best of them. As a Shooting Guard, Joe will make 40% guarenteed all the time, he is an excellent slasher, he is one of the best in the league in traffic and after ball pick-up, he hits midrange super consistently. As a Small Forward, Joe Johnson is a great rebounder

Josh Smith?

Josh Smith MAY return tonight, he has been listed as day-to-day until after the road trip, which is tonight so..

caption this pic, lol.

Hawks/Celtics Playoffs Rivalry Game 8 - Hawks superb but "the Truth" prevails; Hawks 102 Celtics 103

Truth Hurts

But just as the close and competitive as that game was, thats how close the Hawks are to the Celtics level

Box Score

The Hawks are earning some respect big time after this one, the whole world knows the odds were all against the Hawks, Josh out, second night of back-to-back, the significance of the rivalry that has become with us game the Hawks all the skill, energy, and adrenaline they needed to win. But, time was not on our side, its just not quite our time yet, it would have been TOO big a shock to the world, a little unbelievable that the Hawks would beat the Celtics in that circumstance, and then, if the Hawks did win, it wouldn't have been "Hawks WIN!" it would have been, "Celtics Lose" and people would be more reluctant to praise the Hawks, because now, they're just getting lucky, everyone knows they're not better than the Defending Champion Celtics, not yet. But with the game unfolding the way it did, it makes people give the Hawks credit like "Wow, that was a great game, hey, the Hawks are pretty good now"

The Atlanta Hawks VS Boston Celtics is the most exciting rivalry in the Eastern Conference right now, Although Kevin Garnett doesn't agree, (there are a number of reasons for that), the general public, sports fans vehemently agree, look at this infomation from the great Sekou Smith:

“A year ago a game between the Boston Celtics and Atlanta Hawks was hardly worth a second look. On Wednesday night, the telecast of the postseason rematch was the highest rated regular season game in Comcast SportsNet history.

The final half hour, which included Paul Pierce’s game-winning heroics, was the top rated program on Boston television, beating out network hits such as House and Law & Order. The game drew an estimated 245,000 households in New England and 163,000 in the Boston market alone.”

Yahoo! Sports behind the boxscore game review

AJC's Sekou Smith first loss recap

Eastern Rivalry Renewed: Hawks (6-0) VS Celtics (7-1)Preview

Atlanta Hawks (6-0) VS Boston Celtics (7-1)

Probable Starters
PG Rajon Rondo PPG 8.6 REB 3.9 ASST 6.3

SG Ray Allen PPG 15.5 REB 5.3 ASST 2.6

SF Paul Pierce PPG 18.8 REB 7.6 ASST 4.0

PF Kevin Garnett PPG 15.4 REB 10.0 ASST 1.6

C Kendrick Perkins PPG 5.4 REB 7.4 BLk 2.5
Reserves
Reserves
Tony Allen
Glen Davis
Eddie House
Leon Powe
Gabe Pruitt
Brian Scalabrine
Patrick O'Bryant
JR Giddens
Bill Walker
Sam Cassell

Injuries:
Paul Pierce (hand) will play
Rondo (body) will play

Probable Inactive
JR Giddens
Patrick O'Bryant
Sam Cassell

Probable Starters
PG Mike Bibby PPG 14.2 REB 2.4 ASST 5.6

SG Joe Johnson PPG 25.2 REB 5.2 ASST 3.8

SF Marvin Williams PPG 10.8 REB 6.0 ASST 1.3

PF Al Horford PPG 8.8 REB 8.8 ASST 3.2

C Zaza Pachulia PPG 4.2 REB 5.2 ASST 0.8
Reserves
Acie Law
Solomon Jones
Maurice Evans
Flip Murray
Othello Hunter
Randolph Morris
Mario West
Speedy Claxton
Thomas Gardner
Josh Smith

Injuries
Josh Smith (ankle) day to day
Speedy Claxton (knee) out

Probable Inactive
Josh Smith
Speedy Claxton
Thomas Gardner

Key Matchups
vs
Bibby was very vocal about the Celtics fans during the playoffs, calling them bandwagon fans. I am sure they haven't forgotten that so expect him to be booed early and often.

vs
Joe Johnson will try to get the best of his former team. He has been averaging over 25 points per game and it will be up to Ray Allen to try to contain him like he couldn't do in the playoffs last season in this game.

Honorable Mention
Kevin Garnett vs Al Horford
Al Horford's taunting earned the Celtics' Captain a fine when he retaliated with the so called gang sign in the playoffs. Expect KG to send him a message in this game.

Marvin Williams
Marvin is the biggest X factor of this game. As we all know Marvin Williams was suspended for the clothesline of Rajon Rondo in game 7 last season, he served his suspension and the Hawks are the best team in the East, with Josh Smith out, Marvin Williams must step up and take on some of the scoring load, have a breakout game of at least 18 pts 6 rbs to make his presence felt there.

Game Notes
The Hawks took the Celtics to 7 games in the first round of the playoffs, surprising many fans on both sides. They started where they left off in the playoffs with a 5-0 start this season beating the Magic, 76ers, Hornets, Raptors and Thunder with the first 4 teams all having playoff aspirations and the Hornets being favored by some to win it all.

The Hawks took a page from the Celtics book and are doing it with defense, holding teams to 85.8 points per game which is second only to the Lakers 84.4. The Celtics come in third at 86.75. They are limiting teams to 40.8% field goal percentage which is 3rd best in the league behind the Celtics 38.2% and the Lakers 39%. This should be a defensive battle and the Celtics would be very wise not to start slow in this game because they may not be able to make it up against this Hawks defense.

The Hawks are playing in the second of back to back games, having faced the Bulls the night before and the Celtics had the previous night off but are playing in their 3rd game in 4 nights.

Al Horford DOMINATES the Bulls in career-high scoring night; Hawks remain perfect

Now You Know, ESPN

Beautiful, virtuoso performance by the REAL 2007 Rookie of the Year, how upset are people gonna be as he continues to improve and people review his resume and wonder WHY he didn't win Rookie of the Year, and no disrespect to the player that won, but why would the NBA do that for a franchise that wasn't going to exist anymore anyway..?

Hawks 113 Bulls 108
26 29 29 29
22 30 22 34

Al Horford knows that with Josh Smith out of the lineup, he must be the defensive anchor on the team. He also knew he was more than capable to have big scoring nights, and he felt that itch from the tip with Gator-buddy Joakim Noah.

In the first quarter, Al Horford went to work immedietely on Tyrus Thomas, scores. Going to work against Joakim Noah, scores, going against Aaron Gray, scores + the foul, by the end of the first quarter Al Horford had 8 pts 3 rbs 3 blks. He continued his onslaught in Karl Malone-fashion, gobbling up rebounds, getting putbacks, making free throws, after halftime the score was 55-52, AL Horford had 16 pts 7 rbs 5 blks.

Mike Bibby also had a great game,scoring the first basket of the second half on an assist by Joe Johnson, did anybody see that running off-the-backboard layup by Marvin Williams in the beginning of the 3rdQ? That was impressive



FLIP MURRAY

MO EVANS

NBA.COM HAWKS VS BULLS RECAP

ESPN.COM RECAP

Only TWO unbeaten teams in the NBA; Lakers and Hawks, lets compare

The Atlanta Hawks are soaring, people. It is not an early fluke, these Hawks are more than for real, i believe we have an Eastern Conference contender in the making here, and they are not that far from being made.

Hawks 89 Thunder 85
22 16 20 31
14 27 21 23

11/09/08 - Atlanta Hawks (5-0) VS Oklahoma City Thunder(1-5) (See: Seattle Supersonics)
Sunday's game was the first full game without Josh Smith, a HUGE factor on both ends of the floor, and at first it took some getting used to.

The first quarter the hawks played well, outscoring Thunder 22-14, it was unfortunate that Thunder(do i say Thunder or THE Thunder? It sounds gay either way) lost Chris Wilcox to a knee injury, and i guess the Hawks had some sympathy for Thunder in the second quarter, getting outscored 27-16, making the halftime score 41-38.

After a defensively contestive 3rd quarter with Hawks outscoring Thunder 21-20, the Hawks really turned it up for the 4th quarter, keyed by a certain 6th man of the year candidate, Flip Murray, scoring 9 points in the 4th with two 3-pointers and a steal, layup. Joe Johnson scored 8 in the 4th to ice this team, and the Hawks grinded out a win to remain undefeated.



The 2008-2009 Eastern Conference Order of Power

Tier 1
Boston Celtics (6-1)-
Champions. Enough said.

Tier 2
Detroit Pistons (4-2)-
The Pistons should be in Tier 1 with Boston, but they're not. I, for one, am a believer in the Allen Iverson trade, he should make that team better offensively, but unfortunately these two games played so far have only proved Allen Iverson's defensive liability that comes with his offense. If Iverson learned to distribute the ball a little better and score his 20 ppg, the Pistons will remain a championship contender, if this doesn't work, obviously AI and Detroit will divorce, as Iverson is in his contract year.

Cleveland Cavaliers (5-2)-
The Cavs are the biggest wildcard for a championship contender, i mean, of course there is the LeBron Factor, which alone make the Cavs a CONTENDER, but who else on that team can make them a CHAMPION? Mo Williams is averaging 14.1 ppg 4.5 apg, doing a little less than what Mike Bibby is doing for the Atlanta Hawks, so does that put them over the top? Actually, Williams has made less impact than most thought he would, he just fell back into the shadow of LeBron instead of being a leader with him, which is why i'm not ready to declare the Cavs a championship-calibur team, just a contender.
But LeBron James is averaging 28.1 ppg 9.0 rpg 7.0 asts on 47% FGs 77% FTs, great, but not better than last season in any way for James, if he can just average 80% on FTs, he'll be MVP

Orlando Magic (4-2) -
Dwight Howard is averaging 22.2 ppg 13.7 rpg 4.0 bpg but that 48.5% FTs is abysmal even for Howard, i mean, come on, i thought the World victory that is the Obama presidency and the US Gold Medal might motivate this young brother enough to improve his FT shooting at least a little bit! No, not at all, its gotten much worse, and i think the rest of the team has disimproved a little bit too. Of course its only been 6 games, but Hedu Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis really sucking right now, Lewis shooting 40.1% FGs 28.9% 3pt FGs 71.2% FTs for 17.7 ppg, Turkoglu, last season Most Improved Player Award winner, shooting 36.4% FGs 30.0% 3pt FGs 83.3% FTs for 15.5 ppg. If these two guys dont step up not only will they not be a championship team, but they will not even be DIVISION champs, as the Hawks win the Southeast(YYEAAHH BOY!)

Toronto Raptors (4-2)-
Chris Bosh is the best PF in the Eastern Conference, and 2nd to only Amare Stoudamire in the NBA, no doubt about it. He is dominating averaging 26.7 ppg 11.3 rpg 2.5 asts 53.7% FGs 83.1% FTs, and his frontcourtmate isn't doing so bad either. A far cry from his career averages but Jermaine O'Neal is averaging 10.2 ppg 6.7 rpg but the 1.8 blks is what helps Toronto the most. The Raptors are rolling, i don't think they are much better than the Atlanta Hawks, but the Bosh factor alone is slightly bigger than the Johnson factor, outside of that Atlanta wins at every position. I really don't get it though, just because Toronto won 49 games that one season and has been a consistent first round exit ever since, people want to see this team as much better than the Hawks. I'll not argue that perspective for now, but when the Hawks win 49 games this season, we will be considered better than the Raptors, and our Mike Woodson better get COY.

Tier 3 -
Atlanta Hawks (6-0)-
We won't be here in this 3rd tier by the end of this season. The Hawks have a chance to be one of the top 5 teams in the Eastern Conference, and if the east if still considered "least" then we will be the cream of the crop on top. Joe Johnson is 3rd in the NBA in John Hollinger's PER which makes him statistically, the 3rd best player in the NBA, Josh Smith is starting to bloom into a superstar himself defensively, and if he ever develops into that 20 ppg scorer he could, should be at the PF position, a MISMATCH EVERY NIGHT for whoever we play...Al Horford will undoubtedly be a double-double beast increasingly in his NBA career (although he has not averaged that thus far, his first game without Smoove proved much). Marvin Williams is about as solid and getting closer to consistent as you can ask from the Small Forward position, he defends well, rebounds, slashes a little bit, and if he is a brand new 3pt shooter? He is looking like NOT the biggest mistake Knight ever made...even though he probably still is, unless the Hawks get to the Finals before the Hornets, we know our team, Hawks may win the division this season.

Philadelphia 76ers -
Miami Heat -

The remaining teams in the Eastern Conference I feel don't have a realistic chance at becoming great in the near future; Wizards - injury prone, Pacers - No D, Bucks - Bogut, Knicks - maybe suprise, Nets - sucks,

KOBE vs JOE


























Kobe Bryant - 24.4 ppg 5.6 rpg 3.4 apg 1.8 stls 0.8 blks 47.3% FGs 33.3% 3pt FG 78.6% FTs in 33.3 MPG
Joe Johnson - 25.2 ppg 5.2 rpg 3.8 apg 1.4 stls 0.4 blks 50.5% FGS 44.4% 3pt FG 78.9% FTs in 37.4 MPG

Lakers - 1st in defensive effeciency (88.5 points allowed), 1st in offensive effeciency (112.2 points scored)
Hawks - 3rd in defensive effeciency(91.5 points allowed), 12th in offensive effeciency (106.4 points scored)

the JOSH SMITH factor
through the first 3 games, Josh Smith was averaging 14.5 ppg 10.7 rpg 3.5 blks 2.5 stls, and although he has only played 3 games so far, his impact on the defensive end cannot be overstated. I mean, the first game of the season against Dwight Howard and the Magic in Orlando, what he do: 17 pts 10 rbs 5 blks 4 stls, granted, Dwight Howard had 8 blocks in that same game, but obviously we won 99-85. The Hawks have obviously always had this great defensive player, but its about time the Hawks became a great defensive team.

the BEAST of AL HORFORD
Al Horford has played 5 games of excellence at the center/power forward position. Playing slightly fewer minutes than last season due to foul trouble Horford is averaging 8.8 ppg 8.8 rpg 3.2 spg 1.8 bpg, but in Smith's absense, Horford rightfully so became the defensive presence that Smith usually is, posting a stat line of 8 pts 12 rbs 2 asts 5 blks, if he continues this aggressiveness, the Hawks will be alright while Smith is gone.

Marvin "lights out" Williams?
The official number on the season is 4/7 but Marvin Williams has shown a new confidence in that 3point stroke that has NEVER been there before. He was taking and making 3pointers with ease in the New Orleans win Wednesday night, if Marvin can shoot say, 38-40% 3pt FGs this season, (you never know this season) he will have deserved the 3 year 20 million extention he should be offered :D i know that's kind of mean, but that's real

Mike "SolidRock" Bibby
Mike Bibby is a solid point guard. He is a strong solid point guard, he is GOOD, GUARENTEED for about 14 ppg 6 asts every night. Sometimes he even has games like the Toronto game, 19 pts 12 asts, but those are about as frequent as a full moon, but you can count on good floor leadership, decision making(sometimes) with Mike.

FlipMo SQUAD!
Mann, who the f*ck is Josh Childress? Na, i'm just playing i miss the kid and his afro but Flip Murray and Maurice Evans replace him FINE! When the Hawks first signed Mo Evans I was more excited about him, even after we signed Flip Murray, i thought he would not be a big impact player, boy have i been pleasantly wrong. Flip Murray is averaging 12.4 ppg 2.4 rpg 2.2 spg on 41.2% FGs 41.3% 3pt FGs, Maurice Evans has averaged 8.0 ppg 3.4 rpg, combined, these two average 20.4 ppg 6.0 rpg 3.0 apg, i don't think Josh Childress would have provided that this season. Flip is clutch man, Flip can make plays, of course sometimes he may make the wrong decision, but thats not been that often yet. And there are some people that say, "oh well, you like him now, just wait until the trade deadline, you'll be trynig to trade him" I see no such future, i think Flip will continue to be a fire off the bench and he himself will average at least 10 ppg, and Mo at least 8 ppg, thats good enough for the Hawks to win some games

Did somebody say the Hawks had a bad bench?
ZaZa Pachulia, Acie Law IV, Solomon Jones, Randolph Morris, Mario West, the Hawks go 12 DEEP with EASE this season! and none of those guys are scrubs! Well, maybe ZaZa sometimes (especially the way he played in OKC, ugh), but our bench is very good and for the most part, does better than just hold a lead, ive seen our bench extend leads in each game played so far.

11/18/08-11/18/08 - the 2008-2009 Atlanta Hawks weekly predictions:

11/11 - Hawks VS Bulls in Chicago - Hawks 95 Bulls 88
11/12 - Hawks VS Celtics in Boston - Hawks 88 Celtics 87
(i know, i know, it hasn't been done yet, the possibility is almost none without Smith but i am keeping the realistic faith ;)
11/14 - Hawks VS Nets in New Jersey - Hawks 98 Nets 88
11/15 - Hawks VS Nets in Atlanta - Hawks 112 Nets 95

Hawks will be 9-0 by next Monday, believe that

Hawks beat championship-calibur team in a championship-way, with DEFENSE on the road; Hawks 87 Hornets 79

Oh YES!

This was such a spectacular game, out of all the history making games last night, Amare 49/10/5/5/5, Tony Parker 55/7/10, Lebron James 41/9/6/5, all of those were great induvidual performances and their team won, but the Hawks win was the most impressive WIN with DEFENSE all of this season, last season, last's night's drubbing of New Orleans is probably the most impressive win of the Mike Woodson era Hawks.




Impressive for a number of reasons:
1. New Orleans Hornets average an NBA-leading 108.9 ppg

2. The Hawks were 5-0 in the Chris Paul era Hornets

3. At Orlando, home to Philadelphia, and at New Orleans, the Hawks have yet to allow an opposing team to score one point per possession. Opponents are averaging 93.3 points per 100 possessions through three games. By comparison, the 2007-08 Hawks allowed 108.9 points per 100 possessions. The 2007-08 Hawks after acquiring Mike Bibby allowed 112.8 points per 100 possessions. The 2007-08 Boston Celtics lead the league by allowing 98.9 points per 100 possessions.

4. The Hawks haven't started 3-0 since 1997-1998 season, where they went 50-32

5. We are 2/2 on our predictions for this week, BRING ON THE RAPTORS!

Bless God for God has Blessed America...Barack Obama is the 44th President of the United States. Hawks VS Hornets Preview

Yes We Can, Yes We Did. We all already know, the American People have spoken and the truth has been realized. If you didn't vote for Barack Obama you should probably reevaluate your mind, take a step back and reassess those reasons, and make sure you get with the program, and now the program is a black man. Black-White man, rather, i think people seem to forget he is a product of an black-African man from Kenya a white woman from New Jersey, this is a beautiful moment of American History.

Now my ultimate dream in life is to play basketball with Barack Obama in the White House, lol

As for tonight's game:

Atlanta Hawks (2-0) VS New Orleans Hornets (3-0)

The Hawks are in for a tough challenge, but i think they can prevail, of course anything is possibe, the Hawks are by no means the better team, but there's Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, and Marvin Williams...and Al Horford and Mike Bibby. Against the kid called Chris Paul...James Posey, Peja, David West, and Tyson Chandler. In New Orleans..Well, since Louisiana didn't vote Obama, i don't think they deserve to win tonight, so i'm predicting the Hawks will upset. Of course, we will see what happens.

Hawks celebrate comeback win against Sixers in first game at Phillips Arena; Johnson 35, Bibby 19, Smith 14

Hawks 95 Sixers 88
34 23 18 13
18 26 22 29

the power of the atmosphere of a good home team is unmistakable in the NBA. The crowd feeds off every move the team makes, the team feeds energy off the crowd, there is no doubt that was a main ingredient to fuel the Championship Celtics run in 2008 (even though most of them were fairweather fans and weren't there the previous season when the same Celtics were 2nd worst in the East, Bibby -04/26/08 Playoffs round 1 game 1).

the city of Atlanta is in for a treat this season, Atlanta has always had great basketball fans, we just needed to be able to love a great team, and RIGHT NOW the Hawks are ascending up the Eastern Conference ladder to become a GREAT team.

Joe Johnson:

35 pts 3 rbs 5 asts 1 stl (14/23 FGs 2/5 3pt FGs 5/5 FTs)

Joe Johnson has been regarded as an all-star but he has gotten not nearly enough credit for being the star player turning a team that was the worst in the league 13-69, to rebuilding improving around him to make a legitimate eastern conference contender, making his teammates better year after year and
still improving himself statistically, efficiently. Seriously, people should start looking at Joe as a top 5 SG in the league, for real.




Josh Smith:

14 pts 11 rbs 3 asts 3 stls 2 blks (6/16 FGs 2/4 3pt FGs)

Josh is a top 10 PF in this league, one of the best defenders, and an unstoppable offensive force, when he asserts himself to be. He was admittedly nervous in the first quarter of the game, but seeing his counterpart, Thaddeus Young score 17 in the first, and seeing a deficit that grew into 23 points made him focus. He scored one field goal under the basket in the 3rd quarter but hit 2 HUGE THREES in the 4th that anchored this comeback win by Atlanta, and got a HUGE Steal that basically won the game. Yes, Josh Smith is doing alright so far, let's hope he can keep it up.


Marvin Williams: 2 pts (1-7 FG 0-2 3pt FGs) 5 rbs 2 blks 1 ast in 20 minutes

Mike Bibby: 19 pts 2 rbs 4 asts 3 stls (7/16 FGs 3/7 3pt FGs 2/2 FTs)

Al Horford: 9 pts 7 rbs 4 asts 1 blk (4/7 FGs 1/2 FTs)



It has only been two games, but you can see that the Hawks are brand new this season after that epic playoff series with the NBA Champions, the Hawks know they are not that far from that level, it is no coinscidence that the Hawks are right now the ONLY UNDEFEATED TEAM in the Southeast division, our toughest test yet will come the day after the most historically symbolic beautiful day of America's History, when racial wounds of 100 years are partially healed as we elect our country's first bi-racial President of all time. Imagine, the 44th president a product of a white american woman and a black african man, and some people are still hating... Well, yes, i am so excited about this hawks team i will make several declarations for this week:

1. Barack Obama will be elected 44th president of the United States.

2. Hawks will win in New Orleans this Wednesday

3. Allen Iverson will make the Pistons a title contender this season

4. Hawks will beat Raptors in Atlanta to show strength this Friday

5. Hawks will "Shock the World" at least 47 times this season

6. Joe Johnson will emerge as a MVP candidate this season

7. Josh Smith will emerge as a DPOY candidate this season

8. if all of the above occurs, Mike Woodson might stumble upon a COY award (lol i know, but its possible) i must say if the Hawks improve by +10 wins by subtracting the most efficient bench player in the league and adding Maurice Evans and Flip Murray, Woody deserves COY, because NO ONE IN THIS WORLD is predicting a 47-35 season....Except US :)