this hawks blog is the documentary of an NBA Eastern Conference title contender; a team with the most hated on ownership group, the most hated head coach was finally fired, but still with the most underrated forward in the NBA
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Those guys had an outstanding offensive game which surely is a large portion of the reason the Hawks won, but the win-shares are at least equal with the strong play of 2 defensive specialists, Jason Collins and Kirk Hinrich. Collins only played 18 minutes and scored a total of 6 fouls and 1 point but his defensive work against Howard played a large role in not allowing the Magic to make a comeback in the second half. Kirk Hinrich has always been known as a defensive specialist, but he even outplayed Nelson on offense in the first half.
The Hawks played game 1 perfectly and now Orlando is forced to make adjustments.
Or maybe they won't. Because the Hawks played PERFECTLY, probably for the first time all season, and many naysayers are saying it is unlikely that the Hawks will submit another efficient offensive showcase like in Game 1. Its also unlikely Dwight Howard and Jameer Nelson will score 73 points on 26/40 FGs . The truth of the matter is that the Atlanta Hawks have 6 players who can and most likely will average double figures, with 2 of those guys(Johnson and Crawford) are almost guaranteed at least 20 ppg. Not only does Atlanta have the personnel to defeat this team, they definitely have the confidence.
"Just to continue to do it with five guys, continue to make the right play giving up good shots for great shots. That's why we shot such a high percentage. Guys passed up some good shots but we got great shots in the long run, we worked the clock well. We will continue to do things well that were successful for us." --Jamal Crawford 4/19/11
Yes, the Atlanta Hawks seem to have a good game plan, it is absolutely astounding that the Hawks made 34/74 FGs and only 8 FGs were layups. While the Hawks will most likely stick to the script, the Magic are surely going to make some adjustments.
"Our whole focus has been on protect the paint and they haven't been looking to get to the rim a whole lot, containing perimeter jump shots and the Hawks mid-range shots are now our biggest concerns. Even the (Hawks') 51 percent (field goal percentage) was deceptive, because going into the fourth (quarter) they were at 58 percent and that's when the game was decided, so they really had their way with us. And we've got to be a lot better defensively, no matter what we do offensively. If we're going to have to score 105 or 106 points every night to win, then we're gonna be in trouble." -- Coach Stan Van Gundy 4/18/11
Coach Larry Drew seems very confident, but healthily concerned about the way his team won the game.
"We don't want to be a team that relies on just shooting jump shots... We like to open the floor up. It won't be a situation of us just settling for the perimeter. We've got to find that balance of inside-out. As dominant as Dwight is on the inside, we can't shy away from taking the ball to the basket. We have to be the aggressor."
So a few minor adjustments to look for in tonight's game:
fast break points - Atlanta won the fast break battle 11-10 in Game 1 so look for the Hawks to run even more to challenge the Magic speed and athleticism, where they know they have an advantage
rebounding - Dwight Howard is almost guaranteed to average 20 rpg because he always does in the post-season but look for Al and Josh to step up on the boards to tighten up that 40-29 advantage the Magic had in Game 1
Marvin Williams - why not 7 players in double figures? Marvin scored 6 points on 2/3 FGs in Game 1 but also got 2 crucial steals and played excellent team defense, if he can get a few more points it will be difficult for Orlando to overcome
Do you think the Hawks are still excited with a Game 1 win and maybe they'll be satisfied with a 1-1 split going to Atlanta? Is taking a commanding 2-0 lead back to Phillips Arena too ambitious?
"Oh No. We came here with the objective to get two games, we put ourselves in this position and now we look forward to getting Game 2 on Tuesday night." --Jason Collins
Ah, Yes. The NBA post-season, where amazing happens, rivalries are born, and championships are won. This 2011 NBA Playoffs should be one of the most exciting and unpredictable NBA fans have seen this 21st century, and although every matchup has a favorite, most underdog teams are perfectly capable of an upset. The Atlanta Hawks have the most ability and the biggest opporitunity to make an upset in the 2011 post-season against the Orlando Magic.
No, the Atlanta Hawks have not looked ready to make such an upset in the regular season, they have looked confused, lethargic, and non-chalant on the court in many BIG regular season games this year, and that was even before one of the most foolish trades in Hawks franchise history; Kirk Hinrich for Mike Bibby, Jordan Crawford, and Mo Evans. They traded 2 solid rotation players and a starter for a role player, having gone 11-20 since that trade, many are saying these Atlanta Hawks look like the team they were in 2007-2008 before Mike Bibby arrived, a 37-win team.
But the Orlando Magic haven't been the Eastern conference championship contender that they have been in previous seasons. One reason is Orlando has not shoot the three-ball well in its regular-season games versus the Atlanta Hawks this year. In the four games(3-1 Hawks), the Magic shot 19-of-84 (22.6 percent) beyond the arc. The prevailing wisdom is that Jason Collins' one-on-one defense on Howard in the paint frees his teammates to stay closer to their men, denying them open attempts from long range.
Regardless of the defense, Dwight Howard is going to play well. Likewise, Al Horford is going to play well. Orlando knowns Jameer Nelson is going to play well.. is Joe Johnson going to play well? On the first year of the most salary-cap crippling contract in Hawks franchise history, Joe had the least productive season of his career. Of the past 23 games since the all-star break where Joe played at least 30 minutes he has only scored 20+ points in 5 games and the Hawks have gone 9-17. Jason Richardson is a streaky scorer, but he has younger legs than Vince Carter and he can give opponents fits when he is on. Josh Smith is one of the most versitile players at the forward position, he may not outscore you, but he can make the right play at the right time to fill the stat sheet.
The Hawks Doom: Defense. They need to watch and listen to Charles Barkley's hit song featured on the T-mobile commercial, because this team plays with no defensive passion or strategy whatsoever in the game. Maybe, oh, maybe the "NBA Playoffs" logo on the floor and the fact that they are the rightful underdog in this series will inspire some defense, but from what we have seen thus far this season, that is a long goal.
Kirk Hinrich. Is is painfully unfortunate that soon-to-be-former Hawks GM Rick Sund traded two solid rotation players and the only proven veteran in the playoffs for a guy that is not going to make any significant impact whatsoever in any aspect of the game.
Heart. This team is full of questions and have-not; Is Joe Johnson worth the money? Whats wrong with Josh Smith? Is Al Horford getting the ball enough? Whats wrong with Jamal Crawford? They don't have the depth, they don't have the passion, they don't have the love and respect for the game that makes players like Kobe Bryant and Derrick Rose great.
Ryan Anderson. I hope the Magic dont figure this out in this series, but the Magic "Big Three" are Dwight Howard, Jameer Nelson, and Ryan Anderson. Ryan Anderson has progressed into the best shooter on the team and at 6'10 he can really fill that Rashard Lewis role. He plays smart and is very unselfish, if Coach SVG can even get around to starting him at PF the Hawks will be in big trouble
The Magic Doom: Joe Johnson. Though Joe did not have an outstanding year, the playoffs are a fresh start with hieghtened intensity. This will be Joe's 4th consecutive season leading this team to the playoffs, and none of the Magic defenders can match up with Joe physically. If he gains some resiliance and a stronger will to win, the Magic are in trouble.
Josh Smith. J-Smoove is the X factor in almost every game, he has the ability to average 20/10/5/2/2 but since he has never ever consistently played at his potential level 16/8/4/1/1 is a bit more realistic for him to actually achieve. Josh has had ONE great game in his playoffs career (2007 Eastern Conference Round 1 Game 5) if he adds another during this series, he alone can will Atlanta to a victory.
Gilbert Arenas. God Bless the heart of GM Otis Smith for making this trade, some people thought this trade would be the exact change of scenery to transform controversial Gilbert back to near-unstoppable scorer Agent Zero. Instead Gilbert got totally complecent shrunk even further into the abyss as a bit role player. Now averaging 8.3 PPG as a Magic, he has not probably set the record for the fastest fall from 30PPG superstar franchise player to bench warmer of all time.
Overall, we here at PlayoffsHawks say this is going to be a VERY exciting series, i predict at least 3 scuffles with Zaza Pachulia getting in the face of Dwight Howard at least once and also Dwight getting suspended from technical fouls for one game. In a GRUELING highly contested 7-game series, Joe Johnson puts on a superstar performance scoring 40+ points in the decisive game 7 and the Atlanta Hawks improborable move to the second round for the 3rd year in a row.
Hello, HOTlanta. It has been a very interesting NBA off-season thus far, all the free agent players trying to put themselves in a position to win a championship almost makes you forget who actually won the 2010 championship, so before i get to the Atlanta Hawks, i would like to take a moment to congratulate the undisputed most skilled, best leader, and most clutch performer in the NBA today, Kobe Bryant and the most controversial, infamous rapper/basketball player of all time, Ron Artest and the 2010 NBA Champions the Los Angeles Lakers. Nothing else that occurred in the 2010 NBA Playoffs is relevant, well, except the obliteration called the Magic vs Hawks series, the worst 4-game sweep in NBA History, featuring one of the worst performances by any so-called "team leader" in the same amount of time. BUT, thankfully all of that is behind us, and the great anticipated free agent bananza began!
One of the first things the Atlanta Hawks franchise did to try to spell some of that embarrassment is they fired Mike Woodson. We at PlayoffsHawks were very supportive of Mike Woodson and we would have been more upset if it wasn't for the replacement of Mike Woodson with Larry Drew, that shows the team is committed to keeping the "defense, rebounding" foundation while hopefully getting the offense more fluid and more efficient. Even still, WE LOVE YOU WOODSON! Here is a youtube video a PlayoffsHawks fan made to Mike Woodson.
We, at PlayoffsHawks wonder how Joe Johnson's 12.9 ppg 29% shooting performance in the second round of the NBA Playoffs, the same 2010 Playoffs which before it began where Joe Johnson declared, "I want to show the world that we have one of the best teams and that I am one of the best players." How did this guy earn the BIGGEST CONTRACT given to ANY PLAYER in free agency? It was safe to say that Joe FAILED in that demonstration of being the best, but Joe WON with selling himself as a franchise player, somehow. Now, I understand where the Atlanta Hawks franchise is coming from, this is the guy that took us from 13-69 to 53-29 in 5 seasons with 4 all-star selections and consistent 20/5/5 regular season statistics. However, his performance in these past 2 seasons playoffs have been atrocious, last season in the clean-sweep by the now-irrelevant Cavaliers was slightly excusable because of the slight injury he suffered in game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, but this past playoff performance against the Orlando Magic was inexcusable.
With all of that being said, the biggest "move" made in the off-season was the"LeBron" brand "taking his talents to South Beach" and that wouldn't be so bad if the great Dwayne Wade and top 5 big Chris Bosh weren't going there with him. And at this point in free agency they've also signed Udonis Haslem, Zydrunas Ilgauskaz, Mike Miller, Carlos Arroyo, James Jones, Jamaal Maglorie and surely others are coming. What does that mean for the Atlanta Hawks? That means the Joe Johnson signing means NOTHING in a division that features thel likes of Dwight Howard, Dwayne Wade, LeBron James, Chris Bosh, and G.O.A.T. player whom is now the only black majority team owner in all professional sports, Micheal Jordan. Amare Stoudamire is with the Knicks, Carlos Boozer is with the Bulls, Nate Robinson is back with the Celtics, Rudy Gay the Grizzlies, Paul Pierce the Celtics with Jermaine O'Neal, even the Bucks got Corey Maggette. Without question, the Hawks will inevitable drop in the standings and ratings if bring back the same team, the cannot possible expect to improve or stay at 53-wins in the 2010-2011 season with just Joe Johnson. If the Hawks slip into mediocrity, they will slip into irrelevancy, unless they can show some competitive fire against the NBA elite, there is one way the Hawks can undoubtedly stay relevant and have a legitimate rivalry with the division neighbors Orlando Magic and Miami Heat, because without question there is one SUPERSTAR FREE AGENT left on the market the Atlanta Hawks must sign, Shaquille O'Neal.
I cannot believe Shaquille O'Neal is getting the Allen Iverson treatment. Its a sad state of the NBA when a 4x NBA Champion, the 2000 NBA MVP, 3x NBA Finals MVP, one of the undisputed greatest multi-talented players of all time is one of the last free agents left, when he WANTS to play for a contender. Granted, he may be 38 years old, but Shaq was playing extremely well for the Cavs last season, in 23.4 MPG averaged 12 PPG 6.7 RPG 1.8 BPG which translated to 18.5 PPG 11.3 RPG 2.4 BPG per 40-minutes. Now, of course Shaq isn't gonna play 40 MPG but his value to the young Atlanta Hawks team cannot be understated, he is more than just a "savvy veteran" he is a champion AND exactly the giant personality or unstoppable skill and confidence the Hawks need to get to the next level. Plus, JOE JOHNSON NEEDS the endorsement of SHAQ to play up to the pressure of his potential, imagine if Shaq signs and says the same thing he has said about Kobe Bryant, Dwayne Wade, Steve Nash, Amare Stoudamire, and LeBron James, "I came here to play with one of the best players in the game, and to help this city win a championship." Imagine what that confidence would do for the city of Atlanta sports! Josh Smith agrees with this sentiment and expressed it in this recent quick SLAM magazine interview.
Now, there are 3 concerns fans and the team seems to have:
1. Shaq is too old Shaquille O'Neal is 15x all-star with countless other allocades, he is 38 years old, but by no means out-of-shape. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, another one of the greatest centers of all time (maybe THE GOAT at the position) brought the Los Angeles Lakers a championship and won the 1986 NBA Finals MVP at 38 years old, and that doesn't mean Shaq is gonna dominate averaging 20/10 to do the same for Atlanta, but HE CAN, Shaq was still the 3rd most efficient center in the NBA last season, and this season with Yao Ming and Greg Oden coming back from injuries and Dwight Howard still dominating as the best center in the NBA, Shaquille O'Neal can play more than efficient defense against those guys, regardless of what he provides on offense. If anything 38-year-old Shaq can defend centers to free up offense for AL HORFORD (one of the most effecient scorers in the entire NBA ;)
2. Shaq wants to start Of course Shaq wants to start! This is not some regular 38-year-old center, this is 7 foot 1 inches 300 pounds of muscle and power! He would be underutilized and greatly disrespected if he does not START at center. 2(b). No! Shaq can't start because we would have to put Al Horford at power forward, which is good but Josh Smith CANNOT play small forward, he isn't a good enough shooter! First of all, if the Atlanta Hawks put Al Horford at power forward, Al Horford will DEFINETLY average approximately 20 ppg 10 rpg, his natural skill and size makes him one of the most effecient and skilled power forwards in the NBA, a Carlos Boozer-type, if you will, as a center, Al Horford is quick but undersized. With that being said, second of all, Josh Smith has been facing all types of doubt and critisizm in his game every season AND every off-season, he will continue to improve inevitably. Also, Josh Smith is ONE OF THE BEST PASSING FORWARDS IN THE ENTIRE LEAGUE, he averaged 15 PPG 8 RPG 4 APG. second only to LeBron James, and 2 BPG, the ONLY PLAYER IN THE LEAGUE with those averages. Josh Smith is actually one of the NBA's most unique blends of talent and skill, the only thing people can try to critisize is his attitude, if they put Josh Smith at the small forward position, the Atlanta Hawks will have O'Neal-Horford-Smith as one of the BEST FRONTLINES IN THE LEAGUE legitimately capable of defending the Magic, Heat, or the Lakers.
3. the Hawks need payroll relief Trade Marvin Williams. Do it. I love Marvin, i will miss him as a player and a person, but the Hawks have already mortgaged the future with Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, and Al Horford, those are our "Big Three" and everyone else on the roster, except for Zaza Pachulia, is expendable on our quest to win a championship. I know, Marvin is only 22 years old and an excellent defender and sometimes shows flash of offensive brilliance, he is a great blue-collar worker, rebounder, he has the potential to be a great player, which is another reason why the Hawks should trade him. Marvin Williams is never going to become a great player with the Atlanta Hawks, for the reasons which were stated above, if the Hawks were to do a sign-and-trade with Cleveland for Marvin, that would give Marvin Williams a HUGE VOID to fill left by LeBron James, and i believe strongly that Marvin Williams would step up into that starting small forward position and give that team stability that it now lacks, and it would give Marvin Williams that attention and postive regard as a player, that loyalty he feels to Atlanta, Cleveland would embrace this young guy and shower him with praise on a consistent basis, Marvin Williams would develop into a leader on that Cleveland Cavaliers team, and that would embarrass LeBron James even more (not that we care about him anyway). Its obvious that the Atlanta Hawks franchise cannot afford to keep Marvin Williams as part of its core, the Atlanta Hawks need to get bigger, not faster, if we can get the biggest personality in the NBA on his last hurrah, whether the Atlanta Hawks get to the NBA Finals or win the championship or not, it would be a victory just having him represent our city, our franchise, and mentoring our players.
One last thing, Hawks GM Rick Sund has done a good job so far, but if the Atlanta Hawks franchise does not improve its roster and financial situation, and when another team throws a boatload of cash to AL HORFORD when he is a restricted free agent next summer, and if the Hawks are NOT able to match... I will burn all of my Atlanta Hawks memorbilia and never attend another Hawks game again, Josh Smith is PlayoffsHawks favorite player, but Al Horford is the best player on the team. and i hate to make Hawks fan cry, but i can't help but imagine....
It is such a beautiful day to be a Atlanta Hawks fan. Not too long ago, rookie Mike Woodson, Josh Smith and the Atlanta Hawks were the worst team in the league at 13-69. After 4 long years of player development and steady improvement, it seems the Hawks have taken a quantum leap into the NBA elite in this 09-10 season.
The Minnesota Timberwolves hope to emulate the Hawks' success story in the coming years. The Hawks core of Josh Smith, Joe Johnson, Marvin Williams, and Zaza Pachulia have played together for 4 seasons, and over the past 2 seasons they have added big Al Horford (3rd pick 2007 draft), Mo Evans, and Mike Bibby to their core. A couple of key role players such as Jamal Crawford (leading candidate for 6th man of the year), Jeff Teague (19th pick 2009 draft), Joe Smith (14 year veteran big), and young Randolph Morris, and the 2009-2010 Atlanta Hawks have one of the top 10-man rotations in the league. This game was never in doubt, as the Hawks jumped out to an early lead, turning the Wolves 7 first quarter turnovers into 14 points, the Hawks ended the first quarter leading 26-17.
The Hawks did a great job of keeping the Wolves at arms length, the game never got closer than 8 in the first half, despite foul trouble with Josh Smith and Zaza Pachulia. When Smith was on the floor, he was a huge difference-maker, in 21 minutes Josh scored 10 pts (5/6 FGs) 3 rbs 3 asts 3 stls, but the biggest difference maker in this game had to be Jamal Crawford.
Just as he has been doing all season, Jamal comes off the bench to lead the team in scoring, it is amazing to see how offensively gifted this guy is, he must have one of the best pull-up jumpers in the league, and he is shooting at a career-high FG%, in this game, Jamal enters at 2:30 remaining in the 1st. The Hawks keep the lead going into the 2nd quarter and that is when the Jamal Crawford light show starts. He starts his scoring tier by hitting a 24-foot 3-pointer on an assist from Mike Bibby. The Wolves did get within 7 points on a Al Jefferson layup, but Really, the combination of Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford is getting too potent for opposing teams to handle, Joe and Jamal alternating scoring put the lead back up to 13 for a 54-41 halftime advantage.
The 2nd half had more of the same, the game was never really in doubt, but the Hawks did get a little lax defensively, allowing the Wolves to outscore them in the 3rd, 28-27, so in the 4th quarter, Joe and Jamal put the team on their back, and the most consistent player of the night had to be big Al Horford. In a game where Smith and Pachulia had 5 fouls, Horford played a game-high 41 minutes for 16 pts (7/15 FGs) 11 rbs 4 asts 2 stls 1 blk. Horford, shooting a 7th in the league best 57.8% on the floor, was great at making the right plays and playing defense, it would have been cool to see Horford with 19 rebounds, but he has the ability to get those numbers anytime.
Jamal Crawford scored 13 of his game-high 26 in the 4th quarter to put away the Wolves, including 2 back-to-back beautiful 3-pointers in the beginning of the 4th. The Wolves did battle back, but they did not get any closer than 12 as the Hawks stepped up and scored 31 4thQ points, the most of any quarter in the game for a 112-87 victory, the Timberwolves second worst defeat this season.
"We started with a bunch of babies six years ago, 18, 19, 20-year-old kids, and they've grown," coach Mike Woodson said. "The ownership has given me the latitude to continue to coach this team and our core guys have been together now four years and that makes a big difference." -Mike Woodson
"They're kind of the example of a team that got its players young," Love said of the Hawks. "They played together. They stuck together. They grinded out wins together. They had high points. They had low points. But they stuck together. ... That's something I hope I can be a part of one day." -Kevin Love
It great to see other players and teams continue to give the Hawks credit for their rise from the bottom and acknowledge the team as a top 5 team in the NBA today.
"We're trying to do something special," Woodson said.
translation: "We feel we can be the best team in basketball and maybe even win a championship"
I believe these Hawks can do it, they will at least make the conference Finals this season, but it would be a dream come true for the Hawks players coaches and especially the fans to see the Atlanta Hawks represent the East in the NBA Finals.
