It's a great, brave new month of August in the city of Atlanta. Kids going back to school, Falcons in training camp (we still miss Vick though, Matt Ryan can never be Micheal Vick), but unfortunately, today we mourn the death of a certain Mr. Skip Caray of the Atlanta Braves. The AJC reports he was the announcer for the Braves for more than 33 years, he died in his sleep in his Atlanta home, he was 68 years old. BUT, life goes on, we still have more pressing issues in Atlanta Sports, for the Josh Smith debacle has no known end in sight. AJC's Sekou Smith reports that it looks like a Mexican Standoff, the Hawks wanting to give Smith approximately 9 million/year, and Smith is demanding at least 10 million/year, for the Sixers were willing to give him 12 and the Clippers were willing to give him 13. It seems clear to me that Josh Smith is worth at least the 10 he feels he deserves, especially when many of his 2004 draft classmates are getting 11-13/year like Monta Ellis and Emeka Okafor, Josh Smith has already proven his skill, work ethic and ability to improve, he is the francise player, identity of the Hawks and the 2nd best player out of the Dwight Howard draft of 2004. But, it seems like new GM Rick Sund doesn't see that too clearly, maybe his eyesight is dimming on him, because anyone can see that he, not Marvin Williams, is the future of the successful Atlanta Hawks, and even if they have to go a little into Luxury Tax to pay Smith this off-season, it will pay off this 08-09 season when he averages 20+ ppg, makes his first all-star game, and he with Joe and Al leads us back into the playoffs, because even without Josh Childress, we can improve to a better record next season and who knows, maybe Maurice Evans and Randolph Morris will be a pleasant suprise for us. BUT, all of this depends of bringing Josh Smith back and making the kid happy in his hometown.
Anyway, this article is in response to an article also posted today by Mr. Chad Ford of ESPN.com, he writes a report of the Winners and Losers of the Off-Season so far. Right. I can already tell by his NBA bias that the Sixers will be #1 winners and the Hawks will be #1 losers, which might actually be the case but to me, he really reveals his bias in the other teams he analyzes. Here is his analysis and my responses to it.
Chad: "Their first move was a good one, letting GM Billy Knight walk. The Hawks were in the playoffs despite Knight's consistent botching of the draft, not because of him. Unfortunately, after Knight resigned, everything got seriously mangled in Atlanta. A number of the top GM candidates they pursued said "no, thanks" and the Hawks ended up settling on Rick Sund, a nice guy who's failed badly as a GM in his last two stops in Seattle and Detroit."
PlayoffsHawks: That is an interesting perspective to see Sund, everyone knows Sund for his media persistence that they want to keep Rashard Lewis in the summer of '07, and we all know what happened with that, not to blame Lewis, i mean who wouldn't go to the sunny beaches of Orlando for $118 million/7 years, but Sund never drafted well either, Robert Swift.
Chad: "Sund's first move was to bring back head coach Mike Woodson -- a guy who several players don't really like and whose coaching style doesn't fit the talent on the team."
PlayoffsHawks: i did not have a problem with this decision, it was better to keep a guy that is already established, unfortunately not respected, with the team, rather than go out and find a new guy to have to start over with, giving Woodson one more chance was the best way to keep the spirit of the playoffs hawks in tact, hopefully they had a talk about his substitution patterns...
Chad: "Then the Hawks completely mishandled Josh Childress. First, they offered him a contract for less than the midlevel exception. Then they told him to go find a better deal, thinking no team would make a strong offer. Childress found a better deal in Greece and warned the Hawks he'd take the money. The Hawks called his bluff and Childress took the money and ran. Normally, I wouldn't make such a fuss over a sixth man, but Childress was the glue that held the team together -- he was very underrated."
PlayoffsHawks: Couldn't have said it better myself. Childress was a major part of the identity of the young Atlanta Hawks, his husltle, playmaking ability, and afro will be dearly missed. This is the first major mistake Rick Sund has made, trying to undercut a player like Childress, this is what we are defining Sund as until further notice, he really messed that situation up, now this may be a blessing is disguise, for Childress might blow up in Greece then come back to the Hawks in the summer of '10, and this might also allow Smith to be a bigger part of the offense to showcase his ability, but until and unless Sund makes the smart move of signing Smith to a huge contract, Sund is not a good GM.
CHAD: "Now the Hawks are between a rock and hard place with Josh Smith. Their offer is lower than what Emeka Okafor and Luol Deng got. Smith is upset and doesn't really want to play in Atlanta. If they up the offer, they risk overpaying a player who is unhappy in Atlanta. If the Hawks don't increase the offer, they risk Smith taking the one-year qualifying offer in Atlanta and bolting next summer as an unrestricted free agent."
PlayoffsHawks: Now, this is how it is, if Josh Smith is forced to sign a one-year qualifying offer, which is symbolism of his direct intent to leave no-matter-what in the summer of '09, this is going to enrage the ATLANTA Hawks fans. i guarentee there will be in-game protests, fan demands that the ASG just sell the team to people who care about winning, and massive action by Atlanta sports fans to show the ownership just how foolish they are. We have endured almost a decade of losing and irrevelancy for this new GM to come in here and screw up the team like apprently he has done in Seattle and Detriot. Old policies and rules don't apply in this situation, that GM must understand that this is a new era, and a new situation, and they are in the business of WINNING not making money, and if it costs a lil' money for a year or two to build that winning team, then so be it! But, no, these men and their penny-pinching ways is going to get them in trouble with the real people who control sports, the fans, and we are not going to stand idly and do nothing while our potential is snatched away by another team where he will be sure to shine and everyone will talk about, "well, he was pretty good in Atlanta, but they had a bad coach, and now he's GREAT!" when he can be great HERE. That's how it is supposed to be, and that's what we're demanding, the ASG to start caring about winning and do what it takes to get Josh Smith back in a Hawks uniform long term.
THAT'S ALL THIS SUMMER IS ABOUT, PEOPLE, THAT'S ALL THIS SUMMER IS ABOUT...
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