Hawks burn Shaq-led Suns, looking sharp

100-96 Hawks

Marvin Williams scored 19 points (6/12 FGs 3/5 3pt FGs 4/4 FTs) 6 rebounds 4 assists 2 steals, Josh Smith had 18 (6/10 FGs 0/2 3pt FGs 6/11 FTs) 3 rebounds 1 assist and 1 block and the Atlanta Hawks spoiled Terry Porter's debut as Phoenix coach, rallying to beat the Suns 100-96 Wednesday night.

It was the second victory in two exhibition games for the Hawks, who also defeated Orlando on Monday.

It was a great and balanced effort, despite a dismal 1-9 shooting display by Mike Bibby, Joe Johnson was good, 14 points (5/10 FGs 2/3 3pt FGS 2/2 FTs) Al Horford was beast as usual, Coach Woodson had to tame him a lil' more than the other starters, 22 minutes, but he registered 10 points (5/6 FGs) 6 rebounds.

Shaquille O'Neal showed his championship dominance in minimal minutes, people hate on O'Neal for a plethora of reasons from his outgoing, goofy personality, to his perceived ego, or rapper swagger which he still shows from time to time (loved the Kobe freestyle, just jokes) but these Suns with Terry Porter are going to be a real contender even against or ESPECIALLY against the Lakers in the playoffs, but they will have to improve in 3 point shooting or they will become a lottery team, fans would leave and Steve Nash will become a free agent only to sign with the Spurs to try to win a championship...if these Suns don't start hitting three pointers, that's all i'm saying.














Good Game, i will reiterate my prediction, if the Atlanta Hawks go undefeated in this pre-season, i guarentee they will win 47-50 games this season, Bet.

Acie Law IV led the Hawks with 20 points in a 118-108 win over Magic in first preseason game

118-108 Hawks


i hope conservative NBA fans, i.e. Hawks haterz arent going to try to deny and ignore the skill and great team that is the 08-09 Atlanta Hawks all season Of course its only the first game but the Hawks showed that they are much improved and SOOO many things can be taken just from this game:

1. AL HOrdford just might be the #2 Beast in the East even "undersized" at the center position, he way the more aggresive owner of the paint in this game, Dwight is the best center in the league, so he did he thing, but AL Horford is up next, as soon as this season

Al Horford 13 pts (6/11 fgs 1/1 fts) 9 rbs 4 blks in 22 minutes
Dwight Howard 17 pts (6/9 fgs 5/6 fts) 5 rbs 8 blks in 25 minutes

2. Acie Law is going to be alright. He led the Hawks in scoring in this game showing poise strength and good decision making skills. He was a great floor leader in the 2nd half, dishing ot 4 assists and scoring 13 points, even hitting a crazy 60-foot buzzer beater at the end of the third quarter, he played to the end and showed he can will his team to a win

Acie Law 20 pts (8/11 fgs 2/2 fts) 5 rbs 4 asts 2 stls
Jameer Nelson 7 pts (3/6 fgs 1/2 fts) 2 rbs 5 asts

3. Josh Smith needs to do better. I am a firm believer that Josh Smith is the best player on the Hawks team and the defensive anchor that will make the Hawks a eastern conference contender in the near future, but tonight he got seriously otplayed by rashard lewis, he is no slouch, he could also be an all-star, lewis played like it tonight

Josh Smith 9 pts (4/14 fgs 1/2 fts) 7 rbs 1 blk in 31 minutes
rashard lewis 22 pts (8/14 fgs 4/5 fts 2/3 3pts) 6 rbs 1 blk in 30 minutes

4. Maurice Evans is going to be all right. He was the catylist in the 45 pt 3rd quarter driving to the basket and hitting threes, his veteran skill and experience is joe biden to our obama hawks, he could average his career high here as the 6th man

maurice evans 17 pts (6/9 fgs 1/2 fts 4/4 3pts) 3 asts 2 stls in 23 minutes
micheal peatris 9 pts (4/9 fgs 1/1 fts) 2 rbs 2 stls in 24 minutes


Overall, the hawks went 3-1 against the magic last season, so we have always played them well, but these Hawks are much improved from last season, every played indvidually and collectively, even Woodson's coaching was very good, different and diverse plays, good substitution pattern, and everybody played. i keep trying to tell people, haters of mike woodson, if Doc Rivers then why not Mike Woodson?



P.S.

Is StarVin MarVin AIRBORNE in this picture? *sigh*

Hawks start Training Camp with new Swagger

With pictures snapping during the start of the 2008-2009 season training camp, there was a new air among the players. Excitement, condidence, and high expectations flowed in communication verbally and physically, especially the starting lineup of this season's Hawks.

Mike Bibby - Joe Johnson - Marvin Williams - Josh Smith - Al Horford

We at playoffshawks have already analyzed the performances of each player induvidually and collectively last season, many other atlanta sports writers have done the same in more statistical detail, but now it is time for their play to speak for itself. I had a vision of the 08-09 Hawks playing like a well oiled machine, like the 04 Championship Pistons, no one-two scoring option, no LeBron, more like everybody plays in-synch and shares the ball, no one cares to average 20 pts or be the leading scorer, everyone just wants to win, sort of like the 08 Celtics... Now, NO ONE is suggesting the Hawks will go 66-16 this season and win the championship (that would probably cause The Rapture, and the world would surely come to an end), but this Hawks team is capable of winning 47 games, +10 improvement from last season, only a few things are dependant on that occuring this season:

1. DO NOT trade Mike Bibby at mid-season. We all know Bibby is an expirer, but for the love of God do not treat these players like just product. We all understand this is a business, and we all want to improve the team, but chemistry and leadership are the main ingridients to a championship, and though the Hawks may or may not even get to the Finals with this core, it is not outside the realm of possibility with Mike Bibby. Play Bibby the whole season, then decide whether not to give a extention, or let him go and sign another great, better point guard.

2. Josh Smith's leadership.

3. Joe Johnson's consistency.

4. Al Horford's swagger

5. Marvin Williams' continued development.

6. Bench

7. Coach

Sekou Smith in-depth interview with GM Rick Sund

Rick Sund has great vision. He truely has a plan and there is order to the development of this team. Peep the interview
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General manager working on foundation for team’s first winning season since 1998-99

By SEKOU SMITH

The Atlanta Journal-Consitution

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Hawks players aren’t the only ones getting in early work for the upcoming season.

Hawks general manager Rick Sund and his staff are implementing their program in time for training camp — the team’s first after a playoff season in almost a decade.

So while the players convene this week for voluntary track, weight room and on-court workouts, Sund is busy laying the foundation for what he hopes will be the first winning season for the franchise since the 1998-99 (31-19 in the lockout shortened season) and a return trip to the playoffs.

Sund spoke with AJC Hawks beat writer Sekou Smith about all that and more in a recent interview.

Q. Mike Bibby wasn’t healthy last year at any point after coming to the team in a trade deadline deal, how important is it for him to have a training camp with this team and to finally be healthy?

A. What’s good about this upcoming season is Mike was injured a lot last year and I read all the injury reports from our medical people and what they wanted for him was rest. And I think he got that this summer on the thumb. You’re in a situation where it’s a great opportunity for him to be on a team that’s pointed in the right direction and he’s a veteran and a point guard and he seemed to enjoy, from what I could gather watching him playing, himself with this team. But it was an important summer for all of these guys.

Q. Important for all these guys in what ways, specifically?

A. Al Horford had an opportunity to play with the Select Team that played against the Olympic team that won the gold medal and that helped him. Acie Law made the All-Tournament team at the Rocky Mountain Revue, and that shouldn’t be a surprise because he was a first rounder, but we wanted him to go out there and get some quality playing time. We found a couple of players in the summer league that look like they might have some potential for the future, maybe not necessarily this upcoming season but in the future in [Othello] Hunter and [Thomas] Gardner. Josh Smith got signed in early August so now we’re in a situation where he had a month and half where he’s been free to focus and get ready for this season. His situation didn’t linger into training camp. And that’s a big plus. I just think training camp is going to be extremely important for us as a group as well as individually.

Q. It sounds like there is going to be a renewed focus overall for training camp. Is that something you thought was necessary for this team or the way you always prefer to handle business?

A. By virtue of the way they finished last year, with a good taste in their mouths despite getting beat in Game 7, these guys are going to come in with high expectations for themselves, just like the coaching staff and management. We’re going to really focus in on training camp. I’ve had some discussions with Mike [Woodson]. It’s going to be a serious, serious endeavor this year. We’re putting them up at the hotel this year. They’re going to have practice sessions in the morning and skull sessions and meetings and everything at night. We’re going to be like Hard Knocks on HBO, we’re going that route. We’re not going to go crazy because we have rules. But training camp is going to be a 24-7 gig. We’re going to be focused. We want to set some goals and do some things that will … we want to catch some teams ahead of us [in the standings] and keep the seven teams that finished last season behind us, behind us.

Q. Coming off the season this team had and with the changes that occurred this summer, how cautious do you have to be in regard to not overdoing it with the “change” theme, that seems to be all the rage this summer, going into the season?

A. Well, and I think I’m getting your point, the one thing you have to be concerned with is that the season is a marathon and not a sprint. You don’t want to get off to a 6-2 start and think “we’re there” or get off to a 2-6 start and say “you’re not there.” I think you have to battle that to some extent with players as well. You can’t get to high on the highs and too low on the lows. You don’t want them thinking they’ve arrived if they get off to a 6-2 start because you know it’s a marathon. And you also don’t want them down and thinking they’re not that good if they start 2-6. Our schedule the first month is tough because we’ve got a lot of road games. So again, you don’t want to get too high or too low early. And that takes work.

Q. It’s one thing to try sell that perspective to your team but how do you cement that ideology into the way they go about their business?

A. The one thing I have to emphasize this year is that we’re a young veteran team. Josh Smith is a young veteran. He’s started for three or four years. You’re in a situation where Joe Johnson is a young veteran, relatively speaking. But we’ve also made a concerted effort to get some veterans in here with Mo [Evans] and Flip [Murray] and Bibby last year. We’ve got some veterans.

Q. In your experience, how tough a transition is trying to meld new faces and returning faces in such a short period of time?

A. The transition is easier with veterans than it is with rookies, provided they are in the rotation. It’s not something I’m overly concerned about with guys like Mo and Flip specifically, because they’ve been on different teams and have gone into situations like this in the past and done well.

Q. How conscious were you in your tweaking of things this summer to maintain some stability from last season while also trying to affect as much change as you thought was needed?

A. The thing that I think, and if we’ve done anything this offseason, is we took a team that didn’t have a great record last year but made the playoffs and played pretty well in the playoffs, and we had a nice assimilation of some continuity and some change. It starts with the coaching staff. We don’t have the same exact coaching staff we had last year. We’ve got some changes there. Same with management. We have some people that are still here with management and personnel and some that are new. And it goes on with the players. Take Mo, Flip, Randolph Morris, Hunter and Gardner we have five new players that are going to be on this roster. But you still have your core. With a playoff team we’ve managed to maintain some continuity while also adding some changes to the mix. And I think that’s a good way to move forward with a team that made the playoffs with an under .500 record and performed well against the eventual world champions in the playoffs.

Sekou Smith Q&A with Hawks forward Josh Smith

This is a great interview, Sekou always asks the best questions to really allow the interviewee to really show their standard for success and ambition to achieve. Josh Smith is a great player, maybe he'll lead this Hawks team in scoring next season.
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By SEKOU SMITH

Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Friday, September 05, 2008

Hawks forward Josh Smith is ready to lead this season.

Armed with a new contract, a renewed sense of his place on his team and eager to show that last season’s playoff berth was more than just a stroke of luck, Smith is the driving force in unofficial workouts and pickup games at Philips Arena a month before training camp.

Hawks forward Josh Smith is ready to lead this season.

Q. You recently signed a five-year, $58 million contract, why are you in here sweating through pickup games instead of relaxing on the beach somewhere?
A. I came in [a couple weeks back] just after I signed my contract and got one game in. This week I’m here for good. We’ve got to start early like we started last year. We have to keep it up. We came in early last summer about this time and we ended up making the playoffs. We’ve got to do it again this year. And we’ve got new faces as well so we have to give ourselves some time to gel. So I wanted to be here to make sure that happens.

Q. Heading into your fifth year in the league do you feel an increasing need to assume more of a leadership role on this team along with Joe Johnson?
A. I do. It was always about me knowing I would be here and knowing I needed to step up and be a leader. And not just me but also Marvin Williams, Al Horford and all the other guys that have been here and know our program and what we’re about.

Q. Considering the additions and subtractions made since that Game 7 loss to Boston, is this team as good, better or worse going into training camp?
A. I think it’s a little better because the guys we added have been in the playoffs, been in situations and have been on winning teams. They’re veterans who know what it takes to win. Mo Evans played a huge role in Orlando last year. Flip Murray gives us another breakdown guard who can create off the dribble so Joe won’t have to dribble through three and four people at a time. Mo can knock down a consistent 3-point shot and gives us another offensive weapon to spread the floor. And they’re both good defenders. Randolph Morris is a big body that gives us some much needed depth inside and I think overall these are all good additions to our team.

Q. You and Al Horford did most of your work last year within the framework of the offense as opposed to anything schemed specifically for the two of you. Are you guys yearning for more designed opportunities that cater to your abilities on the offensive end?
A. I think so. We’re both good enough post players that we can make moves and cause double teams on the block. Al showed that last year and I showed that whenever I got a chance to get the ball in the post. I think we can have an inside out presence, even though we’re undersized, we can cause a lot of mismatches. And I think that helps our team out to have a more balanced attack.

Q. One of the biggest knocks of your games is you take a lot of 3-pointers, a lot of ill advised 3-pointers. But you obviously feel comfortable taking those shots. How confident are you in that part of your game now?
A. I feel comfortable. You saw me out here [today], taking and making 3-pointers and mid-range jump shots and they were going in. I feel more confident than I ever have in that part of my game. Listen, I know people are going to scrutinize my game even more now that I’ve got a new contract. They’re going to wonder if I’m all of a sudden satisfied and relaxed or am I going to keep getting better and maintain my hunger. I’m a competitor and I’m still hungry. I go in the gym and work hard every single day to work on my overall game. And you can see the improvement on the court. And all the people that knock me for the shots I take … it doesn’t mean anything to me.

Q. Much was made this summer about a rumored strained relationship between you and [Hawks coach] Mike Woodson. Can you finally put that drama to rest now that you’re back here in a Hawks uniform?
A. People talk, man. They’re on the outside looking in. And we’re on the inside dealing with this. Like I said, people are going to have their opinions about me and they’re going to make their assumptions about me. And I can’t do anything about that. And I honestly don’t care to. Coach Woodson and I have a good relationship. We talked several times throughout the summer before my contract was signed. We’re good.

Q. A spin-off from those rumors about a frayed relationship with Woodson was talk of you being hard to coach and malcontent. Are you worried that those perceptions have become a reality for some people?
A. I like to win and I like to show my emotions at times, because I’m a competitor and I hate to lose. And it’s funny to me sometimes that a competitor can be miscast as someone having an attitude. I’ve never heard of anything like that happening before. Like I said before, I’m going to keep doing what I’ve been doing. As long as people ask the right people about me and about my character, and I mean people that actually know me, I’m really not worried about it.

Q. After four full seasons in the league is your game where you expected it to be and where you wanted it to be at this time?
A. Well, I have extremely high expectations for myself. So I’m pleased with how far I’ve come but hardly satisfied. I set goals every year for myself. Some I might not get and some I might. But being 22 and having already played four years in the league and having been a part of the teams I’ve been a part of, I feel like a lot has been accomplished but I’m not close to done yet. I’m not satisfied. I feel like I have more to prove. And I keep getting better every year and keep working on my game, I’ll do just that.

Q. Which of your teammates do you think will surprise people this fall with the improvements he’s made in his game?
A. I’d have to say Marvin. People know him as a mid-range jump shooter but he’s added more to his game. He’s got counter moves and being able to get to the hole and he’s even doing moves in the post that I haven’t seen him do before. I think he’s going to surprise a lot of people.

Q. Is there more pressure on this team now that you’ve made the playoffs?
A. Sure, we have something to prove. And we are a year better. But we’re are one of the top 16 teams in the league and we have to show that every single night and not just every three or four nights. That’s our great challenge as a group and really for some of us as individuals, to play at a high level every night.