As I said in my preview yesterday that in the grand scheme of things a loss to the Knicks only mattered if the Hawks still have the goal to finish higher than fourth in the Eastern Conference. The way they are playing defense right now looks like they are completely happy with maintaining that fourth spot and have no intention or capability to reach any higher. I have said many times that when this team defends it is capable of competing against any other team in the NBA. Conversely it is also capable of losing to anyone on nights when it chooses not to defend as last night’s 99-98 loss to the Knicks entails.
The offensive problems were still there although not quite as prevalent throughout the whole game. Josh Smith did touch the ball enough to get off 22 shots on his way to 25 point, 10 rebound, 6 assist, and 3 block night. It was however his dunk attempt that was blocked at the end of the game that sealed the victory for the Knicks. Al Horford scored 18 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Whatever feel good story Marvin Williams was at the beginning of this month has virtually disappeared the last two games. In his last two games Marvin has attempted nine shots total. Joe Johnson tossed in 22 points on 8-17 shooting. Jamal Crawford chucked up 5-16 shots on his way to 16 points but was only 2 for 8 from three point range.
The Hawks lost this game by allowing the Knicks to shoot 50.6% from the field and 66.7% from three point range. They lost because they allowed Danilo Gallinari to score 27 points on 9-14 shooting when his only offensive weapon is to catch and shoot. The Nets held the Knicks to 0-18 shooting from three point range on Sunday largely because they contested most of those shots. I can’t say the Hawks contested more than two or three of the Knicks 15 attempts on the night. That kind of effort defensively is not going to get the job done on a nightly basis particularly on the road against any team.
I’m growing tired of the roller coaster ride that this blog has become riding high after Hawks victories and falling off the cliff after losses. I am trying to look at this game simply as one of eighty two and nothing more. Still all of the problems that have plagued the Hawks over the last few games are still present. Lack of ball movement, lack of commitment to the inside game, questionable shot selection at key points throughout the game and now you can add another one that has become a trend. The Hawks look completely clueless against a zone defense right now. As Michael Cunningham pointed out in his pregame blog yesterday:
There’s even less player movement than normal, there are pointless passes around the perimeter and there are rushed shots. Woody has said most opponents back off the zone once the Hawks shoot them out of it. But what about those games like the two recent losses where they don’t shoot them out of it? Then it’s another “We missed good shots” lament after a defeat.
Clearly the Hawks have to figure out something else. So what exactly is the plan vs. a zone? “Good ball movement, attack the defense and penetrate and dish,” J.J. said after the loss to the Mavs. Sounds good. Now maybe the Hawks should try doing it.
To read that Coach Woodson said that opponents tend to back off the zone when the Hawks shoot them out of it clearly signifies our plan against the zone and really our offensive plan against any defense. What happens when those thirty footers don’t go in? Is there a back up plan? For some reason playing through Josh Smith in the high post is the back up plan. Odd since we completely dismantled a very good Utah team on their home floor while utilizing that strategy when they had switched to zone.
The Hawks have a couple of days to work on some things and will try and bounce back against the Wizards on Thursday in the make up from the game that was snowed out. It is a much needed rest and I hope they as a team will look to shore up some of these areas of concern before they head back out on the floor. Its true that the remaining games on the regular season schedule probably won’t make or break the Hawks down the stretch. They will win enough to hold their position in the East but it is crazy to think that they can continue into the playoffs and have these same breakdowns and expect to be successful.
If the goal is still to finish higher than fourth in the Eastern Conference then this is a game that the Hawks have to win. If that is in fact the goal then they can no longer succumb to the mental lapses that they exhibited down the stretch in Miami. The remaining two games on the road trip are tonight’s against the Knicks and Thursday’s against the Wizards. While it is tough to win on the road in the NBA these are games that the Hawks simply should win against non playoff teams. Its important to get these games before the schedule turns a little tougher at the end of the month. The Knicks are coming off a loss to the New Jersey Nets so they are struggling but remain a team that on any given night can put up a ton of points given the style that they play. Playing solid defense will be key tonight to keep someone like David Lee or Al Harrington from having a huge night.
It is unfortunate that these Atlanta Hawks can’t realize on a nightly basis what works for them and what doesn’t. It is even more unfortunate that they don’t have a coaching staff that can point these things out to them and then require that they do the things that make them successful. Last nights game against the Miami Heat was a perfect example.
During the first half the Hawks continually dumped the ball inside causing the Heat defense to collapse. The Hawks Al Horford and Josh Smith did a great job of finding open teammates spotting up from distance. With ball movement comes easier shots, and easier shots go in at a higher percentage than harder shots.It is no surprise that the Hawks led much of the first half and also stretched that lead out to double figures.
When the second half started the Hawks decided to skip a step and abandoned throwing the ball inside at all. Sure Jamal Crawford came in and got hot hitting what seemed like three pointer after three pointer. However, I want to point out that just because a shot goes in doesn’t necessarily make it a good shot and poor shot selection is not a recipe for success. Contrast that with what Miami did. While the Hawks were gunning away from the outside Dwayne Wade was busy driving the ball to the basket and getting to the free throw line. When the Hawks adjusted on Defense and tried to collapse on Wade he simply kicked the ball out to Quentin Richardson who was left all alone due to the shifting defense. The Heat last night recognized the recipe for success and the Hawks ignored it.
The Hawks fourth quarter looked reminiscent of the last two games against Miami. Michael Beasley sealed the win with two huge threes and one huge offensive rebound tap in. The Hawks couldn’t secure a rebound when they had to have it and couldn’t hit a jump shot when it mattered. The lesson to be learned is if you live by the jump shot then you die by the jump shot. Long contested jumpers don’t go in at crunch time, particularly on the second night of back to back games when the legs start to go. However that doesn’t deter these Hawks from trying. I really can’t blame Al Horford or Josh Smith for not being able to convert late or for not grabbing that rebound because basically they were ignored for the whole second half until the final minutes of the game. Hats off to Erik Spoelstra for switching to a zone knowing that the Hawks will just jack up jumpers if they are allowed to.
So the Hawks lost a game that they pretty much controlled for three quarters. You could say it was no big deal over the course of an 82 game season and I would be inclined to agree with you if not for the fact that we have now lost three out of four to Miami. The most troubling thing to me is that when the Hawks lose you can say the same things about nearly every loss. Jermaine O’Neal injured his knee and yet the Hawks still ignored attacking the hoop. On a night when Joe Johnson attempts more threes (11) than Al Horford has field goal attempts (6) I needn’t look any further in the box score to figure out why the Hawks lost.
Three game road trip coming up beginning in New York on Monday night. Here is hoping that in the mean time someone at least points out to this team what works and what doesn’t.
ATLANTA - MARCH 5: Mike Bibby #10 of the Atlanta Hawks puts up a shot against the Golden State Warriors on March 5, 2010 at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. Copyright 2010 NBAE (Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images)
Due to work obligations I had to miss this game last night. It is sitting on my DVR but as of yet I haven’t had a chance to watch. With the quick turn around with the Miami game there is a chance that I may not get to. In the mean time here are some thoughts:
Nice to see that the Hawks pretty much played from the inside out last night with Josh Smith and Al Horford leading the way with 29 and 27 respectively.
Mike Bibby was a beneficiary of the inside out play scoring 23 points including 7-9 shooting from deep.
Marvin Williams was active despite only scoring 12 points. He had 14 rebounds 9 of which were offensive. You don’t grab 14 rebounds without being active.
The Atlanta Hawks scored 127 points and Joe Johnson only had 10 points……..and they won.
The pipe dream officially has come to an end. Zydrunas Ilgauskas agent has told the Hawks that his client plans on returning to the Cavaliers.
“He was very impressed by the (Hawks’) efforts to sign him,” agent Herb Rudoy wrote in a text message. “He spoke to a couple of (Hawks) players and was really encouraged by them to play in Atlanta. At the end his long relationship with the Cavs won out.”
Not at all surprised really but would still like to know what the Hawks actually offered him.
ATLANTA - MARCH 3: Joe Johnson(notes) #2 of the Atlanta Hawks puts up a shot against the Philadelphia 76ers on February 28, 2010 at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images)
The Hawks close out a short home stand tonight against the Golden State Warriors before heading out tomorrow on a three game road trip. They will be looking for revenge against the Warriors tonight as they blew an 18 point lead in the last meeting. Since that game the Hawks have won five of their last six games with the only loss coming against the Dallas Mavericks.
The Warriors come into the game tonight a mess much like they have been the entire season. As of this writing it appears that Monta Ellis, Andris Biedrins, and Corey Maggette will all not play. With the Warriors not having a lot of size inside look for the Hawks to continue to pound the offensive and defensive glass in much the same way they have done in their last two games where they have held a sizable advantage.
Ultimately the Warriors are in worse shape than they were a few short weeks ago. A sufficiently motivated Hawks team should be able to control this game from the outset. Motivation should not be a problem considering how they blew the big lead against this team in the last match up. A victory is key tonight if for no other reason than a loss would send the Hawks blogosphere spinning off of its axis. In all seriousness I would like to see the Hawks grab control of this one early and rest the starters for the match up with Miami tomorrow whom we have not played well against lately.
I will also be watching the play of Marvin Williams tonight. Over his last two games Marvin is averaging just under 20 points and 9 rebounds a game. More important than the numbers is that Marvin remain aggressive and continue to attack the offensive glass and take the ball to the rim. The Hawks are clearly a more dangerous team with Marvin as a threat rather than having him playing passively.
The debate got me to thinking. I went in search of a late first round point guard that got significant playing time as a rookie for a contending team.
I’m sure there are others but I went back to the 2008 draft and looked at the Spurs selection of guard George Hill out of IUPUI. Hill came into the draft with little fan fare and was a junior rather than a freshman like Teague. He did have the benefit of playing a Summer League season for the Spurs which Jeff Teague did not. Hill was selected with the 26th pick by the Spurs. Teague was selected with the 19th pick.
The Spurs during the 2008-09 season were coming off a loss in the Western Conference Finals and upon the start of the season they basically handed the back up point guard job to Hill. Hill played in 77 games his rookie season. During that time he averaged 16.5 minutes per game. In my opinion on a team like the Spurs who consider themselves a championship contender every season that is a big responsibility for a rookie point guard. Yet Spurs coach Gregg Popovich thrust Hill right into the mix. To Hill’s credit he played well once he was given the opportunity. Had he not then I am sure he wouldn’t have played in 77 games. Still you see a different philosophy at work here.
To date Jeff Teague has played in 52 games and is averaging 9.4 minutes per game. Much of that time is coming in the second quarter and many times Teague is not heard from again. As has been said before Teague is relegated to running with the reserves and often times plays off the ball due to it being in the hands of Jamal Crawford. Let me also point out that there may be more point guard options on the Hawks than there was for the Spurs. The Hawks have Mike Bibby but also have Jamal Crawford and Joe Johnson that are more than capable of bringing the ball up and initiating the offense. The Spurs had Parker and really only Manu Ginobli that were really capable of getting the Spurs started. Ginobli like Crawford was needed to score so facilitating the offense was not his first priority.
The point I really want to make here is the Spurs are probably one of the best teams in the NBA at drafting. Season after season they pick late in the first round, and they do it well. They are constantly coming up with players that fit in with them and contribute. Those players usually find themselves thrust into the rotation and the Spurs still compete at a high level in the Western Conference. One thing I have noticed about the Spurs is if they draft you then you very seldom will be relegated to the bench for a couple of seasons to prepare. They don’t select players that they don’t believe can be an integral part of their team. So if a little know guard out of IUPUI can get picked 26th in the draft and be given playing time for a team that played in the Western Conference Finals then why can’t Jeff Teague who was drafted 19th out of a basketball conference like the ACC get on the floor for the Hawks?
The answer lies in the difference of the two coaches. I don’t know that Gregg Popovich is any better than Mike Woodson at preparing players but I have my suspicions. I do know that Popovich has no problem with throwing a young player into the fire and expecting him to perform. Woodson doesn’t trust young players. He thinks they need to wait their turn when they play for a good team. The Hawks would be better served going into the off season if they knew more about what Teague could do on the floor. However, it seems that those questions will remain unanswered going into next season.
