ATLANTA, GA – MARCH 8: Josh Smith #5 of the Atlanta Hawks drives to the basket against Pau Gasol #16 of the Los Angeles Lakers on March 8, 2011 at Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2011 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)

February 21 is the NBA trade deadline. This means that there are only 16 more days until I can stop hearing and reading about these ridiculous trade ideas that involves Atlanta Hawks forward Josh Smith and some player or contract that we wouldn’t want or need *cough* Pau Gasol *cough*.  But just for the sake of the trade deadline, I will list my thoughts on what the top 5 trade scenarios could be for J-Smoove and the Hawks.

***

1.) Josh Smith to Phoenix for Marcin Gortat and Jared Dudley: I’m sure that most of us heard the rumor that the Suns are interested.  Gortat and Dudley for Smith could help both teams in seeing that Atlanta is getting a wing player in addition to a skilled center that can push Horford to the 4, while the Suns get a new face for their franchise.

2.) Josh Smith to Denver for Timofey Mozgov and Danilo Gallinari:  This is another instance in which Atlanta will be getting a center that can hopefully push Al to the 4.  Also, Mozgov has an expiring contract which would give the Hawks more cap room at the end of the season.  Gallinari will give us what we desperately need in a scoring wing and also and a player that create their own shot, something Atlanta has been lacking since Lou Williams went done for the remained of the season.

3.) Josh Smith to Houston for Patrick Patterson, Chandler Parsons, Cole Aldrich, and Marcus Morris: Houston will get a great player to go with Lin and Harden while Atlanta gets a ton of young talent to start re-building with.  Simple as that.

4.) Josh Smith to Detroit for Andre Drummond and Rodney Stuckey:  Now this is my personal favorite and I doubt this will ever happen, but this would be my dream.  Drummond has Dwight Howard potential and in order to get him we would probably have to take back a bad contract of either Stuckey or Charlie Villanueva.  Personally, I prefer Stuckey because he looks like 50 cent and because Charlie V is just horrible.

5.) Josh Smith to Sacramento for Tyreke Evans and Jason Thompson: I saw this one and it left me intrigued.  Tyreke has one year left on his contract and there is no guarantee that he would stay in Atlanta but in the very least it will free up a little cap space.  Jason Thompson is okay in my book but this will just be another player added to the list of PF’s that might have to play center.  Oh, and I would definitely enjoy imagining the entertainment we would see by having DeMarcus Cousins and Smoove on the same team.

***

Well there are my top 5 trade scenarios that I would like to see happen.  I doubt that Josh will get traded due to the whole thing with his trade kicker but it is nice to dream.  Let me know of your thoughts; if you prefer one of my suggestions or if you have one of your own.

March 14, 2011; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard (12) loses control of the ball against the defense of Los Angeles Lakers power forward Pau Gasol (center) and shooting guard Kobe Bryant (24) during the second half at the Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-US PRESSWIRE

We have all woken up from our horrible Dwightmare. Dwight Howard is going to the Lakers in a blockbuster four team trade involving the 76ers, the Nuggets and of course the Magic.

The quick breakdown:

• Philadelphia receives Andrew Bynum from the Lakers and Jason Richardson from Orlando
• Denver gets Andre Iguodala from the 76ers
• Orlando gets Nikola Vucevic and Moe Harkless from the Sixers, Josh McRoberts and Christian Eyenga from the Lakers, Arron Afflalo and Al Harrington from Denver, as well as a first round pick from each team along with a second round pick from the Nuggets and Lakers
• Dwight Howard also brings Chris Duhon and Earl Clark to Los Angeles with him.

The fact that the Lakers kept Pau Gasol to pair with Dwight in the frontcourt makes the Lakers the obvious short term winner in the deal. Think about a first team of Steve Nash, Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Dwight Howard and Ron Mettartest World Peace whatchamacallit. Pair that with Steve Blake, Antawn Jamison, Jordan Hill, and others off the bench and you have a team that is the outright favorite in the West and one that asserts itself as 1A to the Miami Heat’s #1 status.

From the Magic’s perspective, considering that Dwight was holding them hostage by demanding a trade ruining any leverage they may have had, they came out with a decent package that allows themselves to jumpstart the rebuilding process. They would have been foolish to try to wait around for a deal similar to the return Denver got for Carmelo Anthony. Vucevic and Harkless are promising young players, though untested, that can learn alongside Andrew Nicholson and Kyle O’Quinn as recent draft picks. Considering the best holdovers from last year’s team are Jameer Nelson, JJ Redick, Hedo Turkoglu and Glen “Big Baby” Davis, the  Magic will look to bottom out quickly then rebuild through the draft with the multitude of picks at their disposal in the coming years.

Denver and Philadelphia were auxiliary components in this trade but rather interesting in their own right. After signing Nene to a long term deal (5 years at $13 million a year) before trading him for JaVale McGee, Denver went a similar route by signing Arron Afflalo (5 years at $7.75 million a year) then flipping him and a quickly declining Al Harrington to get Andre Iguodala, who is owed a little less than $15 million this year with a player option for almost $16 million in 2013. He joins Danilo Gallinari and Wilson Chandler on the wings in the Mile High City. Those three joined with Ty Lawson, McGee, Kenneth Faried and others makes for a fun up-and-down relentless attack. I’d say the Nuggets got better with this trade but still no better than middle of the pack in the brutal Western Conference.

Andrew Bynum was born and raised in middle New Jersey, less than an hour away from Philadelphia, so the Sixers seem to be trying to woo him to a long term deal in a city close to home after the season. Jason Richardson is an interesting piece as well to fill the void without Iguodala. The 76ers went for broke, trading away their best player, though disgruntled, as well as young assets and a first round pick. It makes them a better team in 2012-13 (as well as preventing a laughable Spencer Hawes-Kwame Brown starting frontcourt), but if Andrew Bynum leaves in free agency, they will rue this trade.

From the Atlanta Hawks angle, this is a disappointment for the patrons of Philips Arena. One would think that Los Angeles is now the odds on destination for Dwight to sign a longterm deal, leaving the Hawks with a very slim to none chance of landing the hometown kid. They might have to turn their attention to Andrew Bynum or a the chances Chris Paul could get crowded out of the Los Angeles spotlight in the summer of 2013. Danny Ferry will most likely have to get creative next year, although he’s already proven himself capable of transforming a roster before our eyes.

Unless Dwight changes his mind again…

Couldn't draw it up better than that. Mandatory Credit: Cary Edmondson-US PRESSWIRE

In the fifth game of the six game road trip, the Atlanta Hawks traveled to Denver to face a tough and resilient Nuggets team.

The Atlanta Hawks had every opportunity to win the game, but they just weren’t lucky and fortunate enough in the fourth quarter and overtime.

• With the Nuggets down by two with 9 seconds left in the 4th quarter, Jannero Pargo received the inbound pass but turned the ball over when Corey Brewer swiped the ball and the ball went off of Pargo’s leg.
• Danilo Gallinari was forced to take a tough fading three pointer in the corner and somehow made it to put the Nuggets up by 1 with 3 seconds left in regulation. Josh Smith & Joe Johnson couldn’t have defended it better.
• Kirk Hinrich drew a foul with 1 second left in regulation, and had two free throw attempts to win the game. Hinrich, who is a career 81% free throw shooter, made the first one but saw the second one roll out, meaning he could only send the game into overtime.
• Josh Smith,  who had only had four fouls going into overtime, fouled out of the game and only got to play 2 minutes and 14 seconds in overtime (fouled out with 2:46 left in OT).
• With the Nuggets down by 1 with 26 seconds left in overtime, Nene, who is a career and season 67% free throw shooter, hit both free throws to put the Nuggets up by 1.
• With the Hawks down 1, Joe Johnson, who was stepping up in overtime, scoring 7 points, missed the go ahead layup with 3 seconds left in overtime.
• The Hawks had one last opportunity to win, and Larry Drew drew up one of the more impressive plays he called during the entire game, as he got Zaza Pachulia wide open in the paint, but Zaza missed the wide open layup as time expred that would have been the game winner. Hawks lost by 1.

But like I said in the title, you can’t single handedly blame loss on one individual. There were multiple factors on why the Hawks lost this game. It’s not because Joe Johnson couldn’t close. It’s not because Kirk Hinrich missed the free throw. It’s not because Josh Smith fouled out. It’s not because Larry Drew had the wrong players on the court. It’s not because of Zaza’s wide open missed layup. It was all of that combined, plus the lack of defense in the first half.

This was a tough loss. The Hawks had every opportunity to win, they just, once again….wasn’t fortunate enough.

Final Score: Hawks 117 | Nuggets 118 OT
_________________________________________________________________________________________

SDS Player of the Game (Josh Smith)
This is the first time I’m doing this this season, but I’m giving the SDS Player of the Game award to a player in a losing team. Josh Smith was just great….quite amazing, if you take first quarter away where he went 0-5 from the field. He finished with 33 points (season high), 13 rebounds, 7 assists, and 2 blocks. He also hit 2 of his 3 three pointers and hit all 5 of his free throw attempts. He was just great, and the Hawks surely missed him when he fouled out in early in overtime.

Appreciating Joe Johnson
I have respect for the Atlanta Hawks fan base. Especially those who have been supporting this team even when they weren’t a playoff team, but man, a lot of Hawks fans are hard to satisfy.

Like I tweeted last night, Joe Johnson had a season high 34 points while shooting 50% from the field (scoring 7 points in OT) and some fans were still complaining about his performance. Sure, the Hawks didn’t win the game, but it’s pretty ignorant to single out Joe Johnson and blaming him for the loss.

I know Joe Johnson had some pretty crucial turnovers, but fans have to respect what he did last night. I don’t think I’m being bias when I say that. I seriously think that those who criticize Joe  for his performance last night, simply just have too high of expectations for him.

Defending Larry Drew…and did he get a technical?!
I have to defend Larry Drew too. He’s getting criticized too much as well. Sure, he wasn’t perfect last night, but he did some things last night that were impressive.

For one, he got a technical! The unthinkable happened, and he got a technical. He stood up for Josh Smith after the refs missed a blatant foul on Nene, and the refs gave Larry Drew his first technical foul of the season. I’m not going to lie, that was one of the highlights of the night for me.

Secondly, I know he went to iso-Joe probably a bit too much late in the 4th quarter, but give him credit for realizing it and drawing up a play for Josh Smith (who had that amazing spin move on Nene by the way).

Third, give Larry Drew credit for the lineup change he has done. Hinrich seems to be getting it going now, and Marvin looks like he’s playing more effectively off the bench.

Also, I know Larry Drew was criticized for having Vladimir Radmanovic on the floor, but seriously, what other option does he have when Josh Smith fouled out? Marvin got injured, McGrady was resting, and Ivan Johnson wasn’t with the team because of a family matter. The only other option Coach Drew had was Erick Dampier, and no offense to Dampier, but I would much rather take a chance on Vladimir Radmanovic (even if he was having a pretty bad game).

As short handed as the Hawks are, Coach Drew got his team to compete and put the Hawks in so many opportunities to steal a win in Denver….but like I said before, the Hawks and Larry Drew just weren’t fortunate enough.

Defense in 1st half was biggest reason for Hawks loss

Joe wasn’t the biggest reason for the loss. Neither was Larry Drew. Neither was Zaza. Neither was Hinrich. Neither was Radmanovic. Neither was Josh Smith. Neither was Jeff Teague. Neither was the ball boy….you get the point.

Defense in the first half was why the Hawks lost. The perimeter defenders couldn’t stop the Nuggets from going inside, and the interior defenders didn’t provide much help. The Nuggets scored 64 points in the first half in 60% shooting. That’s really the biggest reason the Hawks lost.

The defense tightened up in the second half, but still, the Denver Nuggets scored a whopping 60 points in the paint. Geez.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Nuggets & Hawks Players & Coaches Quotes/Reactions:

Zaza Pachulia on missed game winning layup attempt:

Just missed it. It was a great opportunity for me.

 

Larry Drew on the final play:

The execution was perfect. We executed. That was probably the best play we executed all night. ‘Z’ just missed a point-blank layup. But I told the guys it didn’t come down to that. That game was lost in the first half when we didn’t make a stand defensively and they basically had their way with us.

 

Joe Johnson wants to blame loss on himself:

We don’t put this game on Zaza missing a layup or Kirk not making a free throw. I look at the stat sheet and I had five turnovers and probably three of those were at crucial times.

 

Kirk Hinrich on his miss free throw attempt in end of regulation:

It’s tough. I had a chance to win it. I made the hard one, the first one, and I missed the second. I’m very disappointed.

 

Zaza Pachulia on the loss:

We had so many opportunities, you know. I don’t think we were lucky today. Of course it’s not an excuse. I have to finish that. But if you think about it, the turnover we had over there off Pargo’s leg, Gallinari’s three, Kirk’s free throw and my layup. That’s four big things. We just weren’t lucky today. Again, that’s not an excuse and personally, me, I have to finish when I have that kind of opportunity. I take that blame on my shoulders.

 

Joe Johnson on Danilo Gallinari’s three that put Nuggets up 1:

I don’t know how he made it. It was definitely a tough shot. He caught it kind of fading. But before that we couldn’t get big stops. They were either scoring or we were fouling.

Zaza Pachulia tweets about loss and missed GW layup:

Had a great opportunity to win the game but blew it up.I’m very disappointed.Hope I’ll be in same situation soon and will execute it better.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

Extra Short Notes/Box Score Watching:

• The Atlanta Hawks were outscored in the paint 42 to 60.
• Both Joe Johnson and Josh Smith finished with season highs in points. Johnson had 34. Smith had 33.
• Zaza Pachulia grabbed a respectable 13 rebounds.
• Kirk Hinrich had his best game of the season, scoring 22 points in 7-8 shooting. Only had 1 turnover too!
• Marvin Williams scored 10 points in 23 minutes. Injured his hip and will not be playing tonight vs Clippers (seriously?)
• Vladimir Radmanovic was completely useless. Shot 4 shots. All three pointers. All misses.
• Tracy McGrady didn’t play as LD decided not to play him in the first game of a back-to-back. Will play tonight though (hopefully).
• According to Elias, Denver’s win over Atlanta was the Nuggets’ sixth consecutive win in an overtime game at home. That ties Denver with Chicago for the longest current overtime home winning streak for any NBA team, and it’s the longest such streak in Denver’s NBA history.
• The Denver Nuggets now hold a four game overall win streak vs the Hawks, and hold a five game win streak vs the Hawks in Pepsi Center.
• The Hawks record is now (24-18) and are still solidly maintaining their 6th seed spot.
• With this loss, the Hawks now are now .500 in road games (12-12).
• They are now 3.5 games behind the Orlando Magic (3rd seed).
• They are now only 1.5 games ahead of the Boston Celtics (7th seed) and 6 games ahead of the Milwaukee Bucks (8th seed).
• Hawks are now 4-3 in the month of March.