“Blood Type: Mamba!”
A Weekend in Hollywood! Sure sounds like fun, on the surface. But after squandering a big opportunity laid before them in Oakland, the Atlanta Hawks are looking at the upcoming pair of games at Staples Center more as an Escape From L.A.
The Hawks want to keep this back-to-back set, beginning with Kobe Bryant’s Los Angeles Lakers (10:30 PM Eastern, Fox Sports Southeast, 92.9 FM in ATL, ESPN, TimeWarner Cable SportsNet) and ending with the Clippers, from feeling more like a Weekend at Bernie’s. To do that, they’ll have to shed the deadweights of “Can’t Make Clutch Shots” and “Can’t Grab Crucial Rebounds” off of their shoulders.
Okay, so by now you’ve certainly tired of hearing how Hawks opponents are coming into games shorthanded and hobbling, so let’s get the Lakers’ health issues out of the way with the quickness.
Dealing with soreness in his right shoulder, Kobe Bryant was made to sit after one quarter in Denver on Wednesday, one day after sitting out L.A.’s last home win against the Nyets. Jordan Clarkson dropped 11 points on the Nuggets in that first quarter, but exited in the third with a patellar tendon strain. Both guards are listed as questionable, but I’d expect Kobe to make at least a brief appearance early in the game.
Snellville’s Finest, Lou Williams was a scratch in the Denver game is will remain out for at least a week due to a strained hammy. One of the great NBA Juniors, Larry Nance, Jr. is probable to return after sitting out of the Denver game with a sore knee.
As bad and broken down as the Lakers (12-50) have been, it’s worth noting that they held a fourth-quarter lead in Denver on the second night of a back-to-back, courtesy of a Nick Young three-pointer with just over nine minutes to go in the contest. They’re also reasonably rested. The games versus Brooklyn and Denver came after a three-day layoff.
You’ve got to admit that Lakers coach Byron Scott has played his cards well. The win against Brooklyn was the sole victory in L.A.’s past ten games. Yet, Scott will survive this season, because the Lakers’ brass understands that this is merely a Farewell Tour disguised as a competitive NBA campaign. Besides, the most valuable thing Scott can do for the Lakers, while certainly on his way out the door this spring, is to maximize the preservation of their first-rounder, which goes to Tankadelphia if it somehow falls out from the Top 3.
Coach Scott has heard the catcalls for a fuller commitment to the youth movement. That means releasing a link or two from the leashes holding back D’Angelo Russell (41.5 FG% pre-Break, 51.6% post-Break) and Julius Randle (41.7 FG% pre-Break, 46.8% post-Break; 31.5 D-Reb%, 4th in NBA). But to Scott, that also means seeing more of what SoCal high school star guard Anthony Brown and center Tarik Black can bring to the table. The rookie Brown is getting trial-by-fire as the first option off the bench in place of Kobe. In his second season, Black has been a stout rebounder and rim-protecting center to spell Roy Hibbert, despite his 6-foot-9 frame. To close out the season, expect less of Bryant, Hibbert, Young, and Metta World Peace, and more of these guys.
If Bryant, Clarkson, and LouWill cannot go, that’s just more opportunity for the budding rookie Russell to shine. On Tuesday, Russell poured 39 points on Brooklyn in his certifiably best perimeter shooting contribution (8-for-12 3FGs) this season. For his next act, he led the way with 24 points in Denver, and while his jumper wasn’t as wet (3-for-9 3FGs), he did distribute the ball well (6 assists, 1 TO) while going head-to-head with Emmanuel Mudiay.
The same could be said of Russell’s backup, 32-year-old Brazilian rookie Marcelo Huertas (8 assists, 1 TO). Ultimately, when it came down to defense, neither guard could handle Nuggets’ newest arrival: D.J. Augustin, formerly of the Thunder, tore the Lakers asunder with 26 points in 23 minutes (22 in the fourth quarter!) to top Mudiay’s 22 points.
D.J. kept playing that song with the kind of balanced offensive performance that should have Atlanta’s Dennis Schröder (17 points, season-high 8 FT attempts @ GSW) licking his chops. Schröder spelled Jeff Teague with five minutes to go in regulation with the Hawks down ten points on Tuesday, and never looked back. Teague will be well-rested, but the more coach Mike Budenholzer can preserve his starter for Saturday’s follow-up game against Chris Paul and the Clippers, the better. Tonight’s game is a good chance for the Hawks to see what Kirk Hinrich can contribute off the bench.
As a whole, the Lakers have been the league’s worst shooters (41.6 team FG%) and the worst inside-the-perimeter defenders (51.9 opponent 2FG%). But they can stay in the thick of things if they can keep opponents cool from outside (34.9 opponent 3FG%, 12th-best in NBA), force trips to the free throw line (25.2 FT attempts/game, 4th in NBA), and rebound the heck out of the ball (8-16 in games with more than 45 rebounds, 4-34 otherwise).
In a close-to-the-vest fourth-quarter contest, the Lakers have gunners (Kobe, Russell, Clarkson, Lou, Young) who are more than happy to take a big shot. It’s exactly the type of scenario the Hawks (33-28), now losers of three overtimes in their last eight games, are desperate to avoid.
From Derrick Favors to Nik Vucevic, from Jarrett Jack and Damjan Rudez, to Carmelo Anthony and Archie Goodwin, from Mario Hezonja and Evan Fournier to Greg Monroe and Michael Carter-Williams, from Luol Deng to Klay Thompson and Steph Curry and now, Draymond Green, the Hawks have made a habit out of being present for opponents’ fourth-quarter-and-OT highlight reels.
Their foes’ varied prayers get answered eventually because the Hawks fail to close the door with execution, usually after they’ve worked so hard to get themselves a lead. Atlanta’s spiffy little defensive rating (99.6 opponent points per 100 possessions, 2nd in NBA) drops to a league-worst 135.8 in overtime, the offensive rating of 73.1 (28th in NBA) not much better.
The Hawks have found themselves in clutch scenarios (last five minutes of the fourth quarter or overtime; teams within five points of the lead at some point) in 36 games this season, tied with the Raptors and Pelicans for the fourth-most occasions in the league. Yet in those circumstances, the Hawks have shot just 31.5% on three-pointers, contributing to a 17-19 record, whereas Toronto’s 37.7 3FG% has them at 23-13. The league leader in clutch threes? Draymond can tell you. Golden State’s 40.8% shooting from deep has them at 22-1 on the season.
Suffice to say, you don’t want to be down or up a few points in the closing minutes of regulation, with Nick Young in house shoes hoping to get himself on SportsCenter. And you don’t want to be up all night wrangling with the Lakers while the Clippers are chilling in their adobes and taking notes from home.
Left mostly on Alcatraz Island for almost 40 minutes (the only other sorta-center, Mike Muscala, logged less than three minutes @ GSW), Al Horford (23 points, 16 rebounds, 6 assists, 5 steals) will need a big breather ahead of tomorrow’s contest with DeAndre Jordan and company. Muscala is not in the best of moods right now (nobody ask him about Holy Cross last night) and ought to be itching for a productive game fending off L.A.’s myriad of big men. Like Hinrich, this is an ideal time to get Kris Humphries into the rotation.
The weak defense by the Lakers’ guards and wings should present ample opportunities for Kent Bazemore and Thabo Sefolosha to get on the board, particularly on cuts and transition opportunities. Kyle Korver, Tim Hardaway, Jr., and Mike Scott (combined 7-for-13 3FGs @ GSW) should find the water just fine from downtown at Staples.
Paul Millsap (1-for-6 3FGs @ GSW) can afford to lay off the three-pointers for awhile and focus on getting his post game back, against a Laker frontline that will much prefer to have Sap earn his points at the line. If he must stretch the floor, Millsap can instead try some mid-range shots when they come in the flow of the offense. If Randle and Bass come out to challenge, Millsap can take them inside off the dribble to finish plays.
Atlanta has only forced 17 turnovers from opposing players in the past two games. Meanwhile, with the ball less in Kobe’s hands and more in the hands of shooters and putback players, the Lakers have only piled up double-digit turnovers in six of their past 12 games, compared to 45 times in their first 50. Forcing Russell and the younger Lakers into mistakes with the basketball will revive the transition offense engine for Atlanta (19.3 points off turnovers, 2nd in NBA). However the Hawks get it done tonight, they need not keep everybody up late.
Let’s Go Hawks!
~lw3
