TheTruth

Good point. As we have all said, Woody decided to move away from what was working in the first half. PG play today was outstanding, yet didnt seem to touch the ball in the final minutes. But hey, what do I know?

We all can dream...

So true. How ridiculous. Joe is straight getting owned by Roy. Joe is not Kobe...draw up a play for someone else every now and then damnit! Marvin Williams has been stroking it lately, damn. Get him isolated and he will knock it down. But grief, you could depend on Kobe and Jordan to make those shots because they had elite talent and really, really wanted the ball in crunch time. Plus, they had a rep for knocking down those shots for years. Joe Johnson is NOT that. He's a good player--even a star, dont get me wrong. But EVERY friggin time we need a big shot, it's "Give it to Joe, stand around and watch."

I bet McMillan said this to his players during the timeout before the Hawks tried the game-winning shot, "The ball IS going to Joe. Every other Hawk will stand around and watch. Therefore, I want you Roy to continue guarding him, and we need another long-armed body on him...Hm, you there Outlaw. Surround him with Roy as well. If you do this, Joe will force a tough shot, miss, and we win. I guarantee it. Ok, break."

And that's what happened.

I gotta feel for the Hawks players. They played their hearts out in the entire first half and some of the 3rd quarter. But for some reason, we move away from what had been working for the first half and decide to be lax defensively. We allow just 19 and 18 pts respectively in the first two quarters, but allow 26 and 31 in the last two. How pathetic. Yeah, turnovers hurt us bad in the second half, but damn...

Three straight plays to Outlaw for three pointers. Outlaw made the first two, and had it not been for Smoove's block, would have been another. Joe Johnson abused Roy last time these teams met, but Joe was getting abused by him in the 4th quarter--and it was happening early in the 4th quarter. Woody, make a defensive switch. Seriously. Josh Smith sat too long throughout the second half, and Horford sat out a tad too long as well. This is getting old...

NONE of that suffocating defense the Hawks had in the first half was there for any extended or consistent basis in the second half. *Sigh* What a disgusting loss to a team we should have beat BOTH times already. Good friggin grief.

Our Hawks LOVE to make things interesting eh?

This is what having a consistent 3 pointer can do for a team. The Blazers sure have clawed their way back. We sure have turned up the turnovers this half--that, more than anything, has allowed the Blazers to come back. Gotta make your free throws and open looks from here on out.

Ok Woody, it is time to take Pachulia out now. He has looked good, but the Blazers are going at him and now the lead is down to 8 again. Insert Horford.

http://www.channelsurfing.net/

Scroll to the bottom. You will see the Atlanta vs Portland game link. That's where I watch them.

The Bottom Line is that you are mostly right. The problem IS coaching, and this team will not go anywhere or do anything of significance as long as Woodson is here.

The Bottom Line is that Woodson won't be fired until AFTER the season is over thanks to our inept owners.

The Bottom Line is that Acie SHOULD be starting, or at the very least, be getting the BULK of the PG minutes. We won't know what we have if Woodson keeps planting him on the bench every time he makes a friggin mistake!

The Bottom Line is that these players are not stupid. They know they have the talent to do big things, but they are beginning to realize that these "big things" will likely never materialize as long as Woodson and the ASG continue in the status quo.

The Bottom Line is that a shakeup in the roster may indeed be needed, but the likelihood of such a profitable and reasonable trade IN-SEASON for the Hawks is relatively low.

The Bottom Line is that even if these Hawks make the playoffs, they will be bounced out in the first round under its current leadership.

The Bottom Line...? Before the Hawks can improve, Woodson MUST be let go. It all starts with him. Period.

Thanks for shedding light on whose names were mentioned...

I'm also against any deal involving Smoove! It would be great if Grizz would take a package of basically Chillz, Shelden + filler or two... But that's a long shot!

If we are going to land Gasol, we'll have to give up Marvin or Smoove! I know... it sucks! However, IMO that's the only way we're gonna get our team to another level...

With:

PF = Smoove, Horford.

SF = Marvin, Chillz.

It's obvious that we have a log jam with no Real Center.

For the future, Acie = Only PG signed.

Without Chillz, JJ = Only SG signed.

What's the fix?

Has to be shopping for Gasol.

It would be nice if we can trade Marvin/Filler for Gasol. However, more than likely, Smoove/Filler will get us Gasol. We just have to make three demands with that:

1. They take Speedy.

2. We get Navarro.

3. We do not take on Cardinal.

Now, if they take Marvin, i would be more willing to take back Cardinal... but not if they're getting Smoove. He's a megastar in the making.

Northcyde,

Law was +5, good for second highest on the team for the game (Joe Johnson with +6). Acie played 20 minutes and had 5 assists to ZERO turnovers. Again, ZERO turnovers and 5 assists in just 20 minutes. He was 3-4 from the field and hit his only 3 pointer. Lue, as great as his 18 pts were, it is no surprise he ended up -8. Go friggin figure. And he played 25 minutes...

*Sigh*

The only thing Shelden has been "banging inside" is Candace Parker...his fiance.

That is all.

I have said enough about Woodson. Thing is, if we make the playoffs, and even get kicked out in the first round, Woody will probably get an extension. About the only way he will be fired is if we dont make the playoffs this year...

Unfortunately, not all of the problems are on him. The players need to give 110% every game.

And the very moment I was saying to myself that they havent committed a TO in forever Josh Smith tries to be cute and do a behind the back pass on a fast break out of bounds for a TO.

For once, instead of letting leads shrink, the Hawks are EXTENDING the lead! They are running a more up tempo game and shooting high percentage shots. They just look damn good out there. If they could play like this EVERY game,for FOUR quarters, they could challenge ANY team in the West.

Yes, they look really good. And I am surprised at how unbiased and good these Denver announcers are.

Yes, Marvin and Joe Johnson look VERY comfortable right now. Plus, they are playing STURDY Defense. They are out running for the most part and are limiting turnovers. When you can do that, you are going to win games. Oh, and I am so glad Solomon got more minutes early. 42-31 at this point.

If only Acie Law would take over at some point this year...

I havent heard much about this guy...how old is he, how tall, how heavy, and what does he bring to the table?

I totally agree with the above two statements. Solomon Jones needs to play. I dont wanna hear what he is doing in practice, nor do I want to hear how "skinny" or "weak" he is. At this point, Zaza is just plain garbage and a turnover machine and Lorenzen Wright plays average defense and NOTHING else. I dont know why Woodson OUTRIGHT REFUSES to play this kid, but all I do know is that he is a worth a shot throwing out there as opposed to both Zaza and Lo Wright.

In response to the original poster, as we all know, depth is a wonderful thing. However, depth does little good if:

1) They do not know their role

2) They come in and do more harm than good

3) They are not used correctly to maximize their talents

Here lies one of the main issues with Woodson. I get the feeling that he is failing miserably on #3 and because of #1, #2 starts occurring.

Many of us grew concerned when we heard "The Closer" was coming back from injury (If I hear Smitty call him that one more time, I swear, I'm gonna shoot myself. The only thing he does is close out the shot clock to damn near zero with his incessant pounding of the ball). Anyway, I digressed, we wondered if Woodson would be able to effectively manage his players with a near-full bench at his disposal.

So, what happened? Lorenzen Wright!!! got too many minutes, Al Horford was taken out the game for minutes at a time for no apparent reason, West was nowhere to be seen, T Lue played WAY too many minutes, Acie Law only got 8 minutes coming off a relatively good game at Dallas, Pachulia...dont get me started, and thus it continues...

In response to your recent post PB, I agree to a degree about giving people a chance. However, give them a chance as long as they show flashes. Yes, Shelden should get a break because, although inconsistent, can still bang inside and get near double-double numbers on great days. Other times, you wonder why he is even in the game. At least those are flashes. Same for Salim. He can shoot the hell out the rock one game and go ice cold the next (a product of inconsistent PT more than anything imo--plus, it's not like he gets a chance to take many FGs either). However, I disagree when it comes to Zaza. He has proven time and time again that he DOES NOT belong on the court. Someone mentioned that he used to be a bargain. Something is only a bargain when you are paying below market value for something that can provide acceptable service. Zaza's pay is below most other bigs, but his service is simply and utterly unacceptable. A big is supposed to rebound and play defense--he consistently does not do the former and gets a boost of the latter due to offensive rebounds of his poor missed shots. Problem is, he did this last year (along with an alarming rate of turnovers). I have said it before and will say it again regarding the bench:

1) Give Shelden Zaza's minutes and either play Solomon or ship him off to the D League. Dude doesnt play and needs to get a chance somewhere to develop since Woodson apparently refuses to play him.

2) Don't put Lue in there unless you just have NO OTHER choice

3) Give Salim like 5-10 mins near every game instead of letting him ride the pine 4 games out of 5. He will likely shoot better if he gets more consistent PT. He wasnt regarded as the best shooter in his draft for no reason...

And most importantly

4) KNOW YOUR ROLE! Woodson needs to make sure he communicates the role each player plays. For players to play their best, they must know what their specific role is.

I remember that, and I bet most of my fellow Squawkers will too. It was a very touching moment and a stark contrast to the usual same expression he always has permanently plastered on Woodson's face.

I would like to see West get more minutes too. However, Woodson has NEVER been great at managing his players well. The game against Cleveland further cemented this.

I'd have to disagree with you there. We need all the picks we can get--especially in the earlier rounds. We are in rebuilding mode and this roster will be shaken up when the new GM and coach come to town. Therefore, we need those early round picks. I like Woodson, but NO QB is worth a top 10 pick in THIS draft...especially not the top 5 pick that we will have. If they want a QB, get him in the 2nd round (or 3rd). He is going to sit the majority of the year anyway according to Blank. Use that high pick on an impact player and go from there. No way in hell should they trade away those two second rounders for ANYONE.

What a sham the AJC has been for years now when it comes to most everything.

One thing is certain though, we will get a top 5 pick--I would hate for us to pick lower than 4 though...

It wasn't a question of him starting over Smith, it was Marvin. Before the season began it was DEFINITELY debatable as to which should start, because Childress's numbers were better in the previous season.

Firstly, who thought brought up the terrible idea to start Childress over either Smoove or Marvin? Wow.

Seems like you are right on point with most of them--especially #4.

We still need a PG, but more so as depth and less to do with Law and his play. I strongly doubt that Lue and AJ will be here next season...

And lastly, Woodson's decision-making skills and questionable substitutions last year used to grind my gears. He still seems to avoid playing some guys (Solomon Jones) and still plays JJ a bit too much. But other than that, it appears as though Woodson has really grown as a coach. He still has his flaws, as do all coaches, but he is improving. I will certainly give him that.

Yeah, awesome article. I wish the ajc would write competent and professional articles like this...

This is all very true; however, it is not like his Defense has been suspect for just this year...it happened ALL of last year as well. Yes, Pachulia does try to do way too much on offense instead of just passing it back out. This happens time and time again for an easy Turnover. However, Pachulia absolutely refuses to play up to his size and consistently bang inside. I mean, if you cant play defense or bang inside, what good are you as a Center?

Not very...

Pachulia is who I thought he is. A 7 foot 280 pound "Center" who plays absolutely marginal defense, turns the ball over WAYYY too much, flops so easily, and plays instead like he is 6 foot 180.

Give Shelden his minutes and be done with it. Shelden may not be athletic, but he sure can bang inside when he wants to.