TheTruth

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.

Quote: Picking 3rd, beautiful news, means that we're assured of one of McFadden, Dorsey, or Long. That's either a cornerstone for one of the lines, or an electric running talent. Yeah, I just checked their forums again, and after much debate and math from everyone, the VAST majority seem to think that we will pick #3 and nothing can change that. That is freakin wonderful news! Like you said, we should pick whoever between McFadden, Dorsey, and Long is left. I dont mind picking McFadden AS LONG AS we grab AT LEAST one stud FA O Lineman. McFadden would NOT play up to his potential behind our O Line as it is now. Peterson did because he has that wonderful Minnesota O Line to run behind. Please remember this folks...

In this draft, no way in hell would I use a high 1st round pick on ANY of these QBs. We are MUCH better off grabbing a stud O Lineman/D Lineman with that 4-6th pick and grab a QB (who was already slated to sit for a year) in the 2nd round.

I, at first, was kinda disappointed that we ended up dropping out of McFadden's range with the win. However, that will allow us to focus more on a great O Lineman like Long/Clady or a D Lineman. I have been reading the Falcons' boards (after all, I am a member there with the same name), and Capologist said that is is still possible that we end up with the #4 or #5 pick if teams like the Jets, Ravens, etc continue to win. It's not so much WHO we pick in the draft with our top picks, but HOW successful our scouts and other player personnel do in finding the right players for our needs.

Quote: I will say one thing - our interior players better start challenging inside more or Smoove will be off the bandwagon and I don't blame him a bit. If Zaza is gonna play crap defense then sit him. Totally agree. Zaza really, really needs to have his minutes decreased. He is so turnover-prone and directly led to several scoring drives late in the 4th quarter for Indy. Zaza just simply cant play good defense. It is what it is. Give Shelden his minutes and only bring Zaza in for VERY brief stretches when (assuming everyone is healthy and not in foul trouble): You need to score a few points (since he is a betetr threat than Shelden) You need a big to rack up a few fouls (Like Lorenzen Wright and Shelden did against Shaq) Or when it is a blowout. If it does not fall into one of those three categories, dont play him.

I like the nucleus we have of Acie Law, JJ, Josh Smith, Marvin, and Horford. I like Childress, but we can't resign everyone--especially since so many are expecting to be getting PAID. He is the odd man out in my opinion. We can find just about anyone who can come off the bench and give us quality minutes at the Forward spot. That is very easy to do. We need to get another PG; remember, AJ is playing for a contract--his is up at the end of the season and Speedy is done for the season. We could use a bona fide shooter who can come off the bench to help spread the floor (and that could hopefully shoot 3s well). Unfortunately, Salim may not be able to be that guy. A big man who can play Defense and rebound would be nice to spell Horford as well. So yeah, I love Childress, but it is much easier to find a guy who can do what he does. The money can be better spent elsewhere.

Quote: Quote: I am not sure but more than likely they will repeat it. They reaired the tryouts for the Dance team at least 3 times so I am sure they will reair the swimsuit addition. It is only a 30minute show. It is being repeated several times in the next few weeks. Any concrete times and days?

Here is what the NBA.com Recap of the game had to say... "Notes: The first postgame statistics showed O'Neal with only five fouls, prompting Riley to suggest he would protest the game. A review of the play-by-play sheet showed one of O'Neal's fouls was credited to Haslem, and the error was corrected. ..." http://www.nba.com/games/20071219/MIAATL/recap.html That is by an independent source--the Associated Press. It was posted immediately after the game.

Quote: I was like.................. and then Ha! Yeah, my Dad and I were watching the game and I started screaming, "OMG...NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Then, moments later, I was like "OMG...YESSSSSSS!" But seriously, what a weapon Josh Smith is when he plays WITHIN himself (rebounds, blocks, aggressive, some scoring to go along with it). Needless to say, he should continue to work on his 3 pt shot, but just use it sparingly or when he absolutely has to.

Damn, I wanted to check it out...but I just got back from dinner. Are they going to show it on TV again?

Quote: Quote: Even Zaza is stronger than him. What good does strength do for Zaza when he bites on every single pump fake and doesn't know how to play zone defense? Solomon makes up for his lack of bulk with athleticism. The dude has the highest extension on paper in the entire NBA. Even higher than Dwight Howard. He is a longer version of Tyrus Thomas basically. Very astute comments that I totally agree with. Solomon Jones needs to play more. Period. End of story. Zaza may have a lot more weight and a few inches on him, but what good does that do when you consistently play BELOW your weight and height. Zaza is 280 pounds...but plays like he is 180. It's ridiculous. Is Solomon Dwight Howard, Shaq, Mourning, Stoudemire, or some other legit big? No. Solomon is an athletic big that admittedly needs to get stronger; however, he can provide great athleticism, rebounding, blocked shots in limited PT. All he does is ride the pine. My Dad and I say all the time, "Woody is going to lose this kid if he doesn't play him."

I know he has been good on D...but not THAT good! Horford is really showing everyone what they thought he could do and more.

Hard to argue with any of that. Great all around game for the most part. I was able to watch some of it and the crowd was very much alive in this game. But on the Solomon point, it's kind of hard to do anything when you only get 3 seconds of PT in the game. But everyone did their thing...all without having to rely on JJ the whole game.

Quote: the guy goes for every PUMP fake. seems like his head isint in the game. at least defensively. Yeah, going for the pump fakes is getting REAL old...

First timer, eh? Welcome. I am a new guy too...I joined a few weeks ago. Just be careful about what you say, some of these cats take things too seriously and make mountains out of mole hills... But yeah, I have seen many threads debating the "instant offense-ness" of Salim and whether he would shoot better if he got consistent minutes. Toward the beginning of the season, Woody didnt play him. Recently he has, even toward the beginning of games, and he has disappointed time and time again. Unfortunately he just isn't shooting well right now. However, I have always said that he at least needs to get into every game for around 5-10 mins--if for nothing else to give someone else a breather.

What frustrates me is that I think Marvin has it in him...but just won't assert himself on a consistent basis. As some have said, I do believe he has that potential to score damn near 30 a game because he has a smooth shot and shoots effectively. However, he can't do that by looking timid out there. Getting to the line is a great thing by all means, but with his capabilities, shooting 7-9 times a game shouldn't cut it.

As someone else stated, it appears as though Salim is getting a fair amount of minutes to let loose on the 3s. He really could be that guy, but so far this year, his shooting (especially from distance) has left much to be desired. Now, if only he could start playing like he did last year... But seriously, we do need some more outside shooting. Just as in football teams will stack the box if your QB can't pass effectively, teams will collapse on us closer to the basket if we can't make them respect a legit 3pt threat.

Wow, to think some people would be so sensitive on the internet...who knew? Let me break this down one more time so maybe your brain can encode it properly this time: All I said was that looking at the standings NOW isn't that big a deal. I didnt say dont get excited, nor did I say it wasnt important. What I DID say was that looking at them now will be much different from looking at them when half of the season is over. By then, we will be able to get a very good feeling for what team will do for the rest of the season. That's like looking at the NFL standings 3 games into the season trying to predict what teams will make it in... Geez, no need to nut up and get your panties in a knot over this. If I had thought a bunch of regulars would misinterpret such an innocuous post...well, I still would have posted it. But damn, use your brain for a minute. My original post wasn't nearly as incendiary as it is being made out to be. What ridiculous and over-the-top reactions to it. I would have expected that at a board dominated by 10 year olds. It's not that serious. Wow. Just saying...

Quote: I can't believe someone's mad about this kind of thread. 28% of the season is complete and we're right in the mix without being healthy or playing our best ball. As someone else mentioned in another thread last night was the first game in a long time that our "All Star" looked like himself. And yet we're almost at .500 in 7th place in the conference. This thread should survive all season in my opinion - it's the most CRITICAL issue the team faces for crying out loud! LOL! That person was me. Obviously you just read the part about my thinking a thread like this is not all that relevant and failed to read the part that explained how ridiculous it is to really take the current standings and positioning with more than a grain of salt. Typical...typical. As I stated, this would be much more relevant when about 2/3 or so (at the very least 50%) of the season is over. There will be endless flip-flopping between now and then with so few games played. Let's wait a few more games when teams start separating themselves from the pack. I have seen a thread like this every friggin week...ridiculous.

Acie didnt see the floor at all. What's wrong with him?

I disagree. They already "lost" to the Pistons by just one point earlier in the season by playing very well together. Yeah, they had Horford then, but what killed us against the Pistons last night was our sorry ass shooting. When you shoot an abysmal 35% from the field (and routinely under that for a vast majority of the game), it is hard to beat anybody. We destroyed the Bobcats (we won by 9 but it was nowhere near as close) because we played good TEAM basketball. 24 Assists on 33 made shots is awesome. Plus, we shot 49% from the field for a change. Josh Smith wasnt a black hole who was throwing up brick after brick, and Marvin Williams and JJ turned up the heat. When we play like that and rebound well (the rebounding was about the only negative today), we can beat anybody. Period.

Do we REALLY need one of these "Hawks are currently in Xth in the East, OMFGZ!" every week? This would be a lot more relevant once 2/3 of the season is over. Hell, we were in 1st place at points last year... Just saying. But anyway, we are hovering around .500 right now. Let's beat Charlotte today and we have a chance to go far.

Do we REALLY need one of these "Hawks are currently in Xth in the East, OMFGZ!" every week? This would be a lot more relevant once 2/3 of the season is over. Until then, with so few games played, there will be a copious amount of flip flopping up and down the standings. Hell, we were in 1st place at points last year... Just saying. But anyway, we are hovering around .500 right now. Let's beat Charlotte today and we have a chance to go far.

I am a bit surprised that we have only attempted one so far this game, but the fact remains that we are NOT a good 3 point shooting team...at all. Outside of T Lue (who does not start), Joe Johnson (who only shoots it decently, nothing to strike fear in defenders), and Salim (who will either make 7/10 one night or 1/10 the next), we don't have anyone who can remotely throw it in the ocean. (I won't comment on Acie yet since he barely shoots the ball as it is). Furthermore, out of everyone on the team, not one player strikes fear in the hearts of the opposing team when it comes to their ability to shoot the 3 consistently. It's just how it is...Consequently, we don't shoot as many.

Quote: Yeah, my best guess is that Lorenzen starts but gets about half the minutes Shelden will get at the Center position. I hate to see Horford suspended, but thankfully it is just one game. If we can play physical basketball, rebound, and shoot a lot better than we have been recently, it will be a close game. So much for Lorenzen starting in Horford's place. At least Lorenzen played good D against Howard, but now Zaza is going to get the nod... http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/h...rford_1213.html