lethalweapon3

Realizing I could really use fans like these in the peanut galleries whenever I'm out here bricking FTs like my guy Moses Brown: ~lw0ah

Among the on-the-fence participants on the Boo-Boo Report for Portland, Matisse Thybulle (impinged ankle) is Questionable, along with Ayton (air mattress elbow), while Jerami "Fasolatido" Grant is Doubtful (strained hammy). Nothing new shaking on the Hawks' side of the ledger (DJM is still understandably Questionable after carrying the Hawks on his "sore" back; Seth Lundy might catch a MARTA train up from College Park to rejoin the big boys), although I'd sure love to see Trae upgraded to at least Questionable by around this time tomorrow, which is, as always, Another Day, Another Opportunity. Blazers GameNotes cites second-rounder Belgian-American Toumani Camara as one of two NBA rooks to clear the split bar of 350 points, 300 rebounds, 60 steals, and 35 made 3FGs. You've already guessed the other newbie. Oui. Chauncey's All-Rooks starting five, beginning in the loss to Denver back on Saturday, was the second such unit tracked by the NBA since 1970-71. Klay Thompson somehow had to hit the floor for Mark Jackson's Warriors alongside Charles Jenkins, Mickell Gladness, Jeremy Tyler and Chris Wright in April 2012 to close out the NBA season. Patty Mills torched them for 34 points in a Spurs win. Mama, there goes that Aussie. My pleas for Clint not to chase O-Rebs continues to fall on deaf ears, but at least his 299th O-board worked out mighty fine. WHEN he gets offensive carom #300 today, as per Hawks Game Notes, he'll be the first NBA player to do that in a season since Steven Adams (remember him? Lovin' those T-Mobile ads with the Scrubs guys) back in 2021-22, and the first Hawk since Deke in 1999-00. Also at the risk of jinxing a Hawk vet, Bogi's Threak, much like my street fashion, moves into the Eighties with a make tonight. Team Acid Wash, baby! ~lw3

“Let’s Go Krejci! Let’s Get Nuts!” It wasn’t looking to good for Vit Krejci, tasked with his first NBA start in front of the home crowd. The Oklahoma City Thunder were winding down what, for them by that time, was the preseason, as the real seasons would begin in the run-up to the drafts. Fort-holder Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was formally shut down for the final 15 or so games. Darius Bazley would soon be put in wraps, too. Naturally, since he’s The Future. So it was time to see what OKC’s 2020 second-round trade acquisition from the Wizards, whose rookie season was deferred by a preseason ACL tear, who spent the balance of 2021-22 in the G-League while rehabbing an ankle injury, could bring to the table. For the better part of the month before his first career start, in Portland, the Czech was already logging over 20 minutes per night off the bench for coach Mark Daigneault. Krejci sank his light diet of 3FGAs, at a 42 percent clip, without being pushed to do much more. Stepping in as a starter for Bazley on behalf of the Thunder, versus a similarly washed Trail Blazer contingent, Vit managed to go 4-for-6 on his triples, sinking all three attempts in the fourth quarter as OKC stormed back from 10 down to force OT and win. Encouraging! This guy, Thunder fans surely thought, could be a keeper. Well, as he soon as he gets back to the Sooner State, he goes just 1-for-10 from the field. He made all six of his free throws, and thank goodness, because otherwise his negative-19 plus/minus would have gone deeper in the red. Trae Young had 41 points in the game, but a balanced effort among everybody from De’Andre Hunter, Kevin Huerter, and Bogi Bogdanovic to the less heralded Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and Kevin Knox, helped Trae’s Hawks cruise to victory in his home state. From that point, there was little reason to expect to much more of Krejci at this level of the pros. And yet, back at the end of March 2022, assistant GM Landry Fields’ Atlanta Hawks saw something. Shedding the assistant label, Fields and his scouts saw enough to shed Mo Harkless’ contract in a preseason 2022 trade to bring Vit into the Hawks’ developmental fold. Beyond waving towels approvingly, his role was to spend time at the back end of this NBA roster, first to address coach Nate McMillan’s emergency roster crunch, then in spot duty as Quin Snyder was feeling things out, almost always when the margins for victory, in either direction, were seemingly beyond approach. Even when cutting Krejci last August after yet another untimely ankle injury, this time in Hawks Summer League, allowed him time to toil with the Timberwolves in preseason, Fields kept an eye out for him. Making room to pick him up for a two-way slot back in December, Landry continued to see something in Vit. Now amidst this homestand, the Atlanta Hawks fans are beginning to catch a glimpse, too. He’s likely to start in his tenth consecutive contest as a Hawk, having been called up from College Park and seemingly for keeps, ahead of this month’s West Coast road swing. But it wasn’t until The Man from Strakonice showed out in Stankonia during his last two home outings that the all-around promise of the 6-foot-8, soon-to-be-24-year-old guard was on full display. Vit’s +28 plus/minus (3-for-4 3FGs) was integral to Atlanta finally and thoroughly fumigating the hapless Hornets this past Saturday. And Krejci was fully instrumental in turning A-Town frowns upside down on Monday Night. His 16 points (4-for-7 3FGs), accompanied by flustering perimeter defensive play from the late second quarter on, helped the Hawks eradicate a 30-point first-half deficit and eventually ensure the visiting Celtics would be choking on hookah smoke for days on end before returning back to State Farm Arena for a double dip tomorrow. In the meantime, in between time, Krejci’s brief emergence ought to be inspiring for the youthful Trail Blazers that make it on the floor to wrangle with the Hawks today (7:30 PM EDT, Bally Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL, ROOT Sports in PDX). That won’t include Knox, formerly The Future for the Knicks, now left behind with Shaedon Sharpe by Portland for runs with their G-League Rip City Remix. That also won’t include Anfernee Simons (out, knee tendinitis), and possibly not Deandre Ayton (questionable, elbow tendinitis), authors of 69 of the Blazers’ 106 points the last time they defeated an NBA team. Krejci was on the floor that night, two weeks ago in Oregon, watching a banner 40-point outing by teammate Dejounte Murray go to waste, the Hawks allowing the host Blazers to pull away late for the 106-102 victory. Portland (19-53; 11-13 vs. NBA East) has gone 0-7 since then, and whether Murray plays tonight, or is otherwise saved up for the Boston rematch, Vit seems to be gaining knowledge that, for however long he is on the floor, the Hawks will need for him to do more than just chip in on occasion. Chauncey Billups was left to field five rookie starters in his lineup versus the red-hot Rockets (2023 draft picks Scoot Henderson, Kris Murray, and Rayan Rupert, along with Duop Reath and Toumani Camara). The results were about what you imagined. Maybe a little better, given the 110-92 loss belied a 51-47 lead for Billups’ Blazers entering the halftime locker room. There is a challenge for the Hawks tonight, beyond riding too high reading their momentary press clippings as they resume their rightful place as the NBA backdrop for the “What Has Gone Wrong With The Good Teams?” media inquiries. That is, making sure whatever Portland drums up doesn’t have us, and the lemon-pepper wing-chewing Celtics, all watching these teams participate in an extra session or two. (The Bucks, who arrive from N’Awlins tomorrow ahead of a game on Saturday, know a thing or two about blowing big leads, and Coach Doc wouldn’t mind visiting a Hawks team that’s on tired legs by then). Including an overtime game in Houston back in January, when the Rockets still lacked a rudder, the Blazers have won four road games in this calendar year of 2024. Three of those necessitated an OT session. The other two dubs included one at Brooklyn (grazie!; Tragic Number down to 6) way back in the first week of January, the other a SEGABABA in Memphis after having beaten the residual Grizzlies one night earlier, to start this month of March. From New Year’s Day on, Portland is 1-15 in road games that end in regulation. Extending Atlanta’s win streak will require not just Vit, but Hunter, Trent Forrest, and the Mat(t)hewses to play like a cohesive unit for 48 minutes, no less and, if executing appropriately, no more. That means continuing to clog driving lanes for Henderson (37.8 FG%; 10-for-31 FGs in past two road starts), and getting out on perimeter shooters without fouling, teammates actively boxing out like wild buffalo to keep Portland’s possessions, with or without Ayton’s services, one-and-done. Keeping shot fouls low (8 FTs for BOS in the middle-quarters on Monday) helped the Hawks engineer their historic clawback, and it would aid the Hawks (32-39, now up to 18-17 at home) tonight in keeping the game clock rolling to their eventual advantage. No panicked reaching for balls not in play, and no hesitation (as Hunter capably demonstrated in the clutch on Monday) when a very good shot is there for the taking. Not overthinking it, tonight, means not overtiming it. Not so much for Henderson, as he is The Future in Portland (sorry, Simons) until at least when the next lottery pick washes ashore. But the rest of the impressionable Blazers under short-leash contracts ought to find players like Krejci and another slim backcourt project, a New Englander named Dalano Blanton (first career double-double with 28 bench points and 11 boards @ HOU; 17.4 PPG over past 15 games) that the Celtics ditched to Portland at Deadline time, quite impressive. These guys are doing the little things around the clock, plus the big things when needed, to keep themselves from becoming easily disposable. Blue-chip undrafted, second-round, and super-raw first-round prospects are great for brief tenures in the NBA, especially late in seasons when teams fall far from title contention. To get much more than that, the blue chips have to learn ways to do more than just chip in. Otherwise, as Knox is aware, they're at great risk of becoming chip ‘n dip. Let’s Go Hawks! ~lw3

Reinforcement! With Maine also in town, the Celts may be similarly calling up JD Davison for tonight. Xavier Tillman has been downgraded to Out. (Oop, I left out Derrick White, as he'll be Out, too). ~lw3

For the sake of media voters, the Hawks Game Notes are finally promoting Bogi's Sixth-Man Award candidacy with a full-page spread on Page 2 (and Page 3, replete with media quotes). Pritchard, and Horford if he qualifies, will probably wind up with more votes anyway, 'cause Winning. But we won't be able to say the Hawks didn't give it the old college try. Another probable Awards Show also-ran, Jalen Johnson (sprained ankle) remains Out for the Hawks, along with Kobe Bufkin (sprained toe). KL Chouinard reported Onyeka Okongwu yesterday was downgraded to All-the-Way Out in the Boo-Boo Report listings (sprained toe, "no longer listed as Injury Management"). Atlanta has lost seven straight head-to-head regular season meetings against the Celtics, the last win coming back in late January 2022. The past four Ls, however, did wind up with deficits within ten points. ~lw3

“GOOD. MORNING. THIS. IS. A. COLLECT. CALL. FROM. RICE. STREET. FOR…” (Payton Pritchard): ‘Sigh... Al. Horford.’ “…PRESS. 1. TO. ACCEPT. THESE. CHARGES.” A’ight so boom, I know I’ve been coming across as super-needy in these gamethreads lately. But I really hope the player health practitioners at Emory Healthcare can do me a solid this week. We don’t have to involve any Secretaries of State here but, listen, all I need are 29 assists. We are through week four of the defensive-minded Trae Young’s unfortunate pinkie ligament tear (injured on Feb. 23, re-evaluation post-surgery “in four weeks”), and I am confident he can get me 29 helpers with the aid of just nine-and-a-half functioning upper-limb digits. My issue is that I am running out of time. Because I really, really need Dime #29 to occur on Saturday night, March 30, 2024. I need the game camera to zoom in on Trae after the probable lob to Bruno Fernando over Giannis’ pouting dome-piece makes Young the Hawks franchise’s all-time leader in assists, at 3,867, amid just his sixth season as an NBA pro. Then, I need the camera to pan over to the bench and show this man, making this face: It’s reasonable to imagine that Atlanta was one Game 7 upset victory, against the deified Celtics in Boston, away from having longtime 80s Nique-caddy Glenn Rivers here at State Farm Arena as an esteemed Gucci Row guest of honor. By now, Doc would be couched somewhere between Joe Johnson, Lil Boosie, 2Chainz and Anne Hathaway, as Young surpassed him on the Hawks’ all-time assist record. Alas, rookie Al Horford and his fine-feathered friends came up woefully short in the decisive game of 2008’s opening playoff round. Rivers went on to win one NBA ring – Boston’s last—and the benefits of all doubts in four different NBA locales, Milwaukee being the latest to move heaven-and-earth for his coaching services. After multiple playoff series where his Hawks fell short of reaching the NBA Finals, Horford eventually sauntered over to Boston. Now in his second stint there, Big Al is the Celtics’ heart-and-soul veteran leader as the team with the best record in the big leagues (57-14, last 60-win season in 2008-09) prepares to chase once again after NBA-record championship banner #18. For the better part of this week, he’s also the team nanny. The Celtics arrived early Sunday morning after reestablishing themselves as the class of the league by dispatching Atlanta’s probable Play-In foe, the Bulls, in Chicago the night before. They won an 11th-straight game mere weeks ago, by plastering the Warriors 140-88, and coach Joe Mazzulla’s team knows they can match that streak again with a pair of victories this week at State Farm Arena, one tonight (7:30 PM Eastern, Bally Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL, NBC Sports Boston, NBATV), and one in their next meeting on Thursday. Boston will get to watch Portland swing through town for a scrum with the Hawks, on Wednesday, before facing Atlanta the next night. They’ll strategize for a Hawks team that will play today, without Young, but may have him on the mend and returning by Thursday to rejoin a club that has done what it could to hold serve in his absence. These trial runs are not merely versus a potential #8 seed for Boston, but a foe led by a star whose big-play playmaking (NBA-high 10.2 APG and clutch buckets in Games 3 and 5 vs. BOS last postseason) has left conference foes scrambling for years in hopes of offsetting his potential playoff-ousting offense, if necessary. Former Buck Jrue Holiday (out, shoulder sprain) is not with Boston, Donovan Mitchell in Cleveland, Jalen Brunson in New York, etc., but for the Trae Young fear factor. A more immediate, foreboding problem for Boston is keeping their rank-and-file, present head coach included, out of trouble between now and Thursday’s tipoff. Seasoned ATLiens, particularly those who went into conspicuous hiding from family and co-workers ahead of the Freaknik documentary premiere last week, knows what a siren song Atlanta the metro can be for nighttime visitors. One can find some unique and fun things, around A-Town, to help pass the time between shootarounds. After only about two nights, for many young men with means around one another, Atlanta becomes a bit of Where The Wild Things Are. Yes, we are long past the Gold Club era. But it won’t be surprising, by Wednesday, for Sam Hauser to have had his first interaction with a performer named Blondie who crushes PBR cans with her anyway, you get the drift. It's why the team is leaning on Al, a longtime Ansley Park resident even after his first departure from Atlanta, and Marietta-native All-Star Jaylen Brown to keep this extended stay for Team Green as painfully wholesome as possible. In his own All-Star heyday, Horford was enjoying the long-sought clinching of the Eastern Conference’s top-seed in April 2015, on a flight from Atlanta for a game the next night in Brooklyn. And, well, Thabo Sefolosha and Pero Antic can remind everyone what happened from there. This will be the first postseason where the soon-to-be 38-year-old Horford will be relied upon for under 30 minutes per game. That is, if his Celtics can make it into the playoffs with Kristaps Porzingis (active, sat out @ CHI to injury-manage his hamstring, missed 6 of last 9 games) and Xavier Tillman (questionable, swollen knee) upright. The last thing Al, and Boston, needs are Oshae Brissett and Luke Kornet re-tracing Kevin Hart and Ice Cube’s comedic steps on some Ride Along tour around The 404. Even if both Holiday and Derrick White (questionable, sprained hand) are no-goes this evening, the Celtics will be a taller task than a Hornets team that, thankfully, served as elimination-practice fodder for Dejounte Murray (last 8 games: 28.5 PPG, 8.9 APG, 48.0 FG%, 43.5 3FG%, 83.3 FT%) and the Hawks on Saturday night. Payton Pritchard (last 4 games: 19.3 PPG, 52.8 FG%, 6.9 APG, 1.0 TOs/game) and Hauser are fully capable of heating up the nets from long-range, as the Hawks scramble to attend to All-Stars Brown (also DNP-Rest’d @ CHI) and Jayson Tatum. Mazzulla’s troopers are viable victors on any night, whether their many three-point attempts fall through the net or not, so long as they keep turnovers down, commit to securing defensive boards, and don’t settle for excessive iso-ball by its two superstar draws. But their main objective will be harder to achieve if players or coaches get caught up in hijinks along the way. So Al and Jaylen will need to ensure their mates spend their days at mature spots, like Ponce City Market’s top floor, and keep an eye out to make sure they don’t fall drunkenly off the rides. Given the Nets (Tragic Number: 7) are just about the one remaining, benign threat to keep Atlanta from a 9/10 Play-In bout in the Windy City, it is tempting to rest up Young for the balance of the season. But considering the limited certainty we have at this time about Young suiting up as a Hawk, in 2024-25 and beyond, I do not want to risk the prospect that we enter next season with Doc Rivers, still, as the Hawks’ celebrated all-time assist king, and with faint hopes that maybe, in a decade or so, Kobe Bufkin can be the one doing the deposing. So I simply need one major assist, from Atlanta’s talented medical staff, over the course of the next couple days. I have little doubt that the Hawks’ greatest-ever point guard can then take care of the next 29. No need to pinkie-swear, Trae, you’ve got this. Let’s Go Hawks! ~lw3

Let's all check in on the Hornets at shootaround, shall we? Among the bike of Hornets on the Boo-Boo Report (LaMelo, Seth, Cody, Bryce, MarkWill), the only one who's on the fence is JT Thor (Probable, inflamed shoulder). OO's biggest little piggy is flaring up again, so he's Doubtful to be kicking around for the Hawks on the court today. I think I speak for Jesse Itzler when I say, "Go New York Go New York Go!" Go on ahead and beat those crosstown rivals this afternoon at MSG, Knicks (Nets Tragic Number at 9; Brooklyn's doing their part by losing five straight, let's make it a half-dozen!). ~lw3

“Nah, it’s cool not being a Mav anymore! Besides, I’ve still got a shot at winning Mr. Congeniality this year… What?” There’ll be plenty of time next week for me to hop on my soapbox about the biggest Schedule Screwjob of the NBA season, when Al Horford’s Celtics get an all-expense-paid workweek enjoying all the sights and smells of The ATL. Among many screwjob candidates somehow all involving Atlanta Hawks opponents, here’s a runner-up. The next Charlotte Hornets loss, and/or Atlanta Hawks victory, sends the Hornets formally into Lotteryland for the eighth consecutive year. And yet, the Bugs have been chillin’ like villains for the better part of the week. Don’t bother to count their last game, back on Tuesday coming off two days’ rest, when they looked more like the Charlottesville Hornets by cobbling together 32 first-half points, falling behind by 35 through two quarters in Orlando before completely mailing it in. The Hornets were rewarded with three more off-days, ahead of tonight’s game at The Khakis Kholiseum (7:30 PM Eastern, Bally Sports Southeast, 92.9 FM in ATL). The Hawks’ Game Notes begins with, “Fresh off a season-long, 11-day, five-game road trip…” Fresh, eh? Daisies don’t get any fresher than freshmen starters Brandon Miller (ejected before halftime vs. PHI last Saturday, after Flagrant-2 elbowing Tyrese Maxey) and Vasilije Micic’s Hornets have been, what with three games “played,” including two back in Carolina, over the preceding nine days. Hornet players have had time to hang out at amusement parks for fun and frolic to pass the time (although folks headed to Six Flags get warnings from the State Department these days), while Steve Clifford and his Hornets staff have had time to at least pretend they care enough to prepare for an opponent they just beat handily, 122-99 in Charlotte, last month. There really isn’t much left for Coach Cliff to do with this evaporated 17-52 outfit. Cody Martin and Seth Curry, each out since early March with ankle injuries, are getting ample time to heal up and return to the fold, if necessary. There’s no pressing need to grant Mr. Williams starters’ minutes, not simply because they traded off P.J. Washington to get him and Seth. The other Mr. Williams, Mark, is in mothballs due to a lingering back injury. The To-Do list is, basically, offer the one remaining upright point guard (if you count Bryce McGowens, he’s out after spraining his knee last week) a Tre Mann-dous opportunity to see if he can serve as LaMelo Ball’s trusty backup next season (if not, the 30-year-old rookie Vasa Micic will suffice), burn through the final frequent flyer Miles on Mr. Bridges’ loyalty program, and give Miller (35.2 FG%, incl. 31.4 3FG% last 5 games) the freedom to take any shot on the floor he so desires to sew up his All-Rookie spot. There’s one other item to check off. Pull off just enough wins in the closing 13-game slate, and two should do fine, to avoid making 2023-24 the worst 82-game season (in Charlotte, one must qualify these things) in Horcats/Bobnets history. They’ll always have 7-59, of course. But Primoz Brezec’s 2004-05 squad checked out at 18-64, putting the new-car-smell seasons of 20-62 (1988-89) and 19-63 (1989-90) in the rear-view mirror. This year’s unit could maybe catch Gerald Henderson’s follow-up to 7-59, when Charlotte tripled their pleasure and went 21-61 in 2012-13. But 4-9, for a team that just ended Washington’s 16-game losing skid, is pushing it. Most everyone understands, so much as thinking about contention, even competency, this season hinged upon the health of Ball (All-Star in 2021-22, his only season appearing in over 55 games; 58 appearances combined the past two seasons). Clifford remains a lame duck, though, and he can only get daffy about Wabbit Season if he can show his new majority owners, ex-Hawks scout-turned-Hornets GM Jeff Peterson, and ex-Hawks player personnel VP-turned-Peterson’s assistant GM Dotun Akinwale, that he overachieved in some measure, no matter how small. Being 19-63, or better, ought to do the trick. If #18 doesn’t come today against the Hawks, no biggee! After all, the Hornets will get another crack at Atlanta in this building on April 10. Conveniently, it’ll be one day after the Hawks host the heat, amid the second of two straight 3-games-in-4-days sets. Thank goodness for Atlanta, as Charlotte’s remaining strength-o’-schedule, the league’s toughest by win percentage, would only be tougher. The Hawks’ remaining slate, comparatively, is *only* the third-toughest in the East. Thanks, league offices! I could get into Xs and Os that the Hawks (30-39) will need to get back on some semblance of a track, but I’ve frankly ticked myself off about the scheduling enough to know I need to save my gamethread energies ahead of the Celts’ arrival from Chicago tomorrow. Sure hope all these NBA teams have enjoyed their stays in the A. Don’t nobody tell poor Al about Mary Mac’s Tea Room while he’s here, though. He’ll be crushed. Let’s Go Hawks! ~lw3

Literally, look over your shoulder, Gordo! ~lw3

We're likely to get a little help from those wascally Wizards today in keeping Sacramento on the other side of the Play-In line. As for the Suns, Royce O'Neale is working through a bruised shoulder (not as tender as a braised shoulder, or so I've been told), and he's listed as Questionable on the Sunny side of the Boo-Boo Report. I'm slightly amazed that Devin Booker's still working toward his first career triple-double. His haul against the Sixers yesterday (18 points, 11 assists, 9 rebounds) came close. The Suns seek to snap a four-game head-to-head skid versus the Hawks. While they can't seem to stop their slide at The Farm (10 straight Ls, what are we, the Spurs?), their record at home (49-19) remains better than ours against the Suns in Atlanta (42-26). Suns Notes cites the Hawks as one of 4 NBA clubs (ATL, DAL, LAL, PHX) that has 3 different players having scored 40+ in a game this season, former Suns draft pick Bogi being Hawk #3. Grayson Allen's league-best 48.3 3FG% is wedged between two ex-Hawks, Joe Johnson (2004-05 w/ PHX, 47.8 3FG%, I'd get sued trying to get him, too) and Kyle Korver (2014-15 w/ ATL, 49.2 3FG%) for the best in-season 3FG% of all-time (min. 150 attempts). ~lw3

Oh My Nique I gotta get these Brackets locked in. Quickfastinahurry, Josh Okogie has been Out since sustaining a hip injury and ab strain earlier this month. He's close to returning, although the Suns may save his energies for the upcoming road trip. Also a hopeful end-of-season returnee is Brother-in-Law Hall-of-Famer Damion Lee. The former Hawks rookie has been Out all season following preseason meniscus surgery. It only feels like the day before yesterday when Isaiah Thomas was the belle of Boston's ball, after prying him free of Phoenix, and Dennis Schröder and Arizona-native Mike Budenholzer's Hawks were merely standing in the way of greatness for Team Green. While IT scrambles to prove his worth once more on an NBA stage, Vogel notes that his short-term trial is due to a two-way player nearing Trent Forrest Decision Day/Week/Month. "Again, I don’t know how much he’ll play for us," Vogel told PHNX Sports. He’s really here from a depth standpoint because Saben Lee only has four games left." The bug that always goes around during road trips has passed on from Bogi to Two Ts Matthews, as Wesley is listed as Questionable on the way-too-early Boo-Boo Report. The Marquette Golden Eagles star whose status I need to know about, and soon, is Tyler Kolek. ~lw3

“Okay. I see…” **scribbles** “…and, are the black Hawks shorts in the room with us right now, Austin?” “Carnegiea gigantea.” No need to square up, I didn’t just disparage you. That’s the scientific genus of the Saguaro cactus plant, the USA’s largest. It was named, somehow, in honor of industrialist-philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. I suppose that’s since Dale hadn’t done his thing yet. Saguaros are stem succulents, and I mean that in the nicest possible way. They hold massive amounts of H2O, and bloom springtime flowers for a variety of winged pollinator species, all vital to the arid Sonoran Desert habitat in southwestern Arizona. Here’s the deal. On February 10, 2027, on or around 9 PM Mountain Standard Time, I’mma need Jalen Tyrese Johnson, of the Atlanta Hawks, inside Phoenix’s Footprint Center, hurdling one of these Carnegie cacti. Anything short of that spectacular spectacle unfolding, NBA and Hawks HQ, and you all and I are gonna have problems. Look, there is ample time to work on the particulars. No need for the plant to be real, there’s no reason to get Jalen in hot water with my fellow tree-huggers. A live Saguaro sprouts on average to around 5-6 feet tall by the time it reaches Jalen’s 2027 age. Assuming Arizona still has water by then, make it into some sustainability-themed costume thingamajig, with AEW standard-issue tacks where the spines are supposed to be. Oh, and a zipper allowing Spud Webb to let himself out for the big reveal. Or KJ Johnson, to appease that ASG Weekend’s home crowd. Like I said, there’s time to sort it all out. Whichever other Dunk Contests in upcoming western US locales that’ll have Jalen as an invitee, and what hurdle props he might use (Rice-a-Roni trolley? Chris Rock slapping-back Will Smith?) to win it, are matters for another day. In the interim, I need Ressler Spirit Group to do whatever they need to ensure me, by that Saturday night in 2027, Jalen (out for tonight, re-sprained ankle) is well within his contract extension, and that he possesses a functioning pair of ankles. Around those Marietta Street offices, sombeody’s first-born has a fresh, intact pair of heel joints to donate, I’m just saying. That Keke dude and the Kiwi lady that saved Steph’s ankles, and the NBA 2010s in the process? Send somebody out to San Diego and New Zealand, Ressler clan, and don’t let them return to Georgia without those ex-employees getting their keycards back. There’s time, this summer, to have Johnson pound out the Bowflex and return next season with some Giannis-style shoulders, bulking up a sturdy frame more suitable for a leading-man tasked with power forward duties. Keep hammering away on his conditioning and, in time, Johnson will learn to convert his Dunk of the Decade candidates during the blouse-winning ends of meaningful games, as John Collins knows painfully well (no T-shirts on sale this time, sorry). Not merely in the opening seconds of games, in the just-going-through-the-aerial-motions phase of washed seasons, where impressing family and Klutch agents already on-board in attendance are, like the 10-foot-high rims, among the few attainable goals. Ends of games, for example, are the reason we are presently unable to take the lissome Kevin Durant, now 8th all-time among NBA scorers after passing Suns legend Fat Shaq, and his Phoenix Suns with any measure of seriousness. The Hawks’ regular season has melted into pure play-by-play entertainment and amusement, in part, due to its woeful full-game defensive impact. It’s true at all times of games, yet particularly at closing time. I know who I wouldn’t want to take me home, though. I ain’t trippin’ when I tell you it’s any of Grayson Allen’s Suns. Phoenix possesses a worse 4th-quarter D-Rating (down to 118.5, 28th in NBA, after last night’s win over PHI) as De’Andre Hunter’s Hawks (up to 118.1, 25th in NBA), going on 70 games into the season, plus an atrocious efficiency (NBA-low 103.7 4th-quarter O-Rating) at the offensive end. That adds up to what is, by far, the league’s worst final-frame Net Rating (minus-14.9; Jimmy Buckets’ Culture Club tumbles in at next-worst, with minus-6.0; last season’s pre-Wemby Spurs checked out at minus-15.3). Nobody sets in the evenings quite like the Suns (4-19 when trailing after three quarters), who are top-5 in salary load, top-5 in average roster age, and top-3 in preseason hype, after PBO/GM James Jones finagled deals for KD and Bradley Beal, then retrieved Allen and Jusuf Nurkic in the Deandre Ayton-Lillard multi-team deal. It’s the kind of lingering issue that could get coaches like Monty Williams canned. Still, some of the Suns’ late-game burnouts are explanatory, if not excusable. Enough of the wins have Phoenix ahead by double digits late, allowing Monty’s replacement Frank Vogel to turn the court over to the serviceable scrubs, at the rear of the Suns’ thin roster, and just hang on. Such was the case with the Embiid-less Sixers in town last night, after Allen and sixth-man Royce “Don’t call me Alexander” O’Neale did the heavy lifting at the perimeter (combined 45 points, 12-for-19 3FGs) so the Suns’ Biggish 3 wouldn’t have to (combined 43 points for Book/KD/Brad, 4-for-15 3FGs). Suns up 24 through three quarters; Suns up 11 by the final horn. In actuality, though, there haven’t been any more such games, winning by double-digits, than that for Phoenix’s Western Conference so-called championship rivals. What they have logged, to this point, and will be able to pad tonight (10:30 PM Eastern, Bally Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL, 3TV in PHX, NBATV), are the most games played by an NBA West team versus sub-.500 opponents. The Suns will spend the next few days in Wembyland for a pair of contests after hosting the Hawks (30-38) tonight. After that, though, the schedule gets arduous. Nine of the final ten Suns games will be versus teams at-or-above them in the Western standings, including the Pelicans, Timberwolves and Clippers twice each. Few of these teams will be in a position to take those games off. Even if Phoenix (40-29, lost last 2 SEGABABAs) survives all of that to claim one of the two Not-Play-In spots legitimately up for grabs, I can’t say that I’d trust a team, even with its handsomely paid stars in reasonable health, that holds the same in-conference record as Jalen Green’s red-hot Rockets, to outlast and advance versus anyone in the Playoffs’ opening round. Particularly if Vogel relies on his by-default point guard Devin Booker (30.3 3FG% and team-high 1.3 APG in 4th quarters) and Beal (33.3 3FG% and minus-2.3 +/- in 4ths) to come through in the clutch with timely shots, plays, and stops. Durant’s effortless scoring skill (16 fourth-quarter points, but minus-4 vs. ATL on Feb. 2) was not enough to help his Suns close the three-quarter gap versus a Hawks team in Atlanta that, with the exception of Hunter, had its complement of rotation regulars at full strength back in February. Even without the contributions of Trae Young, Saddiq Bey, and now Johnson, coach Quin Snyder’s remnant Hawks don’t need to wait until ‘Round Midnight (my time) to get a jump on the Suns. Perimeter shooting can only get better than the 22.0 team 3FG% display (incl. Jalen going 2-for-11 on threes) that sunk the Hawks’ battleship early in the 136-105 SEGABABA loss late Monday night to the shell-shocked Austin Reaves’ Lakers. But Dejounte Murray and backup Trent Forrest (combined 16 assists, 2 TOs @ LAL) can push the pace beyond the Suns’ taste, while persistent paint penetration off screen-rolls can keep Phoenix’s dancing bear Nurkic on his toes. Atlanta guards, and decisive drives from Hunter, can open up the paint for Clint Capela’s 50/50-ball layups and putbacks, while granting Bogi Bogdanovic, One-T Mathews and Vit Krejci better catch-and-shoot looks. Onyeka Okongwu’s return will aid Clint and Bruno Fernando, along with Murray (game-high 8 D-Rebs vs. PHX on Groundhog Day) in sopping up the defensive boards. February’s Hawks also held Phoenix to 12 free throws, the Suns sharing 14 just attempts. Transitioning into and maintaining halfcourt defensive position, plus avoiding bailouts for the Suns’ scoring threats by reaching aimlessly for not-loose balls, could have the Hawks more than just hanging around after three quarters. Perhaps long enough, that Vogel may have to turn to his ten-day contractor, returning Suns legend Isaiah Thomas, to Ball Outta Control in the fourth quarter, in hopes of keeping Phoenix’s worrying trend from happening yet again. Sunrise, Sunset. Sunrise, Sunset. Say, maybe Jalen can perform a contest-dunk themed around Fiddler on the… naw, let’s all just stick to the Big Cactus plan. Johnson-Saguaro ’27. Much like this here gamethread post, my vote’s in early. Hawks Inc., and the league’s powers-that-be, don’t y’all leave me out here feeling prickly! Let’s Go Hawks! ~lw3

The Hawks are taking their sweet time before submitting their Boo-Boo Report. They technically have until 4 PM EST, but we'll see if it populates as of 3:30. The Lakers do get off until Friday, and they'll stay in Tinseltown for the Sixers and the Whoiburton Pacers through the weekend. Their bigger challenges begin on Tuesday, when Milwaukee kicks off a six-game road swing for a Laker club that is just 12-20 in away games, and will have just three home games left, all in April (vs. CLE, MIN, GSW), when this weekend concludes. Los Angeles' last non-STAPLES road Dub came on Valentine's Day in Utah, the last one versus an above-.500 team back on February 3. Far for a Hawks fan to tell it, but 'tis not an ideal scenario for a probable 9/10 seed. ~lw3

“The Doctor will see you now.” Three cheers for Skylar Mays! March Madness Selection Show season can be a bit rough for the former senior point guard at LSU. He returned for his senior season, after the Tigers roared to the Sweet Sixteen, and was looking to lead his team to a consecutive trip to The Big Dance for the first time since 2006. Unfortunately, for them and many others, COVID 2020 happened. But Mays wouldn’t leave his hometown of Baton Rouge, LA empty handed. He earned not just an All-SEC First Team selection, but a degree in kinesiology, his 3.93 GPA and choice of major a big reason he was named that season’s Division I Academic All-America of the Year. After starting out his NBA journey with the Skyhawks and Atlanta Hawks, as a second-round draftee on a two-way contract, Mays spent most of the 2022-23 season plying his current trade in the G-League. He caught on with Portland to close out last season, then had his next two-way deal upgraded by the Blazers in November, after he filled in as an injury-replacement starter and averaged nearly nine assists over six games. Hitting the waiver wire to start this calendar year, the former LSU star now gets to don a different uniform of purple-and-gold. The future doctor went from the franchise that Dr. Jack Ramsay once made insta-champions, to the one whose late owner earned a Ph.D. in physical chemistry, at Bronny James’ USC, before going on to salvage Southern California’s favorite NBA team. The star-studded Clippers did nothing last night, against the visiting Atlanta Hawks, to loosen the Los Angeles Lakers’ ironclad grip on its superior basketball status around Tinseltown. The Hawks are getting hit with a Schedule Loss x SEGABABA combo in their return to STAPLES Center aka The Crypt tonight (10:30 PM Eastern, Bally Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL, Spectrum SportsNet in That Other LA). But at least Mays’ team didn’t try to pull any shenanigans like an early start time. The Lake Show also has a pair of Questionable, in terms of injury status, superstars to tend to before propping up any NOW SHOWING signs on the marquee. Anthony Davis suffered an abrased cornea early in the Saturday Showcase home loss to Steph Curry’s Warriors. LeBron James has sat out games to deal with ankle peroneal tendinopathy, and the sense that the Lakers might use the next three off-days on top of a DNP tonight to heal up the heel of the league’s all-time scorer is palpable. AD and Bron could add to an injury sheet that includes, relative to Mays, a more-prized former Hawks draftee, Cam Reddish (out, sore ankle, seven appearances and no starts since mid-January), along with frontline mates Jarred Vanderbilt and Christian Wood, and guard Gabe Vincent. The array of absences puts a lot more pressure on defensively deficient guards D’Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves (team-high 28 points @ ATL on Jan. 30, a 138-122 loss to the Hawks) to carry the day, and on Rui Hachimura, Jaxson Hayes and another ex-Hawks rookie, Taurean Prince, to stay clear of foul trouble. Defensively, the Lakers’ general reluctance to hack opponents (league-low 15.9 personals/game) is perhaps their one saving grace. Defensive tenacity was already at a premium for Los Angeles (120.4 post-All-Star D-Rating and 56.9 post-Break opponent eFG%, each 3rd-worst in NBA, ahead of only WAS and UTA). Post-Trade Deadline waiver-wire pickup Spencer Dinwiddie has yet to make a meaningful imprint, and the organization figures that rookie Jalen Hood-Schifino, touted as a defensive specialist at Draft time, is better suited closing out the season for South Bay in the G-League. So, coach Darvin Ham, would you care for my diagnosis? It seems you’re not getting enough Mays in your rotation diet. Losers of two straight and four of this month’s past seven games, the Lakers will need an infusion of something, and fast, after the loss to current 9-seed Golden State shifted Los Angeles in the NBA West to #10. Because the hottest team in that conference is nipping at their heels. As last night’s resounding 110-93 victory over the Clippers stiffened the Hawks’ arm against the NBA East’s 11-seed (30-37 for ATL, 4.5 games ahead of BRK), the Houston Rockets have won five straight games, now even closer to making the season finale for the Lakers (36-32, 3.5 games ahead of HOU) more abrupt than most anyone planned. Keeping James Harden and the Clippers’ big three reasonably inefficient and off-balance for long stretches in both halves, while catching them all flat-footed in transition repeatedly, coach Quin Snyder’s Hawks were able to rest his most prominent starters for the final 5-to-7 minutes of last night’s game. Jalen Johnson (11 D-Rebs and 3 steals @ LAC) and Dejounte Murray continuing to press for defensive stops and offensive paint pressure early in tonight’s contest, the latter opening up good perimeter looks for Bogi Bogdanovic, Wesley Matthews, and De’Andre Hunter, will be a determining factor as to whether Ham turns to Mays for a vital mid-game house call or, otherwise, for just another garbage-time fun run. How will this Hawks fan be faring by the time Ham’s crucial decision needs to be made? ***Yawn*** Probably not amazzzzing well for this East Coaster. I get it that kinesiology is your thing, Skylar. But, is there a somnologist in the house? Let’s Go Hawks! ~lw3

~lw3

The Bearded One missing Thursday's game at Chicago due to his strained shoulder, as The Athletic's Law Murray noted, snapped a string of 59 consecutive appearances, Harden's longest run since 2017. Kawhi has recovered after leaving last Tuesday's loss at Minnesota due to back spasms, while center Ivica Zubac is back after missing a pair of games last week due to illness. Norman Powell (contused leg), along with Harden, is Questionable for today. Bogi (missed UTA game due to illness) is off the Boo-Boo Report and is Available. Speaking of San Diego, the Clippers plan to keep it classy by moving their G-League side to suburban Oceanside and renaming themselves the San Diego Clippers. No more "Agua Caliente," and I never knew where Ontario, CA was anyway. ~lw3

“Soon to be known as, ‘The House That Lamar Odom Built!’” The Kandi Man couldn’t. The prized rookie, a first-overall pick, was already out of commission, after getting injured the night before in Inglewood, California versus Shaq and Kobe. Also DNP’d due to injury was the franchise face – a second-year player. So it wasn’t a huge surprise when the Atlanta Hawks sailed into The Pond in Anaheim and drowned the LA Clippers in a vat of stifling defense. Atlanta only hit two of seven three-point tries that February evening, took just three more free throws than the hosts, and allowed five more O-Rebs. The Hawks also managed to score just 103 points. Yet they still vice-gripped the Clipper offense into a paltry, even for the time, 74 points. The 29-point-loss was LA’s worst, to that point, of the season. The good news, thanks to the NBA Lockout, was that the delayed 1998-99 season was still young, just 12 games in. Then again, maybe that wasn’t such good news, as this 12th consecutive loss dropped the Clips to 0-12 before a crowd of under 12,000 spectators. Perhaps the lack of attendees paying to watch was a good thing. Then again… “We can’t point to injuries. We have to suck it up and step up,” blurted Clippers head coach Chris Ford to the LA Times. “You have to have a passion for the game and hate to lose.” Previously, the 1988-89 inaugural Miami heat had set the NBA record for consecutive in-season futility, at 17 games, one above the sad-sack Clipper franchise mark of 16 that kicked off 1994-95. The ’99 Clips would go on to tie Miami’s all-time ignominy, with yet another loss at the Lakers’ Forum in Inglewood. It took all they could muster, back home in front of under 8,000 “fans” at Los Angeles’ staid Memorial Sports Coliseum, to keep Vlade Divac’s sad-sack Sacramento from helping them have the losing-streak record all to themselves. In between the 16-game and the 17-game skids, owner Donald Sterling was doing all he could to pressure Los Angelenos into investing in a new basketball palace, for the franchise he brought north from San Diego. The Lakers, and UCLA, moved out of the Memorial Sports Arena way back in the mid-1960s. The Lakers were doing more than just fine in their next residence, at The Forum over by LAX in Inglewood. Comparatively, winning Danny Manning and Danny Ferry in the 1980s Lotteries didn’t improve the Clippers’ fortunes, or turnstile activity, in the 1990s. Neither would dishing off Manning to Atlanta in 1994 for a rental of All-Star legend Dominique Wilkins. Maybe the arena, Sterling thought, was The Problem. The NHL’s new Mighty Ducks of Anaheim had a lovely new indoor venue, The Pond, and Sterling threatened to make a splash by moving his club to The OC in the outer ‘burbs, as co-tenants with the Ducks, before abruptly changing his mind. The LA Kings’ new hockey owners demanded a new arena to pry themselves of the Lakers’ shadow in Inglewood. After contentious affairs, the city obliged, with a new stadium to be built a couple miles north on Figueroa Street from the Clippers’ old Memorial arena. Sterling needed a state-of-the-art arena, too, to make his club look state-of-the-art. But after moving out of San Diego, was he willing to risk his team having to become the Musty Clippers of Anaheim? Eventually, he worked a deal to join the Kings in the forthcoming STAPLES Center. LA! Check. Downtown! Check. Only problem? The Lakers would be heading there, too. The good news was the Clippers’ attendance, 29th out of 29 teams, immediately doubled in the first season at STAPLES. The bad news was the old attendance value was so low, the Clips only moved up one spot, to 28th in the league. At least they had Clipper Darrell still toughing it out, through thick and thin. One quarter century, and a couple weeks, after Deke and Mookie and Smitty made quick work of Lorenzen Wright and friends, Hawks-Clippers games at STAPLES (Crypto.com, if you’re nasty… 9:30 PM Eastern, no, really on Bally Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL this time, KTLA, NBATV everywhere else) come to an end tonight. A LOT has changed for the Clippers in that time. Then again… Up in the rafters, there’s the Kings, with two Stanley Cup-winning banners. Look behind the curtain during Clipper games, and there are the six NBA Championship banners, to tack onto what was the Lakers’ first 11, pre-STAPLES. There are three more title banners, for the WNBA’s Sparks. The Clippers? Well, they’re working on it. Give ‘em a minute, jeez! Nique, for his cup of tea, was inducted into the Clippers’ Hall of Fame in 2006, joining Moses Malone (???), Bob McAdoo and Bill Walton. But no Clipper jersey numbers, aside from Bill Russell’s #6, hang from those rafters in an honorary manner. There will be some future candidates on the floor today, although James Harden (questionable, strained shoulder) may be unable to join Kawhi Leonard and Paul George on the court. Key members of the Clippers 2010s era, that brought the franchise hype and relevance as Kobe moved into retirement, will have their unis hoisted one day in Steve Ballmer’s new palace. But the current Clippers caretaker has designs on bringing another rafters ornament with him to open up Inglewood’s new Intuit Dome next fall. Walking out of STAPLES this summer with a trophy the Hawks’ opponents tomorrow have coveted since winning one in the Bubble in 2020 would have Ballmer’s cardiologist on-call for months on end. To do that, of course, will require the upright and productive contributions of Messrs. George, Harden and Leonard at playoff time. Getting Russell Westbrook (Out, fractured hand) back in time is mission-critical as well, though Bones Hyland (career-high 11 assists plus 4 steals @ CHI on March 14) is doing the best he can after finally getting minutes from coach Ty Lue. The chances will heighten even more if the Clips (42-24) can sneak up on either of OKC or Minnesota to secure a Top-3 seed in the Western Conference. As they did, with Harden and Westbrook in tow, in piling up the points on February 5 in Atlanta during their thrilling 149-144 win, the Clippers have feasted mostly on sub-mediocre teams of late, defeating the Bulls twice over the past eight days. Pairs of games versus Portland and short-staffed Philadelphia, ought to help pad the win tally into the 50s, something that has alluded LA since 2017. But splitting the past ten games, including Friday’s 112-104 loss at New Orleans and an 18-point loss at STAPLES versus Minnesota, won’t help achieve the Prime Objective, of walking out of this building as NBA champs. Atlanta (29-37, three straight Ls) could be a pesky stumbling block for the Clips tonight. But that is only if coach Quin Snyder, taking a flyer from Ford, implores his injury-laden troopers to suck it up and step up. Back when they had Trae Young, Onyeka Okongwu and Saddiq Bey all starting, the Hawks forced Harden into going Super Saiyan in the clutch to eke out the victory. Atlanta could have hung on for the win with a stronger performance from Jalen Johnson (3-for-14 FGs, team-high 7 rebounds, 5 assists vs. LAC on Feb. 5), whose defensive rebounding and persistent rim pressure in his second game back from an ankle sprain (4-for-15 2FGs, but 26 points in Friday’s 124-122 loss @ UTA) will be key to the Hawks keeping pace for four quarters tonight. Perhaps the Clippers will finally break through at this season’s end, giving Clipper Darrell a reason to lead with his chin when he takes his seat along The Wall of superfans-only at the new arena next fall. Then again… Let’s Go Hawks! ~lw3

It takes quite a bit of room to bring Kenneth Lofton into a room. Yet the Jazz used some of their room exception to sign Lofton to a multi-year contract this week. Utah still had enough room (exception) to hand former New Balance intern Darius Bazley a similar contract. Ah, depth. Both are presently on G-League assignment, however. It is no longer Otto Porter that you are looking for, as the NBA vet retired upon getting waived by the Jazz post-trade. Once the Jazz are eliminated-eliminated from the Western Conference Play-In chase, don't be surprised if GM/PBO Danny Ainge gives his old Celtics buddy Isaiah Thomas an end-of-season call-up. IT has been THAT on the Salt Lake City Stars, getting back to his old 30-point scoring self on a nightly basis in the G-League after the 35-year-old inked a deal this month. "I just love this (Dellavedova) too much," said Thomas of his hot pursuit for an NBA roster spot. C'mon you bump-on-a-log GMs out there. Didn't SLAM Mag tell you in their Playoff Preview? "It's Time"! Jalen and Bogi remain Questionable, an encouraging sign in Jalen's case, as of the 5:30 PM Boo-Boo Report update. Taylor Hendricks also remains Questionable with his sprained toe, but there's some optimism that the rookie will be able to give it a go. ~lw3

“Jazz fans! Please give a warm Utah welcome to tonight’s halftime entertainer…” It’s Friday night in the SLC, and that stands for Schedule Loss City! It’s true that the Utah Jazz have only wins, here at Delta Center, versus the Spurs and the Wizards under their belt over the past 37 days. It’s true that the Jazz, like the road-tripping Atlanta Hawks, remain without their franchise player, Lauri Markkanen (contused quad) in their case, while guards Jordan Clarkson (strained groin) and Kris Dunn (rest?) will sit this one out, and rookie starter Taylor Hendricks (sprained toe) remains questionable. It is also true that hell hath no fury like the Hawks’ schedule-maker at NBA HQ. The Jazz (28-37) lacked the offensive firepower to hang for four quarters with the NBA-leading Celtics in SLC on Tuesday, and the defensive chops to keep up with the defending champ Nuggets last Saturday. But despite two off-days preceding the visit from Boston, and a pair of off-days prior to their loss in Denver, coach Will Hardy’s club was granted two more off-days to prep for the Hawks’ arrival ahead of tonight’s game (9:30 PM Eastern, Bally Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL, KJZZ in SLC, I’m so terribly sorry, all you NBATV viewers out there). Jazz players and staff were able to watch the Hawks gift-wrap a 106-102 victory for Portland, on Wednesday night, then waited for Atlanta to hop a flight headed to the Wasatch Front. Much like Portland, Utah has been fairly lousy in-conference (14-23 vs. NBA West), but half of their win tally this season has come at the expense of teams like the Hawks (14-14 vs. NBA East, despite Atlanta’s 124-97 win back home on Feb. 27). Plus, the Jazz are a respectable 19-13 at home. At least the Hawks (29-36) are none the worse for wear. Bogi Bogdanovic (questionable for today, illness) trudged his way through the Blazers game despite catching a bug, and his pregame status is the same as Jalen Johnson’s (questionable, sprained ankle). As Bogi and a pedestrian De’Andre Hunter weren’t able to provide much help when Dejounte Murray cooled down (40 points vs. POR but 5-for-16 second-half FGs), the Hawks were also dislodged out of the paint with ease (21-8 second-half D-Reb advantage for POR). That’s encouraging news for John Collins, who played nearly 30 minutes versus the Celts only to be out-boarded on his own team by sixth-man Walker Kessler (8 board in under 20 minutes), along with Collin Sexton and fill-in starter Luka Samanic (seven rebounds apiece, the latter in under 15 minutes, while Collins could only muster four). JC and the Jazz will have little trouble controlling the pace, and the game, so long as Capela and the Hawks’ front line are still in a giving mood. Jazz fans have grown encouraged by the offensive spark recently displayed by rookie Keyonte George (4-for-9 on 3FGs in the loss @ ATL), albeit mostly in losing efforts. SB Nation’s Lake Hale over at SLC Dunk noted how George being miscast as a defensive swingman in guard-heavy lineups at Baylor obscured his potential as a primary playmaker. It’s easy to slip into the shadows when Sexton and/or sixth-man Jordan Clarkson are sopping up possessions. But he has since lost weight, and his shots are also rounding into form (28.3 PPG over last 3 full games, incl. 16-for-32 on 3FGs). Keyonte could stand to cut down on his turnovers and fouling, but for a rookie who lacked confidence on his shot in the early going, Jazz fans buy into George thinking he’s got it. George’s emergence is a positive sign for Hardy, who may find himself on a hot seat, anyway, if he is ultimately unable to improve upon Utah’s 37-45 record from last season. The Jazz were well past the halfway point last season at 27-26 before the wheels fell off, and the 6-17 stretch they’re currently on after starting out at 22-20 has been dispiriting, even in a state not all that fond about certain spirits. As for Hardy’s head-coaching predecessor, now manning the visitors’ end of the sideline, in his first visit to the Beehive State since abdicating the Jazz post? Whatever temperature the seat beneath Quin Snyder’s tuchus in Atlanta, know that it comes with a handy-dandy ejector button. “I strongly feel they need a new voice to continue to evolve.” That’s what Snyder told the Utah media when he showed himself the door after 8 NBA seasons. The eighth season started strong, with a 26-9 start through the end of December, just about as stout his seventh year at the helm, when the Jazz’s 52-20 mark was the NBA’s best. But a quick stumble and recovery to land just short of 50 wins, then a six-game ouster in the opening playoff round at the hands of Jalen Brunson and Luka Doncic, as new ownership and management looked on, had Snyder realizing he’s no tuna, waiting around just for the opportunity to get canned. Sorry, Charlie. Things weren’t so different in Columbia, Missouri, back in 2006. Snyder, in his seventh season as a college head coach, assembled his struggling Mizzou Tigers team before practice on a Thursday in early February, assuring them he hadn’t been asked to resign and had no designs on doing so. The sun didn’t go down the next Friday when Coach Quin told his team he planned on catching the next train smoking out of town. Recruiting slip-ups, and increasing competition within the Big 12 conference, were certainly factors hastening his exit. Ultimately, the thought swimming around in Coach Quin’s mind, that the ever-circulating speculation would be too burdensome on his players, including ex-Hawk and Big 12 scoring leader Thomas Gardner, won over. It is notable that the programs Snyder has left behind haven’t fared much better in the ensuing years. Mizzou peaked under Mike Anderson in 2009, winning the Big 12 tourney and reaching the Elite Eight. But they have generally been first- and second-round fodder at best in the half-decade that followed, whether in the Big 12 or the SEC, getting bounced by #15 seeds twice, including last season. While not pleased with the on-court results, Hawks HQ is certainly pleased to have Snyder around. Once a hot commodity in Durham and Los Angeles, Coach Quin is keeping owner Tony Ressler’s dime-dropping cash cow in good spirits, and his affable nature with the media after wins and tough losses alike, veers the microphones well away from management’s direction. But as the Hawks start out looking like an above-average outfit, but grow listless as the nights, versus lotto-clubs like Portland and Utah, and the seasons wear on? Suffice to say it won’t take seven-plus seasons for Snyder to hear voices once more, in his head, that a team he coaches needs a new voice. He certainly won’t wait around for that sentiment to come from a Ressler, or a Fields. Now in a big bubble of 6.0 games behind current 10-seed Golden State, Utah, the NBA club, is back in the situation where they’d be pleased to one day find their team assigned to a postseason tourney of any kind. Until then, they’ll settle for cheering on the Jazz as they scrap and claw for victories, like the game set up for them to win well before the season began. Yes, I’m onto your tricks, NBA HQ schedule-maker. You ain’t SLiCk. Let’s Go Hawks! ~lw3

First, the big health update that matters most... three cheers to Dave Deckard, longtime writer and managing editor over at SB Nation's Blazers Edge, and his superhero kids! Best wishes to Dave on his recovery. https://www.blazersedge.com/2024/3/7/24093686/dave-deckard-managing-editor-blazers-edge-health-update-what-happened-to-portland-trail-night Far less important, Jerami Grant is Questionable on the Boo-Boo Report due to a strained hammy. Rookie Rayan Rupert (sore ankle) is also Questionable, along with a pair of Two-Ways currently on the Rip City Remix (including 2018 Georgia Mr. Basketball Ashton Hagans) . A third Two-Way, Justin Minaya (Illness) is listed as Probable. Jabari Walker (inflamed hip) joins Brogdon (elbow tendinitis) and Sharpe (ab surgery) among the Outs. Whoever makes it on the floor for the Hawks need to exploit a Portland team that's as cushy in the middle as a Voodoo Doughnut (The Magic is in The Hole!). The Blazers' 58.0 2FG% allowed, like the 49.3 2FG% when they shoot, are both league-worsts. Rookies Toumani Camara (arrived with Ayton in the POR/PHX multi-team deal) and Duop Reath help Ayton create as many extra-chances as possible to keep them in the running. In a 129-125 losing effort during last season's visit to PDX, Murray scored 40 points and added seven assists with no turnovers plus eight rebounds. Back home, DJ followed that up with 41 points (5-for-5 on threes) as Atlanta prevailed in a wire-to-wire 129-111 win. The Hawks look to extend their road-victory string to three games as this 11-day, five-game road stretch kicks off. If you count CDMX as a road game instead of a neutral site, Atlanta last won three consecutive away games back in November. Prior to that, the Hawks won four-straight away from the Farm back in January of last season. ~lw3

“Ahead of today’s Trail Blazers game in Oregon, here is your @EmoryHealthcare report.” The DARP is fully underway! The World Bank’s International Finance Corporation uses the acronym for what it calls its Distressed Asset Recovery Program. I can’t confidently say that folks in Portland perceive Deandre Ayton to be a distressed asset. Yet I do imagine the IFC won’t mind the Trail Blazers sharing the abbreviation, for the NBA team’s Deandre Ayton Reclamation Project. I am being a bit unfair, as usual, to 2018’s top overall draft choice. The man can certainly rebound the ball, if not much more, having averaged double-digit retrievals in each of the seven-footer’s first six pro seasons. Much like teams that feature players capable of compiling double-digit assists with ease, their fans recognize that such singularly prolific skill used to go a long way, back in the day. Nonetheless, there has been what the cool kids these days refer to as a “low vibrational” quality to Ayton’s game, whenever he is deemed healthy enough to contribute to the on-court proceedings. Deandre will sink into the shadows of games when allowed, an easier feat when accomplished teammates the caliber of Devin Booker, Chris Paul, and/or Kevin Durant command so much attention. After observing Ayton’s shrinky-dinks in playoff rounds, versus draftmate Luka Doncic, and even further when directly opposite league MVP Nikola Jokic in last season’s semifinal ouster, his hometown Suns elected to cut bait on their asset before this season could begin, getting in on the Damian Lillard-Jrue Holiday multi-team deal this past September. The good news for Ayton is he landed in an NBA town that has grown used to top picks either not panning out, or at best being flashes in the pan before injuries took their toll. Klay’s dad and Ayton’s fellow Bahamian Mychal Thompson, 1978’s first-overall, went five picks before the Celtics gambled on an Indiana State underclassman in Larry Bird. Before going on to win titles with the Lakers, Thompson at least doubled the playing time of 1974’s top pick, 1977 champion center Bill Walton, over the course of seven solid if unspectacular seasons in Portland. Each worked out better than 1972’s first-overall, LaRue Martin, ever could. Thank goodness for (H)Akeem the Dream in Houston, since Sam Bowie getting taken first-overall, instead of second, could have looked a lot worse for Portland. Remember The Great Durant-Greg Oden Debates in the run-up to the 2007 Draft? Mm-hmm. Based on the franchise’s history, you could understand the wariness around Portland about potentially ruining Wemby with lottery “luck” last summer, and the relief when they had to settle for G-Leaguer Scoot Henderson at #3. The Blazers just seem to fare better when prospects fall to them, like Lillard, Tyrus Thomas (turned LaMarcus Aldridge) and Clyde Drexler, than when they’re tasked with not spoiling the cream of the crop. The pressure is off Ayton in Portland. Or maybe not. Particularly now that he finally seems to be in decent health, the Blazers brass is using the balance of this season, thrown off-kilter from the beginning with the season-ending injury to Robert Williams and the early-season unavailability of mainstay guard Anfernee Simons, to have coach Chauncey Billups take Deandre and get a fire burning under his… asset. There’s no need to become an eye-to-eye rival of Jokic or Doncic anytime soon. But… solid, with occasional hints of spectacular? That’s the end-of-season aim, for Ayton. He missed five games, recently, with a sprained hand. But the recent returns, amid Portland’s six-game homestand that continues with the Atlanta Hawks in town (10 PM Eastern, Bally Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL, ROOT Sports in PDX) have been encouraging. Ayton amassed a season-high of 30 points with the aid of 25 shots from the field, in last Saturday’s win over the Raptors, and his 19 rebounds tied for the most since he grabbed 23 in Toronto way back on Halloween Eve. Billups’ challenge is to encourage his biggest big to perform closer to the basket (per bball-ref, Deandre’s average shot-distance of 8.0 has widened from 7.7 last season in PHX, 7.0 and 5.5 the seasons before) and to use his physicality, such that it is, to draw fouls rather than being averse to getting whistled for them in the paint. Ayton technically is hitting freebies at a career-best 83.0 FT%, but the paltry 1.3 attempts per game makes the sample size too small to matter. Nine of his 19 FGAs, on Monday with the mighty Celtics in town, were from 10 feet or beyond, and opponents are happy to live with him taking those shots, make-or-miss. He went 11-for-19 on those shots, but if I tell you he finished with 22 points, you can figure out just how many free throws he made. He took just as many, two fewer than he did versus Toronto. He nabbed 15 rebounds, six offensive, but was otherwise a man on an island as the Celts stiff-armed his Blazers for the 121-99 win. For all that has ailed them, including injuries to Shaedon Sharpe and Malcolm Brogdon, the Blazers would be halfway decent if they could just play teams like the Hawks from the NBA East. The loss to Boston dropped Portland back to 10-11 against Eastern Conference clubs. Whereas their 8-35 mark within their own conference is the NBA’s worst, San Antonio, Washington and Detroit included. Boston, certainly is a tall order. But probably not an Atlanta team (29-35, 12-9 vs. NBA West) that, like the Blazers, is missing multiple starters, including one more with Saddiq Bey (torn ACL) now out for the season. Games versus and at Atlanta (the latter in two weeks) represent two of the Blazers’ final nine contests versus Eastern opponents. Coming off a 116-103 trouncing at the hands of the hounding Pelicans, Atlanta’s Dejounte Murray (23 points and 11 assists vs. NOP; 6.1 career APG and 47.6 3FG% vs. POR, most vs. any NBA West foe) is a sure shot to impress during his now-annual visit to the Pacific Northwest. The Hawks’ De’Andre reclamation, Mr. Hunter is likely to return to the starting unit after finally cooling down during his recent sixth-man scoring tear (12 points in each of last two games; 17.3 PPG over past 14, on 50.6/45.7/83.3 shooting splits). With four of Atlanta’s top-8 minute-loggers sidelined, Hunter (12 more D-Rebs on the season than Trae Young) will need to boost his ability to aid Clint Capela and Bruno Fernando on the defensive glass and keep Portland’s offense Weird (NBA-worsts of 49.3 team 2FG%, 23.0 team APG, and 6.5 shots blocked per game). More important than victory for Portland, though, is having Ayton learn to play as though he knows he is integral to victory on a nightly basis. Ben Niesen of The Peach Basket concurs, with Yours Truly, in his recent assessment that Deandre remains “Portland’s Most Important Trail Blazer”. With virtually all key players returning next season (and the veteran Brogdon extension-eligible), the tantalizing premise of two ying-yang centers sharing the court, with Williams eventually learning to spread the floor to create driving lanes for the crafty Henderson and Simons, will have to wait until at least next season before it bears fruit. Until such time, around the not-too-eager Beaver State, it’s all about The World According to DARP. Let’s Go Hawks! ~lw3

Your momma named ya Trey, so you're gonna shoot Treys. "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, PRESENTING, FROM PEACHES AND HERB... HERB!" ~lw3

Move Over, IsoJoe! ~lw3

I'd have tuned in and wondered why I'm stuck watching Jimmy Hanlin's Swing Clinic. Thanks, Lauren! Lemme go update that TV info. ~lw3

The Hawks were the healthy and halfway-decent team when they surged past the Pels in New Orleans back on November 4, their 123-105 win (70-45 in the second half) delivering Atlanta its fourth-win in a row and bringing both clubs to 4-2 on the season. Ingram was laboring through knee tendinitis while New Orleans was unsure of Naji Marshall's, Trey Murphy's and Jose Alvarado's individual health statuses. Now the sole up-in-the-air Pelican medically is rookie Dyson Daniels (torn meniscus, out at least another week). New Orleans picked up a backup guard, in former St. Bon/Iowa State star Izaiah Brockington, for a ten-day, and he was in Birmingham with E.J. Liddell and a couple two-way guys on G-League duty. The lightly used Cody Zeller bears a face mask but is Available according to the latest available Boo-Boo Report. Nothing new on the Hawks' injury front, although Dejounte's pregame status remains Probable. Atlanta's fourth-quarter allowance of 22.9 PPG is the lowest in The Association since February 25th, as per Hawks' Game Notes. Stretch it back to the All-Star Break, and the 23.1 opponent PPG in final frames is also the lowest. Murray cleared 40 points on Friday while taking, and making, just one freebie, a franchise first. A trio of triples would have Bogi Bogdanovic surpassing Jason Terry for 5th on the Hawks' all-time made-threes list. ~lw3