lethalweapon3

"Jason Collins" (cough) from the AJC gamethread: ~wloc

Didn't get the dominating inside play I had hoped for (can we find out what's wrong with Dampier? JaCo is wretched right now...) but they did get the Nets to settle for terrible jumpers (6-for-25 tonight) especially in crunch time.Josh becoming Mr. 30-and-10 "irregardless" of, well, you know. Back-to-back, his 4th "30-and-10" of this month and 6th of the year, compared to just one "30-and-10" game last year. Congrats!We need far more efficient halfcourt possessions early in the game (and smarter player substitutions throughout) so we're cruising against bad teams like the Cavs and Nets late.Aside: Hope Pietrus is okay.~lw3

Welcome back Marvin and Ivan! And not a moment too soon! Get well really, really soon Zaza! The month of March has not been kind as the Jersey Boys near their final curtain call. While 4-8 doesn’t look disastrous on the surface, their four wins included a home win against the Raptors, two wins in the same week at Charlotte (the first one was where Deron Williams poured ‘57’ sauce on the Bobcats, only to win by three), and a buzzer-beating home victory over the sputtering Clippers. All of those wins came before the trading deadline, when there was still fading hope that a certain broad-shouldered giant would join the roster. Since then, a four-game slide including homestand setbacks to the Hornets, Cavaliers, and the Wizards have Coach Avery’s gang reeling. They also thought that, even if they didn’t reel in the biggest fish, Brook Lopez would be a healthy mainstay for their final playoff push, but a sprained ankle has sidelined him since March 4th (he’ll miss tonight’s contest, and will be out another couple weeks). Deron himself missing four games with a strained calf didn’t help matters. They’re doing without Damion James and Keith Bogans, both out with season-ending injuries. Shelden Williams is struggling to continue playing with pain in his shoulder. The Nets’ second-best passer by default, Jordan Farmar (groin) is possible for tonight, but look for a little more of UGA’s Sundiata Gaines, who played serviceable minutes in Washington on Wednesday. Deron Williams might as well be known as Dinty Moore, because he’s been gradually stewing as the pile of things not going the Nets’ way continue to mount. After a career with no ejections, referees have given Williams the heave-ho twice in three months. Avery Johnson joined him on an early trip to the showers Wednesday at the Nets fell to Washington. He also left the locker room two nights in a row without speaking to postgame media. Heading into their final month with playoff hopes likely dashed, New Jersey declares there will be No Sleep ‘Til Brooklyn, intending to play spoiler against teams like the Hawks jockeying for playoff position. Unfortunately for Garden Staters, they’re more likely to do this away from Pru Center (just 5-18 at home), as they still hold a respectable 10-15 road record. Who is currently second in the league in three-point attempts per game? Why, it’s D-Will, lobbing up a career-high 6.5 per game, just a shade fewer than Ryan Anderson. He’s only shooting at a 35% clip for the season (17-for-60 in the past month), but the All-Star supposes that without the team’s other major offensive option, Brook Lopez, a few extra threes might keep the Nets in the running for a victory. The team as a whole seems to follow this approach: the Nets are 2nd in three-point rate to Orlando (30.1% of field goal attempts) but make just under 35% of those shots (14th in the league). Conversely, they take and make the fewest shots within 10 feet of the rim among NBA teams. While it is a harder task now with Gerald Wallace in the fold for Jersey and Zaza Pachulia out, the Hawks need Josh Smith, Marvin Williams, and Ivan Johnson to establish dominance in the paint early on, and the Nets will be reduced to jacking threes trying to keep up. Even without cupcakes, Gerald Green has been quite a treat for the Nets after two and a half seasons away from the NBA. Although he’s struggled since being signed for the rest of the season last week, the reigning D-League All-Star MVP is still giving the Nets 11 points (on 50% shooting), 3 rebounds, and almost a steal per night. They are getting a nice boost in offense and defense from Wallace, who is struggling a bit with his shot and consistency but makes an interesting pairing with double-double-maker Kris Humphries. With Marvin Williams back in the fold, Joe Johnson may fare a little better offensively back at shooting guard, against the likes of Marshon Brooks and Anthony Morrow. The Nets will probably deploy Green to help out defensively against Joe. Wallace can only help the Nets escape the basement in the area of defensive efficiency (107.7 points per 100 possessions). Opponents are lighting up the Nets with league-highs of 47.6 FG% and a 37.9 3-Point FG%. Jeff Teague and Kirk Hinrich, bolstered by unselfish play by the frontcourt, can exploit the Nets with their passing, as the Nets give up as many assists per game (23.4) than any other team (62.6% of opponent field goals are assisted, including almost 60% of buckets at the rim). Go Hawks! ~lw3

For gameday grub, I usually enjoy Max's Pizzeria on Marietta (next door to Stats). For those with more time to kill and a can do a short drive, No Mas! Cantina in Castleberry Hill works well too. Back downtown, Slice Pizza and Sidebar in Fairlie-Poplar are decent for quick bites as well. I'm too used to the restaurants within "CNNlandia" as workday lunch options to be fair to them at all (Prime Meridian upstairs is pretty cool if you're attired appropriately).~lw3

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/basketball/nba/story/2012-03-20/Gilbert-Arenas-signs-with-Grizzlies/53670596/1Wild that the Magic are still paying him from the megabucks contract, in addition to this deal with the Grizz. "Joe Johnson, this is your Basketball Future!"~lw3

Classless timing on the fans' part, but Lacob's PR people should have sensed post-Monta that they ought to minimize his presence at the microphone for that ceremony. He'll hire Vickie Guerrero to speak for him next time out there... "Excuse Me!" ~lw3

Aside: "There's No Rivalry Here..." (nor an editor, I might add. Who knew WAOK "critic'd" sports, too?) http://atlanta.cbslocal.com/2012/03/20/theres-no-rivalry-here/ ~lw3

Cool hard ca$h (or, the prospects of not having to pay some out) would be the only argument that would appeal to the A$G to waive anybody at this point. If anything, JaCo saved his spot on the roster, by showing other teams why it wouldn't be prudent to claim him off waivers. ~lw3

Hey, hey, hey! Leave us LD-critiquing southpaws out of this! ~we love our cons!

KG probably thinks "Teague" is French or something. ~lw3

Woody: "Iso What? Iso Who?" http://espn.go.com/b...dom-under-woody Random scout: "Oh, you, and your silly journalists!" http://espn.go.com/b...to-woodys-world ~lw3 Smoove reads this article, crumples it into a ball, and declares to himself, "I'll show them... I'll show them all! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!" as he heads to the practice floor to work on his halfcourt heaves. ~lw3

That's a good question to ask Larry Drew about. ~lw3

bump! ~lw3

This is a good chance for the Hawks to press the Celtics back down toward the bottom of the playoff pack, where the Mike Woodson Reclamation Project, winners of three straight, and the Bucks, on a five-game streak, are making a late charge. The Celts have gone 3-4 in their last 7 games and dropped their last two in back-to-back matchups on the road, getting lit up for a season high 120 points at lowly Sacramento, then falling behind early and coming up short late in Denver. In both games, the Celtics as a team were beaten on the glass (36-to-23 on defensive boards vs. Sacto; 32-to-23 on defensive rebounds vs. Denver). They’re used to being unproductive on the offensive glass (lowest offensive rebounding rate, by far) because they’ve been a historically top-shooting NBA team. But without Jermaine O’Neal (wrist; contract issue) and Chris Wilcox (season-ending aortic surgery), Kevin Garnett needs help from his teammates if the Celtics intend to rebound defensively and control possessions. He needs the 6’8”, 250-pound Brandon Bass to play more like a power forward and less like a bulky shooting guard. Bass snared 3 rebounds, total, in 60 minutes of action the last two games. Offensively, Bass’ long-range shots – 4.9 a game – make up nearly half of his shot selections, although he is nailing alost half of them (49%). Meanwhile, Boston is last in the league in the percentage of shots taken at 3-9 feet from the rim (9.4%, only team taking less than 10% of their FGAs from here). Paul Pierce and Rajon Rondo are both well below their rebounding averages as well during this 7-game stretch, and need to pick up the slack pronto. Without that, Doc Rivers may have to rely on the likes of Greg Stiemsma and JaJuan Johnson to stop the bleeding. They are actively trolling the waiver wire for band-aids like Rony Turiaf and Chris Johnson, but are really holding out hope that a player of Chris Kaman’s caliber becomes available before Friday’s playoff-eligibility deadline. With a lack of frontcourt bangers and anyone other than Rondo capable of driving and drawing contact, Boston is next to last in shot attempts leading to And-1 calls, a paltry 1.8%. While all-time marksman Ray Allen is shooting threes as well as ever before (now 4th in the league at 46%), he doesn’t have so much game outside of the TD Garden Center as of late. He’s shooting a very pedestrian (for him) 41% from three-point range on the road, compared to 52% at home. His three-point field goal percentage has declined as the season wears on, going from 58% in Decemeber, to 55% in January, to 40% in February and 39% so far in March. The Rondo effect is evident, as usual, in Boston holding the highest assist rate and the percentage of field goals assisted (66.7%). Cut off the passes for mid-range and long-range shots, as Boston leads the NBA in assisted buckets between 10-15 feet, and is second in assisted 2-point field goals from 16-23 feet. Boston is conversely among the league’s top teams in turnover rate (3rd highest). The Hawks must convert the lion’s share of Boston turnovers from steals into transition baskets to get the decisive edge. The Rondo effect also shows up in the Celtics’ stellar perimeter defense. Their opponents have the NBA’s worst 3-point shooting percentage (31%) and make the second fewest long-range two-pointers per game (6.3). Don’t settle for these shots, unless you’re wiiiiide open (and are capable of making the basket with reasonable proficiency). Drive instead, and force Rondo and the Beantown Bigs to make a play. Boston’s opponents attack with mid-range shots (11% of all shots) more than anyone in the NBA, but to limited success (35%, 3rd worst). Fake the Celtics’ defenders at this range and drive to the bucket. Go Hawks! ~lw3

As a native of the City of Brotherly Shove, I can happily declare "It's Always Sunnier in Atlanta!" ~lw...3???

Can't figure out why, but as of at least today, anytime I type the number "three" I get a number 5 instead. Any idea if there were recent upgrades that causes the forum settings to auto-correct the "threes" to "fives" after a post? EDIT: looks like it's only when I do my usual signature, NOT anytime I type a three. Test: Josh! Stop shooting those darn 3's! (that one worked) Test... ~lw1 ~lw2 ~lw5 ~lw4 ~lw5 (that one doesn't) Test: a3 b3 c3 d3 e3 f3 g3 h3 i3 j3 k3 l3 m3 n3 o3 p3 q3 r3 s3 t3 u3 v3 w3 x3 y3 z3 (that works) Test: lw3 (fine) Test: ~l3 ~w3 (okay) Test: ~aw3 ~bw3 ~cw3 ~dw3 ~ew3 ~fw3 ~gw3 ~hw3 ~iw3 ~jw3 ~kw3 ~lw5 ~mw3 ~nw3 ~ow3 ~pw3 ~qw3 ~rw3 ~sw3 ~tw3 ~uw3 ~vw3 ~ww3 ~xw3 ~yw3 ~zw3 (ah, it's just me it seems) Test: !lw3 @lw3 #lw3 $lw3 %lw3 ^lw3 &lw3 &lw3 *lw3 (lw3 )lw3 `lw3 'lw3 ~lw5 (my mind is playin' tricks on me!) ~lwthree

Hoping for a speedy (no claxton) recovery. EDIT: Also, is there a better place to have had to go into surgery than the Cleveland Clinic? Good fortune there. ~lwthree

Welcome back, Donald Sloan! The momentary Hawk keeps finding his way onto NBA rosters, joining the Cavaliers on Friday after a cup of tea with New Orleans. He may not get much time on Sunday but, with Ramon Sessions now in Tinseltown, he has a chance to become the primary backup at point guard, behind super-rookie Kyrie Irving. The Cavs relied just as much on Sessions for setting up the offense (5.2 assists and 2.0 turnovers over 24.5 minutes per game) as they did on Irving (5.4 assists and 3.0 turnovers in almost 31 minutes per). With Sessions gone, those responsibilities fall squarely on Kyrie. It will be interesting to compare his progress post-Sessions to that of John Wall’s rookie voyage once Kirk Hinrich got traded. I expect his stats to propel upward in all departments, good and bad. What? No threads wondering aloud about Jason Kapono? He was waived by the Cavs after being traded in the Sessions deal. Luke Walton suggests he’s healthy and eager to make major contributions now that he is out of the Laker doghouse and help the Cavs make a run for the postseason. Good luck with that! Manny Harris has also returned to Cleveland, after signing on for the rest of the season, and will play behind Anthony Parker as Boobie Gibson moves to the main backup point guard spot. Besides Irving, the other rookie looking to make strides will be Tristan Thompson. Lord Byron is finally turning to Thompson to break into the starting lineup, but at center, where Scott’s season-long frustrations with Ryan Hollins finally surpassed his insistence on being patient with Thompson’s development. As a reserve, the Canadian is struggling mightily at power forward (11-for-42 on field goals in March) but he’s given them five or more rebounds in 20 of 35 games while averaging 20 minutes a night off the bench. By comparison, Hollins has averaged just 3.7 rebounds in his last seven starts. Hollins was pressed into (in)action following the benching of Semih Erden, who averaged just 4.1 boards in nine starts. Center-by-committee will continue until Anderson Varejao returns from his wrist injury in a couple weeks. Even the depleted Hawks have enough size to dominate inside today, with Zaza Pachulia, Erick Dampier, Ivan Johnson and a healthy Jason Collins in an emergency, against an athletic but ultimately overmatched Cavs interior. This assumes Josh Smith is able to neutralize Antawn Jamison in the scoring and rebounding departments. The Cavs give up a higher percentage of assisted three-point field goals than any other Eastern Conference team (about 87.5%, third highest in the NBA overall). This works out well for the Hawks, who score on a higher percentage of assisted three-point baskets than any team in the East (about 91%, third highest overall). Watch out for the crafty hands of Alonzo Gee! Beginning to break out in his third season and also a newfound starter over the past seven games, he’s averaged 3.2 steals over the past five games, doubling his team-leading 1.6 thefts-per-game over the course of the season. He has also become a reliable scorer, tallying double figures every game since starting on March 3. On offense, keep his shots to the arc, as he’s struggled from deep (26.7% since February 11, 39.6% before that). You like to see Gee give up the ball as well (1.6 assists and 1.9 turnovers). Gee’s bend toward sewing up a permanent spot in the starting lineup has come at the expense of Omri Casspi, who has just about worn out his welcome in the 216. Aside: Your "unverified Twitter profile pic of an unavailable flu-ridden Hawk" of the day: https://twitter.com/#!/jpargo1 Go Hawks! ~lw5

Mission: To Be the Best... of the Rest. ~wloc

~lw3

~lw3

No Nene tonight, as he still has a physical to pass and has until tomorrow afternoon to report. And thank goodness for that, as he had a season-high in points and assists during the Hawks’ ill-fated voyage to Denver three nights ago. I’ll go ahead and assume we have nothing to worry about with Brian Cook, either. For the rest of the season, watch for John Wall’s assists and scoring to go up a notch. He’ll soon get a center that makes more assisted shots at the rim than the guy they shipped out, JaVale McGee. Nene is also more of an option from 10 feet out, giving Wall more options when he drives into the paint looking for a kickout. With Nene they’re getting a much better passer, specifically for assists at the rim, a place where guards like Wall live. Where the dropoff will be greatest for D.C. will be in offensive rebounding. The Wizards give up their top offensive rebounder (plus Rony Turiaf) and will get in return a center who is not even in the top 100 in offensive rebounding rates, turning in the lowest such rate of his career thus far. To be fair, the depth the Nuggets have on the frontline plus their high two-point field goal percentage thin out opportunities to crash the boards, but even so, Nene’s “rate” is subpar. For tonight’s game, Trevor Booker, Kevin Seraphin, and Jan Vesely will try to help pick up rebounding slack on both ends. Moving Young and McGee allows the Wizards, at this stage a certain lottery team, to deploy Wall and Nene as a productive two-man game to keep them in some games, while pushing the cadre of young talent they need to see develop quickly, including Jan Vesely, Kevin Seraphin, Trevor Booker, and even our old friend He Whose Name. Expect the latter’s inefficient usage on offense to go down, though, as they rely on more offensive touches for Nene and veteran free agent pickup Roger Mason. For those into win shares, He Whose Name ranks in the top 20 among all NBA players in usage rate (higher than Kevin Love, Kyrie Irving, and Blake Griffin!) but is bottom-ten in win shares among major-minute (20+ mins) players. Mason made up for the poor shooting by Crawford and Singleton against New Orleans last night, complementing Wall with a surprising 19 points. With the departure of Young, Mason may emerge as Washington’s most reliable three-point shooter and free-throw shooter. The Hawks will want to keep the ticky-tack fouls to a minimum, as the Wizards have the league’s highest percentage of And-1 baskets. Wall, Booker, and Vesely are their most successful in this area. This can be a nice comeback game for one Mr. Zaza Pachulia. With only the Bogut-less Bucks holding a lower defensive rebounding rate, the Wizards give up the most offensive boards per game, and today will make do without either McGee or Nene. As a fun stat, among major-minute players taking one or more long-range shots (16-23 feet) per game, Zaza is now in the top five among all NBA players. Just 1.0 shots per game, but he’s shooting a Horford-esque 53 percent. Any chance he and Josh (top 5 in field goal attempts from 16-23 feet) can switch spots on that side of the floor? Go Hawks! ~lw3

It's kinda like watching Gilligan's Island. Deep down, no matter how close they get, you know you can't ever imagine them figuring out how to get the heck off that island. Or Wile E. Coyote finally catching the RoadRunner. That would be way too scary! ~wloc

We Love Our Ca$h! ~wloc

Hail, hail, the gang's all here What the heck do we care What the heck do we care Hail, hail, the gang's all here What the heck do we care now?!? Plus, we gots ca$h, baby! Who could ask for anything more? ~wloc