Highpozt2

Jordan is super athletic at 6'11" with some weight. Hawks could make this feasible with a sign and trade involving Crawford and Marvin Williams DeAndre Jordan, Horford and Smith with Johnson and Teague/Heinrich in backcourt is real good, but Hawks would have to look for some dead-on outside shooters like a James Jones Type. The bench would have to get beefed up if Crawford and Williams are gone (average about 24 ppg between the both of them). ZaZa, Powell, Wilkins, Pape Sy, Teague is your bench without some additional shooters.

I agree ---- what I think the Hawks need is a banger like ZaZa who can shoot and defend a little better. Fensenko, Hawes and Gray fit that. DeAndre and Dalembert offer a little different twist athletic shot blockers, but may struggle against the heavier Centers. Oden would be perfect but his health is a extremely high risk

The Hawks were among the last 4 teams left in the East, although most never felt like the Hawks were a true Eastern Conference Champion Contender. If the Hawks are to make us excited it will start next year with Al Horford at starting PF and one of the following unrestricted Free Agents at Center: Yao Ming, Houston Rockets Joel Przybilla, Charlotte Bobcats Samuel Dalembert, Sacramento Kings Greg Oden, Portland Trail Blazers Spencer Hawes, Philadelphia 76ers Nenad Krstic, Boston Celtics Kyrylo Fesenko, Utah Jazz Erick Dampier, Miami HEAT Zydrunas Ilgauskas, Miami HEAT Jeff Foster, Indiana Pacers DeAndre Jordan, L.A. Clippers Francisco Elson, Utah Jazz Aaron Gray, New Orleans Hornets Every one above price wise is reasonable except Yao and Dalembert unless they sign significantly under market value or a sign and trade i.e. Crawford and Williams Personally 6'11' DeAndre Jordan would be nice??? Dampier and Francisco may not offer much more than Collins or Armstrong --- Hawes, Kristic and Pryzbilla are a touch above ZaZa and a healthy Oden???? could be exciting

You are right this will allow the Hawks to move on, and not offer a large amount of money to a likely declining player in Crawford --- Marvin offered almost nothing during most of the playoffs --- also on the bright side Teague may be worth developing

Hawks have given Marvin ample time to show his NBA value and Crawford best year was likely last year as 6th man of the year --- Trade value as you stated is fairly low for both unless you package them with Horford or Smith

Crawford is 2 for 10 and Marvin Williams is a 2nd pick 1st round with zero points in one of the biggest games then Hawks have had in years. Crawford shot 36% for the playoffs and Marvin Williams averaged 5.3 ppg. Neither play any significant defense. What do you do if you are Hawks Management???

Yipes that whole blog was disturbing as a Hawks fan it sounded like 60+ games into the season the Hawks have not really decided how they are best at attacking a defense. A jump shooting team I can roll with, but the Hawks have to have another dimension if jump shots are not falling. Any good team knows if one part of your game is faltering then diversify your game. Larry Drew I know does not buy into what Joe stated because on many Hawks Live Post games he was very upset about how many ill advised jumpers were attempted preferring drives to the basket.

I hear your point and initially I was thinking Dwight in a landslide but it is not as clear a choice as I thought. If we could pull it off through free agency and not have to disrupt the nucleus I would do it. Hawks cant sell the farm to get either player here. I am leaning Dwight if Heinrich is still here. While I thing CP3 if significantly better than Heinrich, I think a starting lineup of Howard, Horford Smith JJ and Heinrich could easily be the best defensive starting five in the NBA.

Reference to PF Flyers incredible ---- memory lane along with Jack Purcell Blue Tips, Chuck Taylor's and Pro Keds --- that's how we rolled before the Swoosh took over Man the Hawks fans want so bad to be in the NBA talk in April and June. Even the local sportscaster or the National sportscasters based in Atlanta would love to have a relevant local team. NBA on TNT based in Atlanta could really get excited about the team a few blocks down, being significant in the playoff talk. If we could keep this nucleus and attract Chris Paul, Dwight Howard or even if Daron Williams not extending with NJ we may be in the talks. However, with Joe's contract it will be tough

Does that means the Hawks are a fantastic Road team since they play 82 road games a year ???

Joe is not even demanding a double team anymore. They are running bluff double teams and our offense is atrocious --- 26th in the NBA out of 30, man that is awful. No Joe doesn't have to lead the team in scoring every night, but at least draw a double team so someone else can blow up. Hawks are still 9th in the NBA in team assist, so the ball is moving, of course assist are the ones the Hawks are making, but how many good passes with wide open shots are we missing, I saw at least 10 yesterday. In addition rebounding, particularly offensive rebounds (a desire statistic) is in the bottom quarter of the NBA. If we could get 12 rebounds, 12 points and 2 blocks collectively out of Collins, Zaza and Armstrong Horford might be able to play PF for more minutes against the longer teams i.e Lakers. Hawks bigs have to give something or this team will slide even more. Hope Collins, Zaza or Armstrong decide they actually want to be the Center for this team

Yes the excitement factor is way down compared to what it looked like when they coin the term Highlight factory --- Josh is the only Highlight with an occasional sprinkle of h]Horford and Crawford The Spurs are similiar regarding excitement but they are a better product for the fans. Yes Atlanta is full of transients so die-hard fans may not be as numerous. But I do think the Hawks are about one significant free agent away from being relevan in the East. However they cannot break up the team to acquire a significant free agent and with Joe's contract that will be tough. Lastly, it is very tempting to go to the DVR and flat screen as opposed to dealing with the Atlanta traffic The Hawks have a tough sell.

The southern garden as in the" Madison Square garden in the south" is how one fan described it. He said he thought he was at MSG the other night, when the Hawks and Knicks hooked-up. Wait until tomorrow, Phillips Arena will become the Staples Center. If it is not a top flight team then the arena is empty. That is what homecourt means to the Hawks, and they have not converted many fans this year. In fact today on the Two Live Stews the Yahoo NBA Insider stated the Heat were in trouble because he stated that not only are the Heat not fairing against Celtics and Bulls, but now the Knicks and Orlando may be able to knock them off. Yes he absolutely skipped the Hawks in the conversation and not one of the three talk show host even mentioned the Hawks. Now as a Hawks fan that is OK to fly under the Radar, but the Hawks have become irrelevant in the eyes of the NBA pundits, as a team that can make a push in the playoffs. I think Heinrich is an upgrade, but will he be able to make the Hawks at least a competitive team in the playoffs?? More importantly will we get any production past the 7th man on the bench??

The Hawks have become irrelevant as a playoff contender even with at 40 to 50 wins --- Joe relevancy as a star is following. I think starting the year it appeared we had a deep bench but with almost no production after player number 7 the Hawks are looking ordinary at best. Hawks fans were really looking for that one magic move by trade deadline, but with Joes contract he is the magic move. Lets Hope Joe, Heinrich and the rest of the Cast have something more than we are seeing. Nineteen games left to go. Yipes we are with that contract for 5 years with little flexibility ---- lets hope for Hawks fan sake you are wrong although you are accurate currently with your assessment

be scoring over 20 points a game, taking over the offense when they cant score, dishing out double digit assist when you are doubled, coaching on the floor. I don't necessarily think you have to lead in all categories, because management gave you a huge contract, however it appears we are getting less than we did before the contract. Is Joe hurt again and playing through it, or have the Hawks just invested in 5 years of mediocrity. If the Hawks cannot attract a top flight free agent to ATL then this squad is 6th in the East period. Every team has gotten huge and if the Hawks don't watch out even NJ, Pacers and Bucks are a free agent away from snatching 6th place in the East. I dont know if I even have a gripe with Joe but he needs someone who can consistently defend the post and score at least on put backs (sounds like Dikembe Mutumbo --- bad timing)

I agree a mid to late 1st rounder would not do much for the Hawks --- will Hilton Armstrong play D and block shots, because our defense has been rotten the last 7 games. That alone would make this deal decent

Yes that is a problem ---- Bibby is the Hawks starting PG and 3rd in assist at 3.6 --- in fact he is tied with Horford starting C/PF --- in addition he is not in the top 40 in assist in the NBA. Bibby was but is no longer a set up guy. I do agree his lack of ability to attack the basket is partially the reason why it is hard to attack and dish.

Man this PG things keeps coming back to bite the Hawks - Here the Hawks are with talent abound, without a decent set up guy. We got Horford and Smith bringing more offense than ever before. They would be even better if they had someone to feed them at their hot spots --- particularly J Smith who would not have to hoist up so many ill advised jumpers if a PG could get the offense in there sets. PG on defense is also a liability, particularly against the quicker PG that can score. I hope Teague surprises the Hawks or we will need to make a immediate move for a PG hopefully before the trade deadline

Jeff Teague has more DNP coaches decision than I have ever seen. He needs to be incorporated quickly. Bibby is not an assist pg, he has a decent set shot and at this point in his career is having a difficult time staying in front of any pg with speed. The Hawks will either have to use Teague and Bibby or make a trade. If any team really plays tenacious defense against the Hawks, they quickly revert to force long jumpers or revert back to last years isolation. That is because there is almost no threat of our guards penetrating. Defenses collapse and force us to shoot the jumper and in the 4th quarter after a long game that proves futile. Hawks PGs on defense is also an issue, however that is for another post.

I am very clear on what he is talking about regarding Hawks as a team needing to hustle and outwork other teams. In fact, that is why I am emphasizing the hustleand intensity in the earlier post. I am also very clear when he speaks on BB IQ, and because no one really knows what the Hawks basketball IQ is, there lies the subjectivity. What we do know is that the Spurs along with BBIQ and team makeup, play with energy, intensity, and other non statistical factors i.e. (ball slapping, face-up defense, shooting passing lanes, diving for loose balls )that all teams can improve on, namely the Atlanta Hawks. Your analogy of studying hard and not being successful can be valid, but also valid is the fact that hard work and perseverance is why this team went from 13 wins to plus 50 wins with a very similar roster. I am not suggesting that BB IQ is not a factor but coaching, consistency and intensity every night does pay dividends. Athleticism alone won't when it. This year the Hawks assist numbers are number 6 in the NBA so they are grasping new concepts with the motion offense relative to last year. Defensively they are 7th in opponents points against, so we are not dealing with a slow team regarding basketball IQ. They do need improving, but they are not as you state "Steve who is dumb as bricks with decent athleticism and is undersized into a star no matter what you do" Hawks IQ in question??? --- but the ability to do what Drew says is play with more consistent energy, intensity and trust is worth several more wins and a more competitive Hawks team.

First saying hustle has nothing to do with it is ridiculous --- Larry Drew constantly talks about the energy/hustle of this team and their lack of intensity or lapses of intensity. He is a Player and coach and seems to think that is a factor and it is. Regarding defensive rotation I also stated trust . I agree it also requires studying tendencies and trusting that your players will be where they are supposed to be --- again to think the Hawks are these dumb children that can't learn, I don't agree. The hawks have improved every year and are a decent defensive team that can be better with more consistent energy and consistent intensity.

Basketball IQ was introduced into this topic as a tangible measurable factor that is much higher in the Spurs than the Hawks and part of that is a good teacher. Popovich vs Drew is undeniable. What I am talking about regarding the spurs template is energy every night, trusting defensive rotations, doing those things that are not statistically driven and doing these things on a consistent basis. The example was the way the Spurs brought it to the Lakers -- it was one of the most intense defensive efforts I have seen in a while. I think regardless of the "basketball IQ" the spurs somehow seem to challenge every bad dribble, every exposed ball, every shot attempt and chase every loose ball. That is often the difference when the Hawks win or lose as we no most offenses have lapses during a game, but intense defense can be a constant. Spurs MO

Making a parallel of a smart teacher and dumb kids to compare the Hawks to is so subjective and unproven that I wont address. I also think that is a totally underestimation of a team that has improved significantly every year, which indicates they are able to absorb an execute. Basketball IQ vs what the Hawks don't do every night which is hustle, play with intensity, and trust their defensive rotations is what the template is, and has beent the Spurs MO has been for years. We may never get a true measure of basketball IQ, but as Drew has mentioned many times this year the team has to learn to trust each other and his scheme and also bring energy every night the Hawks can do that.

That response is subjective at best ----- the measurable that will pay the most immediate impact are not regarding primarily basketball IQ, but instead player intensity and trust in help and defensive rotations. In fact Drew almost mentions it after every Hawks game. Watch Hawks live post-game and Drew either states the intensity was there or not. I do think that basketball IQ is a tangible factor, but yesterday when the Spurs whipped the Lakers it was flat hustle, intensity, defensive rotations and trust that a player will be where he is supposed to be. it was a clinic is why I think the Hawks should watched that as a template. The Hawks might not match basketball IQ but the aforementioned factors can be matched.