Playmaker0017

You people need to get a grip. You can look as far back as you want, but when Diaw was drafted I said that he was a talented player but might be limited by the lack of organization (read: lack of coaching and lack of system) in Atlanta. As I watched him play, it was confirmed and I said it numerous times. I said he was a player, who, in the right system, will shine. I'll re-say what I said long ago: A player like Diaw thrives on consistant flow. He relies on other players playing within an organized system and being where they should be. This is why he's had OFFENSIVE success in Phoenix. He played defense just fine in Atlanta, but mainly because he didn't have to rely on the team or anyone else but himself. Selfish YMCA, locker-room, rec center basketball is what Atlanta has been playing for years now ... and it isn't the style of basketball Boris could excel at. If you can't recognize that --- then you are just unable to see through your own ignorant, seething anger. Be happy for the guy ... and look to the future. Quit ripping the guy for having success ... what is wrong with you people? When did HawkSquawk go so downhill? You guys USED to be classy and treated players around the league with at least some modicrum of respect.

Quote: Is this directed at someone in particular or are you trying to put the ass back in class with this post? If you boo-hissed Boris right before the trade - then you are one of the ones it was directed at. But, you probably weren't... you're a newbie by all accounts.

Quote: Swing right back out. [censored] Diaw, and [censored] you. You belong in the Senate if you're going to play 'gotcha' and not contribute. I was contributing well before this post - champ. I also contributed a whole hell of a lot. Hawks moved my boy ... what can I say? Quote: (This whole post could be summarized as "here, have another billy goat, Mr. Troll.") No, I wasn't trolling. I came here when the team was talking about moving Boris and everyone was vehemently denying that he'd amount to a scrub in this league. I was just taking my moment to say - hey, you were wrong. You don't like it - blow me.

Sorry, I just had to swing by and rub the "I told you so" in your face about Boris Diaw. I told you he was a guy that wouldn't play well in an place like Atlanta and that he would thrive in a place that was structured. Man, he looks great in Phoenix. I just keep going back to: "Diaw isn't worth a Snicker's bar". Too bad Sacramento sucks and doesn't really even use Reef.

Quote: Weasel? He went to my high school! Weasel? His name was Phil.

Quote: He's never going to be any worse than he was 2 seasons ago. One hopes. Quote: At WORST you're going to get 16/4/4 from him along with a smart player who plays very good defense. Not something I would pay 70MM for. I think offensively, I would expect: 16-18PPG 5-6 RPG 5 APG Hardly numbers that I would drop 70MM on. Quote: The way his contract is setup, he would be very easy to move if it came to that. He's far from being an anchor. The front loaded contract takes care of that. No one will take him on. You'd never find a team willing to drop that type of coin on him. You could turn around and offer him to the league ... open bidding and teams won't try for him at his new contract, I would bet. Of course, I wouldn't sign Redd to that nasty deal he got either.

Quote: Cool.. I ran a few BBSes back in the day, WWIV mostly, later Renegade. I was on the Art of War, OASIS, and a bunch of the other big ones. Fun times I had a friend that ran Amoeba Board.

Quote: should I? My internet warring skills are unmatched. I've been honing them on the BBS's, IRC and the internet for 15 years now. I've met few who can best me! Baby, my style is impetuous. My defense is impregnable, and I'm just ferocious. I want your heart. I want to eat his children. Praise be to Allah! Quote: But you still know how to play the game. You know how to block. You know how to catch a pass. You know how to run the ball in for a touchdown. True, but the difference is still there. I will not be effective, and was not effective, as a blocking tight end. But, I was the best receiving tight end on the squad. Quote: The system doesn't change your basic knowledge of the game and how it's played. You aren't going to go from being a 20ppg player in one system and being completely and totally ineffective in another. True, but Boris was never a 20 PPG guy. He was never drafted for his scoring, it was for his defense and his passing skills. He still had those in Atlanta. Quote: That was the problem with Diaw. He simply does not have the innate basketball skills to just play and have an impact. I disagree. His impact is different than most guys. He isn't going to make an impact by scoring, but with the right mix ... he makes the difference with sweet passing. The problem is he didn't have players to pass to. Quote: Shareef didn't fit our system, but he still got his 18/8! Well, 20.5/9, but who's counting, right? The problem with the comparison is that Reef is extremely talented. It would be like comparing Reef to Jordan. There just isn't a comparison. (Reef is far superior ... heheh) Quote: He did actually. After woodson repeatedly asked him to shoot the ball more. He complained to the media about his role and the coach not knowing how to use his skills. He felt that being asked to take wide open shots was trying to force him to not be a complete player. He then went on to wonder if perhaps going back to france to play in the pansey leagues might not be a better option for him. I don't remember that, but I doubt it was complaining so much as stating an obvious fact.

Quote: Look, I fully understand the difference that Nash and a healthy, more dominant Amare had on him. I don't expect him to be as efficient on his own as he would be with a roster like that. But even as a younger player, he proved that he can be a very very good player in this league. A year of playing with those guys and winning like they did, will only enhance his confidence AND his basketball IQ. I edited out the rest... I know what you are saying, and I agree. He is a VERY good player. I like him and would love him on my team. I just wouldn't make him the center of my team. 70MM to him is an anchor. If he fails, and I think he will ultimately not succeed, is going to make him a very expensive weight. You won't be able to move him and you won't be able to sign anyone else. I just think money like that should be reserved for the elite of the elite. You all KNOW I love Reef, but Reef was never worthy of 13MM.

Quote: All that is well and good...I even think Boris will be a very solid role player eventually...but when you have the ball in your hands you have to be Decisive and Assertive ....or you will struggle. I COMPLETELY agree. But does that mean that the fans should run around and insult him and act childish about it? No, I don't think so. The question you have to ask yourselves as a team is: Why couldn't the coaching staff motivate him? Why couldn't they give him the confidence he needed? Why was it that when Reef left, Boris regressed rather than progressed? I'll tell you why ... Reef acted like a mentor to Boris. So did JT. After those two split, Boris had the subpar coaching regime and a bunch of high school kids. (oh yeah and Antoine "it's all me" Walker) I think you give him a good coach, a good system ... he's going to be a different player. Quote: If Boris' problems occured while he was being aggressive I don't think you would see many complaints....but indecisive and passive mistakes get you eaten alive is this league. That's a fair statement. It isn't insulting, attacking or rude. It's a statement, not an attack.

Quote: I strongly disagree with this statement. He couldn't handle 100% of the load as a Hawk, but he certainly tried. JT played above and beyond what was expected of him. His late game mishaps had more to do with the team around him than the player himself. Disagree all you want, but if you do a little search on this board you'll see that the guy getting the blame was JT. The call was that once JT goes ... this team can get a real PG. JT can never run the point in the NBA. He dribbles out the clock. He is indecisive and doesn't penetrate. And for the most part - it was true. The thing was, it wasn't for lack of skill, talent or anything else. It was lack of coaching and lack of system. If you ever want to find out why JT and Reef sucked ... it had more to do with lack of system and identity then anything else. Put JT on a team that had direction, had a purpose and told him what they wanted ... and he came through in spades. Put him on Atlanta with "Lionel Stotts" and he becomes a stat player.

Quote: I don't think you did.. he put up 1ppg less the previous year. THE ONLY stat on his sheet that went up considerably from one season to the next was his 3pt %. Do you understand statistics? You have to take the numbers as a whole to get the picture, not individually. Joe Johsnon took almost a shot and a half less to achieve a half point increase in his PPG. He was better on the offensive glass in fewer minutes. He also had significantly fewer turnovers, which helped lead him to a higher A/TO ratio. Also, if you don't think that a just from 43% to 46% isn't a big jump then you don't understand the game of basketball.

Quote: amazingly it took you all of 5 setences to take the honor all by yourself. You should know better than to try to paly word wars with me Chillz. ;P Quote: It's one thing to be "out of place" in certain systems. It's another to look completely lost and unfamiliar with the game you are playing. No, it isn't. I'll explain below. Quote: You might have looked better on a short pass offense. But would you look completely clueless on the run offense? NO. At least, you shouldn't. If you did, then you really didn't belong in the first place. The analogy still holds up. If you've ever played the game of football, some schemes are completely on another level than others. The reads you have to make, the reactions you have to have. The same goes in basketball. If you are used to structure and used to players playing like a team, then when you play the game and everyone is running around like a bunch of morons in a gym league ... then yes, you might get a little lost (and probably stay there). Because the difference is that the opposition isn't playing gym league ... they are full-pro NBA level players. They'll defend the stupid "rec ball" offense and negate any structure you could possibly bring. Quote: Why don't you fly out to phoenix and throw a pity party for Boris. I'm sure he would appreciate that. I'm sure he would. It's about class. It's about couth. This is a guy that never once complained, never once bad mouthed his teammates, his role or the city.

Quote: I'm not bashing Diaw here, I still think he can be a quality reserve in the NBA. I do think that he needs to turn the corner mentally regarding his offense, though. I agree. Quote: Do you disagree with the observation that Diaw passed up both totally uncontested jumpers and open layups? I think he did pass up shots. Quote: I think the Suns will ask Diaw to do the same thing - at a minimum take the open shots. If you don't do that, you disrupt all the offensive spacing on the floor - especially when you are playing a guard position because it allows defenders to sag off you with impunity. I think the difference is that the Suns will have a real coach that can explain the flow of offense better than anyone Atlanta has had in the past 5 years. I think the difference is that the Suns will have a great mentor for Boris to learn from, rather than a bunch of high school standouts. Again, I think it comes down to system. I think it comes down to a coach being able to teach Boris how to feel confident and comfortable. For whatever reason, the Atlanta staff was never able to do that. Part of the blame is Boris, no doubt ... but a lot of the blame is piss-poor coaching as well. Look at JT. JT was a headache and a constant thorn in Atlanta's side when he was here. When he left, he came into his own under a good system and a good coach. He played in control and really contributed.

So, basically what I'm hearing from you is that if you aren't a potent scorer - you are a complete waste of a roster space? That's why teams like the Spurs, Suns, Pistons succeed and teams like the Hawks are the doormat. You think that scoring is the be-all-end-all to the game. Boris was a great defender. A good ball-handler and a good passer. Unfortunately, for the most part, the players were never paying enough attention to be in the correct spots when Boris was looking for the pass. Is he an all-star? No. Is he the next Jason Kidd? No. He never had the opportunity to succeed in Atlanta. Period. The Suns brass obviously see something that your bias as fans won't allow you to see. They see a guy that is versatile and isn't going to need the ball in his hands to contribute. On a team that's on the verge ... you can't find enough of those types of players.