hawks21

The refs judgment is clearly poor, and allowing Perkins to change the refs mind in regard to allocation of personal and flagrant fouls is crazy. In Boston, Perkins convinced refs he was fouled flagrantly by Zaza, now Perkins convinces an impressionable ref to call a FLAGRANT ONE ON JOSH SMITH.. and threw an ELBOW... what the heck is going on..

The coaches made the decision to make Al Horford a reserve over Josh Smith... Josh shouldn't be jealous of Big Al...

Nate is a matchup problem for certain teams, and his size can be negative, but the guy has HEART and isn't going to back down from a hard foul or two. He is decisive with the basketball when driving to the basket. Nate can proverbially "break ankles" and have a consistent impact on a game or in a playoff series vs. a particular team.

Caron Butler has a reputation of being selfish as well, but Maggette is better and may be willing to "fit in" and play his role as our new starting small forward... Maggette can help the Hawks against Cleveland and Orlando specifically with his abiliity to generate offense and get opposing players in foul trouble.

I don't think this is a NBA record, but Maggette is currently on a streak in which he has gotten to the FT LINE at least 10 TIMES A GAME for NINE GAMES IN A ROW..and counting .... he made 17-18 FT vs. Cleveland..THIS IS WHAT THE HAWKS NEED IN THEIR LINEUP... GM Sund needs to make this trade happen...

In all due respect, Marvin is the one playing like a dead horse..LOL.. The Hawks need to upgrade that small forward position before the trade deadline.

Many on this board on Marvin's bandwagon expected him to be playing on the same level as Durant. And it hasn't panned out. This was a bad pick by Billy Knight, but the Hawks are still paying for this mistake by keeping him on the roster because some believe he is good for CHEMISTRY. Marvin shouldn't be starting on this Hawks team nor getting 20 to 30 minutes a night. Billy Knight is gone, but Sund need to expediate the departure of Marvin.

Marvin was invisible today while Durant lead his team to victory. Right now GM Sund needs to be finding ways to push Marvin out of here by the trade deadline. Durant and Marvin share similarities, but once they step on the floor, this is where the similarties end. Picked second in 2005 draft vs. Picked second in 2008 draft. Both are 6'9. Both came in the NBA at 230 lbs. Marvin was supposed to do what Kevin Durant is doing now. How did the Hawks evaluate so poorly in picking Marvin 2nd in the whole draft. Marvin can't even carry a mediocre colege team, must less a NBA franchise. The talent level gap between these two players is embarrasing.... Durant can do anything he wants on the court, and even though he is "young", he was a threat.

Trading Marvin won't mess up the Hawks, just like letting Childress walk didn't hurt the team. Actually, we got better. Marvin is a nice guy, but he isn't in his first year anymore. The Hawks aren't a 14 or 27 win team with low expectations. This team is in a position to compete for a spot in the Eastern Conference finals, but Marvin hasn't taken his game to another level. Outside of one great game this year vs. Houston (without McGrady/Yao), Marvin has been mainly invisible. Maybe a trade to Golden State for Maggette or Randolph. Maybe a trade to Clippers for Al Thornton or Marcus Camby. Maybe a trade to the dysfunctional Wizards might be possible. However, something has to happen to change our profile against teams such as Orlando, Cleveland, Lakers, etc....meaningful, consistent production is required from that small forward spot and giving Marvin 30+ minutes a night is a losing proposition.

edmunds, Diaw was traded away because of the same reasons why Marvin has to go... classic underachiever .. Diaw is more multi-talented, but plays when HE WANTS TO PLAY... He had a great game vs. San Antonio, but look at his game log...he gets a lot of minutes (just like Marvin), but his production is sproadic. Diaw has no interest in being a "go-to player". Phoenix gave him a lot of money, but fell out of favor with the Suns. Diaw is a tease who doesn't come to play every night.

Simply, the Hawks have to trade him. If the Hawks are serious about going far into the playoffs, they can't allow Marvin to be an albatross of this team. Marvin had a difficult time guarding Grant Hill last night. Offensively, Marvin got his shot altered or block multiple times inside the paint, and the Suns went the other way for a fast break basket. This is a common theme with Marvin. Marvin has multiple chances to have an impact on a game, but ususally defers. I concur with your assessment that Marvin makes a two or three nice plays per game (mainly in the first half) and "his day is done"... Marvin rarely has a consistent impact on a game, and seems content in staying in the background. Against teams such as the Cleveland, Orlando, New York or San Antonio is when Marvin's disappearing act becomes really noticeable, and it does put MORE PRESSURE on the starters to compensate for Marvin. I had suggested we trade him for someone such as a Corey Maggette, because Maggette is strong with the basketball, and will either get fouled or score. The Hawks have a big-time void at the small forward position, and GM SUND has to make a trade before the February 17th deadline...

I can't recall the last time the Hawks have been in first place this deep into the season. Was it briefly during the 1999 strike season when the Hawks were in the CENTRAL DIVISION?

Unfortunate, but true. I expected a little more from Joe Smith,

Expect some strange calls tonight from Ken Mauer's crew. Will he try to influence this game tonight somehow? Coach Woodson was having a heated discussion in the first quarter. Steve Nash isn't Lebron, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Nash get some favorable calls.

Antawn Jamison would be a GREAT CHOICE as well on this Hawks team..

Even though Maggette and Crawford had an argument...maybe it was a one-time thing and they resolve their differences... Maggette gets to the FT line. He gets to the line more than Joe Johnson and Marvin and Bibby, and he can play multiple positions...and Maggette probably wouldn't mind playing sixth man either.. See the Crawford/Maggette alleged feud may be blown out of proportion...

I agree that Teague's weight (which is actually closer to 195) is not the issue. It is about quickness. Teague has the physical attributes to be a solid player, but Woody can't afford to keep him on the bench. The Hawks drafted him and he has to play. Teague was brought here to fill a need in our backcourt. Quick, athletic guard who can consistently penetrate and break down defenses. The Hawks have pushed former first round picks out the door (Shelden, Diaw, Acie)... Woody won't get the chance with Teague..

Woody's days as a NBA head coach is coming to an end in 2010. Woody won't play Teague, over-uses Bibby and at some point GM SUnd has to step in and say enough is enough. Nate Robinson style of penetrating and challenging the defense speaks to the glaring weakness this Hawks' team has. Robinson was a scoring machine, but he broke every ankle on the Hawks team last night.

ESPN still hasn't mentioned that the Hawks have protested the game... Interesting... Northcyde, There is definitely an integrity problem in regard to the NBA and David Stern needs to answer for this before he sneaks away to retirement.. Look at this story : http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/ian_thomsen/12/11/weekly.countdown/index.html

Anything is possible. ESPN isn't going to pursue this story. It will take local media or the New York Times to dig deeper to look at connections. The Hawks weren't favored to win this game, and who knows what may have been going on. Additionally, look at the type of calls Mauer was making. I noticed multiple defensive three-second calls in the first half. The Cavs were struggling offensively and these types of calls were turnovers for the Hawks that resulted in FTs. Thus trying to change the momentum of the game (potentially). The refs may have anticipated the Hawks would get mad and started screwing up (and commit their own turnovers), but the Hawks held firm and kept the lead until almost the end. After last night, the Hawks were supposed to LOSE BIG on Lebron's birthday and may have been seen as a SAFE BET...

My link In 2000, Mauer was convicted of a felony, three counts of tax evasion, and one count of obstruction of justice for not reporting downgraded airline tickets as income to the Internal Revenue Service. Mauer failed to pay taxes on $26,500 of additional income over a three-year period.Mauer was one of two NBA referees who chose not to plea bargain his case believing that there was an injustice done against him.Mauer stated that he never intended to commit a criminal act and his accountants signed off on his tax returns and was not told of any issues. In April 2001, Mauer was sentenced to five months in jail, five months of home detention, three years of supervised release, and 800 hours of community service.At the conclusion of the trial, Mauer said, "I'm proud that I stood up for myself. At the same time, I'm relieved that it turned out this way. This is the first decent day I've had in a year and a half. This summer is going to be hard, serving my sentence. But I'm going to turn it into a positive thing. I'm going to help the kids, I'll get into shape.

From the AJC: ...."The Hawks have been down the protest road previously. The Miami Heat protested a December 2007 overtime loss to the Hawks after Heat center Shaquille O'Neal was mistakenly ruled to have fouled out of the game. NBA commissioner David Stern found the Hawks were grossly negligent in giving O'Neal an extra foul, leading to a replay of the final 51.9 seconds of the game almost three months later, which the Hawks won again...." This was a strangely officiated game. There were a few defensive (3 sec.) calls and the broadcast team had mentioned the Hawks have only been called for that three times prior to tonight's game. However, the refs were calling it several times. This helped to inflate the imbalance in free throw attempts. The time clock fiasco is the tip of the iceberg, The lead referee needs to reprimanded, and investigated. Is he gambler? Did the line change? ESPN is trying to blow it off as if was nothing and a great Lebron,Cavs comeback...but this can't be ignored...

I just don't envision Mike Woodson being the coach of the Atlanta Hawks in 2010. This year is looking more like last year, and Woodson has taken this team as far as he can take it, and probably his head coaching career will likely come to an end. Byron Scott would be a good fit for the Hawks, and potentially with the loss of Joe Johnson, Scott has a reputation of quickly re-building teams. I would like to see how he develop a Jeff Teague moreso than a Woodson. Scott was a championship player with the Lakers, and took the Nets to the NBA FINALS twice. That is not a small accomplishment. GM Sund may get a reference from Scott's former Lakers' teammate and current Hawks' assistant, Larry Drew. Keeping Drew as an assistant could help with the transition with Scott potentially becoming the new coach of the Hawks in 2010.

Horford has laid the proverbial egg against the best teams in the league. After his dominating performance versus Indiana, I had hoped he could duplicate that performance at home versus Cleveland. No such luck. Horford had a few opportunities to hit open jumpers against Cleveland, but missed most of them, and there was a stretch of possessions at the beginning of the disastrous fourth quarter in which he missed three shots and turned the ball over. Horford is giving an effort, but he has to finish.. Going against Shaq and Z is tough, but Horford has a quickness advantage and he has to be able to nail that 15 foot jumper consistently from anywhere on the court.

Few players can guard Lebron, one-on-one..however, Maggette is definitely an upgrade on the flipside ...CAN LEBRON GUARD MAGGETTE WHEN COREY ATTACKS THE BASKET? Maggette has been a player over the past few years who has been in Top 5 in getting to the FT line and made FTs...