Jody23

He may not be the GM, but he is right about what he's saying.

I agree. A lot of people get upset with Sund, but what do you expect him to do or say? The ownership pretty much controls what he can and can't do and can and can't say.

Not a conditioning issue at all. The structure of this team is, and for some time has been, terribly flawed. As certain teams like the Bobcats, Sixers, Clippers get better, the structural flaws of the Hawks start to become more apparent. They simply are not able to win off of sheer talent anymore.

So far, the Bobcats are shooting jumpers, which is an indication of good defense.

I think you make an outstanding point here. So many people want to look totally at stats and not at "presence". If you just look at the stats, sure Horford is an all star center. However, if you actually watch the games, you'll see that he does not have the prescense of a true 5 because he's clearly a 4. There's a reason why playing Jason Collins extended minutes against Orlando has resulted in very competitive games (two wins for the Hawks) rather than blowouts and being killed inside with the regular small team. No offense to Jason, but imagine what the Hawks could do if they had another center who could do what he does defensively and rebound the ball well.

I agree that having good pg play is important. But, I don't think it's as important as having the size inside to defend and rebound at a high level. There's a reason the Suns couldn't get past the Spurs even though they had the best pg (Nash) in the game at that time. The Spurs simply dominated them inside and in the playoffs, when the pace slows down, small ball will get you killed no matter who your pg is.

I'm not trying to hate on Marvin, but the truth is "game recognizes game". Every reason and excuse under the sun has been given as to why he's not what so many hoped (and still hope?) he would be. His game doesn't warrant giving him more shots because he's not that kind of player. I'm sure there are many (some in the Hawks org.) who want Marvin to get more shots as a way to make him seem more relevant and to thus, save face. However, if you're totally objective and honest about it, the truth is the truth. Not hating on the guy. It just is what it is. On the contrary, when you're not totally objective about what you're observng on the floor, you can end up making decisions that hinder your franchise for years.

I don't think the lineup would be the culmination of just the Philly loss. Remember, Drew mentioned that he wasn't feeling comfortable with the way things were for some time as evidenced by the fact he almost changed the starting lineup before. I think the Philly loss just brought things to a head. That being said, I think Bibby and Marvin are the likely candidates to get moved to the bench. My guess (and I could be wrong) is he'll go with the big lineup.

Unless you surround Horford with quality big men like the Pistons did with Ben Wallace (Rasheed, Okur, Campbell, etc...), the Hawks will not contend for a title with him at center. For example, if you put Horford in place of Perkins on the Celtics, their still formidable because, overall, they've still got quality size. On the current Hawks team, it's not going to work if we're talking about being a title contender. The days of the big dominating centers maybe gone, but the game is still won or lost in the paint, especially come playoff time. Like Kobe said a couple of weeks ago, fast breaks don't win titles. If they did, Pheonix would have a bunch of them. That said, Horford's clearly a power forward and he's just as much a power forward in today's NBA as he would have been in times past. The Hawks need to wise up and maximize Horford's and the teams ability before it's too late.

Fans have always wanted Josh to be a low post, back to the basket power forward. The problem is...Josh has never been that. Josh was widely projected by scouts and analysts as a 3 coming into the NBA because of his size and style of play. I don't think there's ever been a guy who was widely projected as a 3, come into the league and become a dominant, low post 4. Don't get me wrong, he makes some bad plays, but many fans get mad at him for not being something he's never been. The guy is a tremendous talent, but if you're waiting on him to be this low post, physical 4, you'll continue to be upset. I'm not saying the 3 is his best position, but he's just not going to be the type of 4 so many want him to be.

Actually, Rick Majerus did indeed say that Marvin was "James Worthy with a jumpshot".

If he could still play, I'd take him. If he could, at least the Hawks wouldn't get outrebounded 50 to 35 like tonight.

Outrebounded 50 to 35 by the Sixers? Wow. No way should missing one guy have this kind of effect.

It shows how important Al is and the reality that this team needs change.

Hawks getting outrebounded 27 to 11 without Horford shows just how bad the Hawks need help up front.

A Kendrick Perkins type guy would be great I think. They don't necessarily need an all-star center, but a guy who has good size, can rebound and play good position defense. Now, don't get me wrong. If Dwight became available after next year and the Hawks could get him, a front line of Howard and Horford is title worthy.

http://blogs.ajc.com/jeff-schultz-blog/2011/02/08/al-horford-an-all-star-at-center-but-hes-taking-a-beating/?cp=1#comment-291493 Interesting read.

I think a lot of the frustration towards Josh comes from the fact that Josh is not the player many want hm to be or hoped he would be...a dominant post up, back to the basket power forward. The problem with that is Josh has never been that type of player, even before he was in the NBA. If you went back and looked at all of the projections, most scouts projected him to be a small forward at the NBA level. Why? Because his style of play and size were that of a small forward. Now, I could be wrong, but I don't thnk there's ever been a player who was WIDELY projected to be a 3 by most scouts, come into the league and turn into a dominant, post up, back to the basket 4. Many people want him to be Shawn Kemp or Amare, but Josh has never been that kind of player. As talented as he is, Josh is really a tweener and that may contribute to his inconsistency, especially when his jumper isn't falling. There are some 4s (like last night) that Josh will abuse in the post and some that will make him look average at best. Depends on the matchup. But, I tip my hat to him cause that guy plays hard every night even if the stats don't always show it.

The was a game where the Hawks stepped it up defensively and that put them in a position to win the game. People can gripe about the lack of "pretty" offense, but defense and rebounding are the backbones of teams that win in the playoffs. The team defense was good, but I've got to take my hat off to Josh. His defense was outstanding.

Since it hasn't been said, Josh has played some outstanding defense against LeBron tonight.

Perhaps this is part of the reason why he didn't get much playing time after being quite impressive defensively earlier. Had Wilkins played more and shined, there would have been more pressure on the Hawks to guarantee his contract, which they didn't want to do.

Interesting blog. One thing we haven't heard is how Josh and Al feel about the lineup. We've heard a lot arguments for and against it, but I'd be interested to hear their take.

Great insight. It's been clear to me from the beginning that Josh was never a legit 4. Everyone keeps screaming "he's 6'9, 240", but if you watch the games, he's clearly giving up size most nights.

Great post.

They're solid, but they're not good or big enough to beat the elite teams in a seven game series. Agreed. Their best bet is to find some more legitimate investors.