dickaufan12

There is absolutely no reason why Stephen Jackson should be a starter on this team. Diaw should start over him, hands down. Why? Jackson is a ROLE PLAYER. His success in San Antonio was based upon playing time in situations. As a starter, sure he can bring maybe 17 ppg, but he's also giving the other team the ball 6-7 times a game! That is obsurd! If Diaw can start and playlike he did Wednesday, he'll be fine. He's good at finding the open man, he can handle the ball, and he can move without the ball. Now if we could just get him to shoot...

It should come as no surprise to anyone, but the Hawks waived Randy Holcomb today. That leaves the roster like this (from hawks.com): PG: Jason Terry, Jacque Vaughn SG: Dion Glover, Travis Hansen SF: Stephen Jackson, Boris Diaw, Chris Crawford PF: Shareef Abdur-Rahim, Lee Nailon, Alan Henderson C: Theo Ratliff, Nazr Mohammed Current IL: Dan Dickau, Obinna Ekezie, Terrell Brandon I put assumed starters in bold. I put Hendu last for PF because he is out right now. Dickau should be off the injured list in a few weeks. Which begs the question: who leaves when he comes back? Vaughn? I'd have to assume so. We're pretty high on Nailon (and deservedly so).

Yes, I'll always find it amazing that we started JT and Wilks together, but when the prospects of a DD-JT backcourt came up, suddenly size was an issue. Wilks is 2 inches shorter than Dan. So much for the size issue when Mike was there. I think that the call to play Wilks often came from management to see whether he should have been kept around or not. For some reason, he didn't cut it.

Yeah, we did, but if that showed who he was in with, you'd see that no one could produce with that lineup. Dickau-JerJackson-Newble-Hendu-Nazr doesn't cut it.

Yeah, I was just kidding. If Paul Shirley can play in the NBA, then everyone on this board could make a team.

Ahh, I see. But you know, when it really comes down to it, Paul Shirley is clearly the way to go. Such a clutch player...

Looks like their rankings were consistent with what we thought, because they basically say that we were worlds better when we replaced Newble in the lineup with Glover.

No, that one goes alphabetically by team. If you sort by rank, you see that Garnett is #1, followed by Nowitzki, Duncan, Finley, and McGrady.

Nah, I'm pretty sure that he was injured. I talked to him on Friday, and when I told him that I've been waiting for the season to start, he said that he's been waiting to get healthy finally. He didn't seem real down about it, so it sounds like he could be back in a few weeks. Also, after he ran those practice drills, he came to the bench and iced down the heel for the entire scrimmage. He's not injured to the point where he can't go all out for a few minutes, but he definitely isn't healthy enough to be tossed into a game. It'll just irritate his achilles even more and keep him out for longer.

The FanFest was great! I had so much fun. Between the game on Friday and the Fest, I got 12 player autographs and Stotts too. They were doing the FanFotos also, which was cool. I enjoyed the scrimmage... and found it funny when Hansen lost the ball on a dunk... shouldn't have gone up lefty!

I was at the game, and from where I was sitting, it didn't seem like they had as many turnovers as the boxscore showed. I did notice Diaw's traveling call, and there was one where his heel was out of bounds when he caught a pass, but other than that, it didn't seem that bad. I think some of the TOs may have been SAR throwing a pass to someone and them not catching the pass well, because they would give it to the passer. Also, I suggest that if you can, go to a few games. This was my second Hawks game (seeing as I've only been in Atlanta for a short while, and only limited visits before), and it was a great experience. Before the game, they did so many things for the fans. They had Glove and Vaughn signing free pennants for fans, they had Diaw at the gate handing out flyers for the game to people and taking pictures, and the dance team was out taking pictures. I also went down to the court pre-game and got 7 of the 14 players' autographs that actually go to the games (got another picture with Dickau too). They're very personable and willing to take time for the fans. I hope to get the rest of the team at the FanFest on Sunday. Just don't miss out on the opportunity to be a part of this organization. They may not be the best, but they definitely try hard to please the fans in any way they can.

Yeah, we requested waivers on both Jerry Holman and Smush Parker today. This leaves us with 16 players on the roster. That means that either Nailon or Holcomb has to go. I'd have to say that we hold on to Nailon. P.S. If Diesel can do it, so can I.

Well, that will happen when the bench plays the last 40 minutes of the game. Their starters only played to opening 8 minutes. True, it is bad that they produced more in 40 min than we did in 48, but that just means that they played pretty good defense.

So, now Ekezie's down. Where does this leave us? About here: JT/DD/JV Glover/Diaw/Hansen SJax/Nailon SAR/Hendu Theo/Nazr IL: CC, (maybe we keep OE here) I think that this team can still succeed. Anybody with me?

You beat me to it... This is just too bad for the Hawks. He was going to really contribute this year.

He's not among the greatest dunkers quite yet... may not be for some time... but J-Rich is definitely making a name for himself.

It's not an individual move, but the Stockton to Malone pick and roll was awesome. So effective.

I'd hope he didn't either. He could definitely be a part of this team this year. Hopefully it's a sprain.

I think that Kaman could be one of the top 4 rookies this season. Behind Carmelo (yes, Melo first), LeBron, and a third rook (not sure who yet), he could definitely outplay the rest of the rookie class. I'd also like to see Lampe get some PT in New York. He could show everyone that passed up on hime what they're missing. I felt bad for him when he slipped out of the first round, because it looked like he was going lottery. It would suck to still be in the green room in the second round.

Yeah, that looks about right. I just hope that Dan can pull it together before the season starts and stay off the IL. Especially if Ekezie hurt his knee badly. Even a sprain could put him down for 3 weeks.

I don't want to get in the middle of this, but I have read this thread for the last three days, and it is about all there is to post about at the time. Now I know that DJ was a Hawk, and many of us want to see him succeed because of his comeback. However, he is no longer in Atlanta, nor was he playing against the Hawks in this particular game. All I'm saying is, this entire thread should be in it's proper forum: Around the League. It's just filling space here.

Man... Vaughn was bad. 1 point, 5 fouls, and 2 turnovers in 17 minutes.

It's just achilles tendinitis. He should be fully back in 7-14 days.

Yeah, the game is on AM 750 right now.

By Joe Lago ESPN.com Editor's note: ESPN.com is once again visiting all 29 NBA teams during training camp and the preseason. The tour continues with a report on the Atlanta Hawks. Jason Terry, right, has bulked up to carry more of the scoring load. ATLANTA -- At least one thing will be different about the Hawks this season. There'll be no costly guarantees about making the playoffs. "Oh, I'm going to stay away from the G-word," said head coach Terry Stotts, whose predecessor, Lon Kruger, felt so adamant about the Hawks' postseason chances last year that he talked the franchise into offering rebates to season-ticket holders. Unfortunately for Hawks season-ticket holders (yes, they do exist), they won't get another chance at the easiest 125 bucks they ever made. Besides, another money-back guarantee wouldn't be in line with the team's cost-conscious state, most notably its decision to slash the $23 million left on Glenn Robinson's contract by dealing him to Philadelphia in a four-way deal. The shipping of Robinson slipped the Hawks under the luxury tax threshold, but Stotts must now find a way to replace the 20.8 points a game by Robinson. "We're going to play together and be a family," guard Jason Terry said. "That's the only thing I can guarantee." Terry welcomes the extra responsibility of replacing Robinson's offense. In fact, the 6-foot-2 Terry added an extra 12 pounds of muscle to his 180-pound frame over the summer to shoulder the scoring load with Shareef Abdur-Rahim. But less than a month ago, Terry was prepared to carry an even heavier burden in Utah. With the Hawks in total flux due to their unsettled ownership situation all summer long, Terry grew tired of waiting to have his questions answered about his future in Atlanta, so he signed a three-year, $22.5 million offer sheet with the Utah Jazz. Not even fellow free agent Andre Miller -- a former college hero in the state as a University of Utah All-American -- wanted to be The Guy To Follow John Stockton. "My whole thought process was to let myself get solidified in a solid position with a good team structure and a good organization," Terry said. "This summer, the Hawks organization wasn't stable at all. We didn't know who was going to be in charge or who was going to own the team. So I had to go ahead and take that offer." Stotts wanted to run his own team, too. As interim coach for Kruger, who got fired the day after Christmas after a 11-16 start, Stotts got caught in the same limbo with the Hawks' drawn-out search for a buyer. And like Terry, Stotts went job hunting, interviewing for assistant positions in New York, Chicago and New Jersey and the head coaching gig in Milwaukee. "Not knowing where I stood was just very frustrating for my wife and I both," Stotts said. "With the way it has worked out, I couldn't have asked for anything better." After Steve Belkin's ownership group removed the interim tags off Stotts and general manager Billy Knight, they made sure Terry didn't leave town by matching the Jazz's offer. "I started here and I want to finish here," Terry said. "I hope to retire as a Hawk and I want to be part of the rebuilding process. I still believe that we can be a good team." Stotts knew he couldn't meld together a playoff contender without Terry, who matured as a point guard last season. Sacrificing shots to accommodate Robinson, Terry finished with his lowest scoring average (17.2) since his rookie year in 1999-2000, but he averaged a career-best 7.4 assists to join Doc Rivers and Mookie Blaylock as the only Atlanta players to record 600 assists in a season. You'd figure Terry would have the green light again to shoot first, as he did in his second and third seasons when he averaged over 19 points a game. However, he's more interested in proving his worth as a point guard, not some scorer who's playing the point. “ The one part of my game that I can improve on from the last year or two is leadership -- controlling the game as a point guard. All the great ones do it. Jason Kidd, Gary Payton and John Stockton -- they all controlled the game, and that's offensively and defensively. ” — Jason Terry "Young leader. That's what I call myself," Terry said. "The one part of my game that I can improve on from the last year or two is leadership -- controlling the game as a point guard. All the great ones do it. Jason Kidd, Gary Payton and John Stockton -- they all controlled the game, and that's offensively and defensively. "[i'm a] combo guard, yes. But that's what should make me that much more effective -- [if] I can control the game on both ends. I still have the ability to take over the game with my shooting and scoring." Stotts wants the Hawks to follow Terry's lead, even though he chose two other veterans -- Theo Ratliff and Alan Henderson -- as tri-captains with Abdur-Rahim. "By virtue of his position, point guards have a natural leadership because they have the ball in their hands," Stotts explained. "His leadership on the court, more than anything else, is something he will improve on." The head coach has something to prove, too. After 11 years in the league, Stotts is finally running his own training camp and hopes to build upon the Hawks' second-half success in 2002-03 when they went 21-19. A dedication to defend and a commitment to take care of the ball were the biggest reasons for the team's improvement the last 40 games. Terry believes there's no reason why the Hawks can't continue to play over .500 ball for 82 games this season. "It's a lot more stable," Terry said of this year's camp. "Coach has a system that's already intact. It's not like he's new to the NBA. He's been in it a long time under good coaching and George Karl. He's given us some of the same concepts defensively. That's what we've been lacking in Atlanta the four years I've been here -- a good, solid, team defensive concept." "My desire for this team is that it competes and plays hard and we improve from last year," Stotts said, "not only record-wise but how we play the game and how we rely on each other." Just don't expect him to put his money where his mouth is. Joe Lago is the NBA editor at ESPN.com.