aali34

1 hour ago, Trout7 said:

It is always comical to watch Hawks fans come up with these scenarios of getting star players to come to Atlanta.  None of these scenarios ever even come close to seeing the light of day. LOL.

This hawks team isn't like the ones before it. No hawks team ever won 60 games, no hawks team ever had 4 all stars, no other Hawks team in years past has made bench players into starting caliber players that can get 12 mill contracts. Just like you can't compare GSW to the past teams that hadn't won in 40 years, you can't, compare this hawks team to those other ones.

50 minutes ago, hawkzlova123 said:

Here's the man himself...

Durant will be a free agent in the offseason.“No matter how many moving parts they have on the team, he always stays consistent with what he does,” Durant said.“Having a coach, a really good coach is probably the most important thing in this league. Because you can have all the great players you want, but if you have someone to orchestrate it, that’s what they have. They’ve got great players, but they also have a great coach to put them in positions that utilizes all their strengths as individuals and make it come together as a team.

List the top5 coaches and pick which wouldDurant rather play for

Gregg Popovich - best coach, but can't afford it

Steve Kerr- Another good coach who cant afford it

Rick Carlisle- Good coach, but Mark Cuban might have ruined any chance they had

Mike Budenholzer- no comment neccesary

Eric Spoelstra- Has shown that he can coach a good team without Lebron, but can they afford KD, a maxed out Whiteside, and Dwade?

Brad Stevens- very good coach and very young, is going to be top 3 for a very long time.

Aside from Popovich and maybe Steve Kerr, I think Coach bud is better than all of them, except for maybe at drawing out of bounds plays late in the game.

Atlanta runs a similar system to San Antonio. If OKC loses in a convincing fashion to a well coached team who are all in sync where do you think he would want to go?  And which team in the nba lacks a superstar, is the second best defense behind San Antonio, and in a top 10 market.

KD needs to get his ass to Spurs East

On 4/29/2016 at 6:34 AM, Spursfanpeacemaker said:

its not about role players or star players or whos making more money.. it's about the loyalty on the team what im talking about, at the end it's still their decision if they want more money , go somewhere or will they sacrifice for the team

Players who sacrifice for their team not for money, that I really respect

But at the same time, most teams aren't loyal to the players. One of the reasons Tyson Chandler was pissed after he was traded again from Dallas was because they told him that he was there long term, but when they went after DeAndre Jordan, they didn't think twice. 

Quote

“I definitely felt like, after winning a championship and help bring it there, that I was going to be there for the long run,” Chandler said Tuesday. “I never heard of a championship team being broken up like that. When they traded for me to come back, I sat at the podium with everybody else and heard them say this was going to be a long-term deal and they weren't going to make the same mistake as last time and blah-blah-blah. Seven months later, the same thing happens again. But I learned in this business that you can't trust everybody. That's why it is what it is."

Look what Boston did with Paul Pierce, he was there for almost his entire career and they got rid of him too. Same thing with Danny Granger in Indiana. It even happened here with Dominique. San Antonio is probably the only team that stays loyal to their aging players. So my question is, if most teams are willing to throw you out when you aren't worth as much as you once was, why take pay-cuts in the part of your career where its your best chance to get a max contract?

2 hours ago, Spursfanpeacemaker said:

Tim duncan, Manu ginobili and Tony parker sacrificed and accepted small salary so the team will have more cap space ,they did it for their team. 

Thats not a fair comparison, plus Tim Duncan had one of the biggest contracts in the nba for a few seasons. Star players who can sign multiple endorsements and pIay many years in the league should be thinking about taking pay cuts, not role players who haven't made as much. I don't blame Demarre for leaving for money since he didn't get as much as other players in his career, but Horford has made a lot of money so not too sure about him. I wouldn't lower my salary and so shouldn't bazemore.

if Thomas has to score 40+ to win, then this series is already over.

quick fun fact - no team down 3-0 has ever come back and won a playoff series.

A mark of a good coach isn't only how they gets players to buy in to their system, it is also how well a coach makes a system that highlights the strength of their players. KD can do everything Kawhi Leonard can offensively(I watch the spurs alot by the way)

- Both can shoot the midrange and the three very well

-Both can post up

-Both are long athletic players

What sets them apart is Kawhi Leonard's defense V. KD's ball handling and facilitating ability.

Not to mention that KD is dominating on a team that surrounds him with no shooters and he gets doubled more often than not.

9 minutes ago, hylndr11 said:

and if KD joins GS, the nba is going to be a even bigger joke, seriously w.t.f.  Thats probably the best iso guy potentially in the league and the best shooter ever not to mention these other all stars, thats not competition,  which should drive this product, and it no longer will, ppl might watch some more in the finals to see them destroy ppl, but overall ticket sales will drop around the league when so many other teams have no chance

isn't shit like this the reason David Stern boycotted Chris Paul to the Lakers? This is way worse.

Quote

Stevens flat-out gushes when he talks about the Hawks and the inspired brand of basketball they've played since the end of last season. In a way, Atlanta offers a bit of a blueprint on how a superstar-less team can thrive with pure team basketball.

http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/celtics/post/_/id/4717114/copy-machine-cs-want-to-soar-like-hawks

Quote

Stevens often is effusive in his praise of opponents, but he went out of his way to praise Atlanta's brand of ball.

He said his coaching staff even used the Hawks as a bit of a target for Boston's own young players.

The end.

56 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

You and I and most Hawks fans know that.  We don't need convincing.  Convincing KD and his team is the issue.

The rest of the fringe fans, other NBA fans and the national media dont see Al and Paul as top level SUPERSTAR players.  Again Sad but TRUE.

What pisses me off is that analysts aren't even thinking about it. Its not freakin rocket science-

Good offense/2nd best defensive team in nba + 2nd best offensive player in the nba = Top  offensive/defensive team overall

Nobody even respects Coach Bud as an elite coach.

 http://www.basketballinsiders.com/video-does-scott-brooks-bring-durant-too/

How the f*ck is this even a question?

2 minutes ago, Lurker said:

I think some of y'all are just trying to find something to whine about and just waiting, waiting for this team to stumble in the playoffs before going off on everything (and it's coming soon as I do think this team drops a game in Boston but hopefully just one and they get a chance to close it out game 5).

I want us to win as much games as possible so we can sign KD

my bad, simple mistake

Competition is a strong motivator, a few games on  the bench might motivate Kris enough for us to see the version of him that we had in April averaging 8 points and 4 rebounds in 16 minutes, it be nice to see him come back with a vengeance especially in the second round.

15 minutes ago, frosgrim said:

First, KD would be an absolute perfect fit for this team IF he stops dribbling the air out of the ball. If he buys into the catch and shoot that this offense is predicated on, he would have another MVP season.

In terms of FA coming to Atlanta: Bud got Millsap to come, or at least helped with that. But more importantly, Bud got Millsap to stay when he could have left for Orlando. So, the FA thing while true in the past is starting to melt.

I don't think this is far-fetched a scenario as it seems. If Horford and KD have a talk we could see them working out salaries to make it happen.

But as a Atlanta sports fan, I do have to say... Dang-it, another pipe dream that will be crushed like an empty can of Budweiser on Payton Manning's head.

 

Thats not all, I think that the constant ball and player movement would result in meaningful isos like with him on a point or shooting gaurd in the low block. KD is actually a very good post player for a wing and we can run multiple sets for him like the way the spurs run them for kawhi leonard.-

1 minute ago, JayBirdHawk said:

We have a ready made team for him, most of us see that.  

The weakness/logical reason?  I would say we do not have a player(s) that Durant would see as a part of this 'BIG THREE' .  We do not have a player deemed a   'SUPERSTAR'  to draw Durant in.  Unfortunate but TRUE.

Is he willing to be "THE MAN" and bring in other players here or is it easier for him to join up with another Superstar on another team.

It's all about what Durant wants and how he and his people see Atlanta and the Hawks.  They'll revert to what's easy in discounting Atlanta.  

That's just the Hawks lot in life after YEARS/DECADES of incompetence and mismanagement.  

 

To be completley honest,

I think Al Horfod and Paul Millsap are good enough to spike interest, but thats not it.

If you observe OKC's starting 5 aside from Durant himself, the best shooter is ibaka at 32%

There is no spacing whatsoever and the fact that he is shooting so well and that his team is 3rd makes me believe that he is better than lebron already. Why its simple.

Since his miami days, lebron always fills the floor with 3 point shooting big men- Chris Bosh, Rashard Lewis, Kevin Love, Channing Frye. And has alos had good shooters ta the gaurd positions as well - Chalmers, Mike Miller, Shane Battier, Ray Allen, Kyrie, and Jr smith.

All KD has is Ibaka ( Kanter shoots 47% percent but took around 20 threes this season so he doesn't count)

The fact that he dominates so well regardless of what he little space he has is amazing, and i think that if he came to Atlanta he would erupt just like Steph Curry did.

Here is an iso of KD - a few years ago- note that even though Perkins is playing he nor Adams can shoot.

Here is an iso of kawhi leonard- note that aldridge and west are both midrange shooters space the floor better for him-

Here is lebron in an iso with Love and Mozgov who is an okay midrange shooter spacing the floor- 

Here is another of KD with good spacing - 

Isolating is not all bad if the floor is spread out with respectable shooters, Kd hardly has more than one above average shooter on the court with him, the fact that our worst 3 point shooter in the staring 5 is as good as thier BEST is a big staement.

I think that a big three of Horford, Millsap, and KD would probably be the best frontcourt in the nba

2 hours ago, kg01 said:

IMHO, KD is likely to sign a 1 year deal with a 1-year player option for the max so he and Westbrook can be FAgents together.  I think that's stupid considering the injury he's coming off.

Second most likely scenario is he'll explore joining the Warriors.  How they end their season will determine if they want him or not.  If they win it all it becomes less likely.

Third, I'd bet on Pat Riley.  He's still revered by players in a way that dwarfs the logic of their scenario (which you noted effectively).  That team is in build-mode after this year but I don't think that would phase KD.  Riley has a track record that almost no other front office has.

Next, I'd say San Antonio is a real threat.  He's looking to stealth-ring chase.  SA is another front office with a stellar track record/rep.  IIUC, there are scenarios whereby they could actually get him signed.  Why would he sign with the team that put them out?  Why not?  It's not like it'll be a chippy series.  That's not SA's style.  They whup guys and at the end of it their opponents respect them more for it.

I don't think we'll get a meeting.  If we do, that's a huge win.  Our track record/rep is still as a joke of a franchise due to the ineptitude of the past 3 decades.  We have grown ups in place now but you don't dispel that clownership rep in just 2 seasons unfortunately.

Now, we'd be the best fit for KD IMHO.  We have a role just waiting for a guy like him, we could pay him comparably, we're in the East and are a solid team.  There's not much more to like if you're him.  Unfortunately, these guys don't work based on logic.

I agree that OKC is his most likely option,

but i don't see how the warriors could sign him without losing so many valuable players that made them so good, plus WHY? They just won 73 games. The only way that does'nt happen is if Harrison Barnes leaves, and if he does we could snag him too. But the main reason I don't think San Antonio or GSW is a valid option is that KD is a competitor and he would most likely be second fiddle to curry.

Pat Riley may be a genius, but I don't think any star at the small forward position would willingly put themselves in Lebron's shadow, plus its not like they can sign him anyway. Whiteside is getting a max, wade is getting his money, lots of role players are getting thier money, they have to decide to keep Dieng and/or Joe johnson

I think that if we do get a meeting than we have a 45% chance.

1 hour ago, Spud2Nique said:

Ok, how about "Free agents don't come HERE."

I get that, but i want to know a weakness or a logical reason as to why he would not come here.

He by himself fixes every problem the Hawks have-

shooting- over 40% from 3

star power/facilitator(one of the best pnr ball handlers in the nba)

rebounding - 8  per game

plus he is a very underrated defender - defensive rating - 82.1

Even though we have to go through the cavs, playing Boston in the first round may have been helpful in a way to the hawks this upcoming off season.

It is common knowledge that many analysts say that Boston is a prime FA target this off season, but by watching how they are falling apart against us in the playoffs  (knock on wood), many players may end up being dissuaded from going there. If we steal a game or two in a convincing fashion and try to make it a competitive series, then it  no brainer that ECF contender with no star + top 5 player in nba = Finals contender. Also KD is a big fan of Gregg Popovich, and his former right hand man is our freakin' head coach.

To be frank, the only clear advantage Boston has against us is money, but as last season showed us, players are leaning towards winning more than money nowadays.  Ex- Lamarcus Aldridge, Greg Monroe( backfired on him)

Here is the cap for each team- 

Atlanta is in the middle of the pack compared to Boston, but to me the only way KD goes to Boston is if another max player joins him which i don't see happening as of today. And just for kicks here is a list of every nba team and why he wont go to them; I hope you all agree with my reasoning.

Lakers - lol

Philly- lol

Boston - lack of talent/too young

Dallas - possibility, but they kind of already have Parsons

Washington - screwed it for themselves by not making the playoffs

Portland - lack of talent/too young

Houston - Idc who you are, there is no way any rational  person leaves Westbrook for Harden

Charlotte - too many wings (lamb, mkg, batum) plus they already have Batum

Brooklyn- lol

Memphis- too old

Detroit - recent beef, plus they have Caldwell-Pope and Stanley Johnson

Miami -lebron's shadow, Dwade's knees, Chris Bosh's health, Hassan Whiteside leaving possibility, plus they have 9 free agents

Atlanta - Leave in the comments ( and i don't want too hear "free agents don't come hear", valid reasoning please

Toronto - same iso system as OKC, plus is Derozan staying or not?

Utah - growing team, but not there yet. Plus they have Hood, and Hayward

Denver - lol

New York - lol

Indiana - possibility, but not likely, plus PG

Minnesota - lol

Phoenix - lol

Orlando - lol

Sacramento -lol

Milwaukee - lol, plus Giannis

New Orleans - not a lot of cap space available

OKC - most likely

Chicago - no money, but very intriguing ( Jimmy Butler plus KD would be very interesting)

San Antonio - no money, plus why would he sign with the team that may knock him out of the second round this year

Golden State - would look like a total p*ssy, plus he would be second to curry

Clippers - no money

If KD chooses any team other than OKC over the hawks, than the man is a complete moron and that kind of stupidity would not be welcomed here anyway.

One last question, I know that the hawks haven't made any splashes in free agency in years past, but that's because the old front office was filled with complete idiots. This new management has done way more than in 2-3 years than the old one ever has in a business and competitive fashion.

- Elite coach

- Player development that we never had

-Improved training staff

- Emory/P3 training center

-Trying to make a d'league team

- Having actual plans

- Adding Steve Koonin ( the hawks seem way more marketable ever since he came, Fresher court, nice logo, 3d projector, the overall fan experience is way better)

Any reason the hawks did not get anyone was in the past, I'm not saying we will get KD ( who knows if the Front office is even considering it?), but if we tried to without losing key players and he goes to any other team, than he's just plain dumb.

I have been very impressed with the teams rebounding as of late and decided to do some poking around courtesy of nba.com/stats

Before the all star break the hawks were the 3rd worst rebounding team in the NBA at - 41.2 overall. The OREB was last at - 8.5, and DREB was 20th ( or the 11th worst)

After the all star break, the hawks have moved up to 6th worst in the nba. However in games played only after the allstar break the hawks are top 15 in rebounding, and second in DREB. They remain dead last in OREB, but that is so they can prevent points scored in transition.

FYI, they tie the cavaliers in rebounds per game, and out rebound them on the defensive boards, but not the offensive ones.

44 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

Lol.

I don't know who's better at this point. Booker is a lights out shooter and has the green light to let it fly whenever and wherever, that's pretty much his responsibility. 

Russell is a PG with more responsibility in "setting" up his teammates and running the team (see what I did there, lol). Byron Scott is a control freak so hard  to tell what Russell would look like otherwise. Probably plays different in Phoenix. Then there's the Kobe factor. 

That is a good point, but it hasn't really affected Jordan Clarkson or Julius Randle, plus from what i hear its not like Russel deserves minutes, read somewhere that Byron Scott says even though he is 19 ( now he's 20) he acts like hes 14.  If he was pulling that shit on the hawks he would be banished to the bench for a long time. Haven't seen that kind of negativity from Booker 

50 minutes ago, Alex said:

Assuming Nick Young's best friend.  That Russell.

lol yeah

Anyone else agree that Booker is better than Russel?

My question is why would KD want to got to a team where he is one of the older players who is expected to guide all of the young talent they have?

One reason why I think Lebron was better in miami was because he was with his peers in Dwade, and CB. Norris Cole was one of the only young players on the team. Not saying the cavs dont have vets, just not reliable ones( JR smith)

That also may be why the spurs and warriors have had success. The spurs big three of old and the current warriors trio ere all close to the same age and probably got along better than they would if Tim Duncan was 39 surrounded by 3 year olds. Almost everyone on the hawks are close to KD's age and want to win now, they aren't in a rebuild like the celtics. 

The celtics are a good team, but their biggest leverage is giving him a big contract and not much else. Even if they try to surround him with talent, the second biggest free agent is ON the Hawks. After that, the rest are'nt as talented.