Thomas

Sounds like a really good movie about really overpaid basketball players. Who would be the bad guy with the most evil intent?

#8 Seems like just about everyone in the summer of 2016. Please forgive my sarcasm it's just so many of the predicted salaries are becoming astronomical this year.

The NBA has the only refs in America that are worse than the football refs in the SEC. What is so concerning to me is how the NBA refs can be so blatantly biased even with the two minute review in place. Has any ref actually been disciplined from those reviews?

Yeah, starting an actual SF that is the size of a NBA small forward would help. I have no idea who that vet will be but there are fairly nice options even picking at our spot in the draft to help fill the bench minutes at that position. Still feel good about Thabo getting minutes off the bench when his defense is required.

I'm not bashing the idea we need more size up front because that feels like common sense. Rebounding is always critically important in the playoffs. Against the Cavs a handful of rebounds could have made the difference but really the biggest problem I thought was we couldn't hit any shot in the last two minutes of any of those games. Humph would have given us a lot rebounds with more minutes and he doesn't cost twenty plus million. If we did hit just a few shots we would have made it to game seven against the Cavs and very possibly the ECFs right now. D12 or Whiteside are not enough of an answer to put us past the Cavs when it counts most, in the playoffs because who else would we be able to keep or sign (to hit a clutch shot). As has been said D12 is not likely to sign anything less than 23 million and he can't shoot a shot outside of five feet. Whiteside's stats look nice but you continually read about his coachability and he might cost close to D12 in a bidding war. If I'm wrong about Whiteside then I'll eat the crow due to me in the near future. Anyway I just want us to hit those big time shots in the playoffs and close LeBron out and then enjoy the heck out of it.

Draymond is a player I have really pulled for but his dip and head fake trying to slide the focus on to Westbrook is humorous. Westbrook is a flopper but this incident is on the floor between Draymond, Adams and the ref, not Westbrook and anyone else. Next up, Draymond says Durant is a revered grappler in the western conference. Take the hit dude and hopefully don't repeat the mistake.

Kris Willis making the statement about Baze taking that next step which shows what we already know, our coaching staff really can develop players. Don't want to look back at this upcoming year and see Baze taking another step forward for another team with or without our coaching staff's influence. But I want to say if we can't hang on to Baze I truly hope we can manage, develop and keep Hardaway and help him excel for us. The freaking Hawks this time! No more farm team . Please expound upon that quality DNA coach Bud. We need our closer sooner rather than later. http://www.peachtreehoops.com/2016/5/23/11719420/atlanta-hawks-2016-player-review-kent-bazemore

Yeah, you make a good point about Sap and Thabo in Woody's scheme. Thabo would probably play forty minutes a night for him between SG and SF. Baze would not have gotten the chance to develop the way he has because Woody liked his players really tall (Billy Knight Syndrome) and he would have been behind Joe waving that towel. On your other point about JS, Joe and Jamal playing for Bud it's hard to even imagine that because if it did happen it would have been incredibly short lived. In Budball ball hogs and a greatly talented dumbass just would not last too long. I think it would have been pretty ugly for Bud to try to piece it all together. As awkward as it has seemed for us at times I believe we have been in a better place.

It's kind of crazy how Lowry in Memphis was the guy everyone put on the foul line on purpose because at the end of games he choked. Things really changed in Houston. Now he is a fairly deadly shooter who waivers between helping take over the scoring late in games and winning big games or occasionally reverting to the not so mentally strong PG that the media pays intense attention to. Still comparing Teague and Lowry in a vacuum doesn't mean a whole lot to the Hawks if neither will be playing for us after next year.

Yeah, D'Antoni seems to be todays shorter and skinnier version of Doug Moe running that all out offensive roundball without realizing the playoffs require more. Maybe those two vacationed together in Italy and compared notes at some point. I don't think the Rockets have a team capable of that anyway. If D12 stays he would never cross half court. So Morey talks to Kenny Smith for humorous reasons I guess and then D'Antoni. Jeez.

The Cavs are todays perfect example of that. Makes me think of the posts that Gray Mule puts up showing his frustration about the NBAs policies being so imbalanced. We all have that frustration. The Cavs have gotten away with a whole bunch. Really just increases my dislike for them and of course I will never appreciate their charging bull that refs just love.

Woody was a defensive minded coach that refused to ever break away from his man to man switching theme. Not much for adjusting jack. Just don't remember him out coaching anyone. Even his successor Drew could design good inbounding plays and our offensive movement improved. I will say Bud would have had a big challenge though if Ferry hadn't made the big moves he did. Bud is a good coach and a good developer of players. Believe we will see him improve his late game calls.

I'm feeling that Dennis will be a seriously good starter for us with the expected bumps along the way. With our coaching staff developing players as well as they have I have faith Dennis will not be an exception to their success at this. If he didn't have great confidence like he does he wouldn't be half the defensive player he has shown to be (a lot of mental toughness required at the NBA level). That part of his game fits in perfectly with Budball. Developing that perimeter shot is big on the to do list. Having some strong play against the Cavs is a very good sign.

Always liked Jrue's size at the point. Plenty skilled all the way around but getting a full season or any playoff games out of him just isn't likely with the constant injuries. Playing fewer minutes should reduce that risk but he does seem to have Murphy's Law working against him. Something else to think about is do we want to commit eleven million to a backup PG playing twenty or even less minutes a game.

Another example similar to Bibby fouling Kobe's elbow with his nose in a big playoff game. Ref's can be like the Keystone Kops way too often. Blowing it in an ECF game really makes them look a good bit worse.

Most people probably would not wonder why D12 is not in the game the last couple of minutes. He already helped the Magic lose a championship series at the foul line. One game was squarely on him and that issue was prevalent throughout that series. And that era of D12 is what several Squawkers are hoping would show up for us (pre diva era or was it). Courtney Lee blew one game by himself as well because of an impossibly missed layup. It's what has become the Drummond Syndrome, though. Do you leave him in or not? D12's foul shooting this year was less than fifty percent and that is even lower than his career average. I think Gray Mule would be very active on this forum with that very big and consistent problem. I believe most of us would be. Just thinking about so much of our cap going to a player not used in the last minute of a playoff game.

Yeah I agree, I know we don't have the title in our hands but I still appreciate winning over 100 games during the last two years. Pretty sure Biyombo just put himself out of reach for a lot of teams yearning for rebounding. In our case though unless D12 would have blocked three pointers or hit a three pointer we would have still lost the first three games against the Cavs.

It would be really nice to trade Splitter (just don't see him lasting that many games until the next injury). We could have room for Humph and our SF draft pick that way. If there is someone not afraid of his recent injury issues I would be really surprised. Then again their giving up a second round pick that is not so likely to stick in the league anyway so that might sway someone.

Apparently everyone is going to seriously get paid. With that said, Deng is going to be 32 next season and is damaged goods. Even if his injuries at this point are no more than just nagging the investment in his aging body and game would still be counterproductive on a multi year contract. Three years of him would not get us closer as we were this year against the Cavs. That money could be better spent.

His skill set has always been remarkable but the issues of winning big time remain and he will continue to dwindle physically. We definitely could use a courageous closer but Melo has all the red flags flying. Selfish to a detriment so often (teammates standing and gawking) and he really is an aging damaged goods player at a premium price tag. Budball as irritating as it can be late in games wins more than we would with Melo and even if he helped in the short term (very short term) some future assets will be forfeited. If he helped us gain a championship it would great but he just would never fit and we wouldn't achieve that goal.

Thinking about the Spur's guy using the term athlete. He was good enough at waterskiing to earn a living in different locations. These mascots are pretty serious at athletic maneuvers that are really risky. There was a video on roku somewhere about the Bucks mascot Bango and what he went through, injuries included. Actually it was about a few different mascots. I would have never tried any of those tricks. I like to avoid the ER.

Not thinking it matters which one of these two are better than the other because though Bud says he loves Jeff but neither of these two are likely in the Hawks future after the upcoming season. Both disappear during very important stretches in big playoff games. Bigger and more impending fish to fry at other positions. A previous post joking about Lowry needing or having a shrink might not be a joke at all.

I do agree. In reference to Baze, I really like his hustle and improvement but Bud will mostly always play him out of position except if or when SG injuries strike us. Wether he stays or goes we need that oh so wanted size increase and two way game at SF.

http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/15629805/the-san-antonio-coyote-calls-career The guy is retiring at forty five and his injury history sounds like a MMA fighter. He still loves it but it is to the point he's having a hard time tying his shoes. Great comments about players, Mark Cuban, etc... Here's wishing our guy Harry a long, fun and healthy career.

That's a great post ATLien. Bud's scheme is bent on Al's perimeter offense being displayed constantly far away from the glass (I haven't been concentrating on that as much as I should). Much smaller but acute example of that scheme is when Humph showed up in the regular season his immediate impact was hustle and rebounds in the paint. As his stay progressed the scheme saw him on the perimeter a good bit more taking some threes and his rebounding diminished. Then in the second round of the playoffs he was finally used for his talent of eating glass and hustling although way to too few minutes. Seems to be a bit of a catch 22 with Budball.