Hawkzzz21

Quote: Quote: OK, I see a lot of you guys wanting the quick fix. Or the fix that fills the position. If your gonna do this rebuilding thing right. You continue to take Best Player Available. It doesn't matter what you need now. It's all about stock piling talent. Donta Smith and Royal Ivey are some pretty solid players. They can't even scratch minutes for us. It's a good sign! It's a long ways to draft time, and no clear number 1 right now. If Gay is the guy. TAKE HIM! If you can acquire a future 1st and drop a couple of spots to take a Brewer, then do it. It's so much easier to have an abundance of talent, and over paying for a position that will put you over the top. Were not there yet. Continue to plant the talent seeds on this team. We can harvest later. TYRONE LUE = TOP PICK IN THE DRAFT! You're joking right? No, don't you watch the Hawks? Donta Smith while injured mostly last year, and very few minutes have shown great signs of all around ability. He looks like Walt Williams the way he gallops up and down the court, but good things happen when he's out there. Him dunking that missed FT (from another Hawks Player) was one of the plays that sticks out in my mind from last year. Royal had a solid rookie campaign. He played defensively as well as anyone we had. Why he didn't get a chance to shut down Parker or Manu, I have no idea. I look at other teams in the NBA and see guys sitting as their last two players on the bench. Donta and Royal are up there with anyone. These are sophmore players, and neither one of them has had significant minutes this year. Roayal had solid minutes last year, and Donta was super in a preseason game or two. Showing when he gets a few minutes he can perform. In fact, if they had an expansion draft. Every NBA team had to put two guys in it, and the Hawks put Donta and Royal in it. I bet one guy would get taken in the top 5, and both guys would be taken in the top 10. So 60 players, and we have 2 in the top 10! Yes, I say they are a good sign. Sitting at the end of our bench rusting for games, but are probably improving daily in practice.

Hey Mono. Nice post.......I think? I'm sorry. You took some time and thought into this post, and it went over my head. Your English is fine, it's probably my reading skills that are lacking. It's nice having you and Batman on the Hawks. First Urguayan NBA Player and NBA Poster... Let me take a stab at this. Are you saying that talent isn't the key, and it's having a leader on the team? Or a good luck charm? And they don't have to necessarily have the talent to lead ya on the court. We had Gugilotta on the team last year. I loved his play. I thought he could have fit this role somewhat. He's missed on this Hawks Team this year.

Well they let him start tonight. Not sure why. Palacio had a solid game last night. He had like 8 points, 6 assists, and 6 rebounds.....something like that. He was the most rounded of the Jazz Players last night. Tonight, Palacio is beating Williams. In less minutes too. When McCloud comes back, Palacio would be a cheap fix to a PG situation in Atlanta. Jazz getting blown out in back to back games. No Kiri or Booze, shows just how vulnerable this team is. Palacio 29 6-10 0-1 7-9 1 2 6 2 1 1 4 19 DWill 36 5-14 1-3 1-2 0 2 4 5 0 1 4 12 5 to 2 in the turnover area. (DWILL 5) 6 to 4 in the assists area. (Palacio 6) The free throw line is a very telling stat. Palacio getting there 9 times, as opposed 2 times for DWill. 7 more minutes for the rookie, and Palacio was more productive. Yes, it's just one game, but similar stats surfaced from last night's game too.

Both played 23 minutes tonight. Take away the free throw stat, and Salim is the hands down winner. I smell Salim starting in Big D on Thursday!

Quote: I follow GT a lot more than the Hawks and I can tell you that GT will be fine this year. Maybe not a Final Four threat but I think NCAAT worthy. You will be surprised by a few of the guys like Zam Frederick, in particular. Thaddeus Young is a huge pickup but is expected to be one and done. Javaris Crittendon isn't expected to stick around long either if he works on his complete game. Yes, Young will play only one year at Tech. The new rules are forcing him to play a year of college ball. I don't mind that. Give me the best players! That's why it is important that we win next year. As for as Tech this year. Yes, they have a shot to beat every team in the ACC with the exception of Duke. Which I think they only play one time anyways. It's not saying that we are that good, but the other teams are just not that strong. I think the 3rd or 4th game of the year we play Michigan State. I highly doubt we win that game, but would nice to be competitive with them. Just for recruiting purposes. Hey JJ from Douglasville! I know your needing that sign to show you where to commit to. Here it is! This is your sign, stay home and play in Atlanta!

OK, I see a lot of you guys wanting the quick fix. Or the fix that fills the position. If your gonna do this rebuilding thing right. You continue to take Best Player Available. It doesn't matter what you need now. It's all about stock piling talent. Donta Smith and Royal Ivey are some pretty solid players. They can't even scratch minutes for us. It's a good sign! It's a long ways to draft time, and no clear number 1 right now. If Gay is the guy. TAKE HIM! If you can acquire a future 1st and drop a couple of spots to take a Brewer, then do it. It's so much easier to have an abundance of talent, and over paying for a position that will put you over the top. Were not there yet. Continue to plant the talent seeds on this team. We can harvest later. TYRONE LUE = TOP PICK IN THE DRAFT!

You guys are right. What was I thinking. Let's just go ahead and let the Spurs win. We should just call the NBA League Office and tell them we forfeit. Why bother. With fuel costs so high, let's just save some gas. I guess I won't ask for an NBA Championship this Christmas. Just give me some tinker toys or something. MERRY CHRISTMAS!

THAT WE ARE PLAYING THE WORLD CHAMPS IN 8 HOURS!!! Where is the pregame posts? I'm looking for them. The 0-6 Start isn't that bad, is it? Duncan is comming off a terrible game, with only 11 points. The Spurs are undefeated at home. This is our time to shine!! A win tonight, and we can erase that 0-6 start. Come on Hawks Fans. Spurs are going to walk into this game half awake. Our boys know these guys are the champs. Many alreay wanting to hand them the NBA Rings for this year. THEY HAVE TO BEAT US FIRST!!! I don't see it. Hawks notch a win tonight. Even Josh Smith has encouring words. Talk about him being lazy, I think we are getting lazy. Here is JS quote: "If we play like we did (Saturday night), we'll win a lot of games," Josh Smith said. "We have to believe as a unit we can win." See they figured it out. All they have to do is believe as a unit they can win!!! Spurs 92 Hawks 107 MVP Salim Stoudamire 37 Points!

Quote: I'll second the ups for Levenson. That was probably the only game my brothers, father and I will all get to go to this year together. Given the number of blank seats, maybe they should do this a few more times to get more bodies and excitement into Phillips. I know we had a great time. I'll 3rd the Ups for Levenson! However, I think he's done his job. BRAVO! Now how about the rest of them owners. I see Nique is listed as part of the ownership now. How exciting would it be to sit by Nique for a game? He had great seats for that Clippers Game. Also, the rest of the owners should think about picking up where Mr. Levenson has left off. Would be nice to get a response from a couple of others here as well. Mr. Levenson did have to make several trips getting people, and taking them back to his seats. He probably didn't get to enjoy the game as much as he would have normally. I would definately be in favor of seeing another owner's special. Heck, I might even pay 11 dollars this time!!

Paul Hewitt and the boys are making noise in the National Recruiting Battle. GT looks like a solid team this year, but young. All freshmen and sophmores on the team. With the exception of Tarver (senior) and West (junior). If no one leaves for the NBA (Dickey and Morrow), then next year this team is gonna do some damage. They are gonna have a team that will be hard to beat. Thaddeus Young from Tennessee is gonna be a star. All the write ups on this guy is very impressive. He's a star in the making. He's smart in the classroom (but who isn't that attends Tech). His father was a college coach. It appears all the ground work is there, for this guy to be the man in Atlanta next year! A lock for the McDonalds All Star Game. Can't wait to see him perform this year. Javaris Crittenton is the local product. Some of you may have heard of him already. He is the star from Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy. A 6'4" PG that is going to be a nightmare for other teams trying to match up against him. He's already gainned national attention going into his senior year. Another possible player that will get to play in the McDonald's All Star Game. Yes, this is the guy that played some with Dwight Howard. Brad Shehan a 6'10" player from NY. He's considered a project, but should give the Yellowjackets some play in the paint. Zach Peacock a 6'7" guy from Miami. He has the midrange game. Here is the write up on him: "Tremendous 2005 Nike Camp. Has enough skill to play facing the basket. Finishes what he can inside. Could be a player who gets more interest coming off his summer of 2005." That's a good class right there comming in. However, there may be more. Another local kid that we need to keep in state is JaJuan Jones from Douglasville. Hey JJ! If your looking in, go ahead and commit to GT. This is where you want to be! He has his choices down to 3 right now (GT, NCST, and Cinncy) Other guys considering GT: Leon Freeman from Michigan. He has Michigan State as one of his schools. So may be hard to steal him out of Michigan. Tyrell Lynch from New York Cordell Pope from Alabama Justin Burrel from the Bronx (A PF that Bulldogs and YellowJackets are fighting for) Rashad Green from New York So strike up the band! Next year's team is looking good right now! 2006/2007 YellowJackets: PG Javaris Crittenton SG Anthony Morrow SF Thadeous Young PF Jeremis Smith C RaSean Dickey This is the projected lineup, without considering this year's freshmen crop. Someone might make some noise in this year's fresman crop. Lewis Clinch (Georgia Product) D'Andre Bell (Los Angeles, California) Paco Diaw (Boris's Brother....lol, j/k....he might be??) Alade Aminu (6'10" Big Man) They start playing this Friday. As for the Georgia Bulldogs. They are behind the game. They have a great class comming in this year. Would have been much better if Louis Williams would have stayed committed. As for next year, just one commitment so far.

Quote: Quote: and we were holding them up and yelling and cheering and some guy behind us told us to not do that anymore coz he wanted to watch the game... erm......... ._.;; made me feel kind of strange... come on i want to see some enthusiasm and excitement from fans...!!! but man...it was great fun...most fun ive had in awhile... I wish I was by you, because I would of told the guy off (nicely ofcourse..haha) I dealt with a guy that told me not to yell during a Braves playoff game and then he had security come down to get me to shut up. When did "Go Braves" ever become a bad thing? LOL.....funny you should mention the Braves Game. I was at a game one time. A woman was talking on her cell phone. A guy was yelling a lot. It wasn't yelling at everything type yelling. Just normal yelling, and at the right times in the game. Like when the Braves had someone on base, or the other team was in an RBI Situation. The woman on the cell phone couldn't hear, cause of the guy yelling. She asked a usher to make him stop. The usher went and talked to the guy, and made him stop. I was shocked! Couldn't believe someone was asked to stop yelling. I have no problems with what people do when they come to the game. If talking on your cell phone is your thing. That's fine! But don't ruin it for the rest of us. USHERS PLEASE DON'T SHUT THE NOISEY FANS UP! THAT'S WHAT WE NEED!

If I'm not mistaken, there should have been about 8 of you that got to sit with Mr. Levenson for the 2nd half. I quickly just read through the posts, and didn't see who they was. I might have overlooked it. I do know I met one guy that went down with Mr. Levenson in the 2nd half. He said he doesn't post here, but reads here a lot. After he came back up, a guy with a note pad came up and asked him and his friend questions. I was curious to what those questions were. I figured it was for a newspaper or radio show. I didn't hear, or couldn't find any articles today relating to the event.

OK, I can answer a couple of these questions. The bald guy sitting next to zzzz (Me) was a friend of mine. He doesn't post on here. Gambitt99 told him he needed to get involved, so maybe he will join up here. Traceman did have the white jogging suit on. He sat with Mr. Levenson for the 2nd quarter. His regular seats were Row H section 121 (behind zzz and the bald guy....lol) The dancing moves was hilarious. I gave my shout outs to your friend. Glad he won. Also great to see Sky Hawk kick the ball our way after the dunks on the trampoline. Did anyone catch it? I think it went into section 122. Terrell Owens was at the game. I know there was several people around me trying to find where he was sitting. I learned on the Marta Train that he was in the first row, on the other end of the floor (Clippers Side). So those 4 or 5 canidates we had for Terrell was all wrong....lol.

Quote: I watched the game on TV (bout all you can do in Houston LOL) and they did the interview around the 2nd quarter I believe it was and they showed 1 guy sitting with Mr Levenson and he had on a black shirt and a hat. I did hear Mr Levenson mention RealGM and Hawksquawk.net by name which I thought was really cool. No, it wasn't me. I had a white Squawk Shirt on. I can't think who had the black shirt on that went down there.

I saw you oken. Yes, I seen the woman with red hair too....and I was 2 sections away....lol!

Wow! What a great time I had tonight. Where do I begin. I started off the night by getting there pretty early, but didn't see any Squawk Shirts around. So decided to go get a coke. Then me and my friend met drzackary. Then went back to our seats. (section 121 Row G) I was in the very first seat. Right about the time the tip was taking place, I saw Mr. Levenson, Dominique Wilkins, and another person (Mr. Levenson's Son)walking up the aisle. I wanted to thank him personally for the great offer. So I extended my hand and he shook it. Then he asked "Where is Diesel". So I did notice a couple of other people wearing Hawksquawk Shirts, so I told him I would help him. This is when I met lascar sitting toward the back of section 120 (I think). We (Mr. Levenson and I), were hollering for Diesel, but no one was stepping up. So Diesel, the question comes back to you now. Where was ya? We did make every effort to find you. It appears that Mr. Levenson was going to pick Diesel to sit with him for the game. I think that's a great choice, and Diesel would have been the perfect canidate for it. However, we didn't find ya big guy. So sorry. So with no Diesel, that is when Mr. Levenson invited me to sit with him. Of coarse I accepted. So me and my friend followed him down the aisle, onto the court, and right in front of where Bob Rathburn and Steve Smith call the game from. His seats is probably about 10 to 12 down from the Hawks Broadcasters. If that gives you an idea of where exactly we was at. When we got to our seats, there was people sitting in them. Mr. Levenson boldly told them to scat!!! LOL.....just kidding, he said it very nicely. Going from left to right, the seating was like this. Me, Mr. Levenson, My Friend, and Mr. Levenson's Son (sorry I can't remember your name). We sat there and watched the entire 1st quarter. Me and my friend absolutely loved it! We chatted, cheered, and boo'ed all together. Mr. Levenson is a super nice guy. I know that might sound like a cliche, but it's very true. He's every bit just like us. Really a great guy. My friend got to chat with his son, and was impressed with his knowledge of the Hawks. According to my friend, Mr. Levenson's Son was talking about Hawks Players that should be posting against some of the Clipper's smaller players, and which Hawks Players were really hustling in practice. I think he also mentioned that Bob Sura and Rebracca (Clippers Player) were really good friends in Atlanta. Being that close to the game was the biggest thrill I have ever had at a Hawks Game. A ball got knocked out of bounds right there at us. The ball hit my friend in the leg. Josh Childress (i think) came over to inbound the ball. Mr. Levenson told Chill to smile........lol. Cause Childress had this serious look on his face. After the 1st quarter was up. Mr. Levenson decided to go get a couple of more people to sit in those great seats. He chose Traceman 2nd, and we went back to our regular seats in section 121 for the rest of the game. After Traceman went, I think he started inviting 4 people atta time. So the last two quarters, I think two groups of 4 went. I'm not sure which Squawkers were chosen for the final two quarters. Traceman sat right behind me. Was great hearing him and his friend talking about the Hawks. They was pretty much in line with what me and my friend was talking about too. I met several of you tonight, so I can't remember all the handles I met. If I tried to name them all, I'm sure I would leave someone off. The last Squawker I met was after the game was over. Gambit99 came over and introduce hisself to me. I can honestly say, that I enjoyed meeting you all. We have a really great group of guys that post here. We might not always think so, by the way we post things sometimes. Experiencing you guys in person, was great! Not only did Diesel get chosen to sit with Mr. Levenson, but I think he was the most popular person here that got talked about at the game tonight. Thanks again Mr. Levenson! Mr. Levenson's Son, I think you said that you don't post here, but look in from time to time. So if your looking in, it was great meeting ya. Sign up, and post some things. Would love to hear what you have to say. Thanks to the guys at Hawksquawk for getting us the great shirts. We looked good struting them around at Philips tonight. And yes, Mr. Levenson did have his Hawksquawk Shirt on. He was carrying a sports coat wtih him, and occasionally would wear it. I never did actually know why Dominique was walking up the aisle with you Mr. Levenson. Was it just coincidence? Or did Nique want to meet Diesel? OK, signing off.........

JJ loved Suns but says Sarver slighted him Paul Coro The Arizona Republic Nov. 8, 2005 12:00 AM Joe Johnson is reliving his tumultuous summer while VH-1 is on his Beverly Hills hotel room television. It was not The Surreal Life, but that would have been appropriate for how the star guard went from a Suns team he adored to an Atlanta team that gets floored. Johnson spoke candidly about his lack of faith in Suns Managing Partner Robert Sarver, about disrespect, his conflicting emotions about leaving Phoenix and the truth about his perceived gentleman's persona. Johnson still roots for Phoenix, so much that he attended the Suns-Lakers game last week at Staples Center. He knew how difficult basketball success would be in Atlanta, but his discontent with the Suns, a desire to return to the South and a five-year, $69.8 million contract moved Johnson. advertisement He is winless in three Hawks games and is wrestling with running a bad team. Among his consolation prizes: a $20 million payment from his Hawks deal and a 15,000-square-foot home. But why did he leave? Here are his words: Question: How did it come to this? JJ: “Going into the season when we didn't get the contract done, I knew this was a possibility so it didn't surprise me at all. It may surprise a lot of other people, but it didn't surprise me one bit because this was the chance everybody was taking. It was nothing I meant to happen from Day 1. People have been talking about me wanting to be the man and all that. That was never the case.” Do you realize how a lot of people in Phoenix saw you as the bad guy this summer for wanting to leave? “I'm a grown man so me being put on blast or people saying what they want to say, I could care less. You can talk about me all you want to, just don't put your hands on me.” Many people still don't understand why you left. Was it any one thing? “It's a mixture of things. When I said I didn't want to come back, everybody looked at it like I was being selfish or I was jealous of some things, but that was never the case. Anybody who knows me knows I'm a quiet, laid-back person who doesn't say much. All I love to do is play basketball. Me getting fame and glory, I could care less about all of that stuff.” Going back to the 2004 summer, how much did it bother you that the extension didn't get done when the Suns were within $5 million of your six-year, $50 million request? “It didn't bother me. It motivated me more than anything. I was hoping that we could get things situated. I still feel like to this day that they brought Q (Quentin Richardson) in and I don't really know what they were doing. I don't think they meant for everything to work like it did. I don't think they meant to play me, Shawn (Marion) and Q at the same time, but it just so happened that it worked, so that's what we went with. “It was tough, man, but I'm a workaholic and I put my best foot forward and got good results. If it wasn't for Steve Nash and Amaré (Stoudemire) and Shawn, none of this would be possible. I appreciate everything those guys did. “You look at it like $5million was nothing. But in the business, it's really not a lot. At first, they went, ‘We're not going to make an offer and just let you play it out.' It went from that to making an offer, then they were going to a Q deal and then I wouldn't accept it. They wouldn't go up five ($5million) more. All this was just a build-up in me. I never caused any problems the whole time I was there. I never raised any fire the whole season. Bryan and Jerry (Colangelo) and Robert Sarver never got any problems out of me. I was a professional and I handled it well.” Did your personality work against you? “I think they were taking my kindness as a weakness. I'm a quiet, subtle type that really doesn't say anything. It was like, ‘We'll throw this at Joe. I'm quite sure he'll accept it. Don't worry about it. He's not going anywhere.' If you push me to the limit, eventually I'm going to explode.” What did you expect July 1 (the start of free agency)? “I really didn't know. When they traded Q, I was like, ‘Well, it's definite then. I'm going to go back.' But after a while, I really didn't know. I knew there were a few teams who were showing a lot of interest. I just felt like Phoenix wasn't one of them.” Did you expect an immediate Suns maximum offer? “It wasn't really about the max. But I was assuming that the first day, bam, we can stamp it out there and it was over. But it didn't happen that way. We let other teams get involved and it happened.” What did the Suns tell you initially? “They basically told me and my agent: ‘Go get the best offer and bring it back.' And that's what we did. I just didn't feel like that was the right thing to do. If you're really showing interest in a person and you're telling them to go get the best offer and bring it back, what is that really telling you? Instead of telling you this is how much we'll give you and we'll go from there.” Did it bother you that there was an impression out there that Phoenix would match any offer and that could affect your market value? “They ran a few teams off by saying, ‘We're going to match anything,' everywhere. I felt like they were doing that to scare teams away. That way, they could get me for a bargain and it didn't happen that way. I ain't going to lie. I really didn't like that.” How come you didn't want to meet them in early July? “Not only was I out of town, but I just felt like we had all season to sit down and talk about what was coming up. Sarver wanted to talk and see how I felt. You know, whatever. We had eight, nine months for all that, so I didn't feel like there was a need.” Was it like being another team's free agent? “That's what I'm saying. When they got Steve, they all went out with Amaré to Dallas and talked to Steve to convince him. With me, I was already there. You don't have to try to lure me in to tell me about the city or about my team. I know what everything is like, so why try that? All you've got to do is tell me what I'm worth and they still wouldn't do it.” So did any of that recruiting stuff, like the slick book showing photos of a glorious future in Phoenix, appeal to you? “Don't get me wrong. It's a great (expletive) book. I love the book. I still look at it every day. It's a great (expletive) book. But that wasn't going to do it.” When you last left Phoenix, you said you wanted to come back but that the NBA is a business. Did you definitely want to come back? “Did I want to come back? I wouldn't have minded to come back. Now, I ain't going to say I wanted to come back. But if they would've brought me back, I would've been a professional about it.” Were you still ticked about the previous summer? “There were a few reasons. Like when I got hurt (an orbital fracture from a playoff fall)people were trying to get me back the last game of the Dallas series. It was tough. It was a hard decision. I thought I did everything in my power to help the organization. “For things to be handled the way they were this summer, I just felt like it wasn't right.” Did it put pressure on you when it came out that you were cleared for basketball activity? “Somebody said that, but I was not cleared. There was no way. I could see, but I couldn't see out of my peripheral vision. It was crazy. It made it seem like I didn't want to get back out there, but that was never the case.” What did you think of the Suns' first offer? Was it $50million over six years? “Yeah, it was. I was like, ‘We tried to get that last year.' I thought that was a bargain last year. Now, my value has gone up and you throw 50 out there? Man, please.” After that offer, how did things progress? Is it true you didn't return any calls? “I didn't talk to them. There was the time Robert and I talked when I told him I didn't want to come back. Before that, it was me, Robert, Bryan and Jerry on the phone with my agent. That's when we were trying to work things out. It never got done. They were always beating around that they didn't want to get into it right now and they hung up in our face. That was when they were like, ‘Go get your best offer,' and hung up. The conversation got heated. My agent was like, ‘Can you just give us an offer?' And they never would.” What did you think of how Atlanta approached you? “They were ready and very serious about it. I took it. There wasn't a hesitation.” Were you ready to leave by then? “Yeah, I was fed up and decided it was time for a change.” Was it hard to tell Sarver that you didn't want him to match Atlanta's offer? “It wasn't difficult when you're pushed to the limit. It was time. Maybe that was an easy way out. They were probably never going to match it in the first place. I don't think, to be honest, that they could've matched. By me saying that, it benefited them and made me look like I was a bad guy. It's a chance you take.” Sarver said publicly that he was willing to match. “That was after I said I didn't want to come back.” If they had matched, how would it have been for you? “It would've been sort of like last year. We lost Q, but I would've come with a great attitude. I wouldn't have been mad at Sarver or Bryan. I'm a professional, man. This is what I do. I do this for a living, so why would I come back with a crummy-shin attitude? That ain't me. I'm not even that type of guy and they know that. That's why it's crazy.” If you had come back, did you realize someone like Marion was going to have to be moved within a year? “When the season was over, me and Q talked for a long time and I was like, ‘Somebody's going to have to go because this is too much money.' When Q got traded, it was a shock to him and me.” Did that upset you because you were close to Q? “It was tough. Once Q was gone, I didn't know what to expect. I enjoyed myself there. I ain't going to lie to you. The fans were loyal. I got some great, great memories. Unfortunately, I had to leave.” When Nash and Marion talked to you at Nash's charity game in Toronto, did that make any difference? “Oh, yeah. Those were two good friends of mine. It did make me think about it, but it was already done. I had already talked to Sarver.” You don't think they would've matched any offer? “I think they would've matched an offer but not a max offer. That was too much.” Did you have a problem with being a third scoring option? “We all knew the offense ran through Amaré. As far as being a third option, I didn't really look at it as that. Coach (Mike) D'Antoni did the best job he could with the type of team we had because everybody wanted the ball. He put me at backup point and I got a chance to make a lot more plays. I would've loved to get more involved. Everybody watching the Suns thought everything was peaches and cream. “It was a lot of fun, but you can't keep everybody happy. We all accepted roles and nobody griped about it. At the same time, it wasn't like everybody was happy. We were winning, so how could you gripe? I knew I could do more than be a spot-up shooter.” Were you upset with Stoudemire for calling you out at halftime of the Miami game? “Amaré never went off on me about nothing in Miami. That never happened. (Johnson later said Stoudemire did criticize him.) I was (ticked) off because I really didn't touch the ball that game. I was mad about that (expletive). How do you feel about Phoenix now? “I still got love. I'm just not there. How things were handled is a different story.” But at the end, Sarver said he asked if the money were equal, would you rather be in Atlanta and lose or here and win and you picked Atlanta? “(Laughs). Man, please. I think if anybody in their right mind takes a look, they know that he didn't want to match.”

Ok, well the time has come. Someone had to say it. So here it goes. Have you guys seen the lottery? It's up to 262 Million! Wow! If I win that Friday, I will insure us to definately have a 2nd Squawker Night for the Hawks again! Awwwwwwww, and I bet you thought I was going to say NBA Lottery! Not yet. However, if the Hawks does continue this path. My leading canidate would be the kid from Oregon. He's a big power forward type player. If we had the top selection. Then no way would I pass on Gay. He could be the next D. Wade. I would entertain offers, but would want to stay in the top 4 or 5 to get the Oregon Kid. JJ Redick would be my favorite right now for the 3rd best player. You can never go wrong with a shooter.

Grrrrrrrrrrrrr........I picked the Knicks. Should have checked boxscore first. They have a 10 point lead over the Blazers right now, at the half. You know when leading by 10 at halftime, is pretty much a guaranteed win in the NBA. I change my vote to Toronto.

Quote: Yeah, it wasn't Woody's fault that Boris was unaggressive in Atlanta... But sure enough Boris goes to the Suns and plays better. I don't think I've seen a player really improve yet under Woodsons coaching. Josh'es Last Year Chauncey Billups Tayshaun Prince

Heck yeah bring to Spree to the team. He's a baller. He can play! We have room. Send Royal and Donta to Arkansas. They need to be playing anyways. Bring him here!

Quote: By any chance did you notice a fanatical fans or hawk-a-licious section? Ownership said they would do it again this year but it is kind of hard to believe them when they canceled it the last two games of last year. No I didn't. Doesn't mean it wasn't there, I just didn't notice it.

Quote: i noticed many times jj driving and the kobes collapsing on him and then he dished it out to the open man (who usually missed *ahem josh smith ahem*) i didn't really get to watch the 2nd half, though...but in the first half, jj was definitely a playmaker, driving and dishing Right. I see what you are talking about. However, a couple of his times he dished to guys that were wide open for the jumpers, he had a man right under the basket or near enough to just lay it in. No Jumper Needed! Salim seems to find the man closest to the basket when he gets the collapse. There's just not enough teams collapsing on him, cause of height. He isn't likely to lay it in over the opposing teams centers or forwards keeping guard on the basket.

The day we played against Golden State. I went in to have my car serviced earlier that day. I was reading the AJC while waiting. I read something very intersting in their that caught my eye. They were giving the scouting reports for all the Hawks Players. Beside Ivey's Name, it read something like this: "the most improved player of them all, that returned from last year's team" Not sure how to read into that. Did the guy think Ivey was really bad last year, and now looks descent. Giving him a lot of room for improvement. Or did he realize Ivey was solid last year, and giving him props for improvement, from that basis. You always see every year in the NFL, where debates for a certain team come up. Which QB should be starting? Usually the one that makes the most money gets the nod. Maybe Ivey falls in this category. Lue with his 3 year contract, and Salim playing very well, and pressure to use JJ at the PG. It leaves Ivey out, just on pay check and perception that the team is doing things right. Not necessarily that Ivey might couldn't give us solid minutes out there.

Well another frustrating night. Added another talley in the "L" Column. To continue venting from a previous post, I'm not sure what is going on with the Hawks Franchise. Forget the on court play. The JJ Saga with Belkin, Hurricane Katrina Relief (not having Hawks Jerseys, and Lue sporting the Pistons Jersey), and now the fire to the electronics system. It was very frustrating not having a score, game clock, and shot clock for long periods of the game. We are not NBA Worthy off the court, when we can't even get our home openner off the ground from off the court things. Several Stars were in the house. I will probably forget some, but I remember these: Patrick Kerney (Falcons) TJ Duckett (Falcons) Algae Crumpler (Falcons) Ilya Kovalchuk (Thrashers) Roy Williams (NC Tarheels Head Coach) Not sure how much of the Jason Collier Tribute got shown on TV, but it was put on nicely. A great video tribute on the jumbotron, the bagpipes playing amazing grace, Al Harrington speaking to the crowd (specifically JC's Wife). While the teams were warming up. Batista's jumping ability caught my eye. He's got some serious hops. On one of his layups, he went in from a side of the basket angle. He left the floor before he was in the paint, and dunked it down with authority on the reverse side. So he can get up a lot better than he looks like he could. Salim stroked about 10 shots in a row (just inside the 3 Point Stripe), and the ball never touched the rim. While Donta Smith was practicing from about the same distance, and he hit on the rim about 10 shots in a row. Not sure he made a bucket in the pregame warm ups......lol. The game itself, still was very much like some of the previous ones. Played real well early, and just collapsed later on. I think at one time we was up 29 to 19 and the quarter ended, with the Lakers down by 2. Seems like it took us about 2 minutes into the next quarter to get off that 29 mark. Salim seems to be some sort of good luck charm. Another game, where we do well when he is out there. Even if he's not involved, we just get things done when he's on the floor. Did anyone think the Hawks gave up too quick? The last 4 or 5 minutes of the game, we were very lazy looking out there. Salim and J. Smith were the two that looked like they were pouting. It did appear it worked to our advantage. Their body language gave the Lakers a lazy look as well. Was almost like we were conning them, and we had done given up. The Hawks made a mini run toward the end. Why in the world didn't they foul? The Lakers did pretty much have the game in hand at the end, but the Hawks should have fouled. We got the game to a 2 possesion game, and the Lakers brought the ball over half court with something like 20 seconds left. If the Hawks foul, and Lakers miss both FT attempts. We run down, let Salim hoist a 3 that goes. It's a 3 point game with 10+ seconds left. I realize the chances of tying them are unlikely, but we didn't even give that last bit of effort at the end. This was disturbing. Not even the coaching staff was hollering to foul. It was a combined effort of quitting from the players on the court and our coaching staff. NEVER GIVE UP! I don't mind losing, but giving up with time on the clock is pathetic. The Lakers Jerseys was definately a presence at Philips. You seen as many Laker's Jersey as Hawks Rise Up T Shirts, which every fan in the building was giving one, upon entry through the doors. Kobe Chants broke out a few times, but usually was subdued by the boo's of Hawks Fans. MVP for the Hawks was Zaza. He had a few silly turnovers, with traveling. However, he looked like the only player that was trying the hardest out there. He gave efforts on both ends of the floor, and played like that for the entire game. Al Harrington looked like he tweaked his ankle a couple of times. Never seem to go to the bench because of it, but he is defintatley hurting out there. The Lakers Game Plan, seemed to be to shut down Joe Johnson. They really focused on him. Kobe played great one on one defense against him, but you could see the team as a whole keeping their eye on him. Josh Smith was running the baseline several times, and was very open. The Hawks fail to get him the ball. The 1 or 2 times they did try, it was a direct pass to him, instead of lobbing the ball near the rim. JJ is driving to the basket, and teams collapse on him. It appears he puts his head down, and doesn't recognize that guys are wide open when he does this. He has to keep his head up, and recognize the floor better. He's not seeing the floor right now as a PG, or a playmaker would.