With this team, what's our record next season??

[Buzzard]

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As much as we like to think of our team in a vacuum, the truth of the matter is that we're not the only team who has gotten better.

I would say that Charlotte, Orlando, Boston, and Toronto have all gotten better.

Still, I think we have the capacity to win 40 games.

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I agree here. 40 is a possibilty. I also think your assesment of Speedy is pretty good 14,8, and 3. He got 13, 6, and 1.86 for a very poor offensive team in NO two years ago. The steals may be a little high but the points and assist are probably right on.

MWill, Smoove, and Chilz that is where we have to make up for Al's lost 18ppg. Shelden should give us 10ppg; that means we need them to come up with 8 to 10ppg more between them.

If that happens, our D improves with Shelden and our offense will improve with Speedy and not go down, due to the loss of Al, as many here might think.

For those who think Shelden will give more; I hope so, but Boozer averaged 10 his rookie year and Kenyon averaged 12 his rookie season. So more would be great but I am trying to be realistic.

With all that being said; much better D; improved offense with less turnovers; 40 is a possibility...Go Hawks!

[Peoriabird]

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not go down, due to the loss of Al

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You guys kill me with this loss of Al's offense decreasing the team's scoring. Need I remind you that Al didn't play all 82 games and we scored just fine. Marvin's average went up Smoove's average when up. Why? Because there was more ball movement with out Al in the game. If anything Al's play stagnated our offense. The offense will be fine!!!

[thesheedera]

A penetrator like Speedy's gonna thrive if they continue to call the games the way they did this past season.

A lot of point guards take a few years to figure it out before they play their best ball. Billups was bounced around from team to team. Nash struggled early on. Now they're both MVP level players. Not saying Speedy's the same thing at all, but I like where he is in his career for this team. He knows the league, he's been around the block, he's getting another chance to run a team. I think the net impact of losing Al and gaining Speedy will be even at least.

Al's scoring is not easy replace, but Speedy will make our other players better than Al ever could have.

[Traceman]

It really depends on how much our young guys improve over last year. I don't necessarily think we will be significantly better than we were last year if we don't get something decent in return for Al (or in place of Al if we go the FA route). If either Smoove or Marvin put up the numbers that Al put up as a starter, I will be THRILLED. I think Al's contributions to this team are WAY underrated by a lot of folks on this board and we are still WAY too young. We need some veteran leadership to guide our young talent.

My hope is that the addition of Shelden will pay dividends right away and that Smoove and Marvin will be so much better than Al was defensively that even if they don't score as much, the team will be better. In addition, obviously, Speedy over Ivey is a HUGE difference.

Bottom line, I will reserve my prediction until I see what we get for Al in addition to what I see the young guys do in the offseason.

[Buzzard]

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not go down, due to the loss of Al

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You guys kill me with this loss of Al's offense decreasing the team's scoring. Need I remind you that Al didn't play all 82 games and we scored just fine. Marvin's average went up Smoove's average when up. Why? Because there was more ball movement with out Al in the game. If anything Al's play stagnated our offense. The offense will be fine!!!

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I agree and that is exactly what I said. You did understand that; right? Our D improves with Shelden and our Offense improves (not even stays the same but improves) with Speedy running the team....

[Peoriabird]

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not go down, due to the loss of Al

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You guys kill me with this loss of Al's offense decreasing the team's scoring. Need I remind you that Al didn't play all 82 games and we scored just fine. Marvin's average went up Smoove's average when up. Why? Because there was more ball movement with out Al in the game. If anything Al's play stagnated our offense. The offense will be fine!!!

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I agree and that is exactly what I said. You did understand that; right? Our D improves with Shelden and our Offense improves (not even stays the same but improves) with Speedy running the team....

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Sorry, there have been several poster claiming the opposite. I totally agree with your statement

[thesheedera]

Speedy will immediately be the most experienced Hawk when it comes to playoff games played, almost doubling the number of games that Joe's played - 29 to 15, and besting Lue's 18 games played. Harrington played in 25 games with Indiana.

Its really amazing how young and inexperienced we are, and how far away from being a contender we really are.

[Buzzard]

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Sorry, there have been several poster claiming the opposite. I totally agree with your statement

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Cool alot of post to sift thru the last few days...Go Hawks!

[Gray Mule]

Added 13 wins last season. Hawks had to overcome the

death of a teammate to start the season. Regardless of

what else happened to our season, this was a terrible

blow to our young guys.

Our young kids have another year's experience, as does our

head coach. This has to be a plus. Being familiar with

their young teammates will help.

Our additions of a true point guard and some defensive

help inside is a big plus.

Hopefully, the big rookie will have learned some basic

english and with his experience from last year, he'll

be better.

This season, part of those very close games the Hawks

lost last season should end up on the win side for us.

What kind of deal the Hawks do with Al can and should

make a difference also. Maybe not. If we can just

get some draft picks and something extra, that would

be O.K. Not great, but just O.K.

We ain't there yet, but we're gaining on it !!!!

GO HAWKS !!!!!!!!!!!!

[DJlaysitup]

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...My hope is that the addition of Shelden will pay dividends right away and that Smoove and Marvin will be so much better than Al was defensively that even if they don't score as much, the team will be better...

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That's my hope too trace. Everybody is going to have to pitch in to improve our interior defense. That'll mean playing unselfishly and taking fouls instead on giving layups sometimes. They can't just leave it up to Shelden every time or he'll be in foul trouble all the time.

I'd really like to see a defensively oriented big that could play some 4 and 5 to go along with what we have.

[Traceman]

Magloire is still my first choice. I might have taken a shot at Chandler but that is off the table now that he is headed to NO/OK.

[Wretch]

I don't think we'll miss Al as much as people think. Lots of players can score and rebound, but clutch performance is what makes all the difference. While productive, Al was never much of a clutch player. Almost like Reef. But whereas you could count on that 20/8 or so from Reef night in and night out, you never knew just how much Al was going to give. To that end, I think given his shot opportunities...someone else will be able to provide what he takes with him.

Which brings up the next point...will any of our young guys break out? The point at which one or more of our young guys breaks out is the point where you can start to guarantee wins. Good teams always have at least 2 people that can get it done . JJ is solid, but spreading the floor with another solid player AND having a real PG to get them the ball is what will do it for us.

Of all our guys, I think Smoove has the best chance to break out. I was so impressed with how he brought his shot along last year and his ability to get to the basket. He even started making some excellent passes off the drive. With a distributer at the point and Al out of the way, I expect Smoove to reach out for an even bigger offensive role.

I think pretty highly of Marvin, but Knight and all these forwards man... Marvin will get his chance if he or Smoove can effectively handle the 4. But, the more I think about that, the more I think of a Landlord/Smoove forward combo. Good Lord...

I'm not sold on Shelden as a 5, but I can see him doing some damage at the 4. Man... Smoove and Shelden... On the defensive end? On the glass? *shudder*

If Smoove continues to progress, if the Landlord can bring it on this level...we will DEFINITELY improve on last season. I can certainly see us doing what we did last year...but with better PG play and a solid presence in the post? That looks good. On paper anyway.

Hopefully, BK's versatile lineup will work. Hopefully, all of these "forwards" will have an opportunity to work together. That's what it boils down to for me. There's no sense in having all this talent...and not being able to put it all out there on the floor.