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Above the Law

Zone034life

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Zone034life Newbie

Zone034life

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Above the Law

By Sekou K Smith | Wednesday, October 10, 2007, 11:47 AM

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

MIAMI - It’s time for some full disclosure from me in regards to how I felt about the Hawks’ draft picks on draft night.

I was bullish on Mike Conley Jr., as everybody knows, and in favor of perhaps moving the No. 11 pick for a veteran big man or another shooter. After watching Acie Law IV in summer league and the past 10 days, let’s just say it’s a good thing I wasn’t running the show on draft night.

This guy couldn’t be a better fit for this team (his teammates already love playing with him) or this franchise (he’s a mature and no-nonsense dude who is coming into the league with an understanding of not only how things work but how they should work). That’s not to say that my man Mike Conley Jr. wouldn’t have been just as good a fit. But Acie is far above and beyond what I expected, having seen him sporadically throughout his college career.

For one, I expected him to be much more of a score-first point guard. But again, he’s far too advanced to show up with that type of attitude. He knows that this team needs him to accentuate some of his other qualities instead.

I also wasn’t sure how mature a guy he’d be, you can never tell from afar, but he’s all grown up. No kid in him. He’s straight business.

Yet he still has a fantastic sense of humor (“I told Jameer Nelson he must be on steroids or something he was so strong,” Law joked after Monday night’s game in Orlando. “It was a shock. But I think my body and my skills translate to this level. I can play on this level. I can compete with these guys. But it’s everything I expected it would be and more.”) and the perfect temperament for the trials and tribulations he’ll face during his first NBA season.

After watching the Hawks fold youngsters into the mix the past few years, it’ll be interesting to see how they deal with Law and Al Horford, who is in the same mold.

“I think Al and I are in a different situation than maybe Josh and Marvin were when they came here out of high school and after one year of college,” Law said. “In Al you’ve got a guy who finished his junior year of college with back-to-back NCAA championship runs. And in me you have a guy that helped turn a traditional doormat into a contender. We’ve been through a lot as players and as young men. Coach [Mike Woodson] has confidence in us. All we have to do is go out there and perform.”

One last thing on another topic, I saw the debate about which position suits Josh Smith better (the 3 or the 4). My first inclination was to devote an entire blog entry to that topic. But instead I checked in with an executive from another team to solicit an outside opinion (since we’ve all made our opinions clear on the subject for quite some time). He had an interesting response:

“Does it really matter? I mean, I guess if you’re playing a certain way and you want to feature him at either of those spots it would matter. And if you look at that team and the personnel they have, you could look at Al Horford and Josh Smith and want Horford as your power forward and Smith as your small forward. But what do you do with Marvin Williams? I don’t think that team wins without all of those guys playing important roles. I do think Josh Smith is naturally more of a three. I think trying to make him a four is maybe forcing him to be something that just doesn’t come natural. But if you look at his numbers, he rebounds and blocks shots like a power forward. He’s just not a post-up guy right now. Those are things he has to learn. The fact that he’s versatile enough to play both spots is what makes him so valuable, and not every guy his size can play both effectively. I promise you this, if a guy like [Golden State coach] Don Nelson, he’d have Smith, Horford and Williams out there together. He’d go crazy for a frontline like that with the way he likes to play. And really, in today’s NBA, you can go to work with that, even though they are a bit undersized.”

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coachx Newbie

coachx

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I like the stuff the said by the NBA executive on Smoove.

The only question is....who fits best with him ? Marvin or Horford.

Man, I love competition. It brings out the best in "winners." Winners thrive in pressure and competition. If one of the 2 fold in the competition for playing time..........we don't need them any way. They wouldn't be made of the right stuff.

I also agree with his assesment that if Don Nelson coached the Hawks, Horford and Smoove would be the starting PF & C.

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thesheedera Newbie

thesheedera

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Quote:

And if you look at that team and the personnel they have, you could look at Al Horford and Josh Smith and want Horford as your power forward and Smith as your small forward. But what do you do with Marvin Williams?
I don’t think that team wins without all of those guys playing important roles.

This should be stickied at the top of the board for a daily reminder as we debate this stuff in the future.

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coachx Newbie

coachx

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We very well could be seeing Smoove and Horford starting together very soon under Woodson. Al very well could be a 12/9 player. Smoove is a 20/10 player waiting to happen.

I agree. It is not a matter of if, only when ?

The only question is who do you sit ?

There will definately be an expeirmental faze.

There are 2 approaches. Woody will get ridicule mo matter which route he takes.

Should he stick with one line up of the sake of chemistry and roles ?

or

Should he constantly expierement with different line ups at the expense of consistent roles ?

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gutz Newbie

gutz

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The starting lineup HAS to be:

Speedy or Law

JJ

Marvin

SMooove

Horford

No questions asked!! Zaza is still terrible out there and a liability on defense at center. Zaza is a great backup though no doubt and that is what he should be doing. Horford is already a better all around player than Zaza will ever be. Second unit would look like this and be unmatched by any other team in the NBA

Law

Salim

Chill

Shelden

Zaza

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Swatguy Newbie

Swatguy

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ZaZa is not terrible. He has been outmatched down low many nights. With Horford by his side it will help him alot. Horford should not be forced to be the starting center for this team if there is another option like ZaZa who is battle tested in this league.

I agree.

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jerrywest Newbie

jerrywest

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It makes no sense to take the most truest PF the game has presented since maybe Amare Stoudamire and make him a Center.

Horf is the picture of a PF.

Dude, in your unquenchable thirst to hijack every thread for bashing Marvin, you, as usually, contradicted yourself.

Amare is an All-NBA center. If Horford is half as good as a center, our problem at C is solved for 15 years.

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Lascar78 Newbie

Lascar78

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The only question is....who fits best with him ? Marvin or Horford.

Why is this a question? I was against drafting Horford because you have to play him out of position at C, but now that he's here, it's a done deal. Once Horford gets his feet wet and Marvin hits his stride, I doubt we will be able to do better at the 3-4-5 than Marvin-Smith-Horford (or Chill-Smith-Horford if Marvin fails to develop).

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DrReality Rookie

DrReality

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If we don't respond to D he can't hijack the thread.

I agree completely with the NBA exec. The postitions is a traditional way of playing ball and may or may not have something to do with how five guys get it done on the court. It's more of an issue in some people's head than it is on the court.

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Buzzard Enthusiast

Buzzard

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In other words, Amare playing Center is only a function of him playing for Phoenix.

So you are saying he would not make the all-star team for us or any other NBA team! Amare could beat out 95% of the centers in the league for their jobs...

Exa. You build your team with Eddie Curry at center; I will build mine with Amare at center. Who starts with the best center? You or me?

I know you have a lot of basketball knowledge Diesel; but this is one of the dumbest post I have ever read.

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T21 Newbie

T21

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Quote:

Quote:

We very well could be seeing Smoove and Horford starting together very soon under Woodson. Al very well could be a 12/9 player. Smoove is a 20/10 player waiting to happen.

I agree. It is not a matter of if, only when ?

The only question is who do you sit ?

There will definately be an expeirmental faze.

There are 2 approaches. Woody will get ridicule mo matter which route he takes.

Should he stick with one line up of the sake of chemistry and roles ?

or

Should he constantly expierement with different line ups at the expense of consistent roles ?

There won't be long before everyone realize that Smoove and Al need to be on the floor together! They present the future of our franchise! No other team in the league has such combo on the wings!
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