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Sekou has reported this trade

BornandDieHawks

By BornandDieHawks
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BornandDieHawks

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Sekou confirms trade! I am looking forward to seeing this team after the break.

Quote:

Hawks to trade 4 players for Sacramento's Bibby

By SEKOU SMITH

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 02/16/08

New Orleans — Could a four-for-one deal completed Saturday finally net the Hawks the point guard they've coveted?

Hawks captain and All-Star Joe Johnson certainly hopes so.

The Hawks have agreed in principle to trade for Sacramento veteran Mike Bibby, sending veteran point guards Anthony Johnson and Tyronn Lue back to the Kings, along with second-year forward Shelden Williams and veteran center Lorenzen Wright.

The deal is expected to be finalized Saturday afternoon, a person familiar with the situation told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Officials from the Hawks, Kings and NBA will participate in a 4 p.m. conference call.

Bibby could join the Hawks in time for Tuesday's game against the Los Angeles Lakers, the first of five straight road games against Western Conference teams. The next night, the Hawks face the Kings in Sacramento.

"This is another huge step for us," Johnson said Saturday while preparing to play in Sunday's 57th NBA All-Star Game. "You're talking about a guy who can make shots and can run a team. He embodies all the things we've wanted in a veteran point guard and he's also a guy that's known for taking and making big shots.

"And you can never have too many guys like that in the NBA. As tough as it is to see guys like Lue, A.J., 'Ren and Shelden leave, we all realize that this is a business and decisions are made and you make the best of things and move on. But there's no doubt we're getting a guy that can help make us better."

Bibby, a 6-foot-1, 190-pound, 10-year veteran, has been the Kings' starter the last seven seasons. A thumb injury limited his time earlier this season but he is averaging 13.5 points, 5.0 assists and 3.7 rebounds in the 15 games he's played in.

He began his career in Vancouver, which drafted him No. 2 overall in 1998. Bibby was an instant hit with the Grizzlies and averaged 8.1 and 8.4 assists in his final two seasons before being traded to the Kings.

Bibby has career averages 16.7 points, 6.2 assists and 3.7 rebounds. He led the Kings into the playoffs five straight seasons, averaging 17.9 points, 5.6 assist and 3.6 rebounds in 51 career playoff games.

"Anytime you add a playoff tested player you know it has to be a good thing," said Hawks rookie center Al Horford. "This is obviously the first time I've ever experienced something like this, so I don't know how it will be. But everybody knows who Mike Bibby is and what he's done. And I can't imagine it being anything but a positive for us."

Parting with Williams, the No. 5 pick in the 2006 NBA draft, ends his rather bizarre tenure with the Hawks.

Williams began his rookie year in the starting lineup for an injured Marvin Williams and finished it as the Rookie of the Month after a string of double-double performances seemed to boost his stock.

But he fell further out of coach Mike Woodson's playing rotation with the addition of the top 2007 draft pick Al Horford, who represented the Hawks here Friday night in the Rookie Challenge.

Adding insult to that fate, Williams was carjacked outside of his barbershop in December.

If he can't find a niche with the Kings, Shelden Williams will undoubtedly be viewed as a draft bust. The Hawks selected him one spot ahead of Portland's Brandon Roy, the 2006 Rookie of the Year, who is playing in Sunday's All-Star Game.

Williams averaged just 2.9 points and 2.9 rebounds in 11.4 minutes per game this season and 4.7 points and 4.6 rebounds in 116 career games with the Hawks.

Williams has another year left on his rookie deal that pays him $3.3 million a year. Moving him now allows him an opportunity to carve out space for himself in the league elsewhere.

Johnson, Lue and Wright are all veterans with contracts that expire at the end of this season, making them much more likely to be traded.

Johnson started in 40 of the 41 games he played in this season for the Hawks, averaging 6.4 points, 4.7 assists and 2.3 rebounds. He was a huge reason the Hawks ran off five straight December wins to vault themselves back into the Eastern Conference playoff mix.

But he and Woodson clashed on several occasions and he never seemed to fully gain the coach's trust after that.

Lue started three games this season and averaged 6.8 points, 1.8 assists and 1.2 rebounds off the bench. He also served as the Hawks' locker room pulse, energizing things verbally with his wisecracks and humor.

Wright was signed two years ago to provide veteran leadership and a big body to a frontcourt rotation that has never been fully restocked since Jason Collier's death during training camp two years ago.

He averaged 3.1 rebounds in limited minutes and served as a mentor to Horford as well as Josh Smith, Zaza Pachulia, Williams and Solomon Jones.

http://www.ajc.com/news/content/sports/haw...hawks_0218.html

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