Remember when our defense was good?

[AnnArborHawk]

At the beginning of the year, Flip Saunders and Chauncey Billups talked about how Atlanta’s athleticism and the Hawks’ ability to switch defensively without leaving themselves vulnerable give the Pistons great difficulty. They made comments about how the Hawks length and athleticism allows them to rotate very quickly.

Now, it seems like we're the exact opposite team defensively, and teams our exploiting our slow rotation to rain threes on us all night. What happened? Are these guys just not conditioned to play 82 games?

[AnakinJoe]

I don't think there are many players conditioned to chase guys for 38-42 minutes a game over 82 games. The Bibby trade (and Law injury) has left us with essentially a 6-man rotation. Since the All-Star break (and trade) we've become a defensive joke. Our need to duble in the post creates too many wide open 3 shots. And with Zaza becoming a shell of who he was 2 seasons ago, we basically down to our starting 5 + Chill.

[Plainview1981]

I'm sick of hearing about how tired these guys are. They're ALL in their mid-early 20's with the exception of Bibby. All of Detroit's starters play 31+MPG and they're alot older. Pretty much the same thing for SA. Three if the Warriors starters play over 37MPG. Boston has four starters playing 31+MPG aswell.

[jhay610]

tired and losing is a hell of a lot different than tired and winning. I've been on both sides.

[Gray Mule]

Players WERE a lot fresher at the beginning of the season. I'll agree with that.

However, all other NBA teams have played almost the same number of games

that we have. This should equal out, don't you think? Well, maybe not. Other

teams MAY use more players than we do. Could this be possible? Could

other NBA coaches use their bench players sometimes and rest their starters

for a few minutes each and every game? Surely not.

Let's see now. Who is the best defender we have on the bench. The one who

plays with all that energy? Mario West! Does he ever come in and give JJ a

small break? Save some of JJ's energy for the 4th quarter?

Do we have anyone on the bench that we trust to keep us in the game? Do we have

anyone who can give us scoring when it's needed? Hint. He just signed up for the

remainder of the season.

Cleveland's King James, perhaps one of the best NBA players today, finds time on the

bench to rest and refresh himself. Do we have ANY player that is more important

to the success of the Hawks than King James is to the Cavs? No? Then, why can't

we play our bench?

[TheNorthCydeRises]

Quote:

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I'm sick of hearing about how tired these guys are. They're ALL in their mid-early 20's with the exception of Bibby. All of Detroit's starters play 31+MPG and they're alot older. Pretty much the same thing for SA. Three if the Warriors starters play over 37MPG. Boston has four starters playing 31+MPG aswell.

Hot, you and Anakin have just proven what I've been saying ever since they've mde a commitment to increase the tempo of the game. ( and this is before even Bibby came onto the scene )

But people think I'm the crazy one when I suggest that this team should just SLOW DOWN altogether. I record and re-watch these games. I see what is happening to these guys.

* * * * *

Anakin, fatigue is DEFINITELY a factor in all of this. When you basically have to depend on 6 guys to get it done on both ends of the court, you're usually going to have guys who get worn down as the season progresses.

JJ is our offense, Smoove is our defensive deterrent, and Horford is our rebounding. If ANY of these 3 guys get in foul trouble, or get winded, ish usually falls apart for us.

When we play at a faster pace, the offense looks better, but we give it right back on defense. And because we're even MORE of a jumpshooting team than ever before, if our jumpers don't fall for even a 4 - 5 stretch, we run the risk of seeing a lead baloon 8+ more points than it should. Long missed jumpers turn into potential fast break points for our opponents. It also keeps us off the FT line. We didn't even shoot 15 FTs last night as a team.

JJ looks better on offense, probably because he doesn't have to handle the ball nearly as much with Bibby here. But you can see that the increased pace has mde him a little lazier on the defensive end.

* * * * *

Hot, the major difference between us, and teams like Det,SA, ad Bos, is that those teams are NOT going to let their opponent dictate the pace of the game. If you're a running team, they're going to make it a point to slow you down, by securing the boards and drivng on yiu to possibly draw fouls.

Those teams also possess more than solid bench players who can get it done on a nightly basis. Our best bench player, Chill, can't even say that he's able to "bring it" on a nightly basis. Their bench enables their star guys to get adequate rest every night. I would love to know how many 38+ minute nights than any of the Bos, SA, or Det guys have had, compared to Smoove and JJ.

If we had a Jason Maxiell, a James Posey, or a Robert Horry to bring off our bench, we'd be so much better off. You're right though Hot. The players and the fans, need to place more blame on the effort of the players these days. But on the flip side, they may be trying to give the effort, but just can't kick it in when they need it the most.

[Jody79]

Honestly, I think that the huge drop off in the hawks defensive intensity is largely due to two factors.

1) The heavy minutes that several players have logged all year long and the short playing rotation.

2) The only two guys who play a lick of defense in the frontcourt (Josh Smith and Al Horford) have both, to an extent, worn down. They've both been forced to play out of position all year long having to bang with guys who are taller and bigger. Doing that for a entire season in addition to the heavy minutes both play takes a toll. The time is coming when the hawks will be forced to address this problem and find a couple of centers. Last nights game just made clear that the hawks can't continue to be undersized up front and expect to win. I know many people like Marvin Williams but, I don't think he has or needs to start for this team to win. Protecting the paint and cutting down opponents offensive rebounds are problems that will continue as long as the hawks are undersized.

[TroyMcClure]

Yeah, it was the 90's. Clinton was in office, we had a surplus budget, etc. Actually, America has been a lot like the Hawks the last decade. Sad.

Seriously, these are NBA players. Of course they can bring it every now and again. Professionals bring it every night like the Pistons. Make no mistake, the coach is just a piece there. Joe runs the show. His mindset permeates their organization.