overall grade A-

[lawman]

http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=9764

Heading into the offseason, the Hawks looked like they would be in good shape for next season.

They are a young team, so not having any draft picks didn't seem like it would factor much into

their offseason. Simply experiencing another year of growth from their young players would lead to

a certain level of improvement. Hawks fans were hoping the team would be inactive in the free

agent market, that is that they would focus on re-signing two players of their own: Josh Smith and Josh Childress. One out of two isn't bad, and it would have been hard for anyone to have predicted the outcome with Childress. In the end, the Hawks had made Childress a good offer and Olympiakos made him an irresistible financial offer.

Players Added In The Draft: None

Players Added Via Free Agency:

Thomas Gardner and Othello Hunter.

Both players earned their spot with the Hawks by impressing coaches

and staff in the Hawks' mini-camp and during summer league play. Gardner gives the Hawks a potential scoring threat from the perimeter, while Hunter earned his spot by being able to run the floor well - his size could be an asset in the future.

Flip Murray

Murray gives the Hawks some quality depth in their backcourt. He is a versatile player and has the experience the young Hawks lack. His is a player that can succeed in short bursts of playing time and contribute in many ways.

Randolph Morris

Morris is not particularly athletic, but has good size for a reserve center. Not an effective player on the floor yet, but some of his potential has yet to come out. While they wait for that to occur, the Hawks will be content with the physical nature he brings to the paint.

Maurice Evans

Atlanta went after Evans because of his defensive abilities. He is a physical player and another athletic guard / forward on the court. On offense, he had a breakout year last season, and the Hawks hope the trend continues, especially with his 3-point shooting.

Josh Smith The big name the Hawks gave money to this summer was on their roster last year. Smith fits very well within their system: he is a small forward that scores, rebounds and blocks shots. He also benefits from his leaping ability and size.

Grade: A

Business To Be Done

This teams needs to expedite the growth process as much as possible. They have the core players on their roster that will lead to success, the question is how long it will take. A big part of guiding the youth movement in Atlanta is Mike Bibby. It makes sense that, given an offseason to become more familiar with the team's offense and the players around him, Bibby will be an even bigger boost moving forward into next season. Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, Marvin Williams and Al Horford give the Hawks overall the most athletic team in the NBA. It's just a question of timing. Of their five starters, Atlanta's Marvin Williams seems to be the weakest link. Offseason reports, though, indicate he is trying to change that and is starting to bulk up.

Overall Grade: A-

Atlanta held on to Josh Smith, and did their best to keep Childress in town. Then, they spent money wisely in free agency, filling the need for depth on their roster by picking individual pieces they could use in their offensive system. Overall, a solid offseason for the Hawks.

[Traceman]

http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=9764

Heading into the offseason, the Hawks looked like they would be in good shape for next season.

They are a young team, so not having any draft picks didn't seem like it would factor much into

their offseason. Simply experiencing another year of growth from their young players would lead to

a certain level of improvement. Hawks fans were hoping the team would be inactive in the free

agent market, that is that they would focus on re-signing two players of their own: Josh Smith and Josh Childress. One out of two isn't bad, and it would have been hard for anyone to have predicted the outcome with Childress. In the end, the Hawks had made Childress a good offer and Olympiakos made him an irresistible financial offer.

Players Added In The Draft: None

Players Added Via Free Agency:

Thomas Gardner and Othello Hunter.

Both players earned their spot with the Hawks by impressing coaches

and staff in the Hawks' mini-camp and during summer league play. Gardner gives the Hawks a potential scoring threat from the perimeter, while Hunter earned his spot by being able to run the floor well - his size could be an asset in the future.

Flip Murray

Murray gives the Hawks some quality depth in their backcourt. He is a versatile player and has the experience the young Hawks lack. His is a player that can succeed in short bursts of playing time and contribute in many ways.

Randolph Morris

Morris is not particularly athletic, but has good size for a reserve center. Not an effective player on the floor yet, but some of his potential has yet to come out. While they wait for that to occur, the Hawks will be content with the physical nature he brings to the paint.

Maurice Evans

Atlanta went after Evans because of his defensive abilities. He is a physical player and another athletic guard / forward on the court. On offense, he had a breakout year last season, and the Hawks hope the trend continues, especially with his 3-point shooting.

Josh Smith The big name the Hawks gave money to this summer was on their roster last year. Smith fits very well within their system: he is a small forward that scores, rebounds and blocks shots. He also benefits from his leaping ability and size.

Grade: A

Business To Be Done

This teams needs to expedite the growth process as much as possible. They have the core players on their roster that will lead to success, the question is how long it will take. A big part of guiding the youth movement in Atlanta is Mike Bibby. It makes sense that, given an offseason to become more familiar with the team's offense and the players around him, Bibby will be an even bigger boost moving forward into next season. Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, Marvin Williams and Al Horford give the Hawks overall the most athletic team in the NBA. It's just a question of timing. Of their five starters, Atlanta's Marvin Williams seems to be the weakest link. Offseason reports, though, indicate he is trying to change that and is starting to bulk up.

Overall Grade: A-

Atlanta held on to Josh Smith, and did their best to keep Childress in town. Then, they spent money wisely in free agency, filling the need for depth on their roster by picking individual pieces they could use in their offensive system. Overall, a solid offseason for the Hawks.

If we had resigned Chillz in addition to the offseason acquisitions that Sund has made, I think we would be in position to REALLY do some damage this year. The sad part is that Sund got Smoove signed to a deal (5 yrs/$58M starting at $10M a season) that SHOULD have allowed us to resign both the Joshes and still stay under the luxury tax. Not many people on this board thought he could have done that. Unfortunately for us, Olympiakos came in and gave Chillz an offer he would have been stupid to refuse. Imagine a lineup of:

Horford/Zaza/Solo

Smoove/Morris

Marvin/Chillz

JJ/Evans

Bibby/Flip/Acie/Speedy

That is a DEEP team that could have made some noise in the playoffs. Throw in a veteran defensive big (Mutombo, Magloire, Mbenga) and I think the team would have been sweet.

[OGRat]

http://www.hoopsworld.com/Story.asp?story_id=9764

Randolph Morris

Morris is not particularly athletic, but has good size for a reserve center. Not an effective player on the floor yet, but some of his potential has yet to come out. While they wait for that to occur, the Hawks will be content with the physical nature he brings to the paint.

What is it that Morris can't do? Why is he considered "not particularly athletic"? Can he run the floor?

[Traceman]

What is it that Morris can't do? Why is he considered "not particularly athletic"? Can he run the floor?

He won't be filling the lane for us on the break. He is not a TERRIBLE athlete but he is not going to wow you with his athleticism. I'd say he is along the lines of Tim Duncan as an athlete, just not NEARLY as good as a player. When I watched him play against Dwight Howard in high school, it was OBVIOUS that Dwight was a FAR superior athlete but from a skills standpoint, Morris was AT LEAST as good, if not better at the time. Morris has a decent amount of talent, the question will be whether he can figure out a way to get the most out of his ability.

[crimedog]

He won't be filling the lane for us on the break. He is not a TERRIBLE athlete but he is not going to wow you with his athleticism. I'd say he is along the lines of Tim Duncan as an athlete, just not NEARLY as good as a player. When I watched him play against Dwight Howard in high school, it was OBVIOUS that Dwight was a FAR superior athlete but from a skills standpoint, Morris was AT LEAST as good, if not better at the time. Morris has a decent amount of talent, the question will be whether he can figure out a way to get the most out of his ability.

I actually think Duncan is a very underated athlete, at least in terms of running the break.

What Morris does have, like Duncan, is a thick build and big hands. I doubt they are Duncan HUGE, but he does have big mitts which should be able to help him on the glass and down low for garbage buckets if he shows that he has the bball IQ and defensive ability to stay on the floor.

[sturt]

He won't be filling the lane for us on the break. He is not a TERRIBLE athlete but he is not going to wow you with his athleticism. I'd say he is along the lines of Tim Duncan as an athlete, just not NEARLY as good as a player.

I watched him while he was at UK, and unless he's had some significant development, fwiw, I'd definitely agree with Traceman's evaluation... not going to impress anyone with quickness, but capable of being effective depending on the competition level. My guess is that if he gets some regular court time with us this year, he could prove to be a viable replacement for ZaZa's place on the depth chart next season.

[Dexmethylphenidate]

If we had resigned Chillz in addition to the offseason acquisitions that Sund has made, I think we would be in position to REALLY do some damage this year. The sad part is that Sund got Smoove signed to a deal (5 yrs/$58M starting at $10M a season) that SHOULD have allowed us to resign both the Joshes and still stay under the luxury tax. Not many people on this board thought he could have done that. Unfortunately for us, Olympiakos came in and gave Chillz an offer he would have been stupid to refuse. Imagine a lineup of:

Horford/Zaza/Solo

Smoove/Morris

Marvin/Chillz

JJ/Evans

Bibby/Flip/Acie/Speedy

That is a DEEP team that could have made some noise in the playoffs. Throw in a veteran defensive big (Mutombo, Magloire, Mbenga) and I think the team would have been sweet.

Childress means no Evans ...I'd rather have Evans than Childress. Cheaper (use extra 3 mill on other players), play defense, shoot 3 pointers (and willing to shoot) at good percentage = better than Childress.

Edited August 14, 2008 by SignJoshOrGetOUT

[DrReality]

I think there has been a method to the madness that Sund has pulled off. He's addressed strategic needs that better shapes our team. Now we need leadership to put it together. And we have some vets to do that.

[frankthetank966]

Very good article thanks for posting

[thefloydian]

Childress means no Evans ...I'd rather have Evans than Childress. Cheaper (use extra 3 mill on other players), play defense, shoot 3 pointers (and willing to shoot) at good percentage = better than Childress.

Yep.

[Lacsho]

Nice article!!!!! I like most of the offseason moves. I think we should make the playoffs and perhaps make it to the second round. I think Marvin will step up to the plate, and knock it out the box.

[Traceman]

Childress means no Evans ...I'd rather have Evans than Childress. Cheaper (use extra 3 mill on other players), play defense, shoot 3 pointers (and willing to shoot) at good percentage = better than Childress.

First of all, I don't think you can find ONE GM in the league who would take Evans over Chillz REGARDLESS of the make up of the team. Evans averaged 9.3 ppg, 3.1 rbg and 1 apg last year at age 29 in the best season of his CAREER. Chillz averaged 10 pppg, 6 rbg and 2 apg as a 21 year old ROOKIE. Yes, Evans is a better 3 pt shooter and he's probably a better perimeter defender but Chillz is FAR more versatile (can play 3 positions), he rebounds better, he passes better and he's more efficient. In addition, Chillz is getting better (just turned 25) and Evans has likely hit his peak (will be 30 at the beginning of the season).

Second and more importantly, we likely COULD have resigned both Joshes AND brought in Evans after we got Josh resigned at a salary starting at $10M/season. If Olympiakos hadn't stepped up with that offer, we likely would have got Chillz for that offer starting at just above the MLE ($5.585M). That is less than $16M for the 2 of them and that is SIGNIFICANTLY less than the $18M-19M that most thought it was going to take to resign them. I think we would have still been far enough under the luxury tax to offer Evans the same deal we gave him but if not, we definitely could have offered him a deal for the $1.9M bi-annual exception.

Finally, what player do you propose we get with the extra $3M?

We WOULD have been able to sign both Joshes AND get Evans while remaining under the luxury tax threshold