How important Series.

[Diesel]

I'm starting a series of Post... called the How important Series. I want posters to chime in on how important they feel certain people are to the success of the Hawks.

We're starting with Atlanta's own and recently paid Smoove.

How important is Smoove to the success of the Hawks?

At one time i would have said he was most important. However, his development has lead him to being a 2nd option. I don't know if he's a lockerroom leader but he's a guy that we love to have hyped. Seeing him tapping fist with the reporters before the game is a good thing. It's his identity now.

However, is he more than JYD Jerome Williams...used to be for the teams he played for?

Similar to Williams, Smoove doesn't have a defined position yet. He's somewhere between a 3 and a 4.

I'd say he is Smoove 3.46.

Maybe he got it all together... FINALLY.

IF So, his importance goes up tremendously.

If not then he may slink down to about the 4th most important on the team IMO...

What do you think??

[Boomer]

From a ownership standpoint, he probably puts more fans in the seats than any other player on the Hawks.

From a basketball perspective, I would say he's the most important on defense... and second most important on offense, maybe third.

[Traceman]

I'm starting a series of Post... called the How important Series. I want posters to chime in on how important they feel certain people are to the success of the Hawks.

We're starting with Atlanta's own and recently paid Smoove.

How important is Smoove to the success of the Hawks?

At one time i would have said he was most important. However, his development has lead him to being a 2nd option. I don't know if he's a lockerroom leader but he's a guy that we love to have hyped. Seeing him tapping fist with the reporters before the game is a good thing. It's his identity now.

However, is he more than JYD Jerome Williams...used to be for the teams he played for?

Similar to Williams, Smoove doesn't have a defined position yet. He's somewhere between a 3 and a 4.

I'd say he is Smoove 3.46.

Maybe he got it all together... FINALLY.

IF So, his importance goes up tremendously.

If not then he may slink down to about the 4th most important on the team IMO...

What do you think??

This question is impossible to answer because how important each player is is directly related to how good some of their teammates become. For example, if Horford becomes Alonzo Mourning and Marvin becomes Larry Johnbson, Smoove might not be quite as important to the team's overall success. If Smoove becomes Shawn Kemp and Acie becomes Gary Payton, then Marvin might not be as important to the team's success.

All that said, as things stand now, ALL of our starters are going to have to be better than they were last year for us to be successful. They don't necessarily have to have better stats but they have to be better players.

[jhay610]

Going off what was said in that other thread, it goes:

1. DIESEL

2. JJ

3. Smoov

[Swish]

Going off what was said in that other thread, it goes:

1. DIESEL

2. JJ

3. Smoov

Now thats funny.

Yes, maybe Diesel imagines himself as Joe Johnson, Sekou Smith, Rick Sund, Mike Woodson and Steve Belkin all in one.

Related to the thread; I think Josh is the most important player on the team, but I'm willing to see differently. Reasons being:

-Is "arguably" our best defender.

-We can be very tough to beat when he and JJ are on fire (see playoffs).

-he puts butts in the seats

-He is from the Atl.

-He is young

[HawkItus]

well I always want to quantify questions like this, so on the Hawks current roster if JJ is a 10 on the importance scale, and Solo is a 1.......I put Smoove as a solid 7, possibly 8 if he plays with in himself.

[West]

He is the most important in terms of exposure, ticket sales, fan base, entertainment.. he IS the highlight factory

In terms of the Team.. he is a hit and miss.. his attitude can sometimes be negative for the team, his energy can sometimes be a positive for the team

[Diesel]

From a ownership standpoint, he probably puts more fans in the seats than any other player on the Hawks.

From a basketball perspective, I would say he's the most important on defense... and second most important on offense, maybe third.

I agree here. I don't think JJ would put buts in seats. I think he'd be more like Steve Smith or even SAR.

But Smoove has a connection with the fanbase.. and weather he likes it or not, him winning the slam dunk contest doesn't hurt.

[Swatguy]

I'm starting a series of Post... called the How important Series. I want posters to chime in on how important they feel certain people are to the success of the Hawks.

We're starting with Atlanta's own and recently paid Smoove.

How important is Smoove to the success of the Hawks?

At one time i would have said he was most important. However, his development has lead him to being a 2nd option. I don't know if he's a lockerroom leader but he's a guy that we love to have hyped. Seeing him tapping fist with the reporters before the game is a good thing. It's his identity now.

However, is he more than JYD Jerome Williams...used to be for the teams he played for?

Similar to Williams, Smoove doesn't have a defined position yet. He's somewhere between a 3 and a 4.

I'd say he is Smoove 3.46.

Maybe he got it all together... FINALLY.

IF So, his importance goes up tremendously.

If not then he may slink down to about the 4th most important on the team IMO...

What do you think??

Extremely important. As his offense develops he becomes the guy that cannot be accounted for opponents. He can be one of the biggest stars in the league if he scores 22-26 points a game. He is the difference in terms of wins probably 7-10 games.

[Swatguy]

I agree here. I don't think JJ would put buts in seats. I think he'd be more like Steve Smith or even SAR.

But Smoove has a connection with the fanbase.. and weather he likes it or not, him winning the slam dunk contest doesn't hurt.

Well don't get too far, Joe is the star without a doubt. If there ever could be a one or the other, Joe is the keeper. Joe should be our SF now and future. actually he is the 1.5-2-3 guy position wise. As importants it is Joe,Josh,Al without a doubt.

[Wretch]

I think Josh is just as important as JJ. For different reasons though. Remember the stretches that we lost him for? We slid horribly, because we miss his rebounding and his blocks...and to a lesser extent, his scoring. Smoove brings something unique to the game in his ability to rebound and block shots. He's not the game changer that Mutombo was (gawd...I miss the way Deke would shut the lane down...), but he could be almost as effective.

On the offensive end, I don't think he's as important. He's a decent scorer, but hasn't developed that definitive go-to move to give us reliable scoring in the clutch. Can he? I don't know. All indications are that when he tries to do too much, he's not going anywhere. Honestly, I think he's being pushed to fast. He wants to be prolific and dynamic, but Josh needs some very basic moves to establish consistency. I don't think he has to wow people to be a very important piece to us offensively, but I think that's what he wants.

Overall on a scale of 1 to 10 in terms of how important he is...I'd say he's about an 8.5.

[pimp]

You can tell which players, that you really feel are the most important, by how much you worry if they get in

early foul trouble....

[Dexmethylphenidate]

Answer: Just go and find out the Team Win-Loss record of everyone when they're not in uniform.

[Atlsportfanz]

I honestly am not sure that Smoove is our best defender. He's certainly our best "help" defender. But he's not nearly as strong on the ball. I wish we had that Bruce Bowen, Ron Artest type of defender. Somebody you could count on to completely shut down his man.

My hope is that Horford can grow into that. He might not be able to shut down the Howards, Yaos, and Amare's but the large majority.

[AtLaS]

IMO we do better as a team when Smith has a great game than when JJ has a great game. Because when Smith has a great game, it's like having a second star player on the team. JJ's just the consistent one that we expect it out of. I think JJ is our most important, just because we probably couldn't score without him, but Smith is a very close 2nd. We always play terrible without Smith in the lineup. His impact defensively is huge, I always notice teams driving a lot more when he goes to the bench, his presence alone forces teams into many jumpshots. And if he's clicking on the offensive end we are a dangerous team. That's why I want him working on that midrange jumper RELENTLESSLY this offseason. If he develops that and nothing else he will be an efficient 20 ppg scorer.

[pimp]

Josh also makes a huge impact on out transition defense.

He is the best fastbreak defender i have ever seen.

[Wretch]

I honestly am not sure that Smoove is our best defender. He's certainly our best "help" defender. But he's not nearly as strong on the ball. I wish we had that Bruce Bowen, Ron Artest type of defender. Somebody you could count on to completely shut down his man.

My hope is that Horford can grow into that. He might not be able to shut down the Howards, Yaos, and Amare's but the large majority.

Agreed here...

Though, while Josh is not that lock down guy that we need...he does change the game with his presence. I'm hoping that Horford picks up on what Josh has and that they become a dynamic defensive duo...(Heh, D³...lol)

[frosgrim]

Smith is somewhere between #2 and #4* in terms of importance this up comming year. The Hawks couldn't win consistantly without him that is certain. In terms of position I disagree with the notion that Smith is more of a SF than a PF. Is Smith a tweener? To a point yes, but if guys like Robert Horay, AC Green, and Joe Smith are NBA PFs, then Josh Smith is an NBA PF.

If Josh's improved strength helps him on his post game, then I think we can finally get around this position question for him.

* JJ is without question #1

others in the running for those next three spots (not including Smith): Horford & Bibby.

[capstone21]

I think he is important but not as important as many think.

Its good for Atlanta to sign him to show they believe in our players and are willing to spend money to help us win.

From a marketing perspective he can really help put fans in the seats. He is local and he is the flashiest player on the team. He gets the fans excited but he is not the best player. Joe is.

Although Smith helps put fans in the seats, Joe actually wins games for us.

I consider Smith our third best player behind JJ and Horford but he is an extremely solid contributer. At the same time I think this season on the contributions of Bibby.

Smith's defense while overrated on this board is improving. His offense also is improving. I like his willingness to pass. His bbiq is suspect and his three point shooting is terrible as is his dribbling. Things I hope were worked on this offseason.

As far as his position. He is not a 3.43. He is a an undersized 4. He did not play SF at all last season. Why are people wanting him to play sf now all of the sudden? To play Morris instead of Marvin? C'mon. Morris is a 12th man and Marvin is a solid SF in this league. Its like people hate Marvin just to hate him. Its not his fault he was drafted ahead of Paul and Deron. That was our front offices fault. He will never be stars like those guys but he is a solid player. Move on.

Smith is a pf, He can't shoot from the outside and his dribbling still needs a lot of work. He is meant to be a PF and his athleticism and quickness allows him to play that position with bigger guys.

[DrReality]

He's no longer a kid now that he's been through the contract ordeal. And this is the second? year he's gone to Houston to train. Shows he really becoming a professional. i thihk it hinges on him showing maturity in shot selection and cutting down on turnovers. If he covers those two things he's gonna really contribute what we need.