Drew to put Hawks in motion

[Endy9]

Drew to put Hawks in motion

By Michael Cunningham

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

There were cracks about Larry Drew directing like Spike Lee and how Hawks players would laugh when they watched video of their coaches, long past their playing days, working this hard.

But it was mostly business during Drew's recent five-day minicamp at Philips Arena to teach his coaches the details of his new motion offensive system. And it's doubtful his players' amusement will last long after they replace their stand-ins—they'll be too busy catching their breath.

There's lots of motion involved in Drew's offense. Hawks players are going to have to be in very good physical condition to run it, and that's why Drew said conditioning would a “top priority” when training camp opens on Sept. 28.

In his first season as a head coach, Drew hopes to develop a drastically different offensive identity for the Hawks, from sometimes stagnant and predictable to dynamic and versatile.

“It’s very difficult to guard,” Hawks assistant coach Larry Conner said of Drew's offense. “You have to be precise in your defensive schemes. You can be beat at any spot on the floor at any time. NBA teams don’t like to guard a lot of movement and screens.

"I’ve heard the guys [Hawks players] are all for it and are excited about it.”

Drew's coaches hit the court for some immersion in Drew's system. They ran the sets with Conner as Joe Johnson, Bob Bender as Mike Bibby, Duane Ferrell as Marvin Williams, Kenny Gattison as Josh Smith and Tyrone Hill as Al Horford.

Drew put the final session on video so players can see what he wants.

“We got a bunch of old guys out there running around,” Drew said. “We've got some swollen knees, guys out there trying to run and cut.”

Judging by Drew's final session with his coaches, there will be plenty of running and cutting for Hawks players this season. For weeks Drew had said his system would “force the ball to move” and it was clear what he meant after seeing it in action.

Things happen so fast there’s not much opportunity for holding the ball. The screens and cuts come quickly and if the first option is not there then the ball is whipped around, leading to player movement

Lots of the action involves players breaking to the basket. It seems there always is an option for the next man in the sequence to either accept the ball while moving to his position or reverse field to the basket.

Not much possession time is spent on the one- or even two-man game. Each player touches the ball at different spots on the floor. Decisions must be made quickly for things to flow correctly.

In addition to incorporating more movement in the offense, Drew said he plans to take advantage of his players' versatility to create mismatches.

Johnson, an All-Star shooting guard, also is capable of playing point guard and small forward. Drew said Horford, an All-Star center, would play significant minutes at power forward alongside Zaza Pachulia or Jason Collins. Smith, the starting power forward, will shift to small forward or even center at times.

“[Regardless of lineup] nothing changes as far as the action on the floor,” Drew said. “I want to utilize our abilities as interchangeable pieces.”

It's not that the Hawks were a bad offensive team last season. In fact they ranked third in the league in offensive efficiency, defined as points scored per possession.

But Atlanta's offense often stalled when opponents tightened their defense and Hawks players abandoned set plays in favor of one-one-one, isolation play. The problem became apparent as the Hawks couldn't close out games in the fourth quarter after the All-Star break and was further exposed by Orlando during its sweep of Atlanta in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

The Hawks are looking for that to change once the players take their coaches' place in Drew's new system.

“Now when you talk about defending us, you are not talking about locking in on certain guys in the same spots,” Drew said. “We won't be as predictable.”

[DrReality]

What if . . . . . . . just what if Drew was for real and this thing was the silver bullet? That would be priceless.

[JTB]

im loving this! cant wait to see the hawks play with this new system!

[JJFAN4LF]

I worry sometimes our long-tenured Hawks players will struggle with this offense considering they never ran one in years. I worry most about Josh Smith. Has he ever been on a true offense?

[Gray Mule]

The one thing to worry about will be turnovers. If a player doesn't know what to do, he will

create a lot of turnovers. However, most should have high enough IQ to learn this system.

Everyone should be able to learn new stuff, regardless of what we're talking about learning.

When we quit learning, we become stagnant. No excuse for this happening. Knowing what

to do, where to go and how to get there. Sounds easy but it's not THAT easy.

This sounds exciting. Almost all of us have been flustrated by watching our offense. Our very

predictible offense. When the average fan knew exactly what to expect, it would have been

foolish to expect the opposing players to be fooled by what the Hawks were going to do.

The same old team, as far as players are concerned, but such a difference. Sounds GREAT!!

:thumbsupsmileyanim:

[Endy9]

I like the part about trying to tire other teams out. Use our athletism while we still have the edge on most teams.

[jerrywest]

If Hawks play as well as Drew is talking, he is on his way to become a great basketball coach.

If Hawks don't play as well as Drew is talking, he is on his way to become a great politician.

Either way he is on his way to greatness.

[Gray Mule]

Jerry West: I like your way of thinking and I agree!

:conversation:

[Jody23]

The article says that Horford would play significant minutes at the 4. I'm in favor of that, but I wonder what's meant by "significant". I guess we'll find out in the not to distant future.

[lethalweapon3]

At Philips, they should leave little bags with Hawk logos under opponents' chairs that read: USE IN CASE OF MOTION SICKNESS.

~lw3