Dwight went to the line 19 times!

[hawkman]

If we would get to the line it would help offset. Jamal took 1 less free throw than all of the starters and Marvin. Besides Hinrich and Twin, they all should be ashamed because they all have some type of advantage to get paint attempts whether it be skill, quickness, or size, although I'm not too concerned about Josh because he can go 10-10 as well as 0-10 at the line. It just seems like this simple, but very important aspect of the game escapes these guys. You would think someone would sit this team down and teach them about pump fakes. Chris Bosh has an excellent one that gets him an easy dunk and a tough and-1 that adds 5 points to his game a night. I wish Al would study it. Matter of fact, he needs to watch Z-Bo tonight and see how quickly he makes moves to the basket at all costs, a player who wasn't nearly as touted as Al coming out, and not even after his first year. He worked very hard to get where he is, posting 5 20-10 seasons after averaging about 5 and 3 after his first two. He may be wild and inefficient at times, but you'll always know he's out there. With Al, sometimes you forget because he hangs on his best asset, which is an effortless, wide ooen jumper that is starting to decrease his overall activity. He's gonna have to put it in his back pocket a bit and develop a quick drive move, and fast, if he wants to become a true star at Big Man and post that 20 points per instead of being the best shooter percentage wise outside 10 feet in the league. Impressive of course, but the overall positive effect of banging around in the paint more is much greater for he and his team. I hope his injuries are playing somewhat of a part now, because the first play Inwant to see next season is Al booty bumping somebody and raising his hand with his pivot in some paint.

JJ did try the 'sweep the arms' technique that's been getting called all year and he got NADA. Without respect from the refs, pump fakes and other offensive techniques won't work. But I do think making quick, decisive moves would help the Hawks get to the line more though. They spend too much time dribbling out there. Just GO!!!! :banghead:

[Eddielives]

I watched the game too. I'm sorry but I don't buy these conspiracy theories. It's always been the same with big men like Shaq and Dwight in this league. One team thinks their big guys gets called for too many fouls and the other team thinks they get fouled all game long and the refs don't call it. The Hawks lost this game because we couldn't score, not because the league is in a conspiracy to help the Orlando Magic. Maybe we should attack the basket more instead of shooting freaking jumpshots all game long.

Edited April 20, 2011 by Eddielives

[Seano]

True ... but that doesn't mean they should stop trying to drive. We settled for far too many contested iso shots last night and there's really no debating that. I don't know what we have to do but we've got to get guys open for shots and get more shots in the paint if we're going to have a shot at winning this series.

Exactly. I don't know what the deal was last night, but I felt we were way too passive on the offensive end, fell in love with the jump shot again even when it clearly wasn't working, and were not working the ball inside as we'd done so effectively in game 1. To me that should be part of the strategy on both ends of floor, and that is taking it to Dwight on both ends. I hate to keep bringing up the ORL-CHA series from last year, but to me that offered the perfect blueprint on how a team should get after Dwight in a playoff series like that. They drove the ball on Dwight on the offensive end, and physically hacked him, held him, knocked him around and roughed him up on both ends of the floor, and the result was an ineffective and highly frustrated Dwight in constant foul trouble and fouling out of two of the games.

And we still allowed *way* too many uncontested dunks to Dwight. You can't do that, because that just gets him ALL fired-up and fires up all his teammates too, so fricken hack him in that circumstance and don't allow (or at least try not to) those thundering jams. I mean if you're going to utilize a hack a Dwight strategy, then don't half-*ss it, do it all the way and really fricken get after the guy on BOTH ends. It seems like LD is afraid of people fouling out or something, but so what if they foul out!?!?!? That's part of the whole strategy, and guys are going to foul out, so between Twin, Zaza, Powell and Etan, that's 24 fouls you've got to give right there, so USE THEM!

AND RE: Dwight having so many foul shots, well yeah. That's not a conspiracy, because we all know the NBA protects its stars, because that is who butters their bread. The hack a Dwight strategy can work and that's been proven, but it's much easier when Dwight is shooting FT's to his career norms, which is just about at 59% for his career. However in this series (just our luck), for whatever reason he is knocking down his foul shots at a 71% clip and looks really comfortable up there, which is not normal for Dwight. Eventually he will revert to his career norms though. Let's just hope that starts immediately.

[PitbullzEP]

+1's all around.

How does Dwight freaking Howard go damn near the entire first half..hell, ANY half, without ONE single foul called? He's one of the most--if not THE most--physical Centers in the league.

Dude really could get away with murder out there.

How does howard get horse collard and no flagrant is called? Look, Im all for the home team winning and I think they will win this series, but take the goggles off. If you read the NBA rules grabbing someone on the shoulders is a flagrant foul. The NBA doesnt consider that a play on the ball unless it's against Dwight.

[HawksFan87]

How does howard get horse collard and no flagrant is called? Look, Im all for the home team winning and I think they will win this series, but take the goggles off. If you read the NBA rules grabbing someone on the shoulders is a flagrant foul. The NBA doesnt consider that a play on the ball unless it's against Dwight.

horse collard lol ?

[PitbullzEP]

horse collard lol ?

Right, whats so funny about that? Look at the background of this very forum. I think thats JJ arm on Howards neck.

[benhillboy]

Yeah I saw that swing through from Joe too. Patented foul call for Durant, Jameer, or any cheap player who likes to get bailed out for picking up his dribble prematurely against good defense (Paul Pierce mostly, ugghh). I wish these refs would recognize what a true jump shooting foul looks like, and if not, be consistent with the call whether it's an All-NBA first teamer or Joe.

And Dwight shooting 71% from the line is alarming. I'm hoping it can only go down from here.

Edited April 20, 2011 by benhillboy

[PitbullzEP]

Yeah I saw that swing through from Joe too. Patented foul call for Durant, Jameer, or any cheap player who likes to get bailed out for picking up his dribble prematurely against good defense (Paul Pierce mostly, ugghh). I wish these refs would recognize what a true jump shooting foul looks like, and if not, be consistent with the call whether it's an All-NBA first teamer or Joe.

And Dwight shooting 71% from the line is alarming. I'm hoping it can only go down from here.

I'm just saying that it's a well known fact that all teams hack Dwight so complaining about Howard going to the line is dumb considering some of you then flip it around talking about "hack a howard, he can't sustain 70% at the line" Just trying to inject some perspective here. JJ is known for not going to the rim hard and drawing fouls, he's a jumper shooter, who else can create off the dribble AND finish And1's at the rim. Kirk? Negative. We beat ourselves with passive offense. Dwight shooting 71% isnt scary, the scary part is, they dont typically shoot this bad, we're getting lucky that they arent hitting wide open shots. Everyone's shooting percentage will come back down to normal, for both teams and that's when the defense needs to pick up and our offense needs to be going to the rim aggresively and force the refs to make a call.