Turning point for Josh?

[hawkshomer]

“I was [ticked] off at myself,” he said “I understand what I need to do to be more effective with this ballclub, especially at the offensive end. I think Game 3 will be a different look for me.”

I wish he would've said exactly what he was going to do differently so we would know if he had the same mindset as everyone else in the world. Maybe he will surprise us and actually do the right thing.

[NineOhTheRino]

Good post hawkshomer.

My only question is why is Al not being called out along with Josh. Both guys had horrible games but everyone is killing Josh.

[AUhawksfan]

Seeing is believing. Just like with Larry Drew, quit talking the talk and let's see it.

[Rattler4life000]

6 points from a 2 time all star and so called team leader will not get in done, .. Al horford has done nothing, but are people scared to talk about Al?

[High5]

I guess this means Josh has some and-1 dribbles and fade-aways he's been working on.

But seriously, this is the first time I can remember him calling out himself for being an idiot. That's at least a step in the right direction. There's no excuse for him not to score at least an efficient 16.

[hawkshomer]

I think there have been a good number of people calling out Al too.

[niremetal]

The biggest problem, as Big Ray pointed out on the AJC Fan blog, is that Josh said this:

And why was he angry with himself? “Turnovers, a couple of unforced errors on my part, maybe a couple of untimely shots. Just a couple–maybe one or two. It is just frustrating because I know I can give this team a little bit more on the offensive end. Right now I am not doing my part on that end. I know I have got to do more and be efficient like I’ve been all season.”

Just "maybe a couple?" That's all? Not "12 idiotic jumpers and 3-4 wild contested shots from out-of-control drives during the past 2 games?"

And does he have amnesia about his offensive efficiency during the second half of the season?

So no, he doesn't get it. The above statements indicate that he thinks that for the most part, his jumpers are not bad shots. Seven fracking years and he still doesn't get why teams keep daring him to take those shots.

[coachx]

Good post hawkshomer.

My only question is why is Al not being called out along with Josh. Both guys had horrible games but everyone is killing Josh.

Al was the only guy rebounding last night and he at least took shots that he has made all year.

Most of us are not blind to that.

Smoove's decision making and shot selection was simple dumb.........for lack of a better word.

Noah has to repsect Horford's jumper since he has made it all year. I see him using the pump fake and driving to the paint more in Game 3.

Unfortunately it is harder for Smith to dribble drive b/c everyone backs off him and gives him the perimeter jumper that he never makes.

He need to use some BB IQ and move without the ball. Cut when we run a pick and roll and cut when Noah is out on the perimeter guarding the Horford and JJ and Crawford .

Edited May 5, 2011 by coachx

[Wretch]

I need to put this out there...

There are many reasons why we lost that game last night and we've all called out everybody from LD to Marvin. Too much dribble, too much of us trying to make the homerun shot, NO HUSTLE, no energy, no focus, playing soft, not rebounding, blown layups, questionable substitutions. Etc., etc., etc. You can take these things and put them in the box with the guilty party's name on it. IMO, everyone but Jeff Teague had a box of sh!t from last night.

That being said, it's one thing to be off your game and another thing entirely when you are not playing your game. Horford didn't shoot the ball well and dammit...we need him to hit that shot. There's just no other way to put it. The thing is though, that's HIS shot. That's what he does out there. You don't see him trying to be fancy. You don't see him calling the play from the top of the key or launching a 3. You don't see him trying to do things that are outside of his game. He brought it on the other end with 14 rebounds and he missed shots on the other end - shots that he has made all year.

This is different from what Josh Smith did last night. Josh Smith has no face up/off the dribble game. None. His jumpshot is completely suspect. Do you guys NOT see him launching these shots and bouncing the ball off of his foot? It's one thing to lose a game because your guys are not hitting their shots. It's another thing when you've got a guy on the floor trying to be a player that HE. IS. NOT. And he isn't just doing this occasionally, he is LITERALLY out there CONSTANTLY throwing away possessions trying to be a shooting guard.

You give Al the shot from 15 to 18 and you feel good about it because that's his shot and he's at the top of the league in FG%...making a living on those. If they don't fall, you call him out and you let him know that he has to hit that shot. If the shots still don't fall, then what do you say? Does the player deserve to be dumped on? The shots just didn't fall. Marvin has been worthless, but again...his shots just haven't fallen. He's missed some bunnies and some wide open shots, but they just didn't go down. He sucks, he sucked last night, but can we really put the game on his shoulders? He's not making shots.

It's a different thing when you are out there throwing up sh!t that has NO chance of going in and trying to do things with the ball that YOU CANNOT DO. That's not having an off night. That's being immature, not focused, and not taking the game seriously. Moreover, his shots aren't falling, so now you've got a guy that isn't getting back on defense, jaw jacking with the refs, and hanging his head - giving up offensive rebounds to one of the best rebounding teams int the league.

Al not making his shots is the equivalent of a closer blowing saves or a goalie that allows 3 or 4 shots. They didn't get the job done and deserve some blame.

Josh Smith, 15 feet from the basket, trying to take people off the dribble or launching a bomb is the equivalent of quarterback punting the ball or golfer using a putter to tee off. It just makes absolutely no sense and has little to no chance of producing positive results.

We need Al taking and either hitting or missing those shots. Only in an alternate reality do we need Josh Smith trying to be Kobe Bryant.

[coachx]

I need to put this out there...

There are many reasons why we lost that game last night and we've all called out everybody from LD to Marvin. Too much dribble, too much of us trying to make the homerun shot, NO HUSTLE, no energy, no focus, playing soft, not rebounding, blown layups, questionable substitutions. Etc., etc., etc. You can take these things and put them in the box with the guilty party's name on it. IMO, everyone but Jeff Teague had a box of sh!t from last night.

That being said, it's one thing to be off your game and another thing entirely when you are not playing your game. Horford didn't shoot the ball well and dammit...we need him to hit that shot. There's just no other way to put it. The thing is though, that's HIS shot. That's what he does out there. You don't see him trying to be fancy. You don't see him calling the play from the top of the key or launching a 3. You don't see him trying to do things that are outside of his game. He brought it on the other end with 14 rebounds and he missed shots on the other end - shots that he has made all year.

This is different from what Josh Smith did last night. Josh Smith has no face up/off the dribble game. None. His jumpshot is completely suspect. Do you guys NOT see him launching these shots and bouncing the ball off of his foot? It's one thing to lose a game because your guys are not hitting their shots. It's another thing when you've got a guy on the floor trying to be a player that HE. IS. NOT. And he isn't just doing this occasionally, he is LITERALLY out there CONSTANTLY throwing away possessions trying to be a shooting guard.

You give Al the shot from 15 to 18 and you feel good about it because that's his shot and he's at the top of the league in FG%...making a living on those. If they don't fall, you call him out and you let him know that he has to hit that shot. If the shots still don't fall, then what do you say? Does the player deserve to be dumped on? The shots just didn't fall. Marvin has been worthless, but again...his shots just haven't fallen. He's missed some bunnies and some wide open shots, but they just didn't go down. He sucks, he sucked last night, but can we really put the game on his shoulders? He's not making shots.

It's a different thing when you are out there throwing up sh!t that has NO chance of going in and trying to do things with the ball that YOU CANNOT DO. That's not having an off night. That's being immature, not focused, and not taking the game seriously. Moreover, his shots aren't falling, so now you've got a guy that isn't getting back on defense, jaw jacking with the refs, and hanging his head - giving up offensive rebounds to one of the best rebounding teams int the league.

Al not making his shots is the equivalent of a closer blowing saves or a goalie that allows 3 or 4 shots. They didn't get the job done and deserve some blame.

Josh Smith, 15 feet from the basket, trying to take people off the dribble or launching a bomb is the equivalent of quarterback punting the ball or golfer using a putter to tee off. It just makes absolutely no sense and has little to no chance of producing positive results.

We need Al taking and either hitting or missing those shots. Only in an alternate reality do we need Josh Smith trying to be Kobe Bryant.

Well said Wretch !

Plus a million !

:ok:

Edited May 5, 2011 by coachx

[RT3]

Well said Wretch !

Plus a million !

:ok:

This^^^ What Wretch said is exactly the problem with Josh Smith's poor play. Why don't people understand this. Have the people who don't understand this actually ever played ball competitively before? No one who plays team basketball to win, wants to play with a guy like Josh Smith (when he is playing like a dumba$$). He kills the team spirit by throwing up dumb shots and turning the ball over every other play, taking other players out of their rhythm.

You hear about guys diving on the ground, and that being contagious to other teammates. Well it works both ways. When guys don't hustle, and they cry about half of the calls, it also kills the team chemistry and is a demotivating factor. Yes, they are all professionals, but it's hard to play with someone like that and when you are trying to win as a team. You aren't sure when you're going to get the ball in rhythm for a good shot because Josh is either chucking up a bad shot (not making the extra pass), or dribbling the ball of his foot on a fast break. Yes, these things kill team spirit and throw other players off their game.

[hawkshomer]

The biggest problem, as Big Ray pointed out on the AJC Fan blog, is that Josh said this:

Just "maybe a couple?" That's all? Not "12 idiotic jumpers and 3-4 wild contested shots from out-of-control drives during the past 2 games?"

And does he have amnesia about his offensive efficiency during the second half of the season?

So no, he doesn't get it. The above statements indicate that he thinks that for the most part, his jumpers are not bad shots. Seven fracking years and he still doesn't get why teams keep daring him to take those shots.

Guess I missed this part of the blog. I was just hoping he would turn into last year's Josh.

Did Josh get this much hate last year too?

[Supporter]

All Josh needs to do is run back EVERY SINGLE TIME. There was one play where he got the block, ran back as hard as he could and got an easy dunk. That's all he needs to do fellas, just run back every time, no jawwing at the refs, no bringing the ball up like a point guard, just run like a mad man to the rim. He could be the best player in this series if he could do that and it would put more pressure on the Chicago Defense than anything else we could come up with.

Edited May 5, 2011 by Supporter

[hawkshomer]

All Josh needs to do is run back EVERY SINGLE TIME. There was one play where he got the block, ran back as hard as he could and got an easy dunk. That's all he needs to do fellas, just run back every time, no jawwing at the refs, no bringing the ball up like a point guard, just run like a mad man to the rim. He could be the best player in this series if he could do that and it would put more pressure on the Chicago Defense than anything else we could come up with.

I agree about his talking to the ref 100%. Also applies to his flopping, get up fast man. Don't complain and make your team wait for you on the offensive end too.

[coachx]

Guess I missed this part of the blog. I was just hoping he would turn into last year's Josh.

Did Josh get this much hate last year too?

Hubie Brown even called him out for whinig to the refs during the Orlando series. Hubie has seen alot of basketball and he even said he had never seen a player whine to the refs and fail to run to the other end of the floor as bad as Smoove did in a playoff series. Its was simply disgusting to watch.

Now we have the bad shot selction on top of it that is pissing us off even more.

Edited May 5, 2011 by coachx

[batfanjordanv]

I really hope Smoove will stick to his words. He needs to stop taking outside shots and start getting inside where he can be a monster!

[NineOhTheRino]

The biggest problem, as Big Ray pointed out on the AJC Fan blog, is that Josh said this:

And does he have amnesia about his offensive efficiency during the second half of the season?

So no, he doesn't get it. The above statements indicate that he thinks that for the most part, his jumpers are not bad shots. Seven fracking years and he still doesn't get why teams keep daring him to take those shots.

I can't believe I'm about to type the following words but......

i agree

Josh is well past the point of no return. We all should shift our attention to more important things like global warming and the increasing cost of gas.

Edited May 5, 2011 by NineOhTheRino

[Wurider05]

You guys keep thinking that all of a sudden he is going to turn it around one day. Last night's game for Josh Smith was horrible. This is who he is. We should have moved him when we had the chance. The world is watching. The NBA is watching. Josh Smith may very well be untradeable after these playoffs.

You heard what Kenny Smith said about him during the halftime show? makes me wonder.

[High5]

You guys keep thinking that all of a sudden he is going to turn it around one day. Last night's game for Josh Smith was horrible. This is who he is. We should have moved him when we had the chance. The world is watching. The NBA is watching. Josh Smith may very well be untradeable after these playoffs.

You heard what Kenny Smith said about him during the halftime show? makes me wonder.

But it's just so damn simple to stop taking jumpers. That's all he has to do to become a much more effective player. He doesn't even have to replace those jumpers with good shots, just don't shoot at all and the Hawks will be better off by default. I have to believe common sense will prevail eventually.

[Crank]

But it's just so damn simple to stop taking jumpers. That's all he has to do to become a much more effective player. He doesn't even have to replace those jumpers with good shots, just don't shoot at all and the Hawks will be better off by default. I have to believe common sense will prevail eventually.

Im starting to believe that he shoots those jumpshots out of spite .