Hawks - Pistons

[lethalweapon3]

Will the lights be on at the Highlight Factory this time around? Fans won’t be thrilled with another clunker, like the last time the Hawks laid an egg at their home nest.

As was the case just a few days ago, Atlanta’s opponents will arrive fresh from an impressive victory and showing no clear signs of a tank job in effect. The Pistons arrive having won five of their last ten, having rocked and rolled Cleveland to a 50-point lead through three quarters last night before calling off the dogs.

It wouldn’t be accurate to say Brandon Knight couldn’t miss (28 points on 7-for-7 2FGs and 4-for-5 3FGs), but it wouldn’t be far off either. He, Rodney Stuckey and Will Bynum were converting passes into buckets at will (Piston guards collectively had 22 assists and just 5 turnovers) against momentary Hawk Donald Sloan and his band of outclassed teammates. Making a late push for the NBA All-Rookie team, it appears Knight is option number one going forward, having scored 20+ points in three of his last four games after having none in his previous 20 outings. In those last four contests, he’s nailed 10 of 14 three-point shots.

Greg Monroe is transitioning from his comfy high-post passer role, and yesterday displayed the kind of defensive wizardry Coach Frank has been demanding of him all season, with 12 defensive boards, 4 steals and a couple blocks against the Kyrie-less, Sideshow Bob-less, Boobie-less Cavs. Tayshaun Prince found his defensive mojo as well, effectively shutting down Antawn Jamison (3 points on 0-for-10 shooting, plus 4 turnovers).

The starters continued to play fairly late in that contest, though, and it will be intriguing to see what lineup Lawrence Frank trots out on the second night of a back-to-back, and what minutes they’ll get given there’s another, more-winnable game tomorrow at home versus Minnesota. I’m expecting we’ll see much more of ex-Yellow Jacket Bynum, who logged less than ten minutes last night and lofted up just one shot, but had 4 assists.

Last night’s performance from Monroe aside, Detroit remains a subpar defensive rebounding team (28.2 per game, last in the NBA). At first glance, that low number is shocking for a team with eight players 6’7” and higher on the roster (including Ben Wallace, in what might be his final Atlanta appearance), and indeed there is a lot of dead, tall wood behind Monroe. That ranking has far more to do, however, with porous overall defense (46.6 opponent FG%, 4^th highest in the league) than a mere inability to box out (10.5 opponent offensive rebounds, 4^th fewest).

Guards Joe Johnson, Jeff Teague, and Kirk Hinrich, Jannero Pargo, and Willie Green must exploit the Pistons around the arc when guys like Ben Gordon slack on defense. It’s clear that long-limbed Austin Daye and Tayshaun Prince aren’t usually coming out to help on the perimeter. Forwards Josh Smith and Tracy McGrady can help with the ball movement as well against Detroit (22.1% opponent assist rate, 2^nd highest in the league). Teague had his season high of 11 assists in the last Pistons game (a 101-96 Hawks victory two weeks ago) to go along with a season-high 24 points. The Pistons may give Human Highlight Nephew Damien Wilkins, a free agent again this summer, another opportunity to slow down the Hawks offense by contesting ballhandlers and disrupting passes.

The Pistons turn the ball over with some frequency (15.1% turnover rate, 2^nd highest in the NBA; 8.6 opponent steals per game, highest in the NBA), so there should be some good transition opportunities out there for Teague and company. Atlanta almost doubled up Detroit in fastbreak points (28-15) in their last meeting.

Charlie Villanueva has been thawed out by Coach Frank after nearly a month of riding the pine. Having logged less than 16 minutes in his entire injury-plagued season through April 8, he’s appeared in four of the last five games, getting double-digit points in three of them but, perhaps out of desperation, jacking up shots way too frequently (4-for-17 for 3FGs; 38.5 FG% and 9.8 shots in just 16.5 mins per game). Rebounds from his rushed shots are great opportunities to catch the Pistons on their heels and create fastbreak opportunities. Villanueva has also displayed some anxiety on defense, aggravating Derrick Rose on Sunday by bloodying the reigning MVP’s nose while defending a drive. Watch out for a little over-assertiveness from Charlie V as he strives to justify his $8 million salary in the closing week of his season.

The Hawks were battered on the inside by the Pistons’ big men (31-for-46 shooting) during the 86-85 loss at Auburn Hills on March 9. Those same players were just 12-for-28 on April 6 in Atlanta as they relied too heavily on Stuckey to come off the bench and produce most of the offense. Marvin Williams and Ivan Johnson will continue to be useful as defensive assignments on Prince and perennial Hawk-killer Maxiell, while helping Josh Smith with defensive rebounding duties.

Zaza Pachulia was a non-factor in either game, so although he remains unavailable tonight (as will Erick Dampier, who strained his calf doing... something), that shouldn’t necessarily jeopardize Atlanta’s likelihood for victory.

Consistency through four quarters will be key, as the Hawks were sunk in that March road game by a poor third quarter (outscored 26-12), but kept Detroit close enough at home to pull out the win late in the April 6 game.

Go Hawks!

~lw3

[gsuteke]

That was a sick reverse lay in by Joe

[Gray Mule]

Atlanta is getting serious about it's ball playing. Braves blew away the Mets today.Now, the Hawks are up by 30 @ halftime VS the Pistons.Twelve Hawks have scored. Bench is on fire. Starters may only get a token appearancein the second half. Or, the Pistons may come back and make it close. Probably not,but it's possible.Right now everything is going great for these Atlanta teams.

[benhillboy]

The Pistons next-day air mailed it in, but hometeam still deserves props for placing thy foot on thine neck. Anxious to see what Ivan and T-Mac have against Boston on Friday. Shout out to Sund for the great bench construction (including Marvin), adding 4 impact players (not including Radmonovic) during the offseason who will indeed pay dividends in a week or so. Let's go.

[lethalweapon3]

http://shamsports.com/content/pages/data/salaries/pistons.jspThose salaries... Egads!!! Great Caesar's Ghost, Detroit is stuck with a LOT of dead weight next season! Maybe their best move was releasing Rip without using amnesty. Otherwise, that would be $29 million in 2013-14 (two seasons from now) for Gordo, Charlie V, and Tay. Holy Frijoles!!!(Aside: Go Magic!)~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

Give me 60% of that bench production in playoff games, and we're ready to roll.~lw3

[01d0rd3r]

http://shamsports.co...ies/pistons.jsp

Those salaries... Egads!!! Great Caesar's Ghost, Detroit is stuck with a LOT of dead weight next season! Maybe their best move was releasing Rip without using amnesty. Otherwise, that would be $29 million in 2013-14 (two seasons from now) for Gordo, Charlie V, and Tay. Holy Frijoles!!!

(Aside: Go Magic!)

~lw3

I think Rafe Batholomew put it best in an article on grantland about a week ago.

" Can anyone explain what's happening in Detroit? First, they signed Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva to five-year contracts worth around $60 and $40 million, respectively, in July 2009. Then, last summer, they inked Rodney Stuckey, Tayshaun Prince, and Jonas Jerebko to three- and four-year extensions. Detroit didn't overpay badly in these deals, but what was the team hoping to accomplish? To lock up the core of a team that when healthy can compete for the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs?"

[hawkrule152]

IVAN IS IN F'IN BEAST MODE LATELY. Ever since he got into it an suspended for 1 game he has been BALLIN'!!!! Ownership better bring him back next year.

[Buzzard]

I think Rafe Batholomew put it best in an article on grantland about a week ago.

" Can anyone explain what's happening in Detroit? First, they signed Ben Gordon and Charlie Villanueva to five-year contracts worth around $60 and $40 million, respectively, in July 2009. Then, last summer, they inked Rodney Stuckey, Tayshaun Prince, and Jonas Jerebko to three- and four-year extensions. Detroit didn't overpay badly in these deals, but what was the team hoping to accomplish? To lock up the core of a team that when healthy can compete for the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs?"

They have guards and roleplayers all over the place. Monroe was a great pick, and if they end up 9th instead of 8th, who knows. I do not like their team right now, but throw in one good PF/C and they could be tough pretty soon.

[macdaddy]

I know Vlad Rad has fallen out of favor but he was playing well at the beginning of the season. I think he just didn't fit into the style LD wanted (you know PF shooting 3s lol). That pass from Pargo to Tmac on the break was awesome.

[Buzzard]

I know Vlad Rad has fallen out of favor but he was playing well at the beginning of the season. I think he just didn't fit into the style LD wanted (you know PF shooting 3s lol). That pass from Pargo to Tmac on the break was awesome.

One 3pt shooting PF is more than enough for any team and to much for some...

[benhillboy]

I remember way back when (first game of the season) I though Vlad was gonna be an integral piece. The Phil Jackson coined "Space Cadet" is what he has been apparently because I'm confident Drew will play guys if theyre ready or embarrass them with extended pine time if they're not, as evidenced by the T-Mac tirade earlier this year. If Radmonovic could give us a couple threes and a couple offensive rebounds in the playoffs, I'd be satisfied, but that may be a stretch. I don't expect him to bite into the minutes of Green, T-Mac, or Ivan because they all are much better, consistent players, but not being able to snag minutes from Marvin is ridiculous.

Edited April 19, 2012 by benhillboy