Stop talking about Joe's "Legacy", talk about Horford's.

[frosgrim]

here's a good question, how do you guys see Horford this season? With JJ gone what has changed to his role on both sides of the court?

This is one of the key questions. Both Horford and Smith need to figure out how their games are now changed by JJ not being on the court. JJ did a lot for the offense, but at the same time, he took away from other guys. I expect that Josh will want the ball most of the time. Which can be good and bad. If he eliminates those bad shots, then this might be good for the team, but i have my doubts that he will. I'm not really sure what Hoford is going to do. Will he park himself around the basket to take advantage of offensive rebounds? Will he deam that he does need a back to the basket game? Or will he still sit outside? I hope he puts himself around the basket given all the shooters that will be on the floor. His inside game should be more open. Add in that Harris can really drive the ball, Horford and Josh should have more inside scoring opps off Harris passing the ball to them. I'm looking forward to seeing how it all develops. It probably won't be until December before the team really gets it together, so we'll have to show some patience.

[ATLscrubLove]

dominance are u serious??? when we played the bulls in the playoffs Noah made him look like a scrub ! Amare took his heart and out played him when they started woofing to the media his post game is horrible !! He's a nice guy and won a chip in college and u guys take that as if he is the leader of the team. I think Josh wants to win more he is willing to leave his home town in order to win !!

By his dominance I meant lack there of sometimes in the paint. Which is why he obviously needs to be a PF. He is the only player on the team with heart and a drive to win. Aside from maybe Zaza.

[ATLscrubLove]

I'm sorry but Horford is a star, he's been to allstar games for his play in the paint. There aren't any good bigs in the east aside from Howard but Horford is still deserving nonetheless.

[Robdawg]

I'm sorry but Horford is a star, he's been to allstar games for his play in the paint. There aren't any good bigs in the east aside from Howard but Horford is still deserving nonetheless.

he's barely an all-star which is mostly due to the fact that there is no depth at 5 in the east (with the exception of D12). Smoove would've been an all-star if he was in a similar situation as Horford. I'm not hating on Al, just being realistic. Al and Josh will have a chance to finally get the green light with Joe gone so this is the season we'll see what they are made of.

[Watchman]

here's a good question, how do you guys see Horford this season? With JJ gone what has changed to his role on both sides of the court?

Tough call. IF Horford, Smith, et al move without the ball and the offense doesn't stagnate then good things can happen. IF the PG can get the ball to Horford and Smith in a spot suitable for their capabilities, good things can happen. I just wish I felt confident that those things will happen.

[ATLscrubLove]

he's barely an all-star which is mostly due to the fact that there is no depth at 5 in the east (with the exception of D12). Smoove would've been an all-star if he was in a similar situation as Horford. I'm not hating on Al, just being realistic. Al and Josh will have a chance to finally get the green light with Joe gone so this is the season we'll see what they are made of.

[REMOVED]

[Supporter]

[REMOVED]

lol you can't just call someone ignorant when they don't agree with you. Robdawg had a solid point, there is a lack of talent at center in the east. You have Dwight Howard and after that it's a complete wash.

[ATLscrubLove]

lol you can't just call someone ignorant when they don't agree with you. Robdawg had a solid point, there is a lack of talent at center in the east. You have Dwight Howard and after that it's a complete wash.

Don't worry I know him in real life, I'll just call him and tell him he's ignorant.

[Watchman]

Don't worry I know him in real life, I'll just call him and tell him he's ignorant.

Too funny.

[Robdawg]

lol you can't just call someone ignorant when they don't agree with you. Robdawg had a solid point, there is a lack of talent at center in the east. You have Dwight Howard and after that it's a complete wash.

it really is, even if Smoove has a career year this year he might not get a selection due to the east being deep in 4's/3's. one thing Josh has to work on is his turnovers and offensive efficiency which lacked last season. he practically became a high-volume SF/PF with slightly above average results. kinda like Gilbert Arenas several years ago.

Don't worry I know him in real life, I'll just call him and tell him he's ignorant.

in all seriousness Scrub and I are good friends. I actually told him about this site but I would like to keep this mature and discuss our differences because I am not as high on Horford being the man. The one thing you gotta remember Scrub, is that Al (although he is an all-star like you said) has not had a lot of solid time at the 4 IN THE NBA. I know he has been our best option over the years at center but I do not think Ferry will keep Al at the 5 for the majority of the season. instead, he will probably play a lot of time at the 4 and Smoove possibly at the 3. so for all we know Al might have trouble playing Power Forward in the NBA as he has shifted most of his skills (exception being that jumper) to dealing with other centers in the league. you factor this transition with Joe out of the picture on top of all our new pieces and that's a lot of change for less than a year. i'm not saying Al will do bad at his natural position but even he will have to change his play and from what i've seen from him i'd say that he will never be THE GUY but a solid #2. in fact, Smoove will probably be the leader of this team unless Al becomes a more vocal person.

[ATLscrubLove]

Rob you don't know anything about the Hawks. Just cuz you told me about the site doesn't make you an expert. You have a mental stability to match that of Smoove's, you both act like you're 5 years old. Trying to say "keep things mature." You're being hypocritical due to the fact that your immaturity level is through the roof.You didn't even read the statement I made previously, I said Horf was only an all-star in the east due to lack of quality in the East. But that doesn't discredit him, he is the only player with heart that actually cares about the team.

[hawkman]

Well, this took a nice turn.

[ATLscrubLove]

Ololololololololool

[niremetal]

Ask NBA coaches which players on the Hawks they gameplan against. For the last seven years, the only answer to that question has been JJ. I love Al, but no coach has ever sweated about how to deal with him. (For Josh, I'm sure coaches talk about him. It goes something like this: "If he's open on the perimeter, DON'T GUARD HIM.")And the idea that Al's "leadership" has been meaningful strikes me as absurd. The team hasn't had ANY leadership for the past 15 years. If Al was such a great leader, he would have gotten Josh to play within himself at least every once in awhile and gotten the team to actually run the motion offense LD tried to implement when he became head coach. And the "players only meetings" wouldn't have been the useless jokes that they were. And he wouldn't have talked so much to the media about how he thought he was a natural PF who was playing out of position.I used to think Al had the potential to be a great team leader. But he hasn't become one and I don't think he will be. He'll remain what he is today: A solid, borderline All-Star player with neither the offensive weapons nor the relentlessness on the boards and defense to be more than that. It's not much of a legacy. He's a guy you cheer for when he's playing, but not a guy you remember afterward.

Edited August 2, 2012 by niremetal

[ATLscrubLove]

You can't lead players that don't want to be led. NO one can get Josh to get over his own hump but Josh, do you think he really listens to anyone? NO, he will continue to put up air balls from the perimeter. This team is nothing without Horf, even if no one sets their game plan in accordance of his skill set. This team would've never made the playoffs without him on this team... At least initially ( 2008 )

Edited August 2, 2012 by ATLscrubLove

[AHawks89]

You can't lead players that don't want to be led. NO one can get Josh to get over his own hump but Josh, do you think he really listens to anyone? NO, he will continue to put up air balls from the perimeter. This team is nothing without Horf, even if no one sets their game plan in accordance of his skill set. This team would've never made the playoffs without him on this team... At least initially ( 2008 )

[MaceCase]

Ask NBA coaches which players on the Hawks they gameplan against. For the last seven years, the only answer to that question has been JJ.

But see, what's the basis for this hyperbole? The All Star selections? Well in 4 healthy seasons in the league Al has been an All Star twice. Oh he plays at a position lacking All Star quality players? So does Joe. Not to mention the undervalued contributions from Josh then the lower tier guys like Zaza, Flip, Jamal, and Jeffrey. All I'm saying is if people are going to prop Joe up on "coaches gameplan for him" then apply it to Al who coaches voted for too....therefore gameplan for.....otherwise just sit back and realize that it's a massive overstatement.

[NineOhTheRino]

Al is the reason this team has been so soft. How can the so called leader get other guys to toughen up when he's the one leading the charge against physical play?

[niremetal]

But see, what's the basis for this hyperbole? The All Star selections? Well in 4 healthy seasons in the league Al has been an All Star twice. Oh he plays at a position lacking All Star quality players? So does Joe. Not to mention the undervalued contributions from Josh then the lower tier guys like Zaza, Flip, Jamal, and Jeffrey. All I'm saying is if people are going to prop Joe up on "coaches gameplan for him" then apply it to Al who coaches voted for too....therefore gameplan for.....otherwise just sit back and realize that it's a massive overstatement.

It's not "just" the All-Star selections, although 6 > 2, and I frankly don't see Al finishing his career with more than 3 or maybe 4. It's also the fact that Sekou wrote several blog posts over on AJC talking about how JJ was the guy on the Hawks that opposing coaches gameplanned against, not Josh or Al. And that in the Chicago series, the Bulls strategy was simple: Get the ball out of JJ's hands. They did and we got our asses kicked. I'd love to know when an opposing coach has ever gone Jordan Rules on Al. It hasn't happened, because it isn't necessary with him. He simply doesn't have the offensive repertoire to take over a game the way that JJ can if you give him an inch of breathing room. Only people who are blind or disingenuous can deny that for the past 7 years, JJ has gotten more defensive attention than anyone else on the Hawks. He was almost constantly double-teamed, and was frequently swarmed whenever he got anywhere inside the three-point line. You can't say that about Josh and Al, who have been given an absurd number of open midrange looks during their time with the Hawks, and who often aren't double-teamed even when they get the ball in the post. If JJ got close to the basket, he was swarmed by 3 or even 4 defenders. And oh yeah - six All-Star appearances, including one as a starter. Yeah, I think coaches might have just a weeeee bit more respect for JJ's game than Al's. Just like The Dark Knight got just a weeeeee bit better reviews than Gigli. Edited August 2, 2012 by niremetal

[AHawks89]

I honestly think our best players in order were JJ, Smoove, and then Al.