N.B.A. Game of the Week: Cavaliers at Hawks

[asdogg]

http://nyti.ms/1wvr7zm

PRO BASKETBALL

N.B.A. Game of the Week: Cavaliers at Hawks

By JONAH BROMWICH DEC. 29, 2014

The Atlanta Hawks, who host the Cleveland Cavaliers at 7:30 Eastern on Tuesday

(NBA TV), have won 15 of their last 17 games and have risen to second place in the

Eastern Conference. While their schedule was fairly easy for the first six weeks,

they recently took a brief trip to the middle of the country and were able to beat the

Rockets and the Mavericks before returning home and stealing one away from the

Clippers in the fourth quarter. Those are all good teams. Are the Hawks a good

team, too?

They have been a decent one since 2007-8 and have gone to the playoffs every

year since. But within that span, they have yet to make it past the conference

semifinals, and because of that, they have become a stable — and relatively dull —

mediocrity, good for the East but never really standing out in the league as a whole.

But Atlanta has seen a lot of turnover in the past few seasons, and just as with

other newly successful teams in the N.B.A., it is possible to trace portions of their

program back to the San Antonio Spurs. The Hawks’ general manager, Danny

Ferry, and coach, Mike Budenholzer, are Spurs alumni, and the team’s newly

exciting offense, much like most of the successful offenses in the N.B.A. this

season, owes a lot to San Antonio.

That means prioritizing the team over any one player, and the Hawks’ ball

movement shows their believe in that philosophy. The team is tied for the league

 

lead in assists per game, and because no one player dominates the ball, none of the

Hawks’ scoring numbers leap out. The scoring is distributed: In their last five wins,

they had five leading scorers.

Some of the players contributing in Atlanta will be familiar to N.B.A. fans. The

journeyman Kyle Korver has been with the Hawks for the past three seasons, and

the longtime starters Jeff Teague and Al Horford continue to help out on both sides

of the ball.

Some newer names are also starting to pitch in, including DeMarre Carroll,

who in his second season in Atlanta has put together some big games, including a

career-high 25-pointer against the Clippers on Tuesday night. Carroll is unlikely to

become a star, but he is a hard worker with a decent jump shot, and he gives

Atlanta an extra boost of energy. Another promising player is the Hawks’ leading

scorer off the bench, Dennis Schröder, a fleet 21-year-old whose jump shot has

improved significantly since last season.

Carroll and Schröder contributed to Atlanta’s 29-point domination of the

Cleveland Cavaliers on Dec. 17, but neither was the Hawks’ high scorer. That honor

went to Shelvin Mack, a third-string point guard who does not usually see the floor

when the game is on the line. That’s the thing about these new-look Hawks,

though: Any one player can put them over the top.

Not that it is so difficult to score against the Cavs. They are one of the worst

defensive teams in the league in terms of opponents’ field-goal percentage, and

their defensive rating has suffered accordingly, as they allow about 105 points for

every hundred possessions. We knew early in the season that the Cavaliers’ defense

was going to need some work, but individual defensive performances are still a

major issue in Cleveland, particularly with the loss of Anderson Varejao, who is out

for the rest of the season with a torn Achilles’ tendon.

Kevin Love, whatever his contributions may be on offense, is simply a sieve on

the other end, so much so that Coach David Blatt benched him through the fourth

quarter of Friday’s game against the Orlando Magic. According to an ESPN Stats &

Info post on Twitter that received a lot of attention, the Magic shot 57 percent with

Love in the game and only 35 percent with him on the bench.

The Cavaliers may have a bad defense, but they are not a miserably bad team

 

over all. They are simply less appealing than they were expected to be. Even when a

team has just added LeBron James to its roster, there is no such thing as an instant

contender.

The Cavaliers are very much in the playoff mix in the East, and they have more

than half a season left to work out their issues. With the dismantling of the

conference’s two best teams from the last couple of seasons, the top seeds on the

lesser coast are still up for grabs. It is not much of a stretch to say that both Atlanta

and Cleveland are likely to be competing for top playoff slots come April.

© 2014 The New York Times Company

N.B.A. Game of the Week: Cavaliers at Hawks - NYTimes.com.pdf

[asdogg]

We apparently have the best record in the league vs top 12 teams at 6 -4 as per NBA.com/yahoo . All other contenders are below .500.

[diamond_dave]

Cavs seem to be having some internal issues going on. Let's hope they continue.

[buckeye242424]

Huh, I guess I'm blind to the fact that we league the lead in assists. I'm sure it's been mentioned 100 times, I'm impressed.

Living in Ohio, I read a lot of local media not seen on ESPN. Kyrie is having a hard time with Bron. Who's the alpha dog? Obviously LeBron is arguably the best play in the league... But he jus turned 30. Remember, Kyrie was the all star MVP last year. And Kevin Love not putting near numbers he was. It's chemistry.... And their coach... He isn't ready for this team.

[DrReality]

just let Lebron coach the team

[buckeye242424]

just let Lebron coach the team

I think he already is....

[Gray Mule]

Well, The King sat out last night's game VS the Hawks, therefore they lost.

That's the only conclusion the national press can agree on. 

 

Hawks won!  Nothing else really matters to Hawk fans!

 

GO HAWKS !!

[macdaddy]

Well, The King sat out last night's game VS the Hawks, therefore they lost.

That's the only conclusion the national press can agree on. 

 

Hawks won!  Nothing else really matters to Hawk fans!

 

GO HAWKS !!

 

Yep.  And the Boss sat out too but no one noticed.

 

You know the difference between a Boss and a King.   A Boss works with his team and gives everyone else credit for success.  A King pouts when things go wrong and blames everyone but himself.    Seems like these guys have perfect nicknames.

[ATLien_]

Yep. And the Boss sat out too but no one noticed.

You know the difference between a Boss and a King. A Boss works with his team and gives everyone else credit for success. A King pouts when things go wrong and blames everyone but himself. Seems like these guys have perfect nicknames.

Well played sir. Couldn't agree more.

[Guest]

Yep. And the Boss sat out too but no one noticed.

You know the difference between a Boss and a King. A Boss works with his team and gives everyone else credit for success. A King pouts when things go wrong and blames everyone but himself. Seems like these guys have perfect nicknames.

@macdaddy perfect description, hahaha.

[macdaddy]

@macdaddy perfect description, hahaha.

 

I felt like I was channeling @Gray Mule when i wrote that one.   

Edited December 31, 2014 by macdaddy

[Gray Mule]

Thanks macdaddy!