Game 1 thoughts

[Duff_Man]

 

 

 

"Abused" = 6/17 from the floor, 0-6 from three.

 

Pero was 2-4 from the floor and 3-3 from the line. He did perfectly fine.

 

"Played terribly" = Playoff win. I don't understand the out-of-whack standards and varying grades of wins. Only Hawks fans can consider wins as losses with a straight face.

[Peoriabird]

"Abused" = 6/17 from the floor, 0-6 from three.

 

Pero was 2-4 from the floor and 3-3 from the line. He did perfectly fine.

 

"Played terribly" = Playoff win. I don't understand the out-of-whack standards and varying grades of wins. Only Hawks fans can consider wins as losses with a straight face.

We are a number one seed and they are an 8th seed under .500 and y'all are encouraged by that performance?  We may as well crown Cleveland Eastern conference champs now. 

[Wretch]

We're all happy that we got the win, but that was not how I wanted to start the playoffs.  That's not being negative or a bad fan, that's being concerned and rightfully so!  This isn't the regular season and we can't just take a few quarters off here and there.  This is the best team we have ever sent into the post season and I would really like to see them reach the ECF's or Finals just ONCE in my lifetime.

 

I don't care what's happening with any other team.  How they're performing is irrelevant.  What I am concerned about is a lack of focus and a breakdown of our offense.  We can play around with Brooklyn...and maybe even the Wizards.  But Chicago, Toronto, or Cleveland will send us home if we play like that.

 

The box score made the game seem closer than it was, but we can't let our foot off of the gas.  I think it was Bibby who used to say it, but we need to make a habit of stepping on their throats.  We did that at the height of our run this year.  We need that back for the playoffs.

[Duff_Man]

We are a number one seed and they are an 8th seed under .500 and y'all are encouraged by that performance?  We may as well crown Cleveland Eastern conference champs now. 

 

If the Hawks make an ECF run, guess what nobody will ever remember...."barely" winning Game 1 by seven. I am sure everyone remembers San Antonio "only" winning by five in Game 1 last year and then losing the next game. Or that the Pacers went seven games with the "lowly" Hawks?

 

There are no asterisks on scoreboards or in the standings.

[AHF]

Playoffs is about survive and advance.  We will need to be better than we were last night to advance to a ring but it was good enough for our first round matchup.

 

1 down, 15 to go.

[Guest]

They looked bored with this nonchalant Neds team.  Get out to a big lead, Neds sleepwalk, Hawks let off the gas, Neds actually decide to play for a minute or two and go on a run, Hawks wakeup, win ... yawn.

 

There shouldn't be many wide-sweeping judgments from this game.

 

Can they guard sLopez?  Not one-on-one.  Will he stay awake long enough for it to matter?  Nope.

 

Can Charlize Deron hurt them if he's engaged?  Maybe.  Will he be engaged long enough for it to matter?  Hasn't shown he can be engaged more than a stretch or two the last 3-4 years.  IOW, he's not going to start now.

 

Can JoeJohn hurt us?  A little from time to time.  Will it matter?  This is JoeJohn we're talking aka Where's Waldo on ambien.

 

We'll be fine.  Now if we play uninterested stretches in round 2 we'll have a problem.

[JackB1]

All the doomsdayers need to remember these things:

 

1-This was our first meaningful game in a month

2-We won without major contributions from Milsap/Horford

3-We won even with the Nets shooting over 50%

4- Milsap will get better.  He just needs some playing time.

5- Overall, we will get better.  Coach Bud is one of the best at improving on things.

 

We were clearly the superior team last night.  Every time the Nets challenged, we took it back from them and didn't let them overtake us.  Anyone who watched the game saw that we were always in control and never really threatened.  After not playing any meaningful games for a long time, I was very concerned the Hawks would come out flat.  They didn't.  They just didn't play their best but this team is so talented overall, that they can win a game without Horford and Milsap playing great.  

[Guest]

We are a number one seed and they are an 8th seed under .500 and y'all are encouraged by that performance? We may as well crown Cleveland Eastern conference champs now.

We are encouraged because despite not playing our best basketball we held the Nets to 92 points and won the game.

[Peoriabird]

We are encouraged because despite not playing our best basketball we held the Nets to 92 points and won the game.

They were 21st in scoring during the regular season.

[Guest]

They were 21st in scoring during the regular season.

Yes, 21st at 98 points per game. We held them 6 points under their average. At least give all the information.

[AHF]

Summary:

 

@JayBirdHawk - In a game where we didn't play all that great, we still led the whole way and won by 7.  Good teams need to win these types of games.  Glad we are 1-0 with room for improvement!

 

@Peoriabird - We didn't play that well.  How can anybody be that happy about a game where we didn't play that well?

[Guest]

Summary:

@JayBirdHawk - In a game where we didn't play all that great, we still led the whole way and won by 7. Good teams need to win these types of games. Glad we are 1-0 with room for improvement!

@Peoriabird - We didn't play that well. How can anybody be that happy about a game where we didn't play that well?

I'm more happy that we won more than anything. That is what mattwrs at the end of the day. In the words of Charlie Sheen: WINNING. Edited April 20, 2015 by JayBirdHawk

[macdaddy]

LOL at DMC getting abused by Joe?   Demarre not only forced Joe into an all too familiar sub par postseason performance but Demarre had as many points, more 3s, as many free throws, more rebounds than Joe while taking 5 fewer shots and playing 8 less minutes than the 6 time all star.   Who abused Who? (or whom, i don't know).

[Sothron]

I'm glad we won but I have to agree with some of the others that we seemed to let the foot off the gas sometime in the second half and just let them get back into a game the Nets had no business being in.

 

Hope the Horford injury is nothing.

[Duff_Man]

They were 21st in scoring during the regular season.

 

98 ppg. Held them well under their average.

 

But hey...keep spelunking for anything negative.

[Duff_Man]

LOL at DMC getting abused by Joe?   Demarre not only forced Joe into an all too familiar sub par postseason performance but Demarre had as many points, more 3s, as many free throws, more rebounds than Joe while taking 5 fewer shots and playing 8 less minutes than the 6 time all star.   Who abused Who? (or whom, i don't know).

 

Johnson: 17 points, 6-17 fg, 0-6 3pt, 5-8 ft, 6 reb, 6 ast

 

Carroll: 17 pts, 5-12 fg, 2-6 3pt, 5-5 ft, 8 rebs, 3 ast

 

Who abused whom?

[Wretch]

I'm happy we won the game...but at the same time, it is the Nets we're talking about and this is just the first round. Does anyone expect us to lose?  Even if we had won it by 50, I wouldn't be celebrating.  There were times in this game though where the guys were playing with zero urgency and a complete lack of focus.  We need to not get into the habit of letting teams back into the game.  If we get up big, we need to keep our foot on the gas.

 

Honestly, if this were the ECFs...or hell, even just the 2nd round I'd take it.  I don't care how we get it done once we're taking steps towards the ECF's/Finals.  However, I don't want to get into bad habits now and I don't want this series to go any further than it has to.

[Dejay]

Well as they say, styles make fights and this game was as ugly as a pair of bowling shoes. Despite missing a ton of makeable shots and turning the ball over (the lapse at the tip-off and Schoeder passing it to Harry the Hawk didn't help matters) more than my liking, they still found a way to win. And for a guy who's seen the local teams lose in every manner imaginable over the last 38 years, that's saying something.

But that doesn't mean that there isn't any cause for concern. First of all, Millsap is still hurting with his shoulder. If this was February and not April, he'd likely still be on the shelf. Hopefully, he can play through the pain and become effective once again. On top of that, Horford is now hurt and has to quickly recuperate from a dislocated finger on his shooting hand. And you don't have to be Dr. Naismith to know that the rebounding and ball security must be tightened up. I know Brook Lopez is good but at times yesterday, they made him look like Moses Malone in his prime by the way he was taking down offensive boards. That has to stop in a hurry, even if it means expanding the rotation and putting Muscala in to help out down in the post.

There is one thing I've noticed over the years when it comes to playoff basketball. The key to going far in the playoffs isn't just to win. The key to advancing is to take out an inferior opponent in the early rounds (see Nets, Brooklyn) as quickly as possible. You don't give a team like this an opportunity to breathe (I know, too soon) or have confidence that they compete with a 60-win team who ran away with their division and conference weeks ago. The same way we felt after the Magic stomped Osh and company years ago is the same way Net fans should be feeling after Games 2 and 3; no real shot of thinking there is a 'step up' moment coming. Sure there are exceptions to the rule (see 2008 Celtics) but for the most part, championship teams quickly dispatch underclassmen without breaking a sweat in order to conserve their energy for tougher opponents in the semis, ECFs, and beyond. So what I'm most looking at isn't just the Hawks winning this series, which they should (IMHO, Brooklyn's best chance to win here was yesterday). It is the matter of how they win the series. If they are to make a serious run at the Finals, much less a world title, they CANNOT allow the Nets to take this beyond five games. At some point, they have to put their collective boots on their necks to let them know that this is the part in the match where they lay down on the canvas and take the three count...

Edited April 20, 2015 by Dejay

[TheNorthCydeRises]

???

Isn't "rose colored glasses" and "beer goggles" basically the same thing?

With "rose colored glasses" you're only choosing to see the good, while ignoring the bad. I think that's what he was saying about you.

With "beer goggles", something that is bad ( when sober ) is actually looking good to you ( because you're drunk ). I don't think that's what you were saying about him.

[Duff_Man]

I'm happy we won the game...but at the same time, it is the Nets we're talking about and this is just the first round. Does anyone expect us to lose?  Even if we had won it by 50, I wouldn't be celebrating.  There were times in this game though where the guys were playing with zero urgency and a complete lack of focus.  We need to not get into the habit of letting teams back into the game.  If we get up big, we need to keep our foot on the gas.

 

Honestly, if this were the ECFs...or hell, even just the 2nd round I'd take it.  I don't care how we get it done once we're taking steps towards the ECF's/Finals.  However, I don't want to get into bad habits now and I don't want this series to go any further than it has to.

 

Then why bother watching sports at all? If it cannot bring you any joy, then don't tune in.