Official Game Preview: Hawks at Cavaliers GAME 1

[Trout7]

8 minutes ago, ATLien_ said:

Lol  so your expecting him to turn into Kareem now. He wasn't Kareem when we were winning all year. Coach Bud needs to find away to play  to their strengths. If he and the PG's can't do that we lose. I guess Korver should start  taking people off the dribble since  he's 6'7. I promise you Horford would look a alot  better if he was getting the wide  open shots Lebrons creating for Kevin Love. 

You are probably right, but it just seems like we can't even make open shots when we play the Cavs.  We definitely get a case of the nerves against them.

[ATLien_]

56 minutes ago, Trout7 said:

You are probably right, but it just seems like we can't even make open shots when we play the Cavs.  We definitely get a case of the nerves against them.

His booty is definitely  puckering but he is playing  great D and effecting the game in other ways. His offensive IQ looks really low right now. Shooting a jumper over a PG come on Al.

[Trout7]

I can't believe I am saying this but the refs have been good tonight!

[hawkman]

This team is soft.

 

[PSSSHHHRRR87]

Durant not being able to go for the Hawks tonight really hurt us down the stretch. His ability to close out a game would have sealed this one for us. Hope he's ready to go in game 2. [emoji23]

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[kurupt]

Hawks shooting under 35% on 3's --> will be hard to win a game.

And I said it 6 minutes in: the starters  are digging a hole again...and they did.  36 to 18 bench scoring (40 seconds remaining), mainly by Schröder was not enough.

For all the Schröder hating of late, if your All-Stars play like shit (all 4 of them), they won't win a game.

Edited May 3, 2016 by kurupt

[capstone21]

Man that was ugly but we really put up a nice run there ...

baz and Dennis got us back in it but I think their play (sloppy and chucking) and our rebounding lost it for us in the 4th

we were tied and on a fast break and al was alone under the basket and Baz chucked a three ... That was when the run began

Lebron is so strong we were most effective when Paul and Al were on him ... They forced him to make tough and bad shots

give Hump some burn ... He boxes out ... I don't know why he has become our 12th man

there were a lot of positives to go along with so many negatives 

 

[AUhawksfan]

This game had "steal" written all over it but the Hawks decided not to show up in the first half.

I have a feeling we won't have another chance in their building.  Hopefully we at least have some confidence we can hang with them back in Atlanta.

[Trout7]

It always comes down to our poor shooting in the end, we only have ourselves to blame.

[High5]

Damn, that was a missed opportunity. The refs gave us a lot of respect for once against Cleveland and we just couldn't make shots. At least we fought back and competed on the glass. Played solid defense. Keep that effort up and we'll make a series out of this. 

[ATLHawks3]

Better performance than last year, that's for sure. We definently need to close out games and not miss the opportunities we had to extend the lead down the stretch.

[Spursfanpeacemaker]

It was a close game, hawks had a chance to take this game away, it just those turnovers and 50/50 balls.

Horf need to plays better, he wasn't really focus, in first half. Hawks pg just gotta keep attacking the paint consistently, and again with the rush 3s, only take 3s if its an open 3.

Defense was superb, thats what kept hawks in the game. They need to play defense like that in this whole series. But always  watch out for pump fakes, Cavs do a lot of pump fakes and  tries to draw a foul.

Hopefully Hawks will watch the film, learn from their mistakes and be more prepared in game 2

 

 

 

[DJlaysitup]

For Gosh sakes - just trade Millsap to San Antonio where he can get the ball from decent guard play and do some good.

If this team had Kareem Abdul Jabbar he would be lucky to get 4 "Sky-Hooks" a game...selfish basketball - IMHO.

[Sarcatic1]

Such a winnable game. They really blew this one

Props to the comeback and all but they have to be able to close games out

Missed free throws

missed lay ups

Awful shot selection in crucial moments'

Biting on every damn pump fake SMDH

 

Dennis was absolutely gassed and for some reason Bud did not get Jeff in or just go with the 2 pg lineup.

Kyle played monster minutes and did absolutely nothing out there. Couldn't get a shot off, couldnt defend Jr. Just out there

 

And our bigs continue to struggle against the Cavs for whatever reason. The point guards are not to blame for our bigs to be missing open jumpers and bunnies right at the rim. They did the same crap last year and in the Celtics series. Blame them not the guards.

[thescout5]

Hawks could have pulled the game out but as usual tanked with 3-4 minutes to go. I see a few issues here which probably won't be corrected. What does Bud teach these players in practice? A few times I saw the Hawks had numbers driving and what does the player with the ball do pass it off hoping the player makes a 3 pointer? Whatever happened to driving the ball to the basket worst you get is a foul and two shots at free throws. Do you really want to pay Horford probably a max contract? He's invisible to much and can't hit shots. Why Bud didn't take him out and put in Humpries (did he even play) I don't know. 

I think the issue with Milsap is if guarded by a bigger man he has problems. You can't rely on Sap because of the problem. Korver played alot of minutes but hardly scored. Hawks need to find an answer in the off season. Korver should be coming off the bench. Props to Dennis and Baz. Both bring energy to the team although there are times especially with Dennis he doesn't make the right play.

The game basically came down to missing open shots. Once the lane gets shut down the Hawks are just a jump shooting team. They don't have reliable shooters thus most of the game the Hawks were playing catch up. I think Bud waits to long to make adjustments thus handicapping the team. I'd like to see Humpries and Muscala play more minutes. 

[Lurker]

I'd actually say the game plan was fine (at least defensively because some of those made Cavs threes were contested) but when two of your three best players decide they're on a vacation in Hawaii, of course you're going to lose.

I really hope Horford is hurt because if not he's really s***ing the bed.

Edited May 3, 2016 by Lurker

[ClevelandRocks]

The Hawks did a great job coming back from 18 down.  The Cavs were cheating off Schröder, who made Lue look like an idiot by making most of the open looks he was given.

[DJlaysitup]

9 minutes ago, Lurker said:

I really hope Horford is hurt because if not he's really s***ing the bed.

AL peaked before as a 6-9 1/2 Center for Florida - alongside a 6-11 forward.  The guy is tough but not big or tough enough.  Quality big man - not big enough - good defensively - little to no 1/2 court post moves...alas.

 

He's not the first guy who did great in college and average in the pros.  Thanks to his lack of tats and good attitude he got further than his actual talent deserved.

Edited May 3, 2016 by DJlaysitup

[thescout5]

I agree the Hawks offense is geared for off stats yet some guys don't step up when it is needed. How difficult is it to work on a post game? I know the Hawks like to run up and down the court and cut lanes yet you still need to add that as part of your game. We saw tonight Cleveland shut down mostly the lanes so either it was a 3 pointer shot or post game . Also doubt if the Hawks can contain Thompson getting the off boards. He seems to be Dennis Rodman a knack for rebounds.

[Lurker]

Also: Mike Scott at SF is not the key to this series. Absolutely hilarious some people think that. If he starts it'd have to be at PF. I'd prefer putting Humphries in the lineup and taking Korver out.