Official Game Thread: Hawks at Suns

[lethalweapon3]

“The Shining (2011)”

 

Happy Ten-Year Anniversary! Ten! What is that, aluminum? Paper? Velvet?

Are ya feeling old yet, Squawkfolk? It seemed like yesterday when a former referee, one that even other refs couldn’t stand, snuck around Atlanta Hawks postgame security aiming to shame team vice prez, color analyst and living legend Dominique Wilkins in hopes of collecting what the former claimed was a debt. Well, don’t call him Eric B., because the homie Rashan Michel got Paid In Fist.

After dispatching Hoosier legend Mike Woodson and giving his assistant Larry Drew a head coaching shot, ownership and fans alike simply hoped to see a little more fight out of their Hawks, as the 2011 Playoffs approached. After that evening’s win by the Hawks over the bullying Orlando Magic, Nique proved to be a good model, demonstrating how to clown a clown that keeps trying to clown you. Respectfully.

 

I’m a pacifist by nature. Give peace a chance! But serving up a two-piece isn’t the worst thing in the world when all else fails.

Here’s the deal. There was not a fur store in North America that ever fixed an invoice with Joe Namath’s name on the “To:” line. Neither Broadway Joe, nor recent birthday boy Clyde the Glide, gets handed a bill for their outfits. You think either K or G has ever troubled LD with a running tab for their zoot suits? ‘Course not.

“Hi, Mister Wilkins, sir. Do you remember me, I used to T you up at Vince Carter’s celebrity summer games? Well, now, I make custom suits for a living. May I make some for you?” “Sure, thanks.” ((Months later)) “Hey, Nique, nice suit!” “Thanks! So-and-so made some for me, you oughta look him up!” THAT is the twelve thousand dollars you seek, Rashan!

There is absolutely nothing wrong with an enterprising young fellow having reveries of building his own Brutha Men’s Wearhouse empire one day. Admirable, actually. But if you’ve got ins with at least B-list celebrities, you have got to understand that these folks can become your walking, talking billboards. Grown athletes, in particular, aren’t the ones you risk chokeouts trying to shakedown. There’s no need to go to Goizueta B-School to figure this out.

You don’t even have to be 7-foot tall and 250 pounds to be a profitable clothier. Kevin Willis eventually got his clothing line up and running at Lenox Macy’s. He didn’t get there stalking former Hawks all around town seeking compensation for services rendered. He also managed to make a clean second career for himself without, say, running afoul of the FBI.

Michel almost turned his fortunes around in the years after the swelling went down. Through his regional and sports-related connects, he made inroads with college stars on the verge of lottery-level paydays going pro in the NBA and NFL. Building on his growing set of Instagram follows, he opened a shop in Grant Park, and was planning to expand his tailoring business to Charlotte.

Sadly, a lack of game fails to recognize a lack of game. A greedy Michel soon found himself ensnared in the underworld of greasy sports agents, greedy sneaker execs, grimy cash-carrying coaches, and grinning FBI informants. Now, because of his willing participation in the ploy of stuffing bills behind the lapels of kids like Deandre Ayton – 2018’s number one pick for the rising Phoenix Suns, who host our Hawks tonight (10 PM Eastern, Once More, with Feeling! Fox Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL, Fox Sports Arizona) – Rashan had to plead guilty in a sting that stung far fewer and less valuable people than the Feds intended.

Thanks to Rashan’s involvement in the scheme, a former NBA player with one of the greatest nicknames in sports, “The Rifleman” Chuck Person can’t even show his face on the plains in Auburn anymore. Players, head and assistant coaches and agents, all give the Mariah Carey “I don’t know her!” face when queried about their appearances with Michel, tagged in pics embracing him on his website. The ex-ref’s rebounding rep? Shattered. His shop? Shuttered. And as soon as his name hit the Internet, many quickly recalled, “Hold up, isn’t that the dude Nique five-knuckle-shuffled just a couple years ago?”

Our Hawks found themselves on the wrong end of their first two-hit fight – I hit you, you hit the floor – in quite some time, getting grounded and pounded in Denver on Sunday night. Quite coincidentally, things went south because of Atlanta’s perturbance with the antics of some referees. The ones with actual whistles, on this occasion.

“I thought we got distracted by the officiating,” admitted Nate McMillan to the AJC’s Sarah K. Spencer, The Athletic’s Chris Kirschner and the postgame press, “me included.” Marc Davis, in particular, tends to have that effect on people.

“I didn’t make adjustments during the course of this game, as far as how they were attacking us,” the Hawks’ current head coach correctly acknowledged, of the promising 49-45 start that snowballed into an avalanche of threes by the Nuggets’ JaMychal Green and, in garbage time, Bol Bol (???) to sum up a 126-102 defeat. “I just thought that we got caught up in the officiating. We can’t do that. We have to focus on the game.”

Trae Young (game-high 21 points, but 7 TOs) was sloppy with his handle and his shot decisions in the pivotal second quarter, leading to ample fastbreak scoring options for the Nuggets as the Hawks chased them through Colorado’s thin air. Atlanta (23-23) found itself on even thinner ice during the middle quarters as Clint Capela and John Collins were lethargic and ineffective in keeping Denver’s frontcourt off the glass. The Nuggets collected 15 offensive rebounds, 13 in the second and third quarters alone, to Atlanta’s two (half of that by Bogi Bogdanovic) for the entire game.

Crafty Chris Paul (8.5 APG, 1.4 SPG) and Mikal Bridges hope they can coax enough turnovers and tough shots out of Trae today to keep Young out of a shootout with All-Star slinger Devin Booker (35 points in Sunday’s win vs. CHA; post-All-Star -- 25.8 PPG, 32.3 3FG%).

Coming off the momentous run in 2020’s Bubble, the Suns and their fans ought to be thrilled with a 31-14 record that has them, for now, looking down at both the Lakers and the Clippers while holding down 2^nd place in the rambunctious Western Conference. But it has been their late-game play, as of late, that has the Suns and their fans fearing a nightly meltdown.

Only the Spurs (89.4) have held a lower 4^th-Quarter Offensive Rating over the past five games than the Suns (92.8), and no team has shot the ball worse (NBA-lows of 44.0 TS% and 40.0 eFG%) over that stretch. They scored 20 points in the final frame while visiting the Magic last week, 21 in Tampa against the Raptors, and then a paltry 14 in Charlotte on Sunday, permitting the Hornets to wipe out a 9-point deficit and force OT.

The silver lining is that coach Monty Williams’ club won four of those five games, the fumbled loss in Orlando last Wednesday the sole blemish. It’s a signal that Phoenix does just enough practical things to establish leads early on that they won’t often have to scramble with the game hanging in the balance in the closing minutes.

Still, fans that should be preparing to celebrate Phoenix’s first playoff appearance since 2010 have instead been fretting that the ends of games have looked more like The Devin Booker Variety Hour that they grew accustomed to withstanding during their young star’s first five seasons on objectively bad rosters. Ayton’s offensive role seems to shrink in these phases of games, and the hope is a more balanced attack in and around the paint will improve their prized pivot’s abilities to close games, while taking defensive pressure off of Booker and Paul.

Beyond rebounding from their rebounding woes in Denver, Atlanta will want to keep turnovers and forced-shot volumes low versus the slow-paced, possession control-minded Suns. Better contributions from Hawks reserves (31.5 bench PPG, 3^rd-lowest in NBA; NBA-low 40.1 bench FG%) would be warmly welcomed, including hopefully the returning De’Andre Hunter (sore knee) and newcomer sixth-man Lou Williams.

Collins and Capela will want to wear down a Suns’ interior that depends on Jae Crowder, Frank Kaminsky, Cameron Johnson and Dario Saric to hold the fort, especially when Ayton (team-high 30.8 MPG; 11.0 RPG, 10^th in NBA) needs a breather. Doing so could turn Phoenix’s perimeter defenders (34.1 opponent 3FG%, 2^nd-best in NBA) into contracted helpers and freeing up the Hawks’ shooters for higher-quality looks.

This, a game previously scheduled to be played in January, is Atlanta’s NBA-high 27^th road contest. Only Boston, presently playing at home, and free-falling Tampato have played 26. Some clubs, notably Eastern 10-seed Chicago, have played as few as 19 or 20. There will continue to be wild jockeying for final Playoff and Play-In positions on this back stretch of the season, the middle of the Eastern Conference particularly looking like a Bristol dirt track. But it is of some comfort to know that many of the teams the Hawks are chasing, and the teams chasing the Hawks in turn, will be making the lion’s share of their climbs away from their home locales during the final months.

If the Hawks get refocused, provide more balanced scoring, rebound well at both ends, and at least keep the contest close through three quarters, will they have a chance of notching their 13^th road victory of the season, the most they’ve won since 2016-17, tonight?

Dare I suggest, they’ll have a puncher’s chance? Hope that raspberry was worth it, Rashan. You wore it well!

 

Let’s Go Hawks!

~lw3

[JayBirdHawk]

You wrong, you wrong @lethalweapon3. That shiner,  lolololol.

I didn't even get to the rest of your write up as yet. lolololol.

[lethalweapon3]

 "I'm told that Six-Year Anniversaries are Velcro."

~kyl3

[Dnice]

classic^

[High5]

"Make it 4 in a row! Let's get it!" 

By far the best call of Nique's career. 

Edited March 30, 2021 by High5

[lethalweapon3]

Only Sun on the 5:30 boo-boo report is swingman Abdel "Don't Call Me Ralph" Nader (out, sore knee), who is already ceding minutes to former Buck and trade acquisition Torrey Craig anyway.

For the Hawks, De'Andre Hunter (sore knee) remains questionable. Kris "Klax" Dunn and Cam Reddish remain out.

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

One late subtraction on the Suns' end of the sideline:

~lw3

[hawkzlova123]

Someone drew Kris Dunn as fan art

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

 

[terrell]

7 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

 

 

 

Welp...

[TheNorthCydeRises]

So is Trae playing?

I need to know this before tip-off, so I can decide to kill this parlay bet, and take this $85, or let it ride out for a possible $1,600 ( if Michigan and the Clippers win big + an Atlanta win ).  

[JayBirdHawk]

11 minutes ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

So is Trae playing?

I need to know this before tip-off, so I can decide to kill this parlay bet, and take this $85, or let it ride out for a possible $1,600 ( if Michigan and the Clippers win big + an Atlanta win ).  

  wait...you thought he was serious??? 

 

 

 

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[Spud2nique]

8 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

I’m a pacifist

You know dude, I myself dabbled in pacifism once. Not in Nam of course. game thread but this one had too many good quotes to...well quote. The rifleman, love it. 
 

Trae dish and score, I don’t care just be vintage Trae whatever you do and keep the turnovers down, 7 is too many. I think we can get this one. Be a team out there. Nice work lw3! Please write my biography or obituary (dark n disturbed).

Looking forward to sweet Lou and his lemon pepper wings, speaking of which also looking forward to D Hunt.

 

Hawks +210  +6  o/u 222.5

GO HAWKS! 

 

 

[Spud2nique]

4 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Torrey Craig

Crap, the generational defensive talent, get him and Al Horford on the court and they’d never lose not ever. I kid love ya Supes!

[Peoriabird]

This team suddenly can't fing rebound

[TheNorthCydeRises]

4 offensive rebounds for the Suns already.

[Dnice]

Not playing any defense tonight. 

[JayBirdHawk]

we are sleepwalking.

[TheNorthCydeRises]

1 minute ago, Dnice said:

Not playing any defense tonight. 

It's the rebounding right now.  This game is probably tied, or we have a 2 point lead, if we could've secured those defensive rebounds.

I want a big to set a screen for Trae , . and hold it long enough for him to get downhill.

Help the guy out like he's helping all of you.