NOW moving on to Philly, I see Philly fans already moving to the ECF like Knicks fans to the 2nd round (UPDATED)

[NBASupes]

This is something I saw all week leading to ATL v. NY was them already looking forward to their division rivals Philly skipping us as if we are scrubs, acting as if Trae Young is nothing and moving on as a team. 

 

Lloydfree, former Realgm sixer mod is talking about Washington doesn't prepare them for the Nets or Bucks. Wow! It's like the disrespect is nonstop and it's not like the Sixers are exactly good against us and Trae. Over the years, they tend to get beat by us. This year, we played them either heavily hurt or they had COVID so our matchups this year wasn't telling but we matchup better against them than we did the Knicks. The Knicks athleticism and toughness gives us some headaches.

Philly is finesse like us. On top of that. They always have players we can hide Trae on. They love Thybulle but all that happens is he gets in foul trouble playing Trae overaggressive and he's Thabo like. Remember when we played the Cavs, we put Thabo on a Bron. Only thing that happened was Bron rested on Thabo and went crazy on us on offense. 

Not saying Philly don't have the best player in the series, they do with Embiid. Capela can guard him, our issue is center depth and if Clint is in foul trouble. 

Ben Simmons is food. Hunter will put him on an island. Simmons gives Trae issues, we gotta get him in screens with Capela at all times.

Philly gives us some issues but we give Philly more issues than they give us. 

[thecampster]

19 minutes ago, NBASupes said:

This is something I saw all week leading to ATL v. NY was them already looking forward to their division rivals Philly skipping us as if we are scrubs, acting as if Trae Young is nothing and moving on as a team. 

 

Lloydfree, former Realgm sixer mod is talking about Washington doesn't prepare them for the Nets or Bucks. Wow! It's like the disrespect is nonstop and it's not like the Sixers are exactly good against us and Trae. Over the years, they tend to get beat by us. This year, we played them either heavily hurt or they had COVID so our matchups this year wasn't telling but we matchup better against them than we did the Knicks. The Knicks athleticism and toughness gives us some headaches.

Philly is finesse like us. On top of that. They always have players we can hide Trae on. They love Tybyulle but all that happens is he gets in foul trouble playing Trae overaggressive and he's Thabo like. Remember when we played the Cavs, we put Thabo on a Bron. Only thing that happened was Bron rested on Thabo and went crazy on us on offense. 

Not saying Philly don't have the best player in the series, they do with Embiid. Capela can guard him, our issue is center depth and if Clint is in foul trouble. 

Ben Simmons is food. Hunter will put him on an island. Simmons gives Trae issues, we gotta get him in screens with Capela at all times.

Philly gives us some issues but we give Philly more issues than they give us. 

I'll play this round. 

 

Guards - Trae/Bogi vs Curry/Simmons - I see this as a push and will change game to game. Simmons from a defensive perspective will give us problems. His ability to pass over the defender isn't helped by Trae being 6'1. But these 2 will have their hands full chasing the Hawks guards behind screens all day.

SF - Hunter/Collins vs Harris/Green - I see this is a slight edge for the Hawks. We have a definite athletic advantage here with Philly's forwards getting a professionalism/experience boost.

C - Capela vs Embiid.  - Obvious Embiid advantage here, but Capela is a good matchup to Embiid. You can't stop Embiid but you can slow him. Capela does a good job of negating Embiid getting to his spots and acting as a facilitator but Embiid is Embiid. You won't stop him completely.

 

Hawks bench vs Philly - Say what you want about Howard but off the bench and paired with Thybulle he is scary good. Those 2 are a very good off the bench duo and really strengthens their bench defense.  Gallo, Kevin, LouWill is a great trio off the bench but the series may hinge on how OO plays against Howard. I'm not sure how he competes. I can't believe I'm saying this but I think Bruno gets some run this series. He does much better against slower, bruising center types. He might be a better matchup vs Howard. Hawks are better offensively off the bench but the 76er's are better defensively and that could cause us problems.

Coaching - McMillen vs Rivers.  So there are a few things from Nate I'd like to see better but he is a master motivator and believes in his players. McMillen elevates his players.  Rivers is not the greatest at making adjustments, but is great at working the refs, working timeouts. His greatest strengths come from the respect he garners from players, officials and the league. I believe McMillen is the better coach and better at X's, O's adjustments but Rivers pulls the respect factor and that's bigger than most fans realize.  I give the edge to McMillen here but only slightly.

Rest - The Hawks really need to win game 5 to get some rest. The 76ers should close things out today and they'll get 3 rest days the Hawks won't get.  We'll need to be 100% going into that series.

I'd call the series a push with a slight edge to Philly but not a foregone conclusion. It is winnable. We have better shooting and younger legs. The question is going to be one of health and resiliency. I do see the series going 7.

 

One last thought.  If I'm McMillen, I'm planting the seed (even at a cost of $25k more) that Philly packs the lane. Both Embiid and Howard could be called for a 3 second call every other trip up the floor.  This is one of the reason's their defense is so good against penetration. Nate needs to whisper this a few times in the press conference to try and get some national play. Biggest thing he could do to help his team.

[JayBirdHawk]

I have nothing to add until Game 5 vs the Knicks is over and we are moving on to Round 2 

[NBASupes]

26 minutes ago, thecampster said:

I'll play this round. 

 

Guards - Trae/Bogi vs Curry/Simmons - I see this as a push and will change game to game. Simmons from a defensive perspective will give us problems. His ability to pass over the defender isn't helped by Trae being 6'1. But these 2 will have their hands full chasing the Hawks guards behind screens all day.

SF - Hunter/Collins vs Harris/Green - I see this is a slight edge for the Hawks. We have a definite athletic advantage here with Philly's forwards getting a professionalism/experience boost.

C - Capela vs Embiid.  - Obvious Embiid advantage here, but Capela is a good matchup to Embiid. You can't stop Embiid but you can slow him. Capela does a good job of negating Embiid getting to his spots and acting as a facilitator but Embiid is Embiid. You won't stop him completely.

 

Hawks bench vs Philly - Say what you want about Howard but off the bench and paired with Thybulle he is scary good. Those 2 are a very good off the bench duo and really strengthens their bench defense.  Gallo, Kevin, LouWill is a great trio off the bench but the series may hinge on how OO plays against Howard. I'm not sure how he competes. I can't believe I'm saying this but I think Bruno gets some run this series. He does much better against slower, bruising center types. He might be a better matchup vs Howard. Hawks are better offensively off the bench but the 76er's are better defensively and that could cause us problems.

Coaching - McMillen vs Rivers.  So there are a few things from Nate I'd like to see better but he is a master motivator and believes in his players. McMillen elevates his players.  Rivers is not the greatest at making adjustments, but is great at working the refs, working timeouts. His greatest strengths come from the respect he garners from players, officials and the league. I believe McMillen is the better coach and better at X's, O's adjustments but Rivers pulls the respect factor and that's bigger than most fans realize.  I give the edge to McMillen here but only slightly.

Rest - The Hawks really need to win game 5 to get some rest. The 76ers should close things out today and they'll get 3 rest days the Hawks won't get.  We'll need to be 100% going into that series.

I'd call the series a push with a slight edge to Philly but not a foregone conclusion. It is winnable. We have better shooting and younger legs. The question is going to be one of health and resiliency. I do see the series going 7.

 

One last thought.  If I'm McMillen, I'm planting the seed (even at a cost of $25k more) that Philly packs the lane. Both Embiid and Howard could be called for a 3 second call every other trip up the floor.  This is one of the reason's their defense is so good against penetration. Nate needs to whisper this a few times in the press conference to try and get some national play. Biggest thing he could do to help his team.

Trae is never going to guard Simmons and he never does. He always guards Danny Green. Simmons can try to guard Trae but a screen or double screen will quickly follow 

 

Defense 

Simmons - Hunter

Green - Trae

Curry - Bogi

Harris - Collins

Embiid - Capela

Edited May 31, 2021 by NBASupes

[JeffS17]

Not touching this, we're not in the second round yet.  Up 3-1 does not equal 4-1.

[sturt]

So, as I understand the broader topic, it's about how similar many PHI and NYK fans are in their pretentiousness... as counterintuitive as that might be (*wink*)...

And to the more precise point, that, in the event that we close this out, or the Knicks completely turn this series upside down and ride a wave of momentum not often seen, either way, those same PHI fans are setting themselves up for a significant dose of reality...

And to the still more precise point, us Hawks fans can feel some confidence in rightfully feeling better grounded than so many of these people.

At least, that's my interpretation.

[marco102]

I'm not getting too into the talking points until we beat the Knicks.  I will say Dwight Howard and his rebounding scares the hell out of me on their second unit. 

[Spud2nique]

Game 5 is my focus as well. Let’s finish strong. 3 games doesn’t equal a series win. I’m an Atlanta fan I’ve been screwed too many times before.

[thecampster]

21 minutes ago, sturt said:

So, as I understand the broader topic, it's about how similar many PHI and NYK fans are in their pretentiousness... as counterintuitive as that might be (*wink*)...

And to the more precise point, that, in the event that we close this out, or the Knicks completely turn this series upside down and ride a wave of momentum not often seen, either way, those same PHI fans are setting themselves up for a significant dose of reality...

And to the still more precise point, us Hawks fans can fee some confidence in rightfully feeling better grounded than so many of these people.

At least, that's my interpretation.

I've said this before. Members of this board are light years ahead of the typical fan when it comes to understanding the nuances of the game and the game behind the game.

[timebomb]

3 hours ago, NBASupes said:

This is something I saw all week leading to ATL v. NY was them already looking forward to their division rivals Philly skipping us as if we are scrubs, acting as if Trae Young is nothing and moving on as a team. 

 

Lloydfree, former Realgm sixer mod is talking about Washington doesn't prepare them for the Nets or Bucks. Wow! It's like the disrespect is nonstop and it's not like the Sixers are exactly good against us and Trae. Over the years, they tend to get beat by us. This year, we played them either heavily hurt or they had COVID so our matchups this year wasn't telling but we matchup better against them than we did the Knicks. The Knicks athleticism and toughness gives us some headaches.

Philly is finesse like us. On top of that. They always have players we can hide Trae on. They love Tybyulle but all that happens is he gets in foul trouble playing Trae overaggressive and he's Thabo like. Remember when we played the Cavs, we put Thabo on a Bron. Only thing that happened was Bron rested on Thabo and went crazy on us on offense. 

Not saying Philly don't have the best player in the series, they do with Embiid. Capela can guard him, our issue is center depth and if Clint is in foul trouble. 

Ben Simmons is food. Hunter will put him on an island. Simmons gives Trae issues, we gotta get him in screens with Capela at all times.

Philly gives us some issues but we give Philly more issues than they give us. 

In head to head games Trae averaged 27 4 and 9 assist to Simmons 20 9 and 8. And Trae has a 4-3 record against Ben. Trae will eat Simmons lunch.

Edited May 31, 2021 by timebomb

[NBASupes]

25 minutes ago, marco102 said:

I'm not getting too into the talking points until we beat the Knicks.  I will say Dwight Howard and his rebounding scares the hell out of me on their second unit. 

He's the worst player I've ever seen defending the PnR. We know how to get him off the court.

Lou Williams is critical for this series. As is Tony Snell if we get to the 2nd round 

Edited May 31, 2021 by NBASupes

[Dejay]

I have nothing on them playing the Sixers while the Knicks are still on the schedule. Priorities, people...

[benhillboy]

I understand the pause but it’s fun to look forward.  I predicted a 4-2 series win so I got a game to totally discount the Knicks, a roster I never respected as they’ve proved to be a sweet matchup for the Hawks. If we lose this next one I’ll shut up about the Sixers.

Question: do the Hawks pull a Larry Drew versus Prime Dwight move?  I don’t want Capela struggling with foul trouble in addition to being unable to match Embiids scoring.  Just let that man drop 40-50 a game while singling him up with the Bruno’s and OOs and Knights.  The spots where they double him should be well-timed, he’s far better than Randle in that regard.  The rest of their squad is capable of another 50-55 points maybe.  I’ll take my chances with the Hawks getting to 100 first and eventually winning with the way we’ve been defending lately. That’s 18 Embiid triple threat possessions where the possibilities are:

1. a missed shot and defensive rebound 

2. hard foul leading to at least a point 

3. Pass out to a well-defended player 

4. Best case scenario drawing an offensive foul 

5. Getting scored on

Doc is going to be thinking outside the box when it comes to defending Trae, a Top 2 MVP candidate who’s big as a tool shed deserves the same respect.  Make our young Bigs run him off the three point line because Clint ain’t about that life lol.  His touch from there becomes softer with each FT he makes so we gotta pick the poison.  We simply can’t let him get his within the flow of their normal offense with Harris and Simmons attacking the rim and Green and Curry getting open looks.  Let’s test his supposed improved stamina and conditioning in a series where everyone knows what’s happening strategy-wise after Game 2.

 

Edited May 31, 2021 by benhillboy

[benhillboy]

11 minutes ago, NBASupes said:

He's the worst player I've ever seen defending the PnR. We know how to get him off the court.

Lou Williams is critical for this series. As is Tony Snell if we get to the 2nd round 

I always thought Dwight was pretty ass (nothing but hops and shoulders), his communication and synergy on defense being the main reason.  But Embiid and Simmons are so good defending PNR it kinda evens out for them as a team.  It’ll be interesting to see if we can connect on more lobs than we did early in the Knicks series.

Edited May 31, 2021 by benhillboy

[timebomb]

3 minutes ago, benhillboy said:

I understand the pause but it’s fun to look forward.  I predicted a 4-2 series win so I got a game to totally discount the Knicks.  If we lose this next one I’ll shut up about the Sixers.

Question: do the Hawks pull a Larry Drew versus Prime Dwight move?  I don’t want Capela struggling with foul trouble in addition to being unable to match Embiids scoring.  Just let that man drop 40-50 a game while singling him up with the Bruno’s and OOs and Knights.  The spots where they double him should be well-timed, he’s far better than Randle in that regard.  The rest of their squad is capable of another 50-55 points maybe.  I’ll take my chances with the Hawks getting to 100 first and eventually winning with the way we’ve been defending lately. That’s 18 Embiid triple threat possessions where the possibilities are:

1. a missed shot and defensive rebound 

2. hard foul leading to at least a point 

3. Pass out to a well-defended player 

4. Best case scenario drawing an offensive foul 

5. Getting scored on

Doc is going to be thinking outside the box when it comes to defending Trae, a Top 2 MVP candidate who’s big as a tool shed deserves the same respect.  Make our young Bigs run him off the three point line because Clint ain’t about that life lol.  His touch from there becomes softer with each FT he makes so we gotta pick the poison.  We simply can’t let him get his within the flow of their normal offense with Harris and Simmons attacking the rim and Green and Curry getting open looks.  Let’s test his supposed improved stamina and conditioning in a series where everyone knows what’s happening strategy-wise after Game 2.

 

Embiid is a problem period I think Clint will definitely be in foul trouble if we don’t attack Embiid and make him work defensively. Look they got everything inside and out. But kinda so do we. It’s an interesting matchup and honestly I think Philadelphia is better top to bottom than Milwaukee and the Nets. If Clint and whoever else can hold Embiid to 25 a game we can beat the Sixers.

[NBASupes]

18 minutes ago, benhillboy said:

I always thought Dwight was pretty ass (nothing but hops and shoulders), his communication and synergy on defense being the main reason.  But Embiid and Simmons are so good defending PNR it kinda evens out for them as a team.  It’ll be interesting to see if we can connect on more lobs than we did early in the Knicks series.

The Sixers are one of the worst PnR defensive teams teams, Embiid is one of the biggest reasons why. The Knicks are actually one of the best. 

[AHF]

2 hours ago, Spud2nique said:

Game 5 is my focus as well. Let’s finish strong. 3 games doesn’t equal a series win. I’m an Atlanta fan I’ve been screwed too many times before.

Yes.  This.

Take nothing for granted.  I'll turn to the second round once we are in the second round.

[marco102]

 

[NBASupes]

There are two teams we matchup poorly against. 

Utah and Milwaukee, especially Milwaukee. We need Cam against Utah and he gets backdoored to death.

Milwaukee is just a tough matchup due to Jrue and Giannis.

Edited May 31, 2021 by NBASupes

[HawkingAwesome]

Not to be that fan but eff it, the hawks match up well with all the east things get dicey whit them when they meet brkln in the ecf.