Official Game Thread: Hawks at Bulls

[lethalweapon3]

“C’mon, Atlanta fans, we need you to close this season out in style. LET’S GO HAWLWLWLWLWLWLWLWLWLWLKS!”

 

We look forward to seeing you, Chicago, at the Invitraetional! Repondez, s’il vous Trae.

The Bulls still have a teensy bit of work to do, in order to make their participation in the NBA Play-In phase official-official. But their hooves are gaining traction at just the right time.

Plus, they’ll have the opportunity to possibly make tonight’s visitors, the Atlanta Hawks (8 PM Eastern, Bally Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL, NBC Sports Chicago), swing by United Center not just once, but twice. It is likely Bulls fans have learned by now, from Knicks and Cavs fans in recent years, to just let postseason games against the visiting Hawks play out, and not to step on Trae Young’s blue suede sneakers. For their sake, let’s hope so.

Chicago (38-40) doesn’t have much else to play for, as the presence of Nikola Vucevic means this year’s first-rounder ships to Orlando, incidentally the sole team left in the NBA East with a remote chance of catching them for the last Play-In reservation, barring some Lottery anti-Magic magic. Genuine hopes of contention were formally placed on the backburner as the news regarding guard Lonzo Ball’s long-anticipated return turned sour.

There’s no certainty that the Bulls can look forward to a future with Ball at the point, nor Vucevic at center. Vooch will be among the top unrestricted free agency targets this summer, and the 32-year-old appears to be looking forward to that process rather than considering any extension offers from Arturas Karnisovas and the Bulls brass.

Thus, for Vucevic’s co-stars Zach LaVine and DeMar DeRozan, and possibly head coach Billy Donovan (who quietly and wisely signed his contract extension deal before this season began), the prime objective is to keep from thinking about a murky offseason for as long as possible. The one way to do that, and perhaps build some momentum for 2023-24, is to knock off as many Play-In teams as necessary, which will be easier to do in the Windy City (21-16 at home, despite struggles of late) than anywhere else.

To that end, they’ve brought in Laker castoff and native Chicagoan Pat Beverley to shore up their point guard and defensive needs, and Billy D has slowed game tempo to an amenable plod (NBA-low 95.5 Pace post-Break, down from 100.4). Since then, they’ve been among the league’s better teams since the All-Star Break (12-7 post-Break, tied-4^th-best in NBA East, incl. 7-3 in their past 10 games). Their +7.0 Net Rating in this stage ranks second in the league, rivaling only the Celtics, thanks to a sterling (these days) 111.1 post-Break D-Rating (4^th in NBA).

They have fared better lately on the road, notching wins last month at Denver, Philly, LA (beating Pat Bev’s most recent ex-mates), and even Charlotte. The lack of homestands and back-and-forth travel seemed to cause inconsistency in recent play back home, with losses at United Center to Phoenix, Indy, Sacramento, Philly, and the Lakers. Chicago did stop the bleeding on Sunday by whipsawing the Grizzlies, erasing a 68-53 halftime deficit by holding the Griz to 39 second-half points and prevailing, 128-107.

Bearing a better record than the Hawks in-conference (26-23 to ATL’s, surprise, 24-24), Chicago also has its sights on securing a potential Play-In seeding tiebreaker. It would be a pity, though, for the Bulls to go through all this trouble to host an elimination game, only to suffer the fallout when broody broskis with bratwurst breath decide to collectively bray “FIFTY!” (Fans Instigating “F Trae Young!”) at the wrong time.

Young (questionable for today, non-COVID illness) and the Hawks (39-surprise, 39) have satisfied themselves with the perception that they can make waves by ending the seasons of a couple flawed teams annually. More significantly, that they need not look the part of a top-seed to be in position to do so. Deceive you now, BELIEVE me later, is Atlanta’s modern-day postseason motto. It’s either that, or We Lurch!

Even with ten Hawk players locked down for next season with recently extended or otherwise guaranteed contracts, four more than the Bulls, the prospective offseason tasks for Hawks honcho Landry Fields and company to rebuild the roster around Young feels far more intriguing than the remodeling effort around LaVine.

Zach’s fellow Seattle native, Dejounte Murray, will be due for Atlanta’s next extension, less likely than DeRozan to conclude 2023-24 with an expiring contract. The sole Bull frontline player under contract for next season is third-year pro Patrick Williams, who struggles for long stretches to help his team with rebounds. What Landry, or coach Quin Snyder, will do with the likes of Onyeka Okongwu, A.J. Griffin, Saddiq Bey and Jalen Johnson are far more interesting growth curves to track than the situations with Williams, Derrick Jones (subject to a player option) and the underutilized rookie Dalen Terry.

However the approach, the aim to refurbish the Hawks under Snyder’s watch will more closely resemble Memphis, where role players are expected to make open shots and improve the team defense to complement the stars, rather than Billy D’s Chicago, where the veteran stars like Vooch and LaVine (10^th in Defensive RPM among SGs; Murray ranks 2^nd) are expected to make the leaps defensively, via development, and diversify shot profiles to offset their role players’ varied shortcomings.

Be it at 8, 9, or 10, the Hawks are confident they will figure something out versus teams like the Bulls when they finally have to, no matter the venue. That is even if it doesn’t come together tonight, given as many as two starters out (De’Andre Hunter remains sidelined with a bruised knee bone and muscle strain), and the struggle for Atlanta to reach triple digits, possibly without Young and against a grinding Chicago defense, as arduous as it will be to hold the Bulls below the same.

The greater goal for Atlanta is to nurture the talent to complement the league’s leading dime-dropper, and to use the talents they have to acquire the complements they need, such that the Hawks aren’t constantly striving to enter the NBA’s grandest stage from the back door. There’s no need for this upcoming mini-tourney to become some cherished, time-honored Traedition.

 

Happy 404 Day. Let’s Go Hawks!

~lwlwlwlwlwlwlw3

[lethalweapon3]

Like J-Kidd the other day, Billy D likely sees the Hawks game as the more winnable of their back-to-back set. They swing by Milwaukee tomorrow, in time for a Bucks team trying to sew up homecourt in the East, while the Hawks return to see what the now-eliminated Wizards will concoct.

Both Alex Caruso (sore midfoot) and Javonte Green (knee surgery recovery) are listed as Probable and likely to participate today.

As De'Andre (knee bruise / muscle strain) remains Out, no changes as of this morning to Trae's Questionable (non-COVID illness) designation.

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

Being Ice Trae (non-COVID ill-na-na) in 40 degree temps on a stormy April day in Illinois is overrated.

~lw3

[akay]

Need a Dejounte Murray masterclass tonight - DJM on, AJ and Bogi hitting some shots, Clint getting his usual 15/15, John hits at least 2 3's - EASY W 

[givemesome1ce1]

If Trae played while sick and played like garbage, everybody would have trashed him. If Trae didn’t play and just rest to get better, people just think he’s a quitter. Trae just can’t win lol. The whole team just needs to step up. Dejounte just needs to have his best game as a Hawk ever. Aaron Holiday needs to be a great backup PG..Saddiq Bey needs to be great. Onyeka and Capela needs to dominate so does JC. Anything is possible. Let’s get this 8th seed hawks.

[JayBirdHawk]

We need the 'others' to step up.

[Spud2nique]

3 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Pat Beverley

Sit Trae out. This dude is a maniac. Lol. Health first.

 

3 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Fans Instigating “F Trae Young!”)

 Rent free!

 

3 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Young (questionable for today, non-COVID illness)

Oh good, ya it’s called maniacal pest. 

 

3 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Happy 404 Day. Let’s Go Hawks!

You da man @lethalweapon3 thank you!

Hawks by 26! The defense was fierce @LongTimeFan I got right up in their collective grills! Let’s do this! Actually.. let’s do it before the year is over We are doomed for .500 anyways. STAY HEALTHY!

 

GO HAWKS!!!

1 hour ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Being Ice Trae (non-COVID ill-na-na) in 40 degree temps on a stormy April day in Illinois is overrated.

~lw3

I’m ok with this.

[Guest]

With a loss we will be in a tie with the Bulls for ninth/tenth, assuming Toronto beats the Hornets tonight.  
I don't know if we own the tiebreaker.  It would be a shame to have to open the first play-in game on the road, and then have to win and play another one on the road.

[shakes]

1 hour ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Being Ice Trae (non-COVID ill-na-na) in 40 degree temps on a stormy April day in Illinois is overrated.

~lw3

 

just got hit with ping pong ball sized hail for about 10 minutes.  Can't wait to see what my car looks like when I leave work in a couple hours.

[Guest]

9 minutes ago, shakes said:

 

just got hit with ping pong ball sized hail for about 10 minutes.  Can't wait to see what my car looks like when I leave work in a couple hours.

I was out driving in it and thought of you living down the road from me.  No damage to my car luckily.

[TheNorthCydeRises]

1 hour ago, JayBirdHawk said:

We need the 'others' to step up.

 

 

[Spud2nique]

44 minutes ago, JayBirdHawk said:

We need the 'others' to step up.

I’m gonna say it’s a Griff game. He’s gonna go doggy fizzle 

[Spud2nique]

18 minutes ago, shakes said:

 

just got hit with ping pong ball sized hail for about 10 minutes.  Can't wait to see what my car looks like when I leave work in a couple hours.

Karma from Mother Earth   

[shakes]

58 minutes ago, Spud2nique said:

Karma from Mother Earth   

lol, yes I'm sure karma is really upset at me for ripping on this crappy Hawks team all year.

[macdaddy]

Just now, shakes said:

lol, yes I'm sure karma is really upset at me for ripping on this crappy Hawks team all year.

agreed

[shakes]

Just now, macdaddy said:

agreed

list of people the hail storm targeted this afternoon:

Murderers

Rapists

pedophiles

People who say Trae Young played like dog crap this year

[macdaddy]

11 minutes ago, shakes said:

list of people the hail storm targeted this afternoon:

Murderers

Rapists

pedophiles

People who say Trae Young played like dog crap this year

hey i don't make the rules. 

[AHF]

1 hour ago, TheNorthCydeRises said:

 

 

Underrated movie.

[JayBirdHawk]

4 hours ago, givemesome1ce1 said:

If Trae played while sick and played like garbage, everybody would have trashed him. If Trae didn’t play and just rest to get better, people just think he’s a quitter. Trae just can’t win lol.

Yep.

 

can't have him infecting the rest of the team either.

[cam1218]

3 hours ago, LongTimeFan said:

With a loss we will be in a tie with the Bulls for ninth/tenth, assuming Toronto beats the Hornets tonight.  
I don't know if we own the tiebreaker.  It would be a shame to have to open the first play-in game on the road, and then have to win and play another one on the road.

A shame, but one brought on by ourselves honestly.