Official Game Thread: Hawks at Nets Part 1

[lethalweapon3]

Happy Leap Day, Everybody!

 

We’ve got a lot of disappointed fans in attendance at NBA games over the next five days in The Empire State of the North.

The Trae Young is in New York City! Boo!

For pinkie surgery! Double-boo!

As Young heals up, his remaining Atlanta Hawks are out on a mission.

The 10-seed, relevant these days for Play-In purposes, is up for grabs. The 9-seed, and the reward of a packed-house Play-In home game for Swiss Family Ressler, too, despite the Hawks’ stumbles versus Chicago.

With victories today (7:30 PM Eastern, Bally Sports Southeast and 92.9 FM in ATL, YES Network in The BK) and on Saturday afternoon (3 PM tip!) at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, what the Hawks can sew up is a 10-seed tiebreak, should the need for it come to pass, versus a Nets team, with its replacement head coach, that is still trying to find its bearings.

I do get it, the urge to promote “Suckery for Zaccharie”, and Atlanta’s road-heavy game stretch that extends through much of next month could bear that out. Alternatively, it’s reportedly slim among the pickings after the tippy-top of the 2024 Draft to be held in this building. Perhaps there’ll be a Jalen Johnson prospect waiting in the wings if the Hawks must select at the bottom of the Lottery, or just outside of it again. Especially cool if we don’t wait for injuries to deplete the roster before playing him.

But at least Landry Fields still has “a” future pick under his team’s control to work with.

For the price of basically 8 playoff games with James Harden over the course of two series, back in 2021 (when KD’s bunion was all that kept NYC from another date with Young’s Hawks, this time in the ECF), Sean Marks has left the Nets without a first-rounder to help rebuild the roster in 2024. Or, in 2026.

2025? The Rockets, as it stands, get the right to swap, and despite their current struggles, next year’s claim looks pretty good for H-Town at the moment. Thanks to Marks dealing away Jarrett Allen in a four-team-deal, they might wind up with OKC’s pick instead. Oh, and there’s Phoenix’s pick, in 2025 and 2027, after parting ways with Durant! But, I mean, c’mon.

The Nets don’t even have “a” pick in the next Draft their venue hosts (the league’s “NBA Experiences” is selling packages to encourage out-of-towners to drown out Knicks fans at the Nets’ arena this June. Maybe make the website’s default language French?). Marks got cash for his owner, and a trade exception, in exchange for preseason rental Sekou Doumbouya, attached to their lightly protected second-round pick that is now in the claws of the Grizzlies.

Hawks fans understand, when things get muddy and the foundation is already shaky, it gets tough trying to consider rebuilding from the ground up. Broolynites are clamoring for a full excavation to scoop out the folks in charge. And, no, replacing Steve Nash’s assistant with Jacque Vaughn’s assistant won’t cut the deli mustard.

New York media is insistent, though, that Marks’ inroads with ownership is deep enough to keep him around as its chief architect for a little longer. Whatever gets constructed next, the Nets’ brain trust, like the Hawks with Trae, seek to impart upon their fanbase that Mikal Bridges (career-highs of 21.1 PPG, 4.8 RPG, 3.7 APG) will be the keystone.

The Nets and Hawks have run neck-and-neck not just in the standings this season, but on the court. Bridges’ game-winning jumper over De’Andre Hunter, for December’s 114-113 win in Atlanta, was the 43^rd lead change in the game, the most since at least 1996 when the NBA began tracking play-by-play. Young’s off-balance attempt at lead change #44 fell just on the wrong side of the rim.

Bridges avenged the double-overtime, 147-145 loss to the host Hawks from weeks prior, when Young piled up a then-season-high 43 points on a SEGABABA, with six made threes in the opening quarter and 14 points in the extra sessions. Atlanta’s victory, aided by Hunter’s fourth-quarter heroics and a key OT block of Bridges by Onyeka Okongwu, obscured Mikal’s still-season-high of 45 points.

That Marks recognized the name “MURRAY” emblazoned on the back of “BROOKLYN” jerseys would sell like bagels-and-lox throughout the borough requires no further elaboration. But neither he nor Fields could get other teams to play along in ways that might begin to replenish Atlanta’s draft coffers. Thus, Dejounte (3 straight double-doubles, 22.0 PPG and 9.7 APG in past 3 games) comes into this game and the next as Not-a-Net. He’s eager to show Brooklyn and other NBA teams what they’re missing, while also buying time until Young can return to disprove critics of the duo playing together long-term.

Brooklyn does have some fresh scouts to help figure out how to out-scheme coach Quin Snyder’s outfit. Vaughn’s replacement, Kevin Ollie had ample time to check out Hawks games, last season, when he wasn’t coaching up the Thompson Twins with Overtime Elite at Midtown Atlanta’s Atlantic Station. Trade acquisition Dennis Schröder has logged nearly 100 minutes versus Atlanta, this season, as a starter with the Raptors, although a posteriori knowledge was of little use when he struggled in Brooklyn’s 121-93 loss last Thursday in Toronto.

Ollie’s Nets managed to soundly beat what’s left of Memphis on the road on Monday for his first career NBA coaching win. But Brooklyn was drummed in the other three games of their four-game post-Break road trek, that coming off a 50-point Valentine’s Day massacre in Boston that concluded Vaughn’s tenure. The offensive, in both senses of the word, outputs of the Nets in their last five defeats – 86, 93, 86, 81 – threaten to look like Powerball options, especially if it continues back home against an Atlanta team that, sans Young but also without Okongwu, seems to be finding its defensive oats.

In home wins this week over the Magic and Jazz, Atlanta (26-32) withheld opponents to double-digit scoring in consecutive games for the first time since the close to the 2020-21 regular season. Obviously for the first time since Murray, and later Snyder, came aboard, those sub-100 tallies are also the second and third of this season for Hawk foes.

How much of that involved tired and/or mediocre opposition remains to be seen. But the Hawks, in Gotham through Tuesday, could extend this trend by committing themselves to proper defensive positioning when opposing shooters retrieve the ball off the catch, digging in to aid Clint Capela and Jalen on the defensive glass (40 team D-Rebs, to UTA’s 43 total rebounds, during Tuesday’s 124-97 win), and hustling in transition after turnovers.

Former Net Patty Mills won’t be able to contribute to the proceedings, his waiver this morning helping finally solve The Mystery of Trent Forrest. The two-way contractor was in contractual limbo but has been converted to a standard contract, and ought to be in New York to bolster the backcourt depth, behind and alongside Murray and rookie Kobe Bufkin, in time for this and the upcoming games.

Higher aspirations are a reach at the moment. But making no worse than the 10-seed a virtual certainty, by fending off a conference rival with zero reason to tank, all while Mr. Play-In himself is on the mend? These Hawks can make it there. But it’s up to them.

 

Let’s Go Hawks!

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

Cameron Johnson is back in the starting lineup, for now, after Ollie kept the forward in reserve duty for the first two games after the Break. Johnson's 4-year, ~$95 million extension deal makes Atlanta's similar deal with sixth-man extraordinaire Hunter (last 8 games: 19.0 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 54.0 FG%, 48.6 3FG%, 93.0 FT%)  look tame, especially so long as the former's shooting struggles continue (last 5 games: 8.2 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 31.7 FG%).

Ollie also had Ben Simmons (questionable, sore leg) come off the bench in Memphis, then inactivated him for the SEGABABA in Orlando. The oft-injured point-forward, who (re-?)injured a leg last Saturday in Minnesota, had been good for a triple-single in his six starts (6.5 PPG on 5.2 FGAs, 5.2 RPG, 4.5 APG) prior to returning to a sixth-man role against the Grizzlies.

Another Cam, professional bucket-getter Cam Thomas, sprained and ankle and foot in Orlando on Monday. Thomas and Dariq Whitehead (stressed shin) remain designated as Out on the Boo-Boo Report ahead of today's game.

Hawks GameNotes indicated that Atlanta's home win over Portland in 2020 raised their record to 6-2 on Leap Days. It's their first road Leap Day game since losing to coach Lenny Wilkens' Blazers in Portland back in 1976.

Also, who needs to wait to nab a French bleu-chipper in the Draft? Jalen Johnson joins Victor Wembanyama as the sole NBA'ers closing out this month averaging at least 15 points, 10 boards, 4 dimes, and 1 block per game. Ooh la la.

~lw3

[lethalweapon3]

One more notable item... congrats and second-best wishes to Jeff Peterson. The former Hawks intern-turned-assistant GM, and Marks' top lieutenant in Brooklyn, now takes the job as PBO for Rick Schnall's Hornets.

~lw3

[Spud2nique]

4 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Maybe make the website’s default language French?)

Fournier I think is the term?      
 

4 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Sekou Doumbouya

Pronounced J-A-M-A-L-O 

 

4 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Kevin Ollie

Big fan. Liked him in the league a lot too.

 

Thanks lw3. You da man  

Vegas got the Nets -1.5  o/u 221.5

2k got Hawks by 5. DJ, Bogi and Hunter all go 20 points plus. TEAM effort. Cap dominated the glass.

LETS MAKE IT THREEEEEEEEE!!!  

GO HAWKS!!!!

 

[Gray Mule]

ESPN has Nets favored by 53.4%.  Apparently, they haven't heard that Trent Forrest is back and available!

GO ATL HAWKS!!

[cam1218]

These next two games are semi big for us. I don’t see the Nets catching us, but it is a good chance to try to move up to 9. 

[lethalweapon3]

I'd say we have a leg up on the competition, but it's Ben's, so...

~lw3

[givemesome1ce1]

I’m gonna say this now…if I hear ANYONE tell me with a straight face that this team is better without Trae with how putrid this offense looks, I’m going to ignore them for the rest of my life. This looks like total garbage. We literally can’t do anything right now. 

[terrell]

Kobe looking good again..

[thecampster]

Kobe's been working on those biceps.

[terrell]

Bogi and Bey bricking.. Geez

[Hawkmoor]

I'm gonna make a serious case that the Hawks looked better under Nate McMillan.  This is a overall statement about the entire season,  both with and without Trae Young in the lineup.  This team looks horrible. No excuse for Quin and that superstaff over there having the Hawks looking like this.  I get that the team doesn't have a bunch of shooters, but they can't run plays on offense OR play defense?

 

Edited March 1 by Hawkmoor

[terrell]

Defense.. could be better but not bad.. 56 POINTS. We need Bogi to show up... 

[JayBirdHawk]

 

 

[terrell]

Play Kobe man..

 

Bogi killing us

[terrell]

Play Kobe and Dre more

[terrell]

The TANK lives.. lol

[terrell]

Bufkin damn near the only + tonight...

[givemesome1ce1]

Look how much better we are without Trae guys…look at the defense and the offense!! It’s so great! We are amazing tonight! So much better without the best point guard in hawks history!!

[hawkman]

I can only see the box score due to Bally's incompetence. I guess Brooklyn didn't get the memo that they are supposed to be tanking.