Atlanta Hawks thread - Your Eastern Conference leaders

[PHX]

Since my team wiped the floor clean with your players breaking any kind of bitvh reputation we once had and seem to have buried you into a rutt you are only just clawing out of, I'm here to deliver some better news for you Atlanta fans. . . .

TENHD Mon. 3/30/2009 6:30 AM L.A. Lakers @ Atlanta

 

[dont bowl there]

Thanks for that PHX! 4.30am is a bit early for me to worry about but I read that tenHD will be replaying the NBA games at night so will make sure to watch it then.

Big game today, play Chicago away without Horford and Marvin. Need Zaza to have a big game on the boards and Smith to keep driving the lane.

 

[Rowie09]

This thread needs a kick in the guts!

Hawkers go to 4-1 after a solid victory over the Kings. Completes a successful 3 game road trip in the west, including a very juicy victory over the Blazers. Only blight was a narrow loss to the Lakers.

J-Crawf seems to be fititng in nicely. Expecting big things from the boys this year, especially Al Horford who got off to an awesome start.

 

[The Doctor 23]

go you mighty hawks. loving the additions of jamal crawford and joe smith. great road wins in back to back nights, bring on the bobcats saturday to finish off the road trip. southeast division is easily the most competitive division in the east with magic, heat & wizards all in for a good season too

 

[dont bowl there]

Good thread bump, they have had another very good start to the season. Denver at home should be a very entertaining game of basketball.

I will be seeing my first live Hawks game later this year. Going to the Cavs v Hawks game on April 2nd, hoping at this stage to shell out a bit over $250 and get tickets right behind the Hawks bench. Awesome.

 

[sblack]

go you mighty hawks. loving the additions of jamal crawford and joe smith. great road wins in back to back nights, bring on the bobcats saturday to finish off the road trip. southeast division is easily the most competitive division in the east with magic, heat & wizards all in for a good season too

I wouldn't say the SE is that competitive. Orlando is 10 wins ahead of Miami, and Washington won't get the playoffs.

The East divisions are competitive for the 2/3rd spots. All the divisions have their heavyweights in Cavs, Orlando and Boston, and then it is a fight for 2nd.

 

[hamG]

Good start except for getting flogged by the Lakers. 8 point margin isn't exactly an accurate summation of the game

Looking forward to my DVDs arriving, I think Woodson added a second offensive plan to his playbook. Not only Iso-Joe, we are using Smoove as a sort of point forward / paint passer running the ball through him.

 

[The Doctor 23]

did someone say league best record?
great win today to go 2-0 over portland, loving j-smoove's season, and the bench players. carn hawks keep it up

 

[celtic_pride]

As a Celtics fan, well played for the win over us at the New Garden several days ago ...

The Hawks are the real deal and although he's a flog, John Hollinger agrees with me.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/dailydime?page=dime-091118

ATLANTA -- "Well, they're athletic."

It happened before every game -- the go-to, garden-variety backhanded compliment that every opposing coach used in the pregame media session when they were trying to say nice things about the Hawks. Left unsaid were things like, "They know how to play," "They have a lot of smart veterans," "They play hard every night" and "There's no obvious place to attack them."

That was the old days, when the Hawks were a lottery team destined to become another speed bump for whatever quality opponent was visiting -- provided the opponent didn't stay out too late in Buckhead the night before. Sure, the Hawks had athleticism, but for good teams, that wouldn't matter if they took the event seriously.

That sentiment faded during last year's 47-win campaign, and a dozen games into the 2009-10 season, everything's been turned on its head. We saw it yet again in the Hawks' 105-90 win over Miami on Wednesday. They sit atop both the computer and human Power Rankings on ESPN.com, and more importantly they're on top in the standings too -- tied with Phoenix for the NBA's best record at 10-2.

We're a long way from answering whether they're actually the East's best team, but we're even further away from the "well, they're athletic" days. The effort on Wednesday night, when the Hawks ran away and hid with a 28-8 second quarter run before coasting to victory, provided further evidence.

Knowing how to play? Check -- even their most suspect performer in this department, Josh Smith, has amazed observers with his shot selection in the early going. Atlanta committed only eight turnovers against a ball-hawking Heat team, and the most cynical Hawk-basher could point to only one or two shots that might have been ill-chosen.

Lots of smart veterans? Check -- adding Joe Smith and Jamal Crawford in the offseason to join the likes of Mike Bibby, Maurice Evans and Zaza Pachulia put the Hawks ahead of the curve in this department. "Guys have figured out that when we play defense at a high level we're tough to beat," said Marvin Williams, who in his fifth season is pretty close to earning a V for veteran himself.

Playing hard every night? Check -- in fact this is probably the area where Mike Woodson's impact has been greatest over the past half decade. Atlanta's lone truly disappointing effort came in Charlotte and was as much a defeat to the schedule-makers (who bypassed consultation with Rand McNally and chose to send them straight from Sacramento to Charlotte) as to the Bobcats. Otherwise they've been spirited on the road (4-2) and invincible at Philips Arena.

No place to attack them? Check -- you can ask Dwyane Wade about that one. He once again struggled to penetrate against the Hawks' defense and suffered from the absence of his usual steady diet of free throws, not to mention the absence of a reliable second scoring threat. The Heat's star mustered only two free-throw attempts en route to a 6-for-18 night that was reminiscent of the 2009 playoffs, when the stout Hawks defense forced him to try more than seven 3-pointers a game.

"Atlanta forces me to be more of a jump shooter," said Wade. "They did a good job of forcing me out of the paint. You have to be smart when you play them, because they are a very athletic team and they will meet you at the rim."

These days, opponent's comments about Atlanta's athleticism emerge in a very different light. No longer is it a throwaway compliment -- it's now a warning. Like, you better not screw up, because they'll make you pay every time.

"Against an athletic team like this," said Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, "you have to really keep your turnovers down. Otherwise they will capitalize on it. They have long athletic defenders that do a good job of defending the paint. We just need to be sharper."

It's not a token plaudit -- it's a reality. Teams have trouble scoring against the length and mobility of Smith and Al Horford, who began the game first and 11th, respectively, in shot-blocking but are quick enough to pick up the likes of Wade on perimeter switches.

Opponents also give up size every night to Atlanta's wings (6-9 Williams and 6-7 Joe Johnson), making for difficult matchups. On Wednesday night, it was Wade who lamented having to give up inches and pounds against Johnson (a game-high 30 points), especially once Quentin Richardson checked out with a lower back strain.

Meanwhile, the Hawks' athleticism has been turbocharged by the fact that they finally figured out how to use it. As a result, plays like Bibby's one-motion scoop off the floor and alley-oop to Smith were the crowning highlight of a monstrous 28-8 second-quarter run, rather than the lone thrilling moment in a disappointing defeat.

Moments of goofiness like Smith's between-the-legs dunk tries -- sorry, that memory races back when these two teams meet in Philips -- have been expunged from the arsenal, as well. Instead Smith dunked pretty much every other way en route to a commanding 16-point, 14-rebound, seven-assist, two-steal, two-block performance.

And at times, the combo of skill, savvy and athleticism can be terrifying. Early in the third quarter, for example, center Al Horford ripped down a rebound, pushed it upcourt to the opposing 3-point line himself and fired a perfect transition bounce pass to Johnson for a layup. Name me another center who can both average double-figure rebounds and lead his own breaks.

It's a long season, of course, and we don't know yet how the Hawks will cope when the inevitable run of injuries and shooting slumps hits. But know this: They're athletic. And now, they're so much more.

BF and NBA fans mostly underrate Atlanta but I don't ... As a Boston fan, I really really don't want to play you guys in the playoffs ...
But best of luck for the rest of the season Hawks fans, , and if we don't win the East, I sincerely hope Atlanta does (I hate the Caves and Whorelando lol)

 

[Peter Sidorkiewicz]

Spoiler: Squawk

1st in the East!

 

[DEVO]

My wife is quite excited at the moment, she believes this is the best Hawks line up since the Bob Petit days in St. Louis. Not that she is old enough to remember that era. Personally I think they had a fairly decent team during the Wilkins/Fratello era, but just couldn't get past the Celtics or Pistons.

With Lakers gone for the season (and perhaps decade) I hope the Hawks have a successful season.

 

[Deathray]

I prefer to call it the Wilkins/Willis/Fratello era.

 

[coldy8]

10 in a row, can't help but be impressed by this team right now

 

[DEVO]

No Superstars, just playing the best team basketball in the NBA. It will be interesting to see how the team reacts later in the season if they are still atop of the East. Will they believe they can go all the way? And will they be able to take their game up another level in the playoffs?

 

[coldy8]

i think the team knows where it is at, they are playoff experienced and think with the way the team plays will take them far.

 

[coldy8]

thought the raptors had the wood on my hawks, not anymore, horford is starting to believe in himself again. carroll is a great sf, knows when to shoot, when to pass and always shows great hustle.

 

[Brumbies]

Go the Hawks!!!!

 

[DEVO]

4 games in 5 days on the road and they win them all, the last two against fellow contenders. Playing wonderful Basketball at the moment and should be the favourites in the East. No one scares them.

The two games against GSW in Feb/Mar should be very interesting games if both teams can continue with their current form.

 

[dont bowl there]

I keep expecting the loss to come, as Devo said 4 games in 5 days with all 4 on games on the road is extremely hard no matter the team or the opponents. Back to back against what will probably be the 2 and 3 seed in the East resulting in two very comfortable wins shows how far above anyone else they are right now. Does help that the Bulls confused Korver for Thabo.

 

[dont bowl there]

Also Teague, Millsap and Horford should all be all-stars this year, unfortunately we will be lucky to have 2/3 in there.

 

[coldy8]

another one bites the dust, bulls challenged albeit with no Noah but come up short, i indeed look forward to the gsw matchups. a win over the spurs would also make my day but must wait till march as well. bring on the pistons again.

 

[coldy8]

Mike scott steps up after an average game from most starters, that's why i love these hawks, keep passing, give up a good shot to get a great shot.

 

[DEVO]

1 win away from equaling the Franchises longest winning streak. There next 6 games are at home against Indiana, Oklahoma City, Minnesota, Brooklyn, Portland and Philly. A genuine chance of beating their record.

 

[DaveyBoy123]

No Superstars, just playing the best team basketball in the NBA. It will be interesting to see how the team reacts later in the season if they are still atop of the East. Will they believe they can go all the way? And will they be able to take their game up another level in the playoffs?

Heard one commentator on the weekend calling them "the Spurs of the East". I think that's an apt description. Fly under the radar for as long as possible & the #1 seed in the East should be there for the taking. Not that there's really much competition for it! (Sorry, couldn't help but throw that in).

 

[coldy8]

14 wins in a row equalling franchise record. Okc awaits, never thought this might be one of the games of season at season start, but here we are. okc healthy, atlanta at home, record on the line, okc fighting for spot in west playoffs after all their injuries. big game, cant wait. #what are we made of hawks