Last game: Jan 20, Atlanta Hawks 108 – Sacramento Kings 97
Next game: vs. Charlotte Bobcats, Jan 22 7:30pm ET

The Hawks are a balanced team, Jamal Crawford and Marvin Williams need to start making more shots. The Hawks are missing something and according to Joe Johnson, its toughness, as he called his team “too soft” after its only loss of the season. Al Horford and Josh Smith need to improve scoring in the post for the Hawks to continue to grow.

The Hawks are off to a great start, Jamal Crawford is providing a big time scoring punch off the bench and should finally be on a playoff team for the first time in his career. The Hawks do need another big if they want to be a legit contender and i would look to move Marvin Williams to acquire one. Marvin can’t be traded until mid december but here are few ideas for the Hawks.

Trade idea 1 – Hawks trade Marvin Williams and Jason Collins to the Clippers for Marcus Camby

Trade idea 2 – Hawks trade Marvin Williams and Jason Collins to the Jazz for Mehmet Okur

Trade idea 3 – Hawks trade Marvin Williams and Maurice Evans to the Bobcats for Tyson Chandler

The additions of Jamal Crawford and Jeff Teague gives the Hawks a deeper back court. The Hawks lack size, but are a pretty good defensive team because of their quickness and athleticism. Josh Smith has all star potential, if he plays within himself, shoots too many outside jumpers and must improve his handles. Marvin Williams has shown progress every season in his career thus far and if he can take his game to the next level, the Hawks can be dangerous. Jamal Crawford can plain score the basketball, it will be intersting to see how he does in the 6th man role and how hungry he will be since hes never played in a playoff game.

Key Additions: Jamal Crawford, Joe Smith, Jeff Teague

Key Subtractions: Solomon Jones, Speedy Claxton, Acie Law, Ronald Murray

Projected Starting Lineup: Mike Bibby/ Joe Johnson/ Marvin Williams/ Josh Smith/ Al Horford

Key Reserves: Jamal Crawford, Jeff Teague, Zaza Pachulia, Joe Smith, Maurice Evans

-Bennice

Make it seven wins in a row for the Atlanta Hawks after Friday night’s squeaker past the Houston Rockets at Philips Arena, pushing them to the NBA’s best record at 11-2 overall.

The 105-103 win wouldn’t have been possible without the left hand of Josh Smith, though.

Following two free throws from the Rockets’ Carl Landry to tie the game at 103 with just five seconds left in the game, head coach Mike Woodson called a 20-second timeout to draw up a play.

It looked like Woodson had called a play that put the ball in the hands of the Hawks’ go-to-guy, Joe Johnson. However, Houston was ready for the ball to go to Johnson and quickly doubled him.

The double on Johnson left Mike Bibby open for a pretty good look just inside the three-point line at the top of the key. His shot didn’t fall, but it went straight up off the rim, leaving a great opportunity for a tip-in on an Atlanta rebound.

Luckily for the Hawks, there weren’t many red jerseys in position for a rebound while Al Horford and Smith were right there.

It’d be smith who would reach up with that golden left hand of his and finish off coach Woodson’s play. He left just one second on the clock for Houston to try and pull off a miracle shot. But Shane Battier’s full-court heave was intercepted by Johnson and the arena erupted right on cue.

I felt lucky to be there and to have seen such a great team muscle out a win. I was in the last row directly behind the hoop by the Headlines Bar, but the electricity of the moment permeated the whole building.

At first, I was jealous of all those who had been at Philips Arena on Wednesday to watch the Hawks dismantle the Miami Heat. But, after being there last night, I knew that I had just witnessed Atlanta’s best game of the season.

I have never heard a Hawks crowd like the one I heard last night. The fans were up on their feet and cheering the team on after every basket, every blocked shot, every rebound, and every three-pointer nailed. It was a beautiful sight—not just for a basketball fan, but for anyone that loves sports.

It was a total team effort. The Hawks had four players in double-figures, with Marvin Williams leading the team in scoring for the first time this season. His play was simply brilliant.

He also had the game-high with 29 points and led the Hawks with nine rebounds—five offensive and four defensive—and shot 13-of-19 from the field, including 3-of-5 from downtown.

Jamal Crawford led the Hawks with four treys to finish with 21 points in 31 minutes of action. He also had three steals.

Atlanta continues to show it is no fluke and that the Eastern Conference has more than just three championship-caliber teams.

Up next for Atlanta is a trip to New Orleans to play a Hornets team that has won two in a row but is 4-6 over its last 10 and still without All-Star point guard Chris Paul.

Following the trip to New Orleans, the Hawks are off until a Thanksgiving Day showdown against the Orlando Magic in Atlanta. The Hawks currently have a one-game lead on the Magic (10-3) in the Eastern Conference’s Southeast Division.

Nothing like watching a Southeast rivalry while eating your turkey.

MORE

Knowing that Mike Bibby could potentially jump-ship during free agency this off-season, the Hawks decided to be on the safe side and bring in a pair of point guards. Bibby is currently an unrestricted free agent and seeing that Atlanta has two point guards already, does he even want to return? Bibby possessed playoff experience from his days with the Sacramento Kings, but knowing that he was expecting one more big pay day and seeing as the Hawks have shown in the past that they don’t really like to spend it’s hard to expect him to return to Atlanta at this point. Crawford is an explosive, yet streaky scoring point guard and that’s not really something the Hawks need. They need a point guard who looks to pass first who can get others such as Horford, Johnson, and Smith involved in the offsense and Crawford isn’t that guy. He’s even more of a chucker than what Bibby was.

Jeff Teague on the other hand is a rookie that it’s hard to see being a point guard that starts as a rookie and helps lead a playoff hungry team. He was an excellent player at Wake Forest who left early to enter the NBA Draft. There is no question that sometime down the line that he can be a very productive player in this league or atleast just a very capable back-up who can give the starter a spell every now and then. But to be under the notion that as a rookie Teague can be a very vital piece to a team trying to replace their third leading scorer and most consistent three point shooter is quite laughable.

The Atlanta Hawks finished the 2008-09 season with a record of 47-35, their best record in ten seasons, and if they want to continue to build on that success, the franchise cannot afford to be complacent. Not only have the Hawks organization endured ten long seasons of suffering, their fan base has suffered right along with them. After finally making it to the second round of the playoffs, the Hawks are entering uncharted waters as expectations are beginning to build.

Not only does the front office need to re-sign the likes of Mike Bibby, Marvin Williams, and Zaza Pachulia this off-season, but they also need to continue to add pieces that can help keep pushing the franchise into the right direction. Atlanta holds the 19th pick in the NBA Draft and although it’s not a high lottery selection, it’s a perfect position to get a guy guy who can come in and contribute right away. The Hawks could really use another big man on the front-line, especially with the possibility of Williams and/or Pachulia leaving the team in the off-season.

Hawks.com reports:

ATLANTA, GA (May 28, 2008) — The Atlanta Hawks today named Rick Sund as the team’s General Manager, according to Hawks co-owner Michael Gearon. Sund has more than 30 years of NBA experience, including stints with the Seattle Sonics, Detroit Pistons, Dallas Mavericks and Milwaukee Bucks.

“Rick has an enormous amount of experience, and an outstanding reputation around the league,” Gearon said. “During this process, as we spoke with basketball people that we respect around the NBA, everyone had glowing things to say about Rick and his work. Our objective was to add an individual who would help us take the momentum we gained last season, and move to the next level. We feel we’ve done that, and we’re thrilled to add someone of Rick’s caliber to our franchise.”

“I’m very excited and impressed with what the Hawks have currently developed,” said Sund, from the Orlando NBA Pre-Draft Camp, “and I look forward to continuing that process. They captivated the attention of fans locally and nationally with their play during the playoffs, and I too, was impressed with the effort they displayed throughout that series (vs. Boston).

“We have a great nucleus of players, and while we have some work ahead of us, there’s tremendous potential and continued growth with the guys on this roster. I look forward to getting more familiar with the coaching staff and players as we look to build on the success this franchise has enjoyed this postseason.”

Formerly the General Manager of the Seattle Sonics from 2001-07, Sund and the Sonics were the inaugural champions of the Northwest Division in 2004-05, and the team reached the postseason twice during his tenure.

Prior to that, he served in several different roles with the Dallas Mavericks from 1979-94, finishing up as Vice President of Basketball Operations. At the start of his tenure, he helped the expansion Mavericks develop their inaugural season roster as the Director of Player Personnel. Selected by then-GM Norm Sonju, Sund – at the age of 28 – became the youngest person in league history to hold that position.

One of the NBA’s most-respected front office executives, Sund presided over a Mavericks team that won a franchise-record 55 games and took home the Midwest Division title in 1986-87. Dallas matched or improved their record in each of the franchise’s first eight seasons, reaching the playoffs on six occasions and making it to the Western Conference Finals in 1988.

In 1994, he spent one season as a consultant for the Sonics during Wally Walker’s first season as GM, managing the Sonics’ college scouting program and assisted Walker with personnel decisions.

Sund joined the Pistons as Vice President of Player Personnel in the summer of 1995, assuming the title of Executive VP and General Manager of Basketball Operations a year later. The Pistons, winners of 100 games in his first two seasons, participated in the playoffs four times during his Detroit years, where he spent six seasons (1995-2001). He assisted in developing the Pistons in the areas of roster and player development, trades, contract negotiations, player drafts, free-agent acquisitions and other team operations.

Sund began his career in Milwaukee, spending five years with the Bucks after graduating with a master’s degree in sports administration from Ohio University in 1974.

He was a two-sport athlete at Northwestern University, where he was twice named academic All-Big Ten on the basketball squad (he was a 6-4 guard for the Wildcats), while also seeing action as a tight end and wide receiver on the football team. He holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Northwestern.

Sund is currently in Orlando serving as one of the co-chairman of the NBA’s Pre-Draft camp. He is also serves on the board of the directors for the Special Olympics for the state of Washington, and the advisory board of the University of Oregon’s business school’s Warsaw Sports Marketing and Management Division.

Born on June 4, 1951, Richard Walker Sund is a native of Elgin, IL, and is a member of the Illinois Basketball Hall of Fame. He and his wife Lea are the parents of two children, daughter Hali and son Patrick.

Posted By: Dustin Chapman

Marc Spears of ESPN.com reports:

The Atlanta Hawks, according to NBA front-office sources, have narrowed their search for a new general manager to a single contender.

Sources told ESPN.com on Friday that Cleveland Cavaliers assistant general manager Chris Grant — who worked under Pete Babcock and Billy Knight in the Hawks’ front office before moving to Cleveland — is the only candidate Atlanta is presently speaking with as it seeks to replace Knight.

Contract negotiations between Grant and the Hawks began this week, sources said, after San Antonio Spurs assistant GM Dennis Lindsey withdrew his name from consideration Monday. It’s apparently up to Grant, at this point, whether he wants to make the leap from one of the most stable franchises in the Eastern Conference to a team that just halted the league’s longest playoff drought (eight seasons) and is known for feuding factions in its crowded ownership group.

The other main candidates Atlanta has considered, in addition to Grant and Lindsey, are Boston Celtics assistant GM Dave Wohl, Washington Wizards vice president of basketball administration Tommy Sheppard and Portland Trail Blazers personnel scout John Gabriel, formerly GM of the Orlando Magic.

Lindsey cited “family considerations and professional considerations” for pulling out. In his first full season with the Spurs after spending 11 seasons in Houston’s front office, Lindsey has been reluctant to entertain outside interest, previously resisting overtures from the Milwaukee Bucks late in the regular season before the Bucks hired longtime Detroit Pistons executive John Hammond as their new front-office chief.

Lindsey is widely considered future GM material after his long stint with the Rockets and his move to San Antonio as a top aide to Spurs personnel chief R.C. Buford. Various members of Buford’s staff, most notably Cleveland’s Danny Ferry and Seattle’s Sam Presti, have been sought to run other teams after the Spurs’ run of three championships in the past five years.

The fast-rising Sheppard, who works as a lead assistant to Wizards president Ernie Grunfeld, is also considered a likely future GM. Besides his talks with the Hawks, Sheppard was a finalist in Seattle for the job that went to Presti in 2007.

Posted By: Dustin Chapman

The Boston Celtics – best record in the league, best trio in the league, best defensive coach in the league

The Atlanta Hawks -  worst playoff team, not much experience, and whatever
Who would have thought the 8th seeded team would take the 1st seeded team to 7 games?

Well that’s what happened in the 1st round of the 2008 NBA playoffs. I don’t think ANYONE would have suspected that. I’m willing to bet more than 90 % of fans thought it would only goto 4 or 5 games. But WTF!? Why the hell in gods grapefruit vine did it happen? OMG SOMEONE PLEASE EXPLAIN, I DONT UNDERSTAND.

HAVE NO FEAR, ME IS HERE!

But to be honest I can’t quite explain what happened either.. All I can say is, the Hawks are a young team, and like other young teams, get streaks going when they are playing at home with an excited crowd.  They have runner-up rookie of the year Al Horford, a solid double double machine in just his rookie year, they have Mike Bibby, who is not exactly an allstar player but still a solid player that can shoot the rock. Then they got JJ( Joe motherfuckin Johnson), who is an allstar player, a great clutch shooter, a decent ballhandler, average passer, below average rebounder, but a very solid player, and can make lots of big shots when his team needs it. Then they got the one and only JOSH FUCKIN SMITH!!!!! The 2005 Slam Dunk Champ is known for his WILD jumping ability that allows him to block more shots than a 7 footer. He can slash, he can block, he can rebound, and he has a knockout punch.

SO ARE YOU SCARED OF THE HAWKS NOW??

oh wait, the Celtics already won game 7 and moved on to the second round.

Well, let’s congratulate the Hawks on a very good effort and a near upset.

laterz

PLAYER OF THE GAME

TJ Ford – 25 points, 12 assists