SB Nation - Joe Smith

10 YEARS OF STIFFDOM: A Decade Retrospective...

Andrew Feinstein — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 17:04:03 -0000

Who knew that at the beginning of the '00s - with none other than Dan Issel in charge - that the Nuggets would end up having a successful and often thrilling decade? Here's a look back at the last 10 years of Denver Nuggets basketball...

At the conclusion of the 1990s, the Nuggets were in utter disarray. As documented in detail here at Denver Stiffs, this once proud and respected franchise had been turned into an NBA laughingstock thanks to a lethal combination of ineptitude, incompetence, and ignorance. Between 1990 and 1999, the Nuggets made the playoffs just twice and Nuggets fans were forced to endure seasons with win totals under 40 games eight times (including the lockout shortened 1998-99 season in which the Nuggets would likely have "won" about 25 games had an 82-game season been played out). We witnessed five seasons in which the Nuggets won less than 24 games, and in 1997-98 the 11-win Nuggets won less games than the Broncos that year.

Making matters worse throughout the 1990s, the Nuggets never caught a break. Even though they participated in eight NBA Draft lotteries, twice sported the worst record in the NBA (1990-91 and again after that infamous 1997-98 campaign) and had a bottom-four record five total times, the highest pick they were ever rewarded was third (which Issel promptly screwed up by drafting Raef LaFrentz over Vince Carter, Paul Pierce, Dirk Nowitzki and Antawn Jamison). We missed out on all the game-changing draftees of the 1990s: Shaquille O'Neal, Alonzo Mourning, Chris Webber and Tim Duncan. And a freak knee injury sustained by rising star LaPhonso Ellis in 1994 would prove to be the undoing of the Nuggets only good team of the decade: the 1993-94 squad that had just stunned the NBA world by beating the number-one seeded Seattle Supersonics in the playoffs before taking the Utah Jazz to seven in Round 2.

But make no mistake about it, the Nuggets problems throughout the 1990s were self-inflicted. Cartoonish figures such as Peter Bynoe, Bertram Lee, the Comsat "Corporation," Paul Westhead, Bernie Bickerstaff, Allan Bristow and finally, Issel, made every wrong/bad decision possible, leaving the Nuggets organization in tatters until Stanley E. Kroenke rescued the franchise in 2000 with his purchase of the team. Upon arrival, Kroenke made it clear that he wanted to win and win now, and thus set in motion a series of events that produced one of the better decades in franchise history...

2000-2001 (40-42, no playoffs)

In an increasingly tough Western Conference, the Nuggets remarkably won 40 games but were still seven games off the eighth-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves. While a 40-win season would normally be a good thing having come off a 35-win season, team "president", "head coach" and dictator Dan Issel had already mortgaged the Nuggets future by sending away numerous first round picks in order to build that 40-win team.

Non-Stiff of the Year: Antonio McDyess

Coming off a gold-medal winning performance in the Sydney Olympics, McDyess was a stud in 2000-01. The quiet, dignified power forward averaged 20.8 ppg, 12.1 rpg and 1.5 bpg and even made the All-Star team.

Stiff of the Year: Dan Issel

The aforementioned Issel had previously (and foolishly) traded away the Nuggets own first round picks for 1999, 2000 and 2001 - all lottery picks, mind you - and after an assortment of complicated, even more stupid deals, for those picks he essentially brought back Tariq Abdul-Wahad, Kevin Willis (on the very wrong side of his career), Voshon Lenard and Tracy Murray. But that was just off-the-court. On-the-court, Issel was a tyrant with his players and the refs. At one point, his players were so fed up with the way he was treating Raef LaFrentz (a draft bust of Issel's own making) and others, that point guard Nick Van Exel led a player boycott of practice.

2001-02 (27-55, no playoffs)

After years of overpaying for mediocre players and parting with valuable first round picks in exchange for nothing, the wheels finally came off the Issel Administration and the Nuggets fell apart in 2001-02, precipitated by a major knee injury to McDyess that caused him to miss all but 10 games of the season. Prior to the season starting, Kroenke - either sensing that Issel had too much power, was too incompetent or both - astutely hired Kiki Vandeweghe as GM to a five-year contract.

Non-Stiff of the Year: Kiki Vandeweghe

After Issel "resigned" the day after Christmas (more on that shortly), Vandeweghe gutted out the roster and made a controversial move that would put the Nuggets on the path of success they still enjoy today. Knowing the Nuggets were going nowhere with the expensive roster he inherited, Vandeweghe boldly shipped out Van Exel, LaFrentz, Abdul-Wahad and Avery Johnson (another overpayee thanks to Issel) to Dallas in exchange for Juwan Howard, Tim Hardaway, Donnell Harvey and a future first round pick. When the Nuggets eventually met the Mavericks in the 2009 playoffs second round, I detailed how that major trade actually brought the two once dormant franchises together.

Stiff of the Year: Dan Issel

"Go drink another beer, you Mexican piece of shit!" Those nine words - uttered by Issel towards a heckling Hispanic Nuggets fan after a December 10th loss to the Charlotte Hornets - were exactly what Kroenke and Vandeweghe needed to kick Issel out the door. Issel, a Nuggets legend as a player, had built up so much great PR in the community (he still has some...note Woody Paige's ludicrous suggestion that the Nuggets bring Issel back to the organization last year) that he would have been tough to fire otherwise. After serving a four-game suspension, Issel "resigned" on December 26th, 2001 and unfortunately for Issel, things haven't exactly worked out for him since.

Stiff of the Year Runner-Up: Tim Hardaway

Unlike Howard who - knowing playing in Denver would be a brutal, losing situation - accepted the trade to the Nuggets and behaved like a total professional during his time here (it helps when you're getting paid $18.8 and then $20.1 million per season!), Hardaway was a petulant, angry brat who never got over leaving Dallas where he was hoping to gravy train his way into an NBA Championship. After starting 14 games for the Nuggets, Hardaway unleashed his anger on a TV monitor by throwing it onto the floor and getting himself suspended two games.

2002-03 (17-65, no playoffs)

Entering the 2002-03 NBA season, Vandeweghe purposefully compiled the worst roster in modern NBA history in hopes of tanking enough games to win the first pick in the draft (knowing that on the horizon was one of the better drafts in NBA history). The Nuggets starting back court of Vincent Yarbrough and Junior Harrington couldn't crack a 14-man roster the following season, and the rest of the roster was littered with names you already don't remember. Armed with two lottery picks - thanks to a great trade that sent McDyess to New York in exchange for Marcus Camby and the Knicks lottery pick - Vandeweghe drafted Nene and some skinny kid from Georgia, and I'm not talking about the university (more on him shortly).

Non-Stiff of the Year: Jeff Bzdelik

In spite of being dealt the worst hand ever dealt a coach in modern NBA history, rookie head coach Jeff Bzdelik refused to make excuses, worked his ass off and was able to get 17 wins out of our Nuggets. I'd argue that was 17 more wins than they should have had and Bzdelik should have gotten Coach of the Year consideration. The Nuggets were awful talent-wise, but they played harder than their opponent almost every night.

Stiff of the Year: Nikoloz Tskitishvili

Drafted fifth overall out of the Republic of Georgia, "Skita" has since gone down in history as the worst fifth overall pick of all time (and believe me, there have been some bad fifth overall picks). Given ample opportunity to succeed in his first season, Skita - listed at seven-feet tall - shot 29.3% from the field as a rookie. At a game in Los Angeles against the Lakers, I once saw Skita shoot a wide open shot in which the ball hit the shot clock first before getting anywhere near the backboard or rim.

2003-04 (43-39, 1-4 in the playoffs)

A full 10 years after upsetting the Sonics in the playoffs, the Nuggets finally got their act together and Coloradoans cared about basketball again. Unable to shake the Nuggets streak of bad luck with the Draft Lottery, Vandeweghe got lucky nonetheless thanks to Detroit GM Joe Dumars' stupidly drafting Darko Milicic (i.e. Skita 2.0), leaving Syracuse star/stud Carmelo Anthony available with the third overall pick. And with Howard's giant contract coming off the books, Vandeweghe was finally able to spend Kroenke's money. Free agent signees Andre Miller, Jon Barry and Earl Boykins joined Melo, Nene and a healthy Camby. Under Bzdelik's stewardship, the Nuggets won 43 games and put up a respectable fight against the Timberwolves in the playoffs first round. As fans, we were happy just to be in the playoffs!

Non-Stiff of the Year: Carmelo Anthony

For the first time since Alex English last donned a rainbow jersey, the Nuggets had a perennial All-Star caliber player in Melo. As a rookie, Melo averaged 21 ppg and 6.1 rpg while giving fellow rookie phenom LeBron James a run for the Rookie of the Year Award. But more importantly, Melo led the Nuggets back to the postseason in a hyper-competitive Western Conference, whereas LBJ couldn't do the same in Cleveland in the weakened Eastern Conference.

Stiff of the Year: Rodney White

Playing for his next contract after his rookie deal was due to expire in two seasons, White gave the Nuggets next-to-nothing in 2003-04 even though he appeared in 72 games and received 14 minutes of playing time per game. Just a few years removed from being the ninth overall pick to Detroit (ahem...Joe Dumars again), White would be out of the NBA completely after the 2004-05 campaign. But hey, at least he was nominated for the Denver Stiffs Hall of Fame!

2004-05 (49-33, 1-4 in the playoffs)

Wanting to build upon the Nuggets newly found success (and at Kroenke's alleged insistence), Vandeweghe spent the entire 2004 offseason shopping for a big name free agent to bring to Denver. After being turned down by Manu Ginobili and Brad Miller, Vandeweghe panicked and got duped into sending three number one picks to New Jersey for Kenyon Martin in a sign-and-trade deal. K-Mart's price tag? $90 million over seven seasons. Under immense pressure to win more games, Bzdelik and the Nuggets floundered out of the gate, starting out 13-15 before Bzdelik got sacked and replaced by a former WNBA coach (Michael Cooper) who went 4-10 as coach of the team.

Non-Stiff of the Year: George Karl

Inheriting a 17-25 team loaded with talent but without any direction and big egos to boot, Karl's no-nonsense, "my way or the highway" approach immediately turned the Nuggets fortunes around. With only 40 games to work with, Karl guided the Nuggets to a 32-8 record (the best in NBA history after a mid-season coaching switch) and had the Nuggets playing the best basketball in the NBA down the stretch of the regular season.

Stiff of the Year: Kiki Vandeweghe

By acquiring K-Mart, Vandeweghe essentially panicked while throwing away all of the salary cap flexibility he had worked so hard and smartly to cultivate. But worse than that, Vandeweghe was eerily silent while Bzdelik was left to twist in the wind as the Nuggets struggled early in the season. Vandeweghe never publicly defended the one man willing to coach the dreadful 2002-03 roster that Vandeweghe had assembled, and Kiki made matters worse by bringing in Cooper to take over as head coach. The Cooper hire cost the Nuggets a higher playoff seed.

Stiff of the Year Runner-Up: Carmelo Anthony

Melo couldn't stay out of trouble in 2004. First, he was cited for marijuana possession at DIA that his cousin conveniently took the blame for (the old "that wasn't my pot!" excuse). Second, he feuded with Olympic coach Larry Brown in Athens and found himself benched on the 2004 Team USA that embarrassingly finished with a bronze medal. Third - and perhaps the worst/dumbest - Melo was caught on a "Stop Snitching" DVD in which alleged drug dealers explain what happens to people who cooperate with the police. Melo didn't improve much on the floor, either, and found himself (rightfully) in Karl's doghouse early and often.

2005-06 (44-38, 1-4 in the playoffs)

Unable to build off the team's incredible run under Karl to conclude the previous season, injuries ravaged the Nuggets and they limped their way to a 44-38 record. K-Mart and Camby missed 26 games apiece and most tragically, Nene succumbed to the Nuggets power forward curse and was lost for the season with an ACL and MCL tear after just one game. At the time, the Nuggets marketing and PR team spun the season as as success under the guise of "Northwest Division Champs" and that the Nuggets were a three-seed entering the postseason. But this was before the NBA properly seeded division winners who have mediocre records. The Nuggets were such a weak three-seed, that the Clippers purposely tanked games to face them in the first round...and when they got their wish, the Clippers clocked the Nuggets in five games. Oh, and that was the Clippers only playoff series win since becoming the Clippers in 1978. Overall, the season was a mess from from the top down (as chronicled in detail at the time by the Denver Post's Thomas George). Vandeweghe would be let go at season's end and was replaced by Mark Warkentien (and eventually Rex Chapman, too). Dysfunction, egos and injuries had set the Nuggets back a few steps.

Non-Stiff of the Year: (tie) Carmelo Anthony and Andre Miller

Melo and Miller played in 80 and 82 games, respectively, and carried the Nuggets in 2005-06. Melo improved his scoring average by over six points per game and his field goal percentage went up, as well. Miller - the modern day NBA "iron man" even if he doesn't condition well in the offseason - was a steady hand as always, starting in all 82 games and dishing out over eight assists per game.

Stiff of the Year: Kenyon Martin

Recovering from microfracture surgery and frustrated by knee tendinitis, K-Mart was pretty surly for much of the season and was morphing into a locker room cancer. He allegedly didn't get along with coaches or teammates (according to George's article, K-Mart's teammates questioned his commitment to recovery and work ethic) and it all came to an ugly head during halftime of Game 2 at Los Angeles, when K-Mart went at it with Karl and several teammates. K-Mart was benched for the remainder of the game and eventually su spended for the duration of the series.

Stiff of the Year Runner-Up: Reggie Evans

As perhaps a microcosm of the dysfunction and lack of respect for the game that was taking over the Nuggets, "The Joker" grabbed Clippers center Chris Kaman's testicles while fighting for a rebound during Game 1 of the Clippers series.

2006-07 (45-37, 1-4 in the playoffs)

In spite of it being K-Mart's turn to succumb to the Nuggets power forward curse (he would play just two games all season) and losing their first three straight games by a total of five points, the Nuggets would win 12 of their first 21 games with Melo playing the best basketball of his career. That all changed abruptly on Saturday, December 16th, 2006. In New York facing the Knicks (who had embarrassingly beaten the Nuggets in Denver in Game 3 of the season), the Nuggets found themselves up 19 with 75 seconds to go. Karl - alleged by some to want to rub the victory in Knicks coach Isiah Thomas' face (Thomas had recently sandbagged Karl's good friend Larry Brown) - left his starters on the floor, prompting Thomas to send in his "goon squad" and make the Nuggets pay. What began as a hard, unnecessary, dangerous, around-the-neck foul on J.R. Smith by the Knicks' Mardy Collins erupted into a full-scale brawl...culminating with Melo's cheap shot punch on Collins. Melo would be suspended 15 games and Smith 10, prompting Nuggets management to attempt to salvage the season by bringing in super star guard Allen Iverson from Philadelphia in exchange for Miller, Joe Smith and two first round picks. Little did we know that the fun was just beginning.

Non-Stiff of the Year: Allen Iverson

Welcomed with open arms by Nuggets fans and his new teammates, Iverson made an immediate impact on the Nuggets (on and off the floor, in good ways and bad). But with Melo out 15 games, Iverson was able to keep the Nuggets afloat and competitive almost by himself. When Melo and Iverson finally got to play together for a long stretch, the Nuggets reeled off nine straight wins and 10 of 11 to finish out the season strong as the hottest team in the NBA.

Stiff of the Year: Isiah Thomas

In addition to sinking the Raptors as an incompetent vice president, sinking the CBA in a summer as an incompetent commissioner and sinking the Knicks as an incompetent president/coach/alleged sexual harrasser (hell, Isiah was an incompetent broadcaster, too), Isiah would sink the Nuggets season in one fell swoop by commandeering his players to take out the Nuggets starters in that game.

Stiff of the Year Runner-Up: (tie) Carmelo Anthony and J.R. Smith

Even though Isiah "started it," Melo and J.R. were unable to keep their heads cool and unnecessarily exacerbated an already ugly situation, ruining the Nuggets entire season as a result.

2007-08 (50-32, 0-4 in the playoffs)

Entering 2007-08, the Nuggets would finally have a training camp with their full roster participating from the get-go. With Melo and Iverson having ample time to play together, optimism in Denver was higher than it had been since entering the 2004-05 campaign. So high was the optimism, in fact, that Kroenke had over $83 million invested in the team's payroll (second or third highest in the league at the time) and Melo and K-Mart started floating out "60 wins" as a realistic goal. But even with Iverson appearing in all 82 games, Camby playing 79, Melo 77, K-Mart 71 and vast improvements seen in the games of bench players J.R. Smith and Linas Kleiza, the Nuggets weren't able to secure a playoff spot (an eighth seed no less) until the 79th game of the season with a big win at Golden State. As an eighth seed, the Nuggets got worked over by the Lakers in an embarrassing four-game sweep: a series which saw Melo bark at Karl "don't just sit there!" and the benching of Iverson early in Game 3 that didn't go over well. Prior to the Nuggets final regular season game, Melo would get arrested on suspicion of a DUI. It became evident that the A.I. experiment was an expensive failure.

Non-Stiff of the Year: Nene

After being diagnosed with testicular cancer and undergoing surgery to remove his right testicle, Nene remarkably returned to play again on March 27th against the Mavericks, giving the Nuggets a much needed emotional boost that helped them secure a playoff spot down the stretch.

Stiff of the Year: George Karl

Stuck in an admittedly tumultuous and difficult situation, Karl spent much of the 2007-08 sitting on his hands during games while the Nuggets unraveled on the court. While the Nuggets head coach got called for just one technical foul all season (second to last in the NBA), his players finished in the top two in personal fouls, technical fouls, flagrant fouls and ejections. The inmates were running the asylum as Karl's coaching record in Denver got extended to a paltry 3-16 over four years. Karl would later admit to SI.com that "...the last couple of years, I was confused." Watching Karl's Nuggets routinely take nights off that season, so were we.

2008-09 (54-28, 10-6 in the playoffs)

Disappointed with his lack of return on investment, Kroenke gave an edict to management to slash payroll during the 2008 offseason. Camby would be shipped out to the Clippers in exchange for a trade exception, coach and fan favorite Eduardo Najera would not be re-signed, Iverson's contract wouldn't be extended and things were looking grim entering the 2008-09 campaign. But what loomed as a disaster instead became a season of reformation and rejuvenation. Karl came into training camp as "Fiery George" again, Melo won a gold medal with Team USA and learned a thing or two from Kobe Bryant on what an NBA work ethic really is and K-Mart, fully healthy, came into camp with an apology to his coach and teammates and a vow to work harder and play better. With former NBA castaways Chris "Birdman" Andersen and Dahntay Jones added for next-to-nothing (by NBA salary standards) and Nene in real basketball shape for the first time ever, the Nuggets were quietly confident that they had a special season on their hands.

The lone chink in the Nuggets newfound armor would be Iverson who, upset by not receiving a contract extension, showed up to camp out of shape and several steps slow. Remarkably, Nuggets management was able to pull off one of the great trades in Nuggets history by shipping Iverson to Detroit for Chauncey Billups. By adding Billups to a roster primed to take off, the Nuggets would shock the basketball world by tying a franchise record with 54 wins and going toe-to-toe with the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals. Simply put, it was the greatest full season of Nuggets basketball since the 1984-85 Nuggets made it to the conference finals and hopefully a sign of more good things to come in the decade ahead.

Non-Stiff of the Year: Chauncey Billups

The Denver-born Billups - who had been cast off by Issel years earlier without ever given a fair hearing as a Nugget - immediately proved to be the perfect leader for the Nuggets. Coming off six consecutive conference finals appearances with the Pistons, Billups would make it seven when he led the Nuggets there.

Non-Stiff of the Year Runner-Up: (tie) Nuggets Management and George Karl

After years of placing talent over character, the Nuggets GM "troika" of Warkentien, Chapman and team adviser Bret Bearup had assembled a roster stocked with good character guys and also deserve credit for not panicking after the 2008 playoff debacle. Warkentien would be rewarded with the NBA's Executive of the Year Award, but it should have been shared by all three guys. Karl, meanwhile, turned in one of his finest performances as an NBA head coach while bridging whatever gap had existed between him and his mercurial stars Melo, J.R. and K-Mart.

Stiff of the Year: Allen Iverson

The NBA will soon be announcing their "All Decade Team" and it will be fascinating to see if A.I. makes the squad. One of the greatest players of the decade, Iverson ultimately proved to be a bad fit for the Nuggets and a bad influence on Melo and J.R. This became painfully clear when the Pistons imploded after bringing Iverson on board in exchange for Billups.

Overall, the '00s were a great decade for Nuggets basketball: six straight playoff appearances, two 50-plus win seasons, All-Star players and thrilling performances (how many game-tying and game-winning shots has Melo made?!). And while it would have been nice to see a few more playoff series victories prior to last season, the memories of the Bickerstaff and Issel Administrations are still prominent enough for me to appreciate what's been going on recently.

Fortunately for Nuggets fans, four of our best players - Melo, J.R., Nene and rookie Ty Lawson - still have many seasons ahead of them and hopefully will remain in a Nuggets uniform into the next decade. At the very least, we're guaranteed that the new decade starts out reasonably well and it will be fascinating to see where this franchise is standing in 2020.

Thanks for the memories and Go Nuggets!!

Photos courtesy of AP and NBAE/Getty Images

Blogging With the Enemy - Peachtree Hoops

RaptorsHQ - Howland — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 20:39:11 -0000

In what we hope to make a Friday tradition, we reached out to Drew at Peachtree Hoops to discuss the Hawks prior to tonight's game.

HQ: After years of setting-up camp at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings Atlanta has finally come around and is starting to look like a real contender in the East. What's been the biggest reason for this? Growth? Maturity? ZaZa?

I want to give sole credit to Zaza. I really do. I could even make a compelling case for it, but the truth is growth and maturity are the big reasons. Specifically, growth and maturity in Josh Smith. He has improved in almost every facet of his game, and really that did not take adding any new skills, it just required attempting (and subsequently missing) fewer jump shots and trying most of the time. His athleticism combined with effort supersedes skill. Add the addition of Jamal Crawford and Joe Smith, some internal improvement from Al Horford, and the continutity built by having the same starters and coach for the last season and half, and the team has easily been able to take the step from clear fourth seed to probably still fourth seed but not so clear anymore.

HQ: A lot of the talk in Toronto centers around CB4 and whether he is staying or going. What's the feeling on Joe Johnson? WIll he stay or go? What sort of impact would his departure have on this team given it has taken them so long to become relevant again?

The Hawks world is very split on this. So may answer is far from consensus, but I think Joe will go where he gets the most money for the most years. No home town discount this summer. If the Hawks have to outbid other teams to keep him and approach a max salary over five years, I think it will hamper the internal growth of Al Horford and Josh Smith and financially limit the Hawks from contending for conference championships going forward. Joe demands a lot of shots, and he has a lot of wear and tear. There is no doubt in my mind by year four of whatever deal he has will be one that deserves about six (and not fifteen) million for the effort. Still, if the Hawks can sign him to a reasonable rate, I think they should and will bring him back. Atlanta has been so centered around Joe and found such success with that strategy, it would be a huge risk to let him go.

Atlanta without Joe Johnson next year would struggle to make the playoffs, but building around the front court and spending the money that would have gone to Joe wisely two or three years down the road, might yield a team with a higher ceiling than one with Johnson.

HQ: What are the keys to the game for the Hawks to ensure they secure another win against the Raps?

I don't think Atlanta is going to shoot the ball as well as they did last time against the Raps. So take solace in that, but your team is not what they like to call "good on defense." So if the Hawks can stay patient, work the ball around, inside out, get in some pick and rolls with Horford, I think the Hawks will score enough points to win. But, Toronto can fill it up. I expect Chris Bosh to put in more than two points, and it is when the defensive break downs happen for the Hawks that they start to play one on five and try to cure every problem known to man every time they touch the ball. Translation, there are a lot fadaway, contested jump shots.

I expect Atlanta to win, but I expected that against the Knicks a week ago too. Still, if the Hawks rebound with tenacity and have balanced scoring I think they pull out the road win.

3 In the Key: Toronto Raptors Game Day Preview vs. Atlanta

RaptorsHQ - Howland — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 12:00:21 -0000

More photos » by Scott Cunningham - NBAE/Getty Images

Will anyone on the Raptors be able to stop ATL from attacking the rim at will? (Photo by Scott Cunningham/NBAE via Getty Images)

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After getting beat down by the Buks the Raps face a very talented Atlanta Hawks team tonight for the second time this season.

Here's hoping the results of tonight's match-up are better than what transpired the last time these two teams came together.

Anyone who thought at the beginning of the season that race for the Eastern Conference championship was a three team race was wrong.

The reason?

The Atlanta Hawks.

Now over a quarter of the way through the season it's become clear that the young fellas in Atlanta are now all grown-up...and the results are pretty impressive.

Going into tonight's match-up against the Raptors the Hawks have a record of 15-6 and are in third spot in the Eastern Conference. Some of their early season wins have come against the likes of Portland, Denver, Boston and Houston.

Of course none of this is news to those who sat and watched the Hawks dismantle the Toronto Raptors on December 2. It's crystal clear to Raptors fans just how good this Atlanta team really is.

It's not just the starting five getting it done for Atlanta either. The bench is looking solid as well. Off the pine the Hawks have a nice combination of athleticism (Jeff Teague and Mo Evans), veteran experience (Joe Smith) and scoring (Jamal Crawford) coming off the bench. Next to Orlando I like this team to make a deep run in the playoffs.

Actually, if they keep up their current level of play will any team in the East actually want to play one of Orlando, Boston, Cleveland or Atlanta in the first round of the playoffs? Is the prize for coming 5th-8th a four game sweep? Doesn't sound that appetizing does it.

All this to say the Raps have a long way to go before becoming truly relevant in the Eastern Conference. They have an even further distance to travel if they continue to play like they did in Milwaukee, no matter who is healthy and on the floor.

Sure it is all fine and good that the Raps have won three of their last four, but does anyone see a victory in sight from this point forward? The next four opponents are Atlanta, Houston, Miami and Orlando. The Raps will get no relief from the schedule until their match-up with the lowly Nets.

If by chance the Raps don't win any of their next four they will be 8 games below .500. That's a pretty big hole to climb out of even if the hopes have been whittled down to simply being a .500 team.

A .500 team. Think this is what BC had in mind when he remade this roster and spent all of his available loot?

My guess is no.

The Raps do have to play this game so let's take a look at the three keys:

1. Get Bosh Some Help: Chris Bosh cannot do it alone. We have all known that for sometime (hence the debate re: max dollars). As a result someone has to give this man some help. In fact a lot of guys are going to have to help if the Raps even want an opportunity to sniff victory. I fully expect Bosh to have a much stronger effort than that put forth in the last match-up which was easily his worst performance of the season. The spotlight shines brightest on Hedo Turkoglu here.

2. Treat The Paint Like Your Most Prized Possession: Someone on the Raptors needs to take offense to the fact that this team gives up the paint easier than an adult film star...err.....gives it up. Who knows, maybe each of the Raps need to have a picture of their mother painted in the key in order to prevent others from walking all over them. Obviously I am grasping at straws here but I think the point is clear. The Raps have to protect the painted area. If they don't I fully expect the Hawks to hang another 147 on them.

3. Stay Positive: Even if the Raps find themselves down early they have to keep a positive attitude and continue to fight. If the fans see a team that lacks pride and a willingness to battle no matter what the circumstances it is safe to say that Raps tickets will be easy to find come 2010.

Atlanta Hawks 118, Chicago Bulls 83 or sometimes you just get to eat the whole pint of ice cream

hawksdawgs — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 12:38:21 -0000

More photos » by John Bazemore - AP

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I don't know why I was worried. Playing teams near rock bottom is something you don't brag about to your buddies, but it is a pretty relaxing experience. You just know all the bounces are going to go your way, turnovers will come in droves, that almost every opposing open shot will not go in. Outside of two nice assists by Al Horford, the first six minutes of the game were awful basketball by the Hawks. And I don't mean awful like compared to the rest of the game or lets find something negative now that we won, but actually, legit bad. I guess almost Bulls bad because Atlanta was still leading by two points. Playing teams at rock bottom is basically eating the whole pint of ice cream. Your are not proud, it can form bad habits, but, everyone once in a while, might as well find a couch, watch some infomercials, and enjoy your night.

Are there other things to say? Sure, Joe dribbled too much, and he made great shots. Offensive rebounds by the bigs allowed for more missed shots. Jamal Crawford, Josh Smith, Mo Evans scored a lot. Jeff Teague can block shots, and Marvin can have his blocked. And well, Josh Smith is still good at dunking. It was disjointed and not pretty, but the Bulls are systematically disjointed so everything was fine. Woodson coached through the hiccups and allowed the starters to rest and the bench to thrive. The Hawks won big and it was still ugly. So really if we learned anything, it must be what we learned about the Bulls and that is it is demoralizing getting crushed by guys elbow deep in ice cream.

Victory Bullets

I know everyone knows this, but it is pretty amazing the Hawks run the same first play every game.
If you DVR'd the game, at the 5:02 mark the first quarter Jamal Crawford tried to set a screen on no one. It was impressively powerful.
Get well soon, Joe Smith.
It is always nice to know in the exact moment when a game could not get any better (or worse). Last night, Mo Evans' consecutive blocks that segued into Josh Smith's alley-oop from Joe Johnson was basically a Bat sign to stop watching this game.
But then you would have missed the Two Towers playing....so maybe I am wrong.
Zaza Pachulia should aim for ugly stat lines. Those are his best nights.
Teague just looks like he is having fun out there.
How many jumpshots do the Bulls take?
Line of the night from Jon Barry, during the Brad Miller drive on Zaza Pachulia, "SPEED AGAINST SPEED!"
Speaking of actual speed, Jeff Teague stayed in front of Derrick Rose on defense, that might have been his most impressive play of the game.
Luol Deng looks fat. Aaron Gray looks much fatter.
There should be a whole blog solely about Aaron Gray and Jason Collins.Maybe two whole blogs.
Very quietly, Al Horford had an incredible game in only 24 minutes.
Jason Collins is like a big Mario West, if Mario West didn't try that hard. Seriously, lets dress Othello a couple of games.
I kid, I kid, that first made basket of the season was a thing of beauty.
Just so I can join the fans of the other four teams Jamal Crawford has played for, man, Jamal Crawford would be incredible if he drove the ball more.
If you were wondering, this game got boring enough to talk about LeBron signing somewhere in 2010 right before the end of the half.
Is Joe Johnson's confidence based solely on who is guarding him?
Teague! Teague! Teague!
Hats off to the Hawks starters for coming out in the third for putting the game away. No matter what happened in the first half, they did what they needed to do and rewarded with almost a half of a night off. Plus, it allowed me to eat my second pint of ice cream.

Go Hawks!

Shelden Williams Making No Presumptions

tenaciousT — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 10:44:16 -0000

More photos » by Matt Slocum - AP

Shelden goes after the ball.

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The following post was written before the news of Glen Davis's early return was announced in the Steve Bulpett article. Doc Rivers comments are interesting and just a bit surprising to me. But at the same time, understandable.

Shelden Williams has done an excellent job in the time he has been given on the floor. Still, I'll stand by my piece. Davis brings a different dimension to the team than Williams. There is no doubt that Davis has the more creative game. The question is, is that what Doc Rivers wants and what the Celtics need?

Shelden's game has been a bit of a hybrid between Powe and Davis. Strong rebounding along with a shot blocking dimension to go with an emerging outside shot. And that is a good thing.

That they are on a par shooting,as Doc suggests should fuel the competition for minutes between them. I'm not quite in agreement with Doc on that aspect. But again, Davis has to prove it. Glen has demonstrated more range on his shot thus far.

Saying all that, here is the original piece discussing Shelden's mindset about how he views his own role before the recent comments from Doc. I'm sure he didn't expect the vote of confidence he received from the news.

(In addition, I had deleted a comment I made at the very end of the article about the possibility of using Davis and his base year comp salary and a few expiring contracts to pick up another piece during this season. Yes, base year comp players have been traded in the past. Perhaps that comment would have more validity if Williams becomes all that Doc Rivers wants. I've added that comment back as fuel for discussion.)

It wasn’t that long ago that many people thought that Shelden Williams might make Glen Davis, shall we say…less needed.

But that was way back when the Celtics opened the season with a few convincing wins and were 8-1. Since then they are in a 2-3 stumble. They are playing uneven and largely disappointing basketball, and they are appearing to do it in slow motion at times.

Yes, the 1988 Celtics come to mind. From that year forward, the big three were eventually worn down by less talented teams with their youth, depth, and athleticism. Bird, McHale, and Parish the thought.

I never expected that to happen to this team this season. Maybe it isn’t. But it sure looks like it.

All of a sudden Shelden Williams isn’t getting the playing time he was, maybe because he isn’t as effective as he was. It looks like there is room for Glen Davis after all.

The team needs a boost from somewhere. Youth, strength, energy, and athleticism. Glen Davis has all four.

Shelden Williams, the man who has benefited from Glen’s absence, has been aware that his time and opportunity has come at the expense of Glen Davis’ of court poor decision making and unfortunate injury. In some ways, it has all been a blessing, hopefully for both players.

Because of that, Shelden Williams has been the unexpected center of media attention many times in the locker room in this young season.

There have been times...if you saw the amount of media in front of his locker…that you thought it must one of the team stars standing there enthralling scribes with the whys and wherefores of the team’s most recent accomplishments and their own.

Instead, Sheldon Williams, former lottery pick, now Celtic veteran minimum pick up, was the player dealing with all the attention. Answering questions largely about his own solid play, his countenance has remained rather inscrutable in the course of these sessions. There is no sense of overt satisfaction nor allowing himself any real contentedness, in light of his continuing success.

Due to his overall NBA experience, has he become a bit jaded or at least skeptical of what his recent success actually means?

You never know what is going to happen. I got a chance and opportunity when someone else got hurt, you know, and for me to make the most of the minutes, I think I’ve done a pretty god job of doing that. So as of right now…what’s in front of me I can’t control.

Without referring to the future directly, he knows that some day Glen Davis will return ready to play.

Whenever that day does come, you know, it’s going to be up to them. It’s out of my control. I can only control things I can control.

The fall had been a hard one for the 26 year old former Duke star. He has gone from college star to the 5th overall draft pick, to traded twice, then obtaining just a minimum contract, albeit with a championship contending team.

Recently Williams played against his first team, the Atlanta Hawks.

In a sidenote, Joe Smith was another talented player who was unable to live up to where he was drafted. In his case, the pressure was enormous as the number one overall pick in 1995. He is now a Hawk.

An interesting post game exchange with Joe Smith, who had a good game against the Celtics, revealed the following…

Weren’t you supposed to be a Celtic?

(Laughing)

Aren’t you on the wrong team here?

(More chuckling)

Nah, they went another route. They went another route.

Did they actually make you an offer?

Umm…we talked a little bit this summer. And I think the Rasheed thing went down before anything got too serious.

And you weren’t going to come for the minimum.

Actually that’s what I’m on here.

So you could have been Sheldon Williams.

Pause (chuckling) Something like that, right?

But that never got further than talking?

Right.

So Mr. Smith Goes to Atlanta. The young Hawks needed some veteran experience. The older Celtics needed a shot of youth. While Joe Smith is a far more accomplished NBA player and has extensive playoff experience, it makes sense.

The Celtic need for youthful energy looks even more acute now.

Even in the second half of the recent halcyon days of 8-1, the Celtics weren’t looking that fearsome. A two point win against a weak Timberwolves team, followed by their first loss to the surprising Suns, then a warning sign 10 point win against the equally bad Nets, was followed by a deceptively unimpressive 19 point over the Jazz. Three troubling wins and a loss.

Add to that the last 5 games and Celtics seem far older, and far less energetic than anyone thought would be possible in the beginning of the season.

Shelden Williams’ minutes are taking a hit along the way.

Averaging 15 minutes a game, his minutes have dropped considerably in the last two games, to just 7 plus and 9 plus minutes. He did miss some assignments on the defensive end against the Knicks. He also had no rebounds, a turnover, and just 2 points in the 9 minutes. But that wasn't characteristic of his contributions this season.

Stats
While stats never tell the whole story, Williams has the highest rebound average per 36 minutes on the team at 10.9 and is 19th in the NBA per 48 minutes.

He is shooting a career high .535% with a career high in foul shooting at 85%, a career high in assists at 1.6 per 36 minutes.

Taller than either the departed Leon Powe or the injured Glen Davis, Williams seems to like contact in the middle. While he is still learning the defensive rotations, he is a space eater. I feel like I’m writing notes on his report card when I say…. Shelden has shown an occasional ability to hit the short jump shot.

He has an acceptable eFG inside of .577% and an on court/off court of +5.7 – good for 4th best on the team, though that stat has to be tempered by the fact that he is almost always on court against the other team’s second unit.

A bit undersized for inside play and not a great leaper, I haven’t really seen a ‘go to’ move from him around the hoop, but he manages to do pretty well anyway. On a team that has had a puzzling lack of rebounding, Williams gives them that skill.

Yet, his game is pretty vanilla and the Celtics need someone who can spark this team. Glen Davis has been disciplining his own game to play within certain team confines. But Davis is quicker, more mobile, and has a more creative game. Shelden has a steady predictability emerging in his play.

From diving into the stands or on the ground for loose balls, to stealing the ball from point guards, Davis can provide a spark that Williams can’t. Williams is fundamental and safe. Davis is creative and can stir up the game.

So, while the team was winning, Williams looked like a true competitor for Davis’ minutes. The energy shortage of late makes Davis’ return look far more important than before. Williams is well aware of the situation. Now Doc has given him an additional confidence booster with his recent comments.

He has played very well and no matter what his minutes are, he knows that this team is a good fit for him.

Umm…I think so. I’m playing in a structured style system…and everybody’s doing their roles and uh…issued their roles from day one so…they kind of like… play within themselves.

Expectations are lower here for you. Does that help you so you can do what you do best?

Yeah, pretty much, I mean…for me to just come in here and be me, I haven’t felt like this since I was back on Duke campus. So just come out here and play ball and be me…it’s a different feeling.

While Shelden won’t allow himself the luxury of thinking he has gained any real foothold to a meaningful role and predictable minutes, for the first time in the NBA he has a chance to show who he really is as a player with the support of his team. As he relates, that is a different feeling and one the Celtics are both the procreators and beneficiaries of.

With so many things finally going right for him, as the new guy, he knows he has things to work on.

Still getting acclimated and adjusted to everything that’s being thrown at me right now. Obviously, the other guys on the team you know, have been around and what to expect. They know how he wants things run and (how) he wants certain plays to happen and all that stuff. So…I think just me getting more comfortable with that…and knowing what…exactly what he wants me to do in certain situations are probably being the biggest things so far right now.

When Glen Davis comes back, Shelden knows he will be a fight for minutes. Doc has actually reversed that and now says that Davis will have to fight for minutes. It should be very interesting to see how it all plays out.

Davis knows the playbook, is ahead of the curve on the defensive schemes and can play both the power forward and center positions. To many, Davis' recent off court incident hasn't helped. Shelden Williams appears to be a low maintenance kind of player, and a quick learner.

In the mean time, Shelden Williams has raised eyebrows with his play, is feeling like he did in college and is making the most of his time for the benefit of the Celtics and himself.

Is Shelden’s career…. rebounding? That would be a double yes.

Final thought: Considering the current pace of Kevin Garnett's recovery, Rasheed Wallace's current inefficiencies, and the emerging game of Shelden Williams, would it be possible that Danny Ainge uses a healthy Davis and expiring contracts as a piece in trade for another player?

I said in the preseason that I thought DA would keep his eyes open for trades and I felt that this team could use another piece. There are enough differences between the two players to keep both. But are there enough similarities to shop for a different piece?

Bonus Link: via Hardwood Paroxysm "I’ll say it. I think Shelden Williams is a better player than Glen Davis."

Quick Peek Ahead

Jeff Clark — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 04:07:22 -0000

The road weary start of the regular season is over and the team "escaped" with a nice 7-1 record. Now they've had a few days to ice down knees and eat some home cooking. Seems like a good time to take a peek ahead at the next few games.

11/11 vs. Utah - Will Rondo trash talk Deron Williams too? If he doesn't, will Deron feel slighted? I can never figure out the Jazz. Williams, Boozer, and Millsap are great talents. Kirilenko was once a star role player, or something like that. They have a very well respected coach. Why don't they win more? Hopefully they'll take at least one more game before figuring it out.
11/13 vs. Atlanta - Slowly, ever so slowly, they are moving from "young, plucky team nobody wants to meet in the playoffs" to "pretty good team." Still love Joe Johnson's game. Jamal Crawford has finally found a home. Joe Smith is the grizzled vet while Josh Smith is lurking on the weakside ready to block your shot into next week. I don't like this matchup for us at all. Young whippersnappers running all around could prove too tiring for our old legs. Then again, if our defense smacks them in the face early on, I could see them folding early.
11/14 @ Indiana - Another dangerous game in that it is the 2nd of a back to back and the Pacers have some young legs and nothing to lose. Beyond that, I may have to fall back on ex-Celtic storylines (Bird, O'Brien) because beyond Granger this team doesn't do much for me. On the bright side, they have completely cleaned out the rif-raff. Now they need to take that next step (like the Jail Trail Blazers did) and get good again.
Next week: Golden State and Orlando (we'll cover that one in excruciating detail soon enough).

Poll

Which game is the most dangerous (potential upset)?

Jazz

208 votes

Hawks

533 votes

Pacers

79 votes

820 votes | Poll has closed

Game 7 Preview and Thread: Nuggets at Hawks (5pm MDT)

Nate Timmons — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 19:00:30 -0000

The Nuggets and Hawks are both coming off losses last night and both losses eerily familiar ... don't believe me? Follow the jump and take a peek, if you dare! (Sorry, still in Halloween mode apparently.)

Records:
Denver: 5-1 (Key wins: vs. Blazers and Jazz ... loss at Heat)
Atlanta: 4-2 (Key wins: vs. Wizards and at Portland ... losses at Lakers and Bobcats)
Time and TV: Game starts at 5:00 p.m. Mountain and can be seen on NBA TV or Altitude
Injuries: Denver - Joey Graham: day-to-day (sprained toe), Kenyon Martin (left leg contusion) wont play
Atlanta - Jason Collins: day-to-day (ankle)

The J.R. Smith countdown ... ~~1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6~~, 7. Smith will be returning to action in Chicago.

I'm going to give you a few excerpts from a game last night, let's see if you can figure out if I'm taking these passages from the Nuggets game or the Hawks game ...

For a night, the roles were reversed. The low-scoring ______ were suddenly efficient on offense, while the high-scoring _____ turned in a stinker ...

and some more ...

"I don't know when we all of a sudden just really became a selfish team," ______ said. "Now everybody wants to go one-on-one. It's me, me, me. It's crazy, man."

Those excerpts are from the Hawks vs. Bobcats game last night and the quote is from Hawks guard Joe Johnson. But I'm telling you ... Atlanta and Denver played very similar games last night. That is why tonight's game can be a very nice turnaround game for one of these teams. I'm guessing that the team that decides to play unselfish will come away with the win.

In Denver's five wins this season they posted team assist numbers of: 22 vs. the Jazz, 11 vs. the Blazers, 36 vs. the Grizzlies, 18 vs. the Pacers and 25 vs. the Nets.

In Denver's lone loss, last night, the Nuggets combined for just 10 total assists.

Looking at the numbers above, Denver struggled in two games this season: on the road in Portland and last night in Miami. In each of those games the Nuggets posted their lowest assist totals. Basketball is a game that's all about getting the best available shot aka the easiest shot that gives you the best chance to make a basket. Things go a lot better for the Nuggets when they share the ball and we should know early if Denver is going to play unselfish basketball.

The Nuggets also must find a way to control the boards tonight and that task will be very difficult with K-Mart watching from the bench or locker room. We've seen Martin miss time before and last season when he was out George Karl turned to Renaldo Balkman. Seems pretty odd right? Balkman goes from not being able to get off the bench to potential starter. Balkman came in last night and logged 6 points (2-3 shooting) and 6 rebounds in 15 minutes and started the second half in K-Mart's absence.

I was just glancing at the box score of the Hawks vs. Bobcats game and had to do a double-take on Joe Smith's minutes ... he started, but only played 6 minutes. I thought maybe the game was waaaaay to familiar with both starting power forwards getting injured, but alas Smith plays limited minutes a la Dahntay Jones to make way for Josh Smith off the bench a la J.R. Smith.

Thankfully, the Hawks are a bit undersized overall themselves so a rotation of Balkman, Nene, Andersen, and Graham should be able to bang down low. Although the Hawks have Joe Smith 6'10'', Al Horford 6'10'', Zaza Pachulia 6'11'', and Josh Smith 6'9'' to throw at the Nuggets.

And when Joe Johnson was talking about his team playing a bit selfish ... it's not a big surprise when you consider they have a lot of offensive weapons in Johnson, Horford, Josh Smith, Mike Bibby (always likes to light the Nuggets up), Marvin Williams, Jamal Crawford, Maurice Evans, and rookie point guard Jeff Teague.

I'm excited to hopefully get to see Teague play. The rookie out of Wake Forest was drafted one spot behind Ty Lawson at 19th overall and his playing time has been all over the board (although he averages about 13 minutes per game). Teague has a lot of talent and I was hoping that if the Nuggets didn't get Lawson that they'd be able to get Teague ... it's always fun to watch guys play who you were thinking might end up with the team you follow.

Denver has to find a find a way to play unselfish and Melo must look to get his teammates involved. Along with trying to play unselfish the Nuggets are down another offensive weapon and some of the role players must step up tonight and take the load off Melo and Billups. I don't know who is going to step up tonight, but Denver could use an unfamiliar face to have a career night. One team will get right and earn a win, let's hope it's the Nuggets.

Opposition's take: Peach Tree Hoops

ntimmons73@yahoo.com

Photo courtesy of AP Photos: Gregory Smith

NBA Eastern Conference Predictions

tenaciousT — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 18:45:51 -0000

More photos » by Michael Dwyer - AP

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I know this is late to be doing my predictions. I usually do them a bit earlier every year, but I had some last minute travel plans this month and just returned late Sunday. But I love doing them and then seeing how close I get each year. Feel free to disagree. Most are in line with conventional wisdom, with a few each year that depart from that, like Houston, Detroit, and maybe Minnesota. Anyway here they are with a few added comments…

First up are the Eastern Conference previews

Atlantic Division

1) Boston 63-19 - The Celtics’ adrenaline is up. Can they sustain it? The answer is yes, but… I expect the team to add to the roster again this season. Tyronn Lue is the obvious choice, but some teams may offer up good players by the half way point, and Danny will be watching.

2) Philadelphia 41-41 – Eddie Jordan has the same problem that DiLeo did – incorporating Elton Brand. But Jordan can offer his version of the Princeton offense as a remedy. The team is capable of better outside shooting than it has shown. Without an established point guard, Iguodala and Brand can be facilitators in the Princeton O. Jordan, not known for defense, must establish more team discipline than DiLeo did.

3) Toronto 35-47 – re-made roster. very skilled team. Let up on them and they will hurt you. Team reflects Chris Bosh. Strong wing and outside play without much inside. Bosh has bulked up to help out more in the post. Hedo helps. Bargnani continues to improve. DeRozen is a player to watch. Calderone is healthy and Jarrett Jack is a solid back up. Rasho is better than you think in this system. Lacking in toughness and defense, especially inside.

4) New York 31-51 – D’Antoni continues to coach a temporary line-up. With Curry still a mess,
David Lee will play center again. As expected the D’Antoni Knicks were 2nd in pace, terrible defensively, and 2nd only to Orlando in three point shooting as a part of their offense (32%). Unexpectedly, they were 21st in fast break points (behind the Celtics), and 8th best in ‘points in the paint’ (ahead of the Celtics). Go figure. Talented Wilson Chandler needs to be reigned in on shooting. Gallinari will be a good player with time.

5) New Jersey 26-56 – Devin Harris and Brook Lopez make a good axis to build from. Who replaces Vince Carter’s numbers? Courtney Lee and Yi Jianlian will get every opportunity to produce. Good cast of support players. Lawrence Frank’s job is on the line. Terrence Williams will impact this team this season.

The other two divisions are after the jump...

Central Division

1) Cleveland 58-24 – Like Boston, the Cavs improve with Parker, Moon, and Shaq. Offensively Shaq and LeBron attacking the rim is a scary thought. Defensively, Shaq can be had. The additions have, yet again, improved the level of role players around James. Have they finally reached the threshold to put them over the top? If not, it is time to scrap the role player thing and find a bona fide prime-of-career all star to play along side of LeBron.

2) Chicago 41-41 – they gained Boston’s respect. Can they build on it? Tyrus Thomas wants to go restricted next season. Rose and Noah will continue to get better. They must find a way to get a healthy Luol Deng involved more. Hinrich and Salmons will help make up for the loss of Ben Gordon. Talented club, but missing a true post presence. Johnson and Gibson solid draft choices.

3) Milwaukee 35-47 – Skiles will get the most from this club. Brandon Jennings will make you forget Sessions and is a future star. A healthy Bogut and Redd make this team dangerous. Some think Redd will be shopped before the year is out. Delfino is a Skiles type player and Warrick is a nice addition. OK. You know this is coming…they will be scrappy.

4) Detroit 36-46 – I don’t hold out the hope that some do about Dumars use of his freed up money. Even though I can root for three UConn alumni in Hamilton, Villanueva, and Gordon, I see this team having problems. Kwame Brown (or Ben Wallace) as your starting center is a warning sign. Chris Wilcox is a talented under achiever (i.e.- lazy). Villanueva needs to have a break out year, or Stuckey and Prince both need to have great years to change things.

5) Indiana 30-52 – T.J. Ford is finally supposed to take over, but I bet that Watson gets his share of minutes, as he always seems to do. Granger is a stud on a bad team. Murphy, and Dunleavy when he is healthy, flourish in this system. Hibbert will improve, but not enough to make a difference. Brandon Rush is solid and improving. Dahntay Jones replaces Marquis Daniels with less talent. Tyler Hansbrough will have to prove himself. We can use the term ‘scrappy’ again here.

Southeast Division

1) Orlando 60-22 – The Magic didn’t sign every available free agent. It just seemed that way. They are bent on winning a title as evidenced by matching for Marcin Gortat at a large expense. Hedo’s gone. Vince is in. Carter will be able to create his own shot in 4th quarter situations, something Turkuglu couldn’t. Brandon Bass, and Matt Barnes are solid pick ups. Pietrus surprised me in the playoffs with his clutch shooting and solid play. Poodles or pit bulls? Some see them as worse with Carter. I see them as more dangerous in 4th quarters.

2) Atlanta 48-34 – This is a very interesting situation. The time for talk is over. Joe Johnson would not go for an extension. Woodson gets no respect and this is the season he must earn his new contract. I see his future largely tied to Josh Smith’s ability to fit into the team concept. The Hawks also are committed to making that next jump and it won’t be easy. Getting Crawford and Joe Smith helps this team. Jeff Teague has talent. Will he play? This could be a 50 win team.

3) Washington 41-41 – everyone’s favorite ‘move up’ team. Flip Saunders will have a lot of talent to work with and a ‘mini big three’ in Arenas, Jamison, and Butler. Lots of good supporting players here and Haywood is healthy, too. Jamison’s out for a few weeks, and Blatchely will start in his place. Miller, Foye, McGuire, McGee, Oberto, James, Young make a talented bench.

4) Miami 38-44 – I became a believer in Dwyane Wade last season. Huge player. Unfortunately, the Heat only added Quentin Richardson. There is talent here but keeping Jermaine O’Neal healthy is a problem. Micheal Beasley should improve and Haslem is solid, but he shouldn’t have to play center. The three teams picked ahead of them all added pieces.

5) Charlotte 33-49 – hard to mark down this team after Larry Brown got them to finally play to their abilities. But Tyson Chandler in for Okafor and Raja Bell out with injury makes it hard to give them more wins. Felton is in a contract year and Augustin is a player. Gerald Henderson should play well for them. Well coached, solid starting five, little depth.

I should add that the win and loss total for both conferences total up correctly for the season =1230 of each.

Atlanta Hawks Blog Season Preview

hawksdawgs — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:28:12 -0000

More photos » by Gregory Smith - AP

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As you have seen from a few posts over the last couple weeks, I am participating in a large blogosphere preview of every NBA team. The time has come for the Hawks, and I am one of the people representing. Thanks to CelticsBlog for putting the whole thing together. I am rehashing my thoughts for the most part so feel free to rehash yours and/or old arguments. For the visitors, hello. Thanks for stopping by.

Team Name: Atlanta Hawks

Last Year's Record: 47-35

Key Losses: Ronald "Hot Flip" Murray, Acie Law IV, Solomon Jones, and some guy named Craig.

Key Additions: Jamal Crawford (trade), Joe Smith (FA), Jeff Teague, and the enormous butt of Jason Collins.

1. What Significant Moves were made during the off-season?

The Hawks resigned Marvin Williams, Zaza Pachulia, and Mike Bibby. Getting each of them back was not overly surprising due to the stagnant free agent market and abhorrence of a handful of teams to even be in the same room as added salary let alone contemplate adding it. More pleasantly true though was that Hawks got them all back under long term deals that were at worst near market value and at best slightly under. Outside of the third and final year on Bibby's contract, Rick Sund did quite the job this off season.

Zaza is what he is and that is awesome. And by awesome, I mean an unathletic, hustling, rebounding, traveling, get under your skin defense, barely can dunk Eastern European machine. Bibby can still stroke it from outside, provide leadership from inside the locker room, and mentor Jeff Teague on his way out. Marvin just improves every year. He may be past that "big jump" year, but he is entering the prime of his career and the Hawks have front row seats at a very reasonable price.

Some people did not come back though. Flip Murray being one of them. The good thing about having Flip for one of his most successful seasons in the NBA was that the fans fell in love. We shouted "hot Flip!" like school kids. It was a summer lover affair in the dead of winter and those are hard to say goodbye to. We never knew any of the horror stories those Pacer, Piston, and Cavs' fans threw out. Not our Flip. It couldn't be so. It wasn't so.

Which has made the Jamal Crawford trade a bit of a mixed bag. People are excited and ready to believe he is an upgrade, but that nine times cheaper old summer fling is tough to shake. Still, there is a lot to be excited about with Jamal. For one, we got him for nothing (at least for the first year). Plus, Crawford provides ball handling and free throw shooting at the end of games, which the Hawks sorely missed last year. And then there are those 50 point games, that crossover, and the scoring off the bench. The question is whether those pluses will outweigh his lack of any defense and questionable shot selection. One thing we know the trade did though was, barring an improbable sign and trade, make it so the only big name the Hawks can sign next year is the one they already have, Joe Johnson.

Finally, if you would like to live in a world where preseason is a perfect indicator for future performance, Jeff Teague is about to take this league by storm. If you want to live in optimistic reality, he has the tools to be very good. And if you take preseason for what it is and that is fake games, he can jump and is fast and that is all we know. Personally, I have always liked the taste of kool-aid.

2. What are the team's biggest strengths?

The teams biggest strength is that you have to be exceptional to beat them in any one area. Not great, or all-time anything, just really, really good. If your team has a better starting five, you have a really good starting five, and when they play the Hawks, they will have to play as such. If you have a better bench, that bench is far above average. A lot of people look at the Hawks and say, "there is no super star!" which is true, but there is also no weak link. You are going to have to bring your game to beat this team. And if your game is better on the whole, you can certainly win. This Hawks team will not all-star themselves to many victories, but they can beat anyone. And on rare nights, even when a better team is playing up to their potential, the Hawks have the athletes to throw "what's suppose to happen" to the wind and beat you anyway.

In that, Joe Johnson is the personification of this team's identity, and also its must likely villain. Joe is a borderline all-star who hangs more on the border of being included. He is a guy that is consistent on both ends of the court, and for an organization that desperately needed anything in the same ballpark as consistent, fans and media give him rightful praise and recognition for leading them out of the dredges of the league. Joe will beat you. He can drop a quiet 35 with the best in the league. But he is not a super star. He needs teammates. A Joe Johnson team will not make the eastern conference finals. A Joe Johnson led team could.

And that is the rub. Joe is still learning to lead without dominating. It is unclear if Mike Woodson is learning to coach that way, but to be an elite team without elite players, the Hawks will need to play to the strength that they have few weaknesses. Because playing to a strength that is not really there will only undermine the only strength the team really has.

And that was the most confusing sentence I have ever written.

Other strengths in no particular order are home court, running against older teams, a built in food court outside the arena that sells beer, Dominique Wilkins doing color commentary, and Josh Smith dunks.

3. What are the team's biggest weaknesses?

Rebounding. Or put another way Josh Smith accepting a role that fits his skill set. The Hawks are never going to be an exceptional rebounding team. Not with Al Horford playing center and Mike Bibby at point. But they could certainly improve. The Hawks ranked 23^rd last year. I don't know stats that well and I am horrible at memorizing things, and I didn't have to look that one up. That is how important it is.

The Hawks could be decent at rebounding. Al Horford is an excellent boarder despite his size. Zaza Pachulia has one of the best offensive rebounding rates in the league. Joe Johnson pulls down boards at an average clip. Marvin could get more but gets enough. It will be a team effort to overachieve here, but Josh Smith must step up. He had his lowest offensive rebounding numbers since coming into a league and was off a full board a game on the defensive end from his rate the past two years. When it comes down to it, the onus is on Josh to end his daydreaming around the three point line and attack the boards like a bat out of hell. Yes, a literal bat out of hell. I have been sending him Meat Loaf cds for weeks in preparation for this season. Hopefully, he has been listening.

The Hawks are simply not good enough at shooting or defense to leave rebounds for the taking. If they stay below average in this category, the improved east will make it very hard to keep the fourth seed and that clear division everyone talks about between the big three and the rest of the league will be so distinct you will think the Hawks are the best team in minor league ball.

The Hawks also must win more games on the road, but that is true for any non-elite team.

4. What are the goals for this team?

Mike Woodson is in a contract year so the goals for this season might easily be marked by what it will take for him to get a new contract. And that might be lower than some Hawks fans want. There will be riots in the street if a first round playoff loss garners a new contract, but a competitive second round exit should secure an extended stay in Atlanta for Woody.

However, one can only rebuild for so long and a conference finals appearance may be wishful thinking around these parts but it is not unheard of thinking. It is still a goal and not an expectation, but in two years, if the Hawks are saying goodbye to the playoffs in early May, fans will not be happy and Phillips Arena will go back to the sparse look it held for the early part of this decade.

The Hawks have improved every year under Woodson, and hope and excitement is built around that very fact. Improvement on 47 wins is a goal and a very reachable one at that.

5. Who will break out this season?

The Hawks are slowly dwindling down their list of potential break out stars. A few years ago you could go six deep easy. The team is settling into roles and skill sets. It makes people excited about competing and nervous about that final form not being enough.

And while Marvin Williams and Al Horford still have the chance to make improvements and maybe even leaps in terms of their game (I actually expect both to be better players this year), neither is likely to become an all-star this year or next. Josh Smith though is the x-factor. His talent is so immense that naming him the potential breakout star is never cliché. And I say that with a firm understanding that he will never be a good jump shooter.

No, Josh Smith is a commitment to rebounding, defense, and not shooting jump shots away from being a clear cut all-star. And those are three things, three big things, but they are less new skills to learn and more a mindset to adopt. That is all Josh Smith needs to become a dominating force. It is scary that the Hawks put their chips in this enigma, but it is also pretty dang exciting.

Predicted Record: 49-33 and 4th seed in the East.

Other player previews: Marvin Williams, Zaza Pachulia, Mo Evans, Mike Bibby, Jamal Crawford, Jeff Teague, Al Horford, Josh Smith, Joe Johnson

72 reasons to be excited!

Go Hawks!

Poll

The big one, how many games will the Hawks win?

Less than 40

2 votes

40-42

4 votes

43-45

5 votes

45-47

16 votes

47-49

17 votes

49-51

50 votes

51-53

32 votes

More than 53

28 votes

154 votes | Poll has closed

Preseason Preview and Game Thread #1: New Orleans Hornets @ Atlanta Hawks

hawksdawgs — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 20:39:01 -0000

Atlanta Hawks Preseason 08-09 Game #1
	@
0-0		0-0
Phillips Arena
October 7th 2009 7:00 pm
No TV, Hawks Radio Network
Probable starters:
Chris Paul	PG	Mike Bibby
Morris Peterson	SG	Joe Johnson
Julian Wright	SF	Marvin Williams
David West	PF	Josh Smith
Sean Marks	C	Al Horford

Hawks Injury Report: Joe Smith and Mo Evans got treatment yesterday, and Woody said Smith and Collins probably will not play tonight.

Hornets Injury Report: They have no healthy big men that I have heard of other than David West.

Blogging With the Enemy: At the Hive

Predicted bane of the Hawks existence: Preseason. Can't happen yet unless, Chris Paul is a constant bane in your existence as Hawks fan.

Game Preview:

I wish this game was on TV because I am excited to watch the team again. Like unhealthy excited. Don't get me wrong. Steve Holman on 790 will be welcomed back with open arms, but I want to see Jeff Teague out there, get a look at Jamal Crawford, root on Othello Hunter. I guess I still will, just 1940s style.

Basically, it is time to start taking practice and those offensive sets and defensive schemes to the game level. The seasons does not start today, but a big step to winning that first game starts happening tonight. Get the starters sweating, figure out where the confusion is, mess with the rotation, play the 10th through 20th men. Done and done.

Keys to the game

Don't get injured.
Get in shape.
Remember/start figuring out what playing in the NBA feels like.

Feel free to drop off your pregame thoughts or post game reactions. Or stay the whole game and post every thing awesome Steve Holman says. Anyone watching it live. Fanposts recaps are encouraged and will be met with great fanfare. Possibly a parade.

Go Hawks!