Blog Night Thanks, Acknowledgments, and Links

Last night was blog night at Philips Arena. I had a great time. It didn't feel nearly like the field trip I feared. We were treated with the semi-professionalism polite amateurism we deserved and more. I figured the highlight of my night to be overhearing John Hollinger talk about Nene's tumor in the press room on the way to witnessing (but not participating) in Mike Woodson's post-game press conference. (I think that's for the best. My criticisms are likely better served being published in this space rather than presented as a line of questioning.)

I was wrong. Our night culminated with a trip into the locker room to speak briefly with Al Horford and generally soak in the post-game atmosphere (Interviews were conducted, players got dressed, they watched the end of the Wizards-Knicks game; it was pleasantly mundane.). If they noticed us in their space the players were generous enough not to take offense at our presence.

The good time was due primarily to the efforts of one Mr. Micah Hart though it would be impolite not to thank the Hawks organization (especially Al Horford) for subsidizing the event and providing far more access than I anticipated..

There's a fine bunch of bloggers writing about the Hawks and it was good to meet them. Which makes sense as it's been difficult to be a casual Hawks fan for along time. Their thoughts on the night are linked below.

Braves & Birds
Atlanta Sports Fan
Hawks, Dawgs, and Jesus
The Crafty Veteran
Right Down Peachtree (liveblog of the game at Sports Gone South)
The Vent

Hawks 104 Nuggets 93

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One of the reasons I rarely write game previews is that when I am invariably wrong about things, I tend to write the game recap in terms of my misguided assumptions about the game I watched rather than simply in terms of the game I watched.

Yesterday, though, I was right. The pace at which the Nuggets played made it easier for Atlanta to get the transition opportunities they need to increase their offensive efficiency. Atlanta was so successful playing at Denver's preferred pace that Denver made a concerted effort to slow the game down in the second half.

Half	Poss	Den OE	Atl OE
1st	50.3	87.4	129.2
2nd	42.9	114.2	86.2

(NOTE: Possessions are estimated. OE = Offensive Efficiency = Points per 100 posssessions)

Slowing the game down helped Denver significantly but they were too far behind for it to make a difference in the game's outcome.

Denver fell so far behind in no small part due to Anthony Johnson's fine defense on Allen Iverson. Iverson still had a productive game (before getting tossed) but Johnson, for the most part, forced Iverson into scoring with his jumper. For a team that has had terrible problems keeping opposing guards from breaking them down off the dribble, I think this is as significant a lesson to take from this game as yet another example of how much more successful the Hawks are in transition as opposed to their half-court offense.

He didn't shoot much better but Acie Law IV had an encouraging night. Mike Woodson used the Law/Tyronn Lue backcourt for a long stretch in the first half. To his credit, it worked. The Hawks were +6 over 7 minutes and 22 seconds. Woodson tried it again in the second half and it didn't work: -4 over 5 minutes and 2 seconds.

Being at the game really helped highlight how uncomfortable Acie Law is playing off the ball. On the (too many) possessions where Lue was the primary ball-handler in the half-court, Law would follow him around the perimeter asking for the ball. Law doesn't know how to play off the ball. I still fail to see what advantage Lue (who could convert some of the open jump shots Law's dribble penetration would create for him) possesses over Law as a primary ball-handler when they share the court.

Law was +7 in the 9 minutes and 31 seconds he was the sole point guard on the court for the Hawks.

The Hawks get a very different challenge in the second-half of their back-to-back tonight in Milwaukee. If the Hawks feel the effects of last night's game and the trip to Milwaukee it could easily degenerate into a half-court game. The Bucks don't want to run and they don't want to let the Hawks run. The saving grace should that scenario come to pass is that even if they fail to play to their strengths, Atlanta has the ability to grind out a win in Milwaukee. Granted, that has much to do with the Bucks who are just as inefficient offensively as the Hawks but nowhere near as good defensively.

Preview: Nuggets at Hawks

I'm extremely interested in the game tonight because the Nuggets, in addition to providing the sternest test Atlanta's faced since their trip to Dallas back in 2007, might force the Hawks to play to their strengths.

The Hawks have two modes of offense which work fairly well: 1) intermittent stretches of transition buckets earned off of forced turnovers and defensive rebounds and 2) intermittent stretches when Joe Johnson cannot miss no matter the difficulty of the shot or the number of defenders guarding him.

It's obvious that the Hawks are incapable (or unwilling to make a priority) of pushing the ball up the court after every forced turnover or defensive rebound. That's where Denver provides me with hope. The Nuggets average 98.4 possessions per game. They play at a pace a full 10% faster than do the Hawks.

Even if the Hawks drag the pace half-way down to their usual 89 possession pace they will have several more opportunities to play to their offensive strengths: scoring before the defense gets set, offensive rebounding, and getting to the foul line.

It's not a new request of mine that Mike Woodson take advantage of every opportunity he has to play Josh Childress (in lieu of one of the point guards) alongside Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, Marvin Williams, and Al Horford. I think tonight is an opportunity to lean heavily on that lineup. No one on Atlanta's roster is capable of staying in front of Allen Iverson. The one thing Denver does not do well defensively is rebound. That lone weakness should be magnified in Nene's absence. In a game that should feature a lot of Alanta Hawks shot attempts, it's imperative they use their best percentage shooter and second-best offensive rebounder as much as possible. It would also be a fortuitous night to act as if Al Horford has a six rather than five foul limit.

Hawks 105 Bulls 84

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One day after I bemoan the Hawks' offensive inefficiency they go and score 69 points in the first half against the Bulls. Of course, the 36 points they scored in the second half combined both to restore faith in my own judgment and restore my long-term doubts about this team's potential. (Again, not to diminish the very real progress they have made.) Plus, it's not like the Bulls pushed the Hawks much in the second half. Unless my waning interest fouled the integrity of my notes, Chicago never got closer than 12 points in the fourth quarter.

Thus, the only notes I took that turned out to mean much at the conclusion of the rout concern Mr. Acie Law IV.

• I am not adamantly opposed to the Acie Law/Tyronn Lue backcourt (though I am convinced that over enough minutes it would prove disastrous defensively) but Tyronn Lue cannot be the primary ball-handler of that tandem. Acie Law can penetrate off the dribble. Tyronn Lue can make (at least he has made in the past) open jump shots. Let's try that combination of skills rather than vice versa.
• Law has to start converting his shot attempts at the basket. Like most any rookie, he's going to make mistakes, turn the ball over, and take bad shots. He can't also get nothing of value from the good plays he creates by failing to finish them.

Other than that, I think there's little to do but savor a rare Hawks blowout win, forget that I picked the Bulls to reach the NBA Finals a couple of months ago, and speculate as to how the Hawks will perform when presented with a real test by Denver Nuggets on Tuesday night.

Wizards 102 Hawks 98 (OT)

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The Hawks woke up Friday morning at 16-16. By midnight they were 15-17. The win was (at least temporarily) taken away due to organizational incompetence. The added loss was due to...organizational incompetence. Put simply, the Hawks cannot consistently create good shots in the half-court due to a combination of poor roster construction and sub-optimal utilization of the useful players at Mike Woodson’s disposal. Until the Hawks figure out a way either to create more transition opportunities or re-vamp their half-court attack, their very real competence defensively and on the offensive and defensive glass won’t raise the team above mediocrity.

Atlanta’s coaching staff could learn a lot from Washington’s. The Gilbert Arenas-less Wizards don’t have anyone you’d want to be your team’s primary ball-handler and only Antawn Jamison as a threat in the low post but Eddie Jordan has constructed a better offensive team out of a bunch of athletic wings and big guards than has Mike Woodson. Atlanta has three viable options to run the offense through in the post but Woodson chooses to use only Joe Johnson in that role with any regularity.

I take no pleasure in writing the following yet again but it continues to make no sense that the Hawks force the ball to Johnson in the post rather than using Josh Smith and Al Horford there, good passers both; awful and average jump shooters respectively. Johnson has a disconcerting habit of missing open jump shots his teammates create for him but over time I’d rather take my chances with him catching and shooting than watch opposing defenders run away from Josh Smith as he launches another 20-foot jump shot toward a nervous backboard.

Last night was also a great opportunity for Woodson to paper over the roster deficiencies at point guard and play Atlanta’s five best players (Joe Johnson, Josh Childress, Marvin Williams, Josh Smith, and Al Horford) together for long stretches. He chose not to do so.

There’s no one reason a team loses by 4 points in a 53-minutes contest. There are a number of small things the Hawks consistently choose to do which make winning each game more difficult. The roster is unlikely to be improved significantly during the season. I think it’s even more unlikely that the Hawks replace Woodson during the season with a coach capable of deploying the players at his disposal more optimally. That’s a significant mistake. It appears it will take no more than a handful of wins more than the team currently appears capable of achieving to secure (at least) the 6th seed in the East thus avoiding Boston and Detroit and getting playoff experience in a potentially competitive series.

The Hawks should catch (and must take advantage of) a break on Sunday when the Bulls should start their best point guard out of position and their best scorer on the bench. The west coast road trips still lie ahead. Atlanta can’t lose anymore home games against their fellow Eastern Conference mediocrities.

Programming Note

Due to the great internet outage of '08 (which I discovered gradually lugging my lap-top from neighborhood to neighborhood, from neighbors to coffee shops to bars) Hoopinion is a couple of days behind in posting but not writing new material. My eyewitness account of Friday night's loss to the Wizards should appear post haste. Notes on the easy victory over the Bulls yesterday will follow with other matters taken up as the day progresses.

Hawks and Heat to Re-Play Final 51.9 Seconds of December 19th Game

In that game, Shaquille O'Neal fouled out with 51.9 second left in overtime. Except he'd only committed five fouls. (NOTE: Insert Mike Woodson treatment of Al Horford here.) Pat Riley protested the game and David Stern upheld a protest for the first time since...David Stern had never upheld a protest until today.

The NBA's press release:

NEW YORK, Jan. 11, 2008 – The NBA today granted a game protest filed by the Miami Heat after its 117-111 loss to the Atlanta Hawks on December 19 at Philips Arena, which will result in the replay of the final 51.9 seconds of the game’s overtime period with the Hawks leading 114-111. The replay will occur immediately prior to the next scheduled game between the two teams -- on March 8, 2008, also at Philips Arena.

The Heat protested the game because, with 51.9 seconds remaining in overtime, the Hawks' scoring table personnel incorrectly disqualified the Heat's Shaquille O'Neal – asserting that a foul committed by O'Neal was his sixth foul of the game, when in fact it was only his fifth. The error occurred because the Hawks’ Official Scorer mistakenly attributed to O’Neal a foul at 3:24 remaining in the fourth period that was actually called against the Heat’s Udonis Haslem.

NBA Commissioner David Stern found that the Hawks were grossly negligent in committing this scoring error, since they failed to follow league-mandated scoring procedures and failed to respond effectively when the members of the statisticians' crew noticed the mistake. Because of this conduct by Atlanta's personnel, Miami suffered a clear competitive disadvantage, as O’Neal – the Heat’s second leading scorer and rebounder that night – was removed from a one-point game with only 51.9 seconds remaining. Under this unprecedented set of circumstances, the Commissioner granted the Heat's protest, and fined the Hawks $50,000 for their violation of league rules.

The protest is the first granted by the NBA since December 14, 1982 when then-NBA Commissioner Larry O’Brien upheld a protest by the San Antonio Spurs concerning their 137-132 double overtime loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Nov. 30. The Spurs and Lakers finished the game on April 13 with San Antonio collecting a 117-114 win.

I'm guessing that this (inaccurate) description from the game recap that night contributed both to upholding the protest and levying the fine:

The first postgame statistics showed O'Neal with only five fouls, prompting Riley to suggest he would protest the game. A review of the play-by-play sheet showed one of O'Neal's fouls was credited to Haslem, and the error was corrected.

That the Hawks' official scorer(s) failed to credit the Toronto Raptors with a made basket in a game last season couldn't have helped matters either.

And with that, I'm off to watch the 16-16 15-16 Atlanta Hawks host the Washington Wizards tonight.

Hawks 90 Cavaliers 81

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I'm not especially disappointed that Cleveland's one of the (non-Southeast Division) Eastern Conference teams Atlanta plays three rather than four times. This is not a matchup that engenders good basketball.

Cleveland should, though, serve as an object lesson for the Hawks' management. They are what you get when you play defense, rebound, have no point guard, and LeBron James. If everything falls into place, you can make the NBA Finals and get swept by a good team. If anything disrupts your best case scenario, you're fighting for a playoff spot against a team that plays defense, rebounds, has no point guard, and Joe Johnson.

Were the Hawks consistently to play as they did in the third quarter and use their defensive and rebounding abilities to create easy shots in transition, I'd be far more confident of their chances of making the playoffs this year. That they spent the fourth quarter walking the ball up the court in order to run brief, ineffective half-court sets before Joe Johnson attempted a difficult shot returns one to reality.

It's little wonder the Cavaliers got back in the game. For a four minute, twenty-three second stretch of the fourth quarter, Mike Woodson put this lineup on the court: Anthony Johnson, Joe Johnson, Marvin Williams, Josh Smith, and Lorenzen Wright. Shockingly, Cleveland could afford to give Joe Johnson extra attention what with three of the other four Hawks players on the court incapable of making a jump shot. On three consecutive possessions in the final 3:30, Atlanta managed a Josh Smith three-pointer (missed), a Josh Smith jump shot (missed--and created of off Lorenzen Wright dribble penetration!), and an Anthony Johnson runner in the lane as the shot clock expired (missed).

All too predictably, part of the impetus for playing this offensively inept five came from Mike Woodson overreacting to Al Horford picking up his fifth foul. Horford sat for the last 3:58 of the third quarter after picking up his fourth foul. He picked up his fifth foul with 6:26 left in the game and was replaced by Wright. He returned with 2:01 left in the game but only played 51 seconds before Woodson (sensibly) replaced him with Josh Childress for tactical reasons. Sitting Horford for that long when he is unlikely to feature in the end game (due to his free throw shooting and/or the small lineup Cleveland favored once Varejao left the game) is indefensible.

If Mike Woodson were ever to be a good game coach (imagine it if you can) it would have to be in a situation where he was given tremendous depth. The man can't recognize the difference in ability, production, and probability of winning the game between playing Al Horford as much as possible and playing Lorenzen Wright because Horford might foul out.

Good win, though. Back to .500 and still 8th in the East. A half-game out of 4th in the East for that matter. Washington in Philips on Friday for another game in which the Hawks need to grind out a win.

One Need Not Watch the Hawks Constantly To Question (Legitimately) Mike Woodson

David Thorpe co-signs one of my season-long complaints in this week's Rookie 50. Noting of Al Horford on January 8th:

Whether it's the right move or not, Mike Woodson sits Horford for long stretches when he picks up early fouls, rather than letting him play through foul trouble. This has cost Horford playing time -- he was on the floor for 38 minutes total in his last two games -- and the Hawks need Big Al if they want to recapture some of their early season magic. So either Horford must learn to let a few plays go where he doesn't risk fouling, or Woodson needs to let his talented big man learn how to figure it out on the court.

The last two sentences make it fairly clear on which side of his opening clause Thorpe stands. I concur. A neurotic Al Horford figures to be more productive than Shelden Williams, Lorenzen Wright, or Zaza Pachulia ca. 2008.

Housecleaning

Pacers 113 Hawks 91

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For a quarter-and-a-half it was an Atlanta Hawks game fueled by defense and rebounding redolent of effort more than execution. Then the Pacers started making shots and the Hawks were incapable of matching that.

Danny Granger has a great future in this league. Fair play for failing to contain him on a given night. A playoff contender, however, can't let Mikey Dunleavy and Kareem Rush play their best basketball games since they were juniors in college.

Nets 113 Hawks 107

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Joe Johnson may not be a good enough basketball player to do everything the Hawks need him to do every single night.

38.6: One Awful Possession

Cavaliers 98 Hawks 94

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LeBron James made (yet another) jump shot with 38.6 seconds left to put the Cavaliers up 91-86. The Hawks called timeout. Mike Woodson sent Tyronn Lue, Joe Johnson, Marvin Williams, Josh Smith, and Al Horford out on the court. The Hawks passed the ball around the three-point line until Josh Smith got Drew Gooden (bless him) to bite on a jump fake before stepping aside to take an uncontested three-pointer. Smith missed, natch.

The Hawks converted on their next three possessions, getting within two points before James made two free throws to ice the game with 2+ seconds remaining but the team's (and I mean players and coaches) inability to create anything like a useful possession with 38.6 seconds left rendered Smith's subsequent layup and Joe Johnson's two three-pointers worthless barring a Cleveland disaster at the free throw line.

Josh Smith shooting a three-pointer in a desperation situation is of little value. Josh Smith shooting a three-pointer ten seconds into a key possession is inexcusable. Someone must help him figure out what he can and cannot do to help the team win games. Someone must take the ball away from him if he might attempt a jump shot in a key situation. Failing that, someone must keep Smith on the bench where he can't damage the team's chances of winning.

Smith is a career 26.7% shooter from behind the three-point line. Still he averages one-and-a-half three-point attempts per game. His feet should never be set behind the arc. Get him the ball in the high post and the low post. Get him the ball there a lot. Do not tempt him with the opportunity to take jump shots, the opportunity to make his rebounding, passing, and shot blocking come at a cost.

Looking Ahead to 2008, Or, Predicting the Record With Little to No Certainty

Barring errors in calculation...

	WPct
Have Played	.500
Will Play	.490

The Hawks have played 16 home games and 12 road games against teams collectively at .500. The Hawks must play 25 more home games and 29 more road games against teams with a collective record of .490.

Let's prognosticate semi-objectively.

Thirteen remaining games (Washington, @Milwaukee, Detroit, @Boston, Miami, @Orlando, @Washington, @New Jersey, @Chicago, Milwaukee, Toronto, @Philadelphia, @Miami) duplicate 2007 fixtures. Atlanta was 6-7 in the original fixtures.

Projected: 21-20

Of the remaining 43 games, Atlanta has home-and-homes with seven Western Conference teams: Portland, Denver, Los Angeles Clippers, Los Angeles Lakers, Houston, Sacramento, and Golden State. The Hawks should be expected to win between four (Portland, Clippers, Houston, Sacramento) and six (@Clippers, @Sacramento) of those games.

Projected: 26-29 (+/- 2 games)

The Hawks return games @San Antonio, @New Orleans, @Phoenix, @Seattle, @Utah and @Memphis. The Hawks went 3-3 in their home games against those six teams. Winning two out of six on the road seems a reasonable expectation to me.

Projected: between 28-33 (+/- 2 games)

Among Eastern Conference teams, Atlanta has yet to play Cleveland or the Knicks. The Hawks get the Cavs twice in Atlanta. Tonight's game is Atlanta's only trip to Cleveland. The Hawks play two home and two road games against the Knicks. If the Hawks are as good as I think they are (and Cleveland doesn't acquire a guard who can do two things well between and now and February 8th) they win five of those seven games.

Projected: 33-35 (+/- 2 games)

The Hawks play @Indiana and @Charlotte twice with no home games remaining against either team. Expecting to split those four would be optimistic but not unreasonable.

Projected: 34-38 (+/- 3 games)

The Hawks get New Jersey, Philadelphia, Orlando, and Chicago twice each at home (The one road game Atlanta plays against each of the teams is a duplicate fixture and accounted for above.) and should win at least five of those eight games.

Projected: 39-41 (+/- 3 games)

The Hawks play a single game @Toronto. I don't expect them to win there.

Projected: 39-42 (+/- 3 games)

The 80th game of Atlanta's season is home against Boston. That's the 80th game of Boston's schedule as well. If the Celtics are locked into their play-off fate, then Pierce, Garnett, and Allen won't play.

Projected: 40-42 (+/- 3 games)

That projected 40-42 comes via 26 home and 14 road wins which would necessitate a slight improvement in their home winning percentage (from .625 to .634) and a sharp decline in their road form. With four separate road trips of at least three games remaining I'm afraid that's extremely possible..

Mavericks 97 Hawks 84

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On the bright side, the Hawks played the Mavericks even after falling behind 12-0 to start the game. Also, Acie Law IV played a sort of effective offensive game.

Indeed

Brian Windhorst (subbing for Henry Abbott) at TrueHoop gives Marvin Williams some much deserved credit for Atlanta's 15-12 record:

Yet maybe being overshadowed is what looks to be a breakout season for the oft-cursed No. 2 pick in 2005, Marvin Williams. The Hawks' front office isn't out of the woods yet for passing on the likes of Deron Williams and Chris Paul, but Marvin Williams is quietly showing his massive promise at the tidy age of 21. After his 14-point, five-rebound and five-assist night, Williams is averaging 16.7 points, 5.7 rebounds and, the biggie, shooting an astounding 50 percent from the field in his third season. He's also second on the Hawks in steals at 1.2 per game.

Here's to effective spacing. He'd be even more efficient offensively if he got more opportunities to fill the lane on the break. I like to think he has some untapped potential as a rebounder but also like to think that I'm not especially greedy.

Housekeeping

In the holiday rush all these wins start to run together.

Late last Friday night, I watched the Hawks defeat the Wizards 97-92.

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Neither my notes nor my memories survived the week.

Last night, in between working late and eating dinner I watched but utterly failed to focus on the Hawks defeating the Pacers 107-95.

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The surprising amount of correspondence that arrived between December 22-25 and required response kept me in the office long past the 7pm (announced) tip but did provide me a rare opportunity to listen to Steve Holman and Dennis Scott on the ride home wherein I learned that 1) Holman is already worried about Scott missing the early start (12pm CST) in Dallas Saturday because Scott "knows people" in Dallas and 2) Holman and Scott are very interested in breaking their duck vis-a-vis a free meal at St. Elmo Steakhouse in Indianapolis on or about January 4th, 2008.

Regular blogging to resume as early as today or as late as tomorrow.

Hawks 117 Heat 111 (OT)

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Nothing gets the holiday blood flowing like receiving the gift of watching 179 free throw attempts over the course of two games in three days. Savoring the two victories, which allow one the privilege to complain about aesthetics, is a nice, new feeling.

The parade to the foul line frustrated this viewer but did not overshadow the fortuitous events for Hawks fans: Anthony Johnson played another excellent game (Chris Quinn, I sorry to say, may not get his card from the Backup Point Guards' Union), Zaza Pachulia (13 points, 8 rebounds, 1 turnover) appears to be rounding into health, and Shelden Williams had 8 points and 4 rebounds in 13 minutes despite never catching the ball cleanly on his first attempt all night.

This being the Hawks (not to mention this being Hoopinion) there are still things about which to fret: the Anthony Johnson/Joe Johnson/Mario West/Josh Smith/Lorenzen Wright lineup the Hawks featured for a spell in the first quarter, the wisdom of playing an obviously still-injured Acie Law IV at all, starting Al Horford with an apparent brief to foul Shaq on sight rather than using up an expendable big man's fouls first and saving Horford for a more advantageous matchup, and the revelation that Bob Rathbun thinks that all tall black men wearing white headbands look alike.

Somewhere in between is the puzzling case of Joe Johnson who seems incapable of making an open jump shot his teammates create for him, but can finish off the bounce against any number of defenders whether falling away or going to the rim. Seven missed three-pointers and none of them appear in my notes as a bad shot.

Note of genuine humility: It's probably for the best that the Hawks clearly do not read Hoopinion. On their first possession last night Joe Johnson posted up, got double-teamed, passed out of it to Anthony Johnson, AJ passed to a wide-open Josh Smith (who Miami did not bother to close out on), who missed a 22-footer.

Get healthy, Zo. If last marks the end of your playing career, it's been a hell of a run.

The Hawks Need Another Shooter

Everybody could use another shooter (You want to argue strenuously that Phoenix doesn't and I'll probably concede in deference to my energy-draining cold.) but, as Sekou Smith quotes the ever popular unnamed scout, another shooter would push the Hawks from playoff hopeful to playoff habitue.

Sayeth the unnamed scout:

“They’ve got to have another shooter, or two man. Everybody could use more help in the post but it’s just not happening. There aren’t enough quality big men to go around. Plus, with Josh Smith and Al Horford, they’ve got two of the better young tweeners in the league. Neither of those guys is the ideal size, but they play off of each other perfectly. But what they can get, and what they desperately need, is another quality shooter. Other than Joe Johnson, they don’t have a guy that you’re worried about spotting up and knocking down shots in transition or in the half court game. Marvin Williams is on the path, but he’s still a guy you can take away by getting underneath him with a smaller, active guy. They don’t have another guy that scares you from distance. They just don’t. And if they did, that would open up the floor for the rest of those guys to operate a little easier. Sometimes a subtle thing like that can open up a team’s offense in ways they never imagined.”

As of today, the Hawks are 25th in the NBA in eFG%. They sit ahead of just the Nets, Sonics, Knicks, Clippers, and Bulls (combined winning percentage: .342). The three teams directly ahead of the Hawks are the Timberwolves, Bobcats, and 76ers.

Josh Smith is shooting 41.5% from the field (weighed down by his 23.1% shooting from beyond the arc and 26.8% shooting on two-point attempts outside 15 feet--more touches in the post, please), Zaza Pachulia and Shelden Williams are each shooting 41.7% from the field, Acie Law IV is shooting 39.6% from the field (that should pick up should he ever get completely healthy but likely not as a result of making more jumpers so much as finishing better at the rim), Hoopinion favorite (and admitted defenwsive liability) Salim Stoudamire is shooting 39.8% from the field.

That's effectively half the roster that hasn't been able to make the shots they're taking so far this year. It's not like Joe Johnson (46.3%), Anthony Johnson (47.4%), or Tyronn Lue (46.9%) are bettering the league average themselves. Despite this, the Hawks are 12-12 because they've been a top ten offense in terms of offensive rebounding and free throw rate. (That and they've been an outstanding defensive team for the last month. Allowing Damien Wilkins to score 41 points in Philips Arena seems to have delivered something of a wake up call.) If they could figure out a way to become even an almost-average shooting team, they'd be battling the Raptors for the fourth seed rather than participating in the scrum for the last couple playoff spots.

As I wrote earlier today, I think that the Hawks have another shooter on the roster and his name is Joe Johnson. More touches for Al Horford and Josh Smith (good passers both) in the post means more open jump shots for Johnson and Marvin Williams. Continuing to give most of the touches in the post to Johnson means more open jump shots for Smith and Anthony Johnson. I know which I would prefer were I Mike Woodson.

Also, were I Billy Knight (shudder) I'd be hard-pressed to turn any of the dreck on the back end of this roster into another shooter. I think someone on this list would be worth bringing in for the new year. Billy Thomas can shoot and guard people (At least I assume he can still manage the latter; ain't none of us getting younger.) but though I'm sentimental (Moneyrock!) I'm also open-minded enough to consider fairly any alternatives.

Hawks 116 Jazz 111

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Yes, it's taken 24 hours to get over the shock of watching Anthony Johnson outplay Deron Williams. Or, technical difficulties. Which is more plausible? I ask you.

I have a couple of requests with regard to the Hawks' offense from here on out:

• Throw it to Al Horford in the post or throw it Josh Smith in the (low- or high-) post. Let the shooters (Joe Johnson or Marvin Williams, ideally) get open looks from the resulting double-team.
• Run the pick-and-roll with Joe Johnson, especially if his defender is going under the screen consistently.
• Stop posting up Joe Johnson so that the opposing team can leave Anthony Johnson and Josh Smith free to take long jump shots as the shot clock expires.

Thank you.

Weekend in Review

Pistons 91 Hawks 81

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Detroit makes Atlanta look awful offensively. The Hawks don't run a lot of interesting (or effective) sets on a good night, but the Pistons stifle whatever ball and player movement the Hawks attempt and, should anyone successfully attack the basket, 'Sheed, McDyess, and Jason Maxiell render the Hawks incapable of finishing.

I checked out at halftime. Watching the tape Saturday morning, it appeared the Pistons did the same before regaining control mid-way through the third quarter and cruising to their third victory of the season against Atlanta. Something to keep in mind when predicting Atlanta's win total: only one more chance to be schooled by Detroit.

Hawks 93 Bobcats 84

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The Hawks are approximately as much better (head-to-head, anyway) than the Bobcats as the Pistons are better than the Hawks.

Josh Childress, Acie Law IV, Salim Stoudamire, and Tyronn Lue all missed the game through various injuries, reducing Atlanta to a 7-man rotation including Mario West and the dubiously healthy Zaza Pachulia. Joe Johnson, Marvin Williams, and Josh Smith played heavy minutes and did the heavy lifting quite successfully.

Sam Vincent didn't hurt matters, either. That's from the Hawks' perspective. I don't get Vincent's infatuation with Jeff McInnis. The man's not a good backup point guard but that doesn't stop Vincent from using McInnis not just as such, but as his primary reserve at both backcourt spots. Neither Matt Carroll nor Jared Dudley are the key to leading this Charlotte team to the playoffs but they're both better basketball players than McInnis and neither one pushes Raymond Felton out of position when they're playing.

Vincent used the two point guard backcourt (or, more accurately, the one good point guard not playing point guard so Jeff McInnis can, backcourt) for 14 minutes and 9 seconds during which Atlanta outscored Charlotte by 22 points.

I think I'll have to refrain from calling Mike Woodson the worst coach in the NBA for a while longer.

The Hawks still sit seventh in the East. Utah comes to town tonight (probably without Mehmet Okur) and there's no new injury news. Really, what's the point of reporting this:

It would be much more manageable for the Hawks if they weren't dealing with all these injuries. Josh Childress (groin), Acie Law IV (knee), Tyronn Lue (calf), Salim Stoudamire (ankle) and Speedy Claxton (knee) were all on the bench in suits against the Bobcats.

on Monday morning except to fill inches? If they're not giving you any new information, write about that so someone like me doesn't wonder if you're bothering to ask in the first place.

Josh Childress Out Tonight

Per Micah Hart, who appears to be firmly on the side of not disrupting any Friday night plans you or your loved ones might have in order to watch tonight's game in Detroit:

I'm not going to lie - the Hawks have their work cut out for themselves tonight in Detroit. Facing a Pistons team that manhandled them at Philips a couple weeks ago and beat them (controversially, I might add) during the season's opening weekend as well, the team will need to play at its highest level if they want to come away with a win.

That in itself is going to be tough, especially considering Al Horford is out due to suspension, Josh Childress is out with a strained groin, and T-Lue is still out as well. Zaza Pachulia will be back, but since it's his first game back after missing 5 straight dealing with a concussion I don't know how much we can expect from him either.

Honestly? I'm willing to give the team a pass in advance tonight, provided they come home and take care of business tomorrow night against Charlotte.

Speaking of Charlotte, they're the focus of ESPN today.

Presumably Solomon Jones Has Begun Stretching

Not unexpected, but now (well, 15 hours ago) made official: Al Horford suspended for one game.

NEW YORK, December 13, 2007 – Atlanta Hawks forward Al Horford has been suspended one game without pay for committing a Flagrant Foul Penalty Two by striking Toronto’s T.J. Ford on the head, it was announced today by Stu Jackson, NBA Executive Vice President Basketball Operations.

The incident occurred with 1:32 remaining in the fourth quarter of the Hawks 100-88 loss to the Raptors on Tuesday night at Philips Arena. Horford will serve his suspension Friday against the Detroit Pistons.

Sekou Smith reports that Zaza Pachulia "is expected to return to the lineup and start in Horford's place."

Tonight's frontcourts: Wallace/McDyess/Maxiell/Mohammed/Johnson v. Smith/Pachulia/S Williams/Jones. I haven't been this pessimistic about the Hawks' chances to win a game since Monday. Which can (obviously) be taken as either a reason to stay in or go out this Friday night.

Is Zaza Pachulia Going to Return?

A second consecutive post headed with a question but this one is a bit more serious. I ask because it doesn't sound good. Mike Woodson, in today's AJC:

"He didn't give me any indication when he was going to play but I wanted to assure him that he's a big part of what we're doing and we need him back on the floor to play whatever minutes he's going to play. We need him back on the floor."

It's nice to see that there is some common ground between myself and Mr. Woodson. It's not so nice that the post rotation consists of Al Horford (and his head coach instituted four foul limit) and, on a good night, Shelden Williams. Zaza, assuming it's the Zaza that Billy Knight could point to as his one good decision as a GM, will (would?) be a welcome addition.

Josh Smith or Luol Deng?

Steve Weinman at CelticsBlog asks the question (HT: Kelly Dwyer):

Buried in Atlanta, Josh Smith could well be a bigger, better version of Luol Deng.

A good read, inspired by Smith's outstanding performance in Orlando Monday night and written before he torpedoed the Atlanta cause against Toronto last night. Because Steve (admittedly) doesn't see the Hawks play very often, he overrates Smith's defense (great shot blocker, good help defender, reckless gambler, and helpless when posted up against) and understates his poor shot selection (which is, again, so bad because he's so effective when he attacks the basket).

Raptors 100 Hawks 88

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My DVR picked up two-and-a-third quarters worth of

ONE MOMENT PLEASE
This Channel Should be Available Shortly.

last night.

My eyewitness account accounts only for the comeback at the end of the third quarter and immediate capitulation at the start of the fourth. So, bullet points...

• I was a night early with my worries about a two-headed point guard shredding the Hawks' D. The combined line of TJ Ford and Juan Calderon: 48 minutes, 41 points (16-21 FGA, 8-10 FTA), 15 assists, 3 turnovers.
• At some point Acie Law IV needs to start making shots in situations other than end-of-quarter buzzer beaters. He's shooting 44% on two-point attempts and 20% on three-point attempts on the season. Since returning from his ankle injury he's making just 32% of his two-point attempts and is 1-7 on three-pointers.
• In 24 hours Josh Smith went from outplaying Dwight Howard to getting outplayed by Shelden Williams. 7 turnovers, 9 missed field goals (only two of them perimeter jump shots, though), just 2 free throw attempts, and 6 fouls.
• This team is not very good when Smith plays poorly. Josh Childress returned and was effective. Marvin Williams and Joe Johnson both shot the ball well. Shelden Williams played a second consecutive good game off the bench. Al Horford and Acie Law were solid. Only Anthony Johnson joined Smith in struggling (hardly unexpected) and it was enough to make Toronto look the clearly superior team.
• Mike Woodson letting Josh Smith foul out of the game makes his refusal to play Al Horford when Horford's in foul trouble even more particularly strange.
• Al Horford's foul on TJ Ford was most unfortunate--the result of Horford's effort to block a shot and Ford's effort to prevent his shot from being blocked. It was not a dirty play, something Ford was apparently well enough to acknowledge to Horford late Tuesday night/early Wednesday morning at Piedmont Hospital. One hopes both for a quick return from TJ Ford and no lingering effects on Horford for having committed the foul.
• Doug Smith of The Toronto Star disagrees with me:

I abhor basketball fights, mostly because, as Sam says, players can’t fight. But surely to all that’s good in the world, someone should have at least got in Al Horford’s face just a wee bit, don’t you think?

Not to punch him, but to say something, maybe push him, let him know smacking a kid in the head on a drive is stupid, very, very stupid...

...I have no doubt Horford had no thoughts of slamming Ford to the floor when he tried to foul him and maybe the rookie learns from it. Grab him around the waist, foul him at the free throw line or in the lane before he gets in the air.

Don’t swing your arm with no idea where it’s going to land.

And even though there was no malice intended, I really think the NBA has to suspend him a game and take some money away from him just to learn a lesson.

Preview Scraps: Toronto at Atlanta

The Canadian Press reported yesterday that Andrea Bargnani returned to practice on Monday and could return to the Raptor lineup tonight "marking the first time Toronto has had its trio of stars - Bargnani, T.J. Ford and Chris Bosh - together in the lineup since Nov. 20."

This afternoon, The Sports Network lists Bargnani as questionable. No word on the status of Childress, Lue, or Pachulia.

Toronto's offense (ranked 9th in league) will provide (especially if Bargnani's healthy) a third consecutive good test for the suddenly stingy (10th in the league) Atlanta defense.

Other Points of View

Third Quarter Collapse provides the Orlando perspective on last night's game:

We simply had no fire or intensity tonight. For the second game in a row, it appeared as though the team were still being coached by Brian Hill.

Ben Q Rock highlights Basketbawful's Worst of the Night there as well.

Kelly Dwyer provides a neutral's perspective:

Atlanta really put something together last night. It was probably the best we've seen them play since the Lenny Wilkens era, and they came away with a wholly deserved road win over a divisional rival.

Hawks 98 Magic 87

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That was nice. By "that" I mean being wrong about most everything I wrote in the game preview yesterday, having an excuse other than laziness to skip writing more game previews, and, most importantly, watching the finest performance the Hawks have turned in this season.

Stan Van Gundy agrees:

“We did make some mistakes, but I actually thought a lot of it was them. They've got great, great quickness as a team, and good length. I thought they made it very, very difficult on us to get quality shots - they contested shots better than anybody that we've played against.”

Jameer Nelson and Carlos Arroyo did not, as I predicted, torch Anthony Johnson and Acie Law IV. They didn't get a chance to get burned. Joe Johnson guarded the Orlando point guard on the vast majority of their possessions. He couldn't keep either Nelson or Arroyo in front of him any better than Anthony Johnson or Law would have but Johnson's size made it possible for the Hawks to switch on the pick-and-roll without creating a series of matchup problems for themselves. It was an effective coaching decision and came as a complete shock to me. At least until I discovered the identity of this plan's creator:

The defensive wrinkle Hawks assistant coach Dave Fizdale suggested in the scouting report for Monday night's game against Orlando seemed like a subtle one.

"Everything unfolded exactly the way it was supposed to," Josh Smith said. "Fiz went over the blueprint during shootaround and it played out just the way he said it would."

I liked that decision a lot better than Woodson's use of the Law/Anthony Johnson backcourt combo for 3:11 at the end of the third and start of the fourth quarter. Neither is much use off the ball and Law especially needs experience playing the point. Orlando got within four before Woodson put a more sensible unit on the floor.

His chosen five did not, at that moment (10:05 left in the 4th Quarter), include Al Horford. The reason: Horford had four fouls and is apparently not allowed to commit any more than four fouls, ever. Sure, he struggled to guard Dwight Howard but Horford scored seven points in 8:25 and the team was +9 while he was on the floor. Once he fouled out, Lorenzen Wright (one point, three rebounds in 27:10) would have still been available to play.

But this isn't the day to harp on the things that Mike Woodson does that I don't understand. Shelden Williams (hope his elbow heals quickly) and Anthony Johnson (who has played three pretty good games in a row) can't be expected to play as well as they did last night consistently so it's imperative that the team take advantage of the convergence of their competence.

Eastern Conference Player of the Week Josh Smith has moved far beyond the realm of competence. When he is the best player on the team the Hawks look okay. When he's the best player on the court (as he was last night) the Hawks look genuinely dangerous. Smith posted another 5x4 last night and dominated a game despite occasionally lapsing into a jump shooter.

This morning the Hawks stand at 10-10, tied for fifth in the East. Should Josh Childress, Zaza Pachulia, and Tyronn Lue bolster the rotation sooner rather than later, Atlanta could force the bottom half of the Eastern Conference to chase them down and take their playoff spot. That didn't seem possible two weeks ago.

Preview: Hawks at Magic

Tonight's game (a preview of a first-round playoff game, were the season to end, quite unexpectedly, today) kicks off a big week for the Hawks.

Josh Smith is reading a lot into the home wins over Minnesota (barely) and Memphis:

This is honestly the first time we've actually carved out an identity for ourselves. I know that sounds crazy but in my eyes, we're just now hitting our stride. For a long time we've played to whatever style was dictated to us. And we've had our struggles, and probably will have some more, everybody does. But the last couple of games have felt different.

There's no new news about Josh Childress's groin. He must still be planning to play tonight.

Orlando may be without Keith Bogans (bruised right quad muscle) tonight. Tim Povtak of The Orlando Sun-Sentinel reports that that might mean a start for Keyon Dooling. Decent-to-good choices to replace an injured starter--that's one of the major differences between the two franchises, though not as important as either a big free agent signing being Rashard Lewis rather than Zaza Pachulia or Speedy Claxton, or getting to draft Dwight Howard.

Howard may not be the Hawks greatest worry tonight. (Sure, he'll be the best player on the court but he's going to do what he's going to do so why wear yourself out worrying about him. Just start a pool about when Lorenzen Wright fouls out tonight.) No, the greatest threat to the Hawks tonight will be the tag-team of Jameer Nelson and Carlos Arroyo. Atlanta has demonstrated no ability to guard quick point guards at any point this season. If Anthony Johnson and Acie Law IV create a third option for Orlando's offense, the game could be out of hand before the Hawks have a chance to start warming up early for the third quarter.

More Late Than Never

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The responsibilities of real life superseded my commitment to this enterprise Saturday night. If I spoke to anything more than the excellent first quarter, I'd be putting you on.

Apparently I missed not only Lorenzen Wright's 2007-08 debut but also an exciting halftime coaching adjustment. Take it away Mike Woodson:

"We got them out of the locker room a little bit earlier than we have in the past. They were able warm up a lot quicker, and it was a nice carryover into the third quarter."

Your thoughts, Josh Smith?

"It got our bodies moving."

I guess we'll see if this works as well when the opponent isn't 6-13 and playing the second game of a road back-to-back after the previous night's game went to overtime.

Preview of tonight's game in Orlando appearing shortly.

The Franchise's Finances

Forbes.com has published a ton of financial information about all 30 NBA teams. (HT: Kelly Dwyer)

Sortable team rankings in five categories are here. The page specific to the Hawks' details is here and features the following accurate assessment of the state of the franchise:

The Atlanta Hawks are among the worst franchises in the NBA. The team has not made the postseason since 1999 and has failed to flirt with a winning season this decade. The Hawks have drafted with apparently no game plan, traded poorly and in recent years its owners have seemed more interested in suing each other than building a credible franchise.

The overriding fact that it's occasionally best but always impossible to ignore is that the franchise has no one in charge. Building a playoff team in this circumstance is extraordinarily difficult even if the team's GM wasn't spending the fifth-overall pick on Shelden Williams and the team's coach can't conceive of useful combinations of the few good players at his disposal.

Hawks 90 Timberwolves 89

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I'm at a loss as to the appropriate response to last night's game. I was initially incredulous about the celebration following Joe Johnson's game-winner as it resulted from blowing a 19-point lead to the worst team in the league and Atlanta's two best players allowing a go-ahead layup to Marko Jaric on consecutive possessions.

But, these guys (Horford and Law excluded) haven't won a lot of games recently. It's not their fault that they're part of a dysfunctional, thin roster that's deployed sub-optimally. Winning four out of every five games is more than a minor accomplishment considering the circumstances.

All the familiar, maddening problems surfaced (as did some of the causes for optimism).

But they won.

Exhale.

Remember where the organization is coming from.

My expectations with regard to consistent, quality basketball Saturday night against Memphis are low. With Tyronn Lue's strained calf, Zaza Pachulia's concussion, and Josh Childress's fresh groin strain, we may see a seven-man rotation. We may see Solomon Jones outside of garbage time. We may even see Joe Johnson and Salim Stoudamire on the court at the same time. (Necessity as the mother of implementing the obvious or some such.) May they just be good enough to win another game.

Links of the 6th

ESPN.com unveiled John Hollinger's new toy today: The Playoff Predictor. As of today, 3,000 out of 5,000 times the Hawks make the playoffs. I'm guessing that they'll need to beat Minnesota tonight and Memphis on Saturday to maintain that rate.

In his accompanying explanatory article, he writes:

This tool really shows how the East has split into the Big Three and the Little 12. Orlando, Detroit and Boston all show up as locks to win their respective divisions, while Atlanta limps into the No. 8 seed with just 37 wins.

Elsewhere, check out Kelly Dwyer's new home at Yahoo! Sports. Eleven posts in two days. Let's see if he can keep that pace up.

As for tonight's game, the Timberwolves will be without Randy Wittman (back surgery) while Antoine Walker (ankle) and Marko Jaric (foot, ankle) are both questionable.

Pistons 106 Hawks 95

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There are a lot fewer notes to compile into sentences and paragraphs when the game fails to be competitive for even three full quarters. There are more things to get off one's chest, though.

Detroit's an improved offensive team under Flip Saunders (and absent Ben Wallace) but the Pistons are not the defensive marauders they were under Larry Brown (and with Ben Wallace). They did not, however, get stupid when either Brown or Wallace left. They can still guard very successfully when the other team is willing to play four-on-five. Through three quarters, either Anthony Johnson or Shelden Williams was on the floor for 27:01. Neither deserved nor received any attention from Pistons defenders. The Pistons didn't much bother with Josh Smith until he got a foot in the paint, either. He obliged them by attempting (and missing, natch) four jump shots despite missing a most of the first half due to committing three stupid fouls. There was never much room for Joe Johnson, Al Horford, or Marvin Williams to operate.

Not that Johnson helped matters much. He forced most of his ten shots, turned the ball over in situations when he never looked likely to create something, and, most disturbingly, threw some terrible passes out of double-teams. Once the ball got brought up the court, was passed to Johnson, Johnson dribbled for a few seconds, then threw a pass at Horford, Williams, or Smith's ankles, Atlanta would have the ball with under 10 seconds left on the shot clock and five stationary offensive players facing a reset Pistons defense. This was not a recipe for success.

Of course, Mike Woodson never put Salim Stoudamire on the court with the starters to (hypothetically) stretch Detroit's defense and make them guard all five Atlanta players for any length of time. Stoudamire replaced Johnson with 2:43 left in the third quarter and the game, for all intents and purposes, over. Stoudamire scored 15 points in just under 15 garbage time minutes.

Salim >>> Flip Murray.

It's dispiriting that these young players are learning that's better to roll over and take a beating than try something risky in an attempt to compete with a good, veteran team. This isn't just Woodson. I think we all know that he's not going to be fired this year. The owner(s) will simply allow his contract to run out following a(nother) partially wasted season and replace him with someone willing to coach under a lame-duck, hamstrung, and generally poor GM.

I have high hopes for Al Horford (though his defensive rebounding ability seems to serve as a disincentive for his teammates to give a strong effort on the defensive glass) and Acie Law IV (once healthy enough to get a good stretch of game experience). I'm skeptical today about the rest.

Perspective from the Pistons' point-of-view at Need4Sheed and Detroit Bad Boys.

Hawks 88 76ers 79

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It wasn't a perfect performance from the Hawks but, if may be a bit presumptuous, it was a performance we could all happily live with on a regular basis.

Josh Smith took some jump shots and turned the ball over four times but he generally attacked the 76ers' rim, defended the Hawks' rim, and had six assists.

Joe Johnson had a poor shooting night but generally took easy shots that he allowed his teammates to set up for him. When Philadelphia's defense limited his scoring chances him, Johnson used their attention as an opportunity to create easy shots for his teammates.

Acie Law IV returned, looked rusty, missed all eight of his field goal attempts, and left no doubt that he is the best point guard on the Hawks' roster. Three of Law's misses came at the end of the shot clock. The other five were good shots (many at the rim) that he just failed to finish.

Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month (Novemeber) Al Horford responded quite positively to getting the ball more often in a position to score. He made six of nine shots, picked up an assist, and did not turn the ball over. At this point, getting 13 rebounds (4 offensive) from Horford is comfortingly predictable. Mike Woodson, for reasons inscrutable, increased the degree of difficulty for Horford's rebounding average by sitting him for the entire fourth quarter. It didn't cost the Hawks the game (Shelden Williams played a surprisingly solid game.), but it didn't make a lick of sense. Twice, early in the year, Woodson benched Horford in the fourth quarter once he picked up his fifth foul. Last night, Horford only got to four fouls before being shut down for the night.

Shrug.

Back at it tonight in Philips Arena against the Pistons. I expect good things and I expect to tolerate more Anthony Johnson playing time than I would normally. I think Chauncey Billups is one the point guards he can still guard a little bit.

Until then, if you know any Sixers fans, today's the day to cadge a drink off of them. The Hawks dealt the Billy King Era its death blow. The man hadn't been that overmatched since he faced off against Milt Newton in Kemper Arena.

Hornets 92 Hawks 86

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I took in a cross-cultural doubleheader of mediocrity last night. I don't know who delivered a more disappointing performance, Joe Johnson or The Selmanaires.

The are nights when it's apparent that the Hawks need Joe Johnson to carry the offense and on some of those nights he's capable of doing so and on others he isn't but neither is he culpable for the offense's inadequacies.

Last night however, Johnson kept the ball out of the hands of the players capable of helping him carry the offensive burden. For the first time, I noticed either Johnson's inability to or disinterest in feeding the post. Al Horford isn't a polished post player yet but Hilton Armstrong isn't a polished post defender. Horford should have been allowed a chance to take advantage of Tyson Chandler's absence in the second half but he repeatedly failed to get the ball when he posted Armstrong up.

It's a shame the team doesn't utilize its smartest and most aggressive player more. Horford is certainly the Hawk most willing to push the basketball up the court. He's arguably the Hawks' best option to run the fast break. The sooner Mike Woodson treats Horford and Marvin Williams as members of the team equally valuable to Joe Johnson and Josh Smith, the better.

Admittedly, the game was likely lost due to Atlanta's awful backcourt defense. Chris Paul predictably toyed with Anthony Johnson all night (Paul made his first 7 shots of the night. Considering that Mo Williams was 9-9 from the field Wednesday night. That's at least 16 makes in a row by the opposing starting point guard. The last miss by an opposing starting point guard occurred when Kirk Hinrich has a shot blocked with 3:25 left in the second quarter on Tuesday.) but Byron Scott didn't even need Paul for most of the fourth quarter as Jannero Pargo lit up the Hawks like Jose Juan Barea, Eddie House, and Chris Duhon before him. If Peja Stojakovic had been able to make an open jump shot, New Orleans would have beaten the Hawks as badly as the Bulls did Tuesday night in Chicago.

Despite that, the most infuriating moment for this spectator was Mike Woodson's decision, with 6:26 left in third quarter and the Hawks' two-point halftime lead having been turned into a four point deficit, to replace Marvin Williams, who had scored the only 4 Hawks points (on a single field goal attempt and two free throws) of the quarter, rather than Joe Johnson or Josh Smith, who had combined for three missed shots and three turnovers in the quarter, with Josh Childress.

Mike Woodson can't identify (or can't utilize) his players strengths and he can't identify which of his players is playing well at any given moment. It's time for him to go.