Sports Page Atlanta

I have never been so happy about a non-Hawks signing as I was about Elton Brand’s 5 year, $80 million deal with Philadelphia. The biggest pursuer of the Hawks’ coveted restricted free agent, Josh Smith, was taken out of the running by committing themselves elsewhere. However, this does not mean our long summer ordeal is over. Teams, including Golden State (losers on trying to re-sign Baron Davis) and the Clippers (who failed to re-sign Brand to go with their acquisition of Davis) are aggressively pursuing Smith and fellow free agent Josh Childress.

It all goes back to last year, when the Hawks had the opportunity to sign Smith (22 years old) and Childress (25) to three years deals without other teams being allowed to make any offers. This is sort of deal is typical in the NBA, and a boon for both sides: the player gets more money then they would make as a restricted free agent (since their new contract kicks in a year earlier) and the team saves money on a year-to-year basis.

Of course, the Hawks aren’t famous for the wisest of decisions and the decision to not sign Smith and Childress to deals last summer will go down as one of former General Manager Billy Knight’s most questionable moves. However, the team’s mismanagement has extended beyond Knight’s tenure. New GM Rick Sund’s decision to retain Coach Mike Woodson will only make negotiations more difficult with Smith. Anyone who watches Hawks games can attest to Smith’s dislike for Woodson: his body language during time outs would be kindly described as “negative” and his history of in-fighting with the coaching staff (including a two game suspension two seasons ago) makes it clear that Woodson is not Smith’s number one choice for coach. While I normally would be opposed to the concept of a player acting immaturely like Smith, it is hard to argue for Woodson when one takes a look at his abysmal record over the last four years, including his underachieving team from last year. Sure, the Hawks made the playoffs and took the Celtics to seven games; however, Woodson also presided over a talented team going 37-45 in a weak conference.

It is impossible to overstate the loss Smith would have on the team. While still raw and immature in several aspects of his game, including settling way too often for a contested shot or poor three (where he shot only 25% last year, though it felt worse than that), his upside is simply unreal. He is only 22, but still averaged almost three blocks a game last year. His defense overall does still need some work (blocks are not the be-all-end-all of defensive statistics – he has difficulties with post-up play), however, he continues to improve every year. The most important thing which Smith added last year was an offensive game. Again, he still shoots too many threes, however, he showed an aggression going to the hoop which he had not had in previous seasons. While it is still not as fine tuned as it could be, again, he is only 22! Smith should be a cornerstone of the franchise for years to come, not a hot free agent commodity.

Childress’s value, while not as clearly apparent, is still immense. Childress is the quintessential sixth man – indeed, he could easily contend for sixth man of the year for seasons to come. He is a high energy player who does an excellent job getting back on the fast break and has an excellent jump shot (he shot 57% from the field last year). However, where Childress really shines is rebounding. Despite only averaging six rebounds in thirty minutes of play per game last year, Childress always seems to be right in the thick of the boards, blocking out players taller than him to fight for a rebound. This sort of high energy is exactly what an NBA team wants from its bench.

The Hawks core is one of the youngest and brightest in the NBA. Joe Johnson is establishing himself as one of the star scorers in the league, Marvin Williams is emerging as a complete all-around player, Mike Bibby will enter the 2008-9 season with a whole summer to get use to his teammates (where his mid-season acquisition last year did not give him time to adjust to each player’s preferences of where they want the ball), and thinking about Al Horford’s future in this league makes me giddy with excitement. With Smith and Childress on this team, the Hawks are possibly contending for a championship spot out of the East in the next few years. However, I can’t help but feel that poor management decisions which have plagued the team for years will cause this young nucleus – which we saw a brief glimpse of for three amazing games against the Celtics – to disappear before it ever really gels.

After all, there’s only so many Elton Brands out there to bail us out.

Drew Lichtenstein

Josh Smith had another typical solid night for the Atlanta Hawks yesterday. His points were down, but once again he showed up on defense. He had 3 more blocked shots and is averaging 2.9 per game which ranks him 2nd in the NBA.

Since he started back in 2004-05 he is 2nd as well in that time frame.

Here are the top 5 shot blockers from 2004-05 to now…

1. Marcus Camby - 869
2. Josh Smith - 763
3. Tim Duncan - 659
4. Ben Wallace - 613
5. Samuel Dalembert - 611

Dave McMahon

The Atlanta Hawks are currently clinging to the eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Being in contention for a playoff berth this late in the season is very unfamiliar territory for this Atlanta franchise, since Atlanta has been in an eight year play-off drought. They have 12 games remaining on the schedule (7 home 5 away), and have no margin for error with New Jersey within half a game’s reach in the East. Fortunately for the Hawks, they have caught fire as of late, winners of 4 of their last 6, and only have three games remaining against teams with an above .500 record. At first glance, the odds of Atlanta securing a playoff berth seem good, but if history has taught us anything, it is that the Hawks can usually find a way to blow it.  Judging by their play throughout the whole season, it is obvious that the talent and the potential of a playoff caliber team is there, but there are a few things that need to happen for the playoff dream to continue.

Mike Woodson’s tenure as head coach in Atlanta has been mediocre at best. He has slowly increased the number of wins every season, (already matching last year’s total of 30 wins) but only marginally enough to make a difference. Flaunting a few garbage victories from late in seasons past are not misleading anyone, which has led to various rumors of GM Billy Knights attempts to fire Woodson. Although both sides deny these rumors, don’t be surprised to see Mike Woodson out as head coach if he finds a way to miss the playoffs this year. Throughout the course of the season, I feel Mike Woodson consistently gets out coached in the second half and fails to keep the team motivated for the full 48 minutes. Conditioning young players to perform like veterans late in games is no easy task, but after 4 years I’d hope he has coached his players to this standard.  In these last 12 games, the Hawks will enter each game as the favorite to win, and Woodson needs to be sure his team performs like it. There is no room for leads to be blown, or games to be overlooked at this point. To be blunt, Mike Woodson needs to coach like his job depends on it, literally.

Another area of concern for the Hawks is finding a dependable third go-to scorer. Joe Johnson has been putting up monster numbers during the Hawks recent hot streak, (26.4 ppg 7.4 apg) which has been one of the few consistencies all season. It also appears that Mike Bibby has gained control of Atlanta’s offense attack adding a much needed perimeter shooter to the lineup.  Both of these Atlanta guards have proven over time that they have the ability to produce on a consistent basis, but the Hawks are in desperate need of finding a third scoring threat. Josh Smith is Atlanta’s 2nd leading scorer (17.3 ppg), but anyone who has witnessed his perimeter shooting would agree that it is far from dependable. Smith is a player who has potential to be one of most well rounded offensive and defensive players in the league if he can come to terms that his scoring zone doesn’t extend past 15 feet from the rim.  His size and athleticism leads to consistent mismatches which are best capitalized in the low post. His south-paw orientation naturally puts him in a position to draw fouls and allow him to work against 2nd string caliber players due to foul trouble.  Dribbling has also been a weak point for Josh, which limits his perimeter game and is constantly exposed by better defenders.  I am an avid fan of Josh’s, but I feel that in order for him and the team to prosper he needs to confide in his role as a dominant low post player.

Marvin Williams has had games where he played like a 2nd overall draft pick, and others where I start kicking myself for selecting him over Chris Paul. It appears Marvin has adopted the identity as a pure 20-foot jumper shooter, which is slightly contradicting to his agile interior play in college. As with any pure shooter, Marvin’s scoring comes in streaks which needs to become more consistent down the stretch. Being the kick-out option for the Hawks offense, William’s number is called numerous times a game, and much of Atlanta’s success depends on his ability to knock down the jumper. Marvin is an extremely young talent who has shown he can be a dependable scoring option, but his game like most of the Hawks, has little room for error in the coming weeks.

Every player on the roster must know that no game can be overlooked.  Atlanta is a city thirsty for some post-season excitement, and the Hawks posses a major opportunity to capitalize on a playoff appearance.  The Hawks have a long way to go before they are in the discussion as some of the leagues elite teams, but there is much experience and benefit to gain if this team can hold the eighth playoff spot. Winning can cure a lot of problems with any team, and should serve as the catalyst the Hawks need to perform to their potential. The eighth seed in the Eastern Conference doesn’t appear to be that prestigious of an accomplishment, but for the Hawks it is a great sign on progress and hope for a promising future for the franchise.

Elliot Bernstein is a 22 year old native of Atlanta. He currently attends the University of Georgia, but will be graduating in August. He is an avid fan of Atlanta sports, and a very proud member of the Bulldog Nation. Elliot is extremely excited about working with SportsPage Atlanta, and believes the city of Atlanta has an exciting year of sports to look forward to!