The All-Star break came to a close with not much excitement for our Atlanta Hawks. Joe was unable to play/participate in anything, Smoove was snubbed again, and Horford was unable to represent us due to injury. Maybe thats exactly what we needed though. Rest and some time apart after a difficult 1st half to the season. With Wednesday's loss to the Warriors minus Stephen Curry, Hawks faithful are left scratching their heads a little bit. Here is a look into some of the things that need to be improved upon for us to not only make the playoffs, but make some serious noise.
Key Problems:
-Free throw shooting is one of our biggest weaknesses. The last couple of years this has not been an issue at all, but for some reason this year we are unable to knock down FREE throws. Smoove has taken an unexpected plunge from about 70% to a horrid 50%???? Time after time the Hawks have missed early free throws and shrugging them off with the thought that they will make them up later. In most scenarios these same missed attempts come back in the end and prove to be the sole reason for a loss. At this point in our players careers it's not about practicing more, rather focusing on the attempts when they do come. I would list rebounding as a major area for improvement, but with the loss of Horford&Collins I can't complain too much. There does need to be more of an emphasis on gang rebounding. I'm sorry but Joe is too tall of a 2 guard to not get more than 5 boards a game.
-Getting back to the distribution and running game will be crucial to our increasing lack of a cohesive offense. If there is one thing that we have over many teams it is our athleticism. In the earlier stages of the season, even when Horford went down, everybody was making the right passes. They did not care who was scoring as long as they were getting open looks in a rhythm shot. Down the stretch we started to see Joe revert to Iso-Joe and Smoove do whatever it is that he thinks he's doing out there. I love Smoove but seriously those out of rhythm shots and Carmelo-esque ball stoppage needs to stop. The lack of any real offense needs to be blamed on Larry Drew and him only! When he was hired he spoke of a fluid, pass happy offense that would feature cuts to the hoop. We have been devoid of any real type of offense except for excessive screens, and the new play of guard screens! Please dude, its like watching church league ball sometimes. If Joe is being guarded by tiny Monta Ellis then post him up and dominate him all night. In summary, get back to the cohesive team we were at the beginning of the season.
Key Players:
-Kirk Hinrich. At this point I don't think there is one person that is very happy with Hinrich. We traded away a lot for him and at a certain point it looked like a good deal last year, especially in the playoffs. His return from shoulder surgery has proved to be more difficult than originally thought. He looks out of shape, sync, rhythm, and lost. And that's being nice. His high salary, around 8 million, and Drew's obsession with playing him large minutes means that when he is not effective it shows. I thought a lineup of Teague, Hinrich, and Joe at the 3 should be a mismatch on all accounts. His deep ball and overall shooting touch needs to improve for us to have a strong 2nd unit.
-Marvin Williams. He started off with a bang and has since faded into obscurity. The 3 ball he showed earlier has escaped him and as always his inability to dribble with any effectiveness is maddening!! What we need from him on a nightly basis is 7-8 rebounds along with knocking down his threes when he is open. I have come to not expect much from Marv so in all honesty I will take any type of improvement.
-Joe&Smoove. This isn't necessarily about their play but about their overall attitude towards the rest of the season. Don't get me wrong, Smoove needs to improve his shot selection and ball dominance. Joe needs to do a little more driving and posting up in certain situations. With Horford out we need Joe&Smoove to take the reins and lead this team into the playoffs. When we get down by some points instead of hanging both of your heads, yell and get your teammates focused back into the game. That is all I really ask for as a fan. If you are going to be the ones representing Atlanta as a basketball team, then please do so with appreciation and gratitude. Become vocal leaders and hold down the team until Horford is able to return.
That is all for now folks, it won't be this long usually just had to blow off some steem. I will actually be sticking to my goal of a blog update every 10 games. That gives us 9 games until the next update after our loss at home to GSW. Y'all keep being true to the ATL because if my anger management ass can get through this season, so can you! Also, Atlanta was officially ranked as #1 Worst Sports City by Forbes......uuuummmm Forbes can Suck It. ATLien till I die.
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