Sixers or Heat

Who do you think the Hawks match-up better against?

My thoughts on this don't even concern the match ups. I'm more concerned with how the NBA thrives.
I would rather play the Sixers because I honestly think the prospect of a LeBron vs Wade second round would be too enticing for the league to pass up. I'm not saying they "fix" games. I'm just saying we all know the kind of preferential treatment superstars tend to get and Wade is one of the more preferred in the league. I remember watching him skip to the free throw line 20 something times in the Finals against the Mavs. If they'll officiate him like that when the whole world is watching, then you know they'll give him a bogus call or two when only one coast is watching.
Having said all of that, I honestly think the Hawks are the 4th best team in the East and they should beat whomever they play in the first round (with home court advantage)
What are your thoughts?

The NBA: Where Tony Parker is Unimpressed by the Hawks Home Court Win Streak

Random thoughts about last nights loss:

1. You could look at Tony Parker's 42 point 10 assist night and easily come to the conclusion that Mike Bibby did a horrible job defending him, but you shouldn't look at it that way. Let's be honest, no one expected Bibby to contain Parker (if you did then you clearly don't watch Hawks games) we only hoped he'd do an admirable job. He didn't, but that's fine because like I said no one expected him to do so anyway. It's not all Bibby fault. The Hawks front line did little to hinder Parker's layup drills.
2. We/Everyone raves about Chris Paul, Deron Williams and Steve Nash as great point guards and they are very good, but Tony Parker's name should be mentioned among if not before them. Parker is really good when he has Duncan and Ginobili alongside him. Parker is borderline great when he's missing one of them. He may not average double digit assists (although 7 assists is nothing to hang your head about) but I defy you to name a point guard who can get to the rim and finish as well as Parker. The thing that sets him apart the most from his peers is he has several championship rings and a Finals MVP. I'm sure he'd rather win another championship than win the adulation of the media, so people can go ahead and continue ignoring him.
3. Joe needs a killer instinct. He sorta has one sometimes, but not really. He has to realize when certain players just can't guard him. Each "offensive set" took him about 9 seconds too long to come to the conclusion that he could take Ime Udoke off the dribble pretty much at will. He needs to recognize these things sooner. That being said, he missed a ton of shots that he probably wouldn't miss any other night. He still finished with 30 points on 13-23 shooting. Somehow he had a +/- of -10. See why I don't pay attention to +/-? I don't understand it.
4. When I thought about this match up as Al Horford's chance to go up against the player I hope he turns into one day, I wasn't talking about Drew Gooden........ Al's 2-9 shooting does nothing to help my case that the offense should run through him. But, much like Joe he missed shots he'd normally make so I won't fret.
5. One of the security ladies noticed Tim Duncan wasn't playing so she wondered why the Spurs were winning. I explained to her that it's because their coach is far superior to our/most coaches. He actually had what we'll just call a "game plan" and he went about getting his team to execute it.

Hawks/Wolves Recap

FLIP WAS ON FIRE!
Hawks won.

Hawks/Wolves Preview: Courtesy of my Mom

This is a real conversation I had with my Mom this morning.

C.C.:What are you doing?

Mom: Just working. What about you?

C.C.: Just working.

Mom: Do y'all have a game this evening?

C.C.: Yeah we play the Timberwolves.

Mom: Oh, it's a Thrashers game.

C.C.: No, it's a Hawks game.

Mom: Well where do they play? I've never heard of them.

C.C.: They play in Minnesota.

Mom: They can afford an NBA team?

C.C.: Apparently.

Mom: Should the Hawks win?

C.C.: They darn well better. They have to play the Spurs, Celtics and Lakers this week. They can't lose this one.

Mom: Yeah they shouldn't lose to a team I've never heard of. Who plays for them?

C.C.: Kevin Garnett used to play for them.

Mom: Oh I know who that is. They must have only mentioned him and never the team he played for. Who else played for them?

C.C.: No one worth mentioning obviously.

Mom: Yeah well I guess the Hawks shouldn't lose to a bunch of nobodies.

C.C. : Let's hope.

Hawks/Mavericks Recap Twitter Style

Screen names totally made up, except for mine....

Cocoqt81@CoachRCarlisle you cannot clap your hands violently at the officials.

CoachRCarlisle@DofficialStafford you'll be hearing from our team owner, also the view from the locker room isn't as bad as it sounds.

CoachRCarlisle@Cocoqt81 at least I didn't have to watch our 3 point shooting live....

Joethebasketballplaya@MBibbyKing4lyfe I start off slow and finish strong, u should try it.

BossAl@Lbrowndisciplewoody in case you haven't noticed, the offense should kinda run through me. I'm legit.

Lbrowndisciplewoody@BossAl just rebound and play defense, the offense will take care of itself.

JSmoove@TheotherJET If I see u in the streets..........

TheotherJET@JSmoove chill out man, I wasn't tryna hurt u..now ur just whining like that pansy Matt Harpring....... and our owner.

Cocoqt81@TheotherJET you're now dead to me, not that I ever cared for you all that much anyway

MBibbyKing4lyfe@JKidd4tripdub wanna go get our summer color together? Oh and thanx for being one of the few point guards who don't make me look so bad defensively...you know, since you can't shoot.

InstantoffenseMurray@Cocoqt81 did you happen to notice I was +24 tonight?? Are u still scared of me?

InstantoffenseMurray@MBibbyKing4lyfe keep playin the way u been playin and I'll be startin in the playoffs

Mwesthustles@Acielawless LOL I played more minutes than u......

Acielawless@Mwesthustles :(

Mwesthustles@Lbrowndisciplewoody I was +6, see I told you good things happen when I'm on the floor.. Did you notice JSmoove was -1?

JSmoove@BossAl Our stat line is almost the same. How am I -1 but ur +9? This doesn't make sense.

Joethebasketballplaya@JSmoove when you take jumpers and miss them it brings your +/- down.....just something to keep in mind.

Joethebasketballplaya@BossAl I'll be damned if the offense runs through u, just keep rebounding my misses...

I could literally do this all day, but I will not.

The NBA: Where Joe Johnson continues to be unimpresssed by All-Star guards not named Joe Johnson

Joe The Basketball Player has been awesome lately. Yesterday he was so good I found myself yelling "Take him Joe, he can't guard you" at everyone on Portland's team who attempted to guard him. In fairness to Portland, the game was played at 10:00 their time so they were probably a teeny bit tired. Oh well, them's the breaks.

Back to Joe..


He's got that Bruce Leroy, Last Dragon kinda Glow.







I just had to re-post this picture. It's just an awesome shot that I found on Yahoo after the Utah game. It's fitting because Joe has been glowing over the past week. He's done it all. Drives to the basket, killer crossovers followed by step back 15 footers, 3 pointers (yesterday not so much) and he still has the time to rack up a handful of assists. So unselfish. When going over the list of players I thought needed to step up in Marvin's absence Joe was like 4th on that list which doesn't really make sense considering he's the best player on the team. I guess I should kinda expect the best player on the team to do best player on the team things when their team needs it. For weeks I've been waiting on Joe to have one of those "there's no way in hell we're losing THIS game tonight" games. He's had four of them in a row. Thanks for your cooperation Joe.

Hawks Unimpressed By Opponents Win Streaks

Five Quick thoughts about the Hawks taking down the Jazz:

1. Joe The Basketball Player is back. Joe is the most appreciated slightly unappreciated Hawks player. He scores 31 points and I'm like eh...... One of the most charming things about Joe's game is how effortless he makes it look. It's also one of the things that makes us pay more attention to the other haves and have nots on the team. It's not like we don't notice when Joe is struggling. We need only look at win/loss totals over the past 2 months or so to really appreciate how much this team's success is directly connected to him.

2. Someone may want to tap Mike Bibby on the shoulder and remind him he is playing for a contract. Not necessarily a contract with the Hawks, but a contract nonetheless. He's struggling. Like for real struggling. We all want Acie Law to get more playing time, but not because we are getting next to nothing from Bibby. We'd just like him to be a part of the rotation because most successful teams have a backup point guard as part of the rotation.....

3. Marvin's injury is a blessing in disguise. Don't get it twisted, I never want to see a player injured (unless it's a Celtic) but this injury (like a few others in the past four years) forces Woody to use other players. Most coaches know they need to not only play 6 guys, but sometimes this fact eludes Woody. When I saw Mario West in the game in the first half you could have knocked me over with a feather. I'm not saying he deserves to play 20 minutes, but games when the Hawks have little to no energy he should definitely be an option because he plays hard. How about the dunk last night? So adorable.

4. The Hawks really are about entertaining the fans, that's why they don't blow anybody out. The Jazz are a good team, but the Hawks came out in the second half and played nothing like they did in the first half. I mean what actually goes on in the locker room to make them come out so lethargic? I'm convinced they just want to make sure the fans are interested in the waning minutes of the 4th qtr.

5. The Hawks absolutely must secure that 4th seed. They NEED home court advantage in the first round. It's a must. Dwyane Wade is doing everything in his power to get the Heat there. I actually think it's a good thing that Miami is right behind them. They know they have to play hard. There's no room for error anymore. I'm extremely confident they will get the fourth seed. I'm extremely terrified of the concept of them playing Wade in the first round. We all know the officials love him. ;) If/when he has a 20 free throw game against the Hawks in the playoffs, my head might explode. I'm already in the process of padding the walls in my condo..... That's weeks away though.

Slacker....

I know I've been inconsistent this season, but I honestly have a good reason.... Comcast and I have some fundamental disagreements about how much I should be paying for Internet service.
The only thing we can agree on is that they will not service me and I will not pay them. I'm glad we were able to find some common ground. That's where we are right now.
I'm sure it will work itself out in no time.
Until then, check with the Usual Suspects (in no particular order)
Drew
Bret
Larry
Joe
Jason
Micah
Jack

Don't forget about me though. Heck, I might post something tomorrow. ;)

It's Not All Of Josh's Fault.

This post is specifically for Drew, Brett, Larry and Jason (the four people who read my blog). So I know at least two of you were actually at the Cleveland game and you didn't get to see all of the fun videos ESPN decided to run in between Doris Burke giggling about how great it was to be a "witness". Anyway, for whatever reason they decided to let Mike Bibby be the voice of the team and there was one video where they asked him what makes Josh Smith so special or something like that. He gushed about Josh maybe being the most athletic player in the league and he also said and he can hit the three. I couldn't find (didn't look for) the video, but it just proves what I've been telling y'all for months..... His teammates share his delusion that he can shoot jump shots.
Perhaps that explains why they give him the ball on the wing. I told y'all we needed to put some of that blame on them.