Atlanta Hawks 97, Boston Celtics 86 or nothing easy.
by hawksdawgs on Nov 13, 2009 11:22 PM EST
68 comments
Let's review. If the Hawks outplay, out hustle, complain less, win the turnover battle, and rebound the ball like it is the only thing that has purpose in the world, they are a pretty good team. I was 99% sure that was the case, but now, I know. And since that team slogan, I feel pretty dang good about it.
I do not think rebounding has ever been so sexy. That was a sultry effort of brute force. It was Zaza Pachulia in Josh Smith and Al Horford's body. The Hawks out hustled KG. That is about as high a compliment as you can give.
The Hawks were impressive, not just good, but impressive for at least 39 of the 48 minutes, and maybe the best thing was how quickly and calmly the Hawks came out of those less than incredible 9 minutes. The responses to Boston's mini runs were swift and borderline easy. What it was was Atlanta in control of the game. Many things have happened in limited stints over these last few years, but a game against an elite team where the Hawks simply were better. That might be new.
I will admit something to you. I did not think about Hot Flip once this entire game. His defense on Ray Allen made me pause the game to collect myself. His shot selection has no rhyme or reason. The travels in the first half were bad for anyone trying not to drink tonight, and yet, the Hawks don't win this game without Jamal Crawford. He allows for such better spacing on offense. He can handle the ball and pass. Makes crucial jumpers. Crawford does exactly what people have accuse him of not doing his entire career, he does the little things.
Victory Bullets
- It is official. Joe Smith is an upgrade over Solomon Jones. Although there was no fist fight tonight, so that is a downside I guess.
- Switching on every screen still makes no sense to me. Every screen. Every anything is bad. But switching on screens and giving max effort to double team, switch back, and fight for position actually makes the strategy look alright. It kept Boston from being patient all night.
- Twice KG had Mike Bibby guarding him on a switch, and he passed. Five fake dollars to fine a comparable analogy from another sport.
- The Joe Johnson/Jamal Crawford dribble show went about four possessions too long in the fourth quarter, but at least it ended.
- Woodson's best coached game of his career? Maybe.
- Can't remember seeing Mike Bibby more focused for a regular season game.
- Jeff Teague looked worse than a rookie, but still fast. Still very, very fast.
- Jason Collins with the first Mario of the season. Pour one out for Mr. West.
- The Shelden Williams revival came to an abrupt end sometime in the first half.
- Paul Pierce did nothing to endear himself to anyone in the entire world in this game.
- Josh Smith crossed over of Garnett made me happy even if the shot did not go in.
- Speaking of which, layups are easy. I get that Josh, but dunks are easier. Dunk please.
Great win. The Hawks now have a better start than last year. Go Hawks!
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I have one
" Twice KG had Mike Bibby guarding him on a switch, and he passed. Five fake dollars to fine a comparable analogy from another sport. "
Basically like 1998 Jamal Anderson running towards a DB and opting to run out of bounds.
we just needed revenge from the '07 playoffs and we didn't get that last year
but we did this year oh yeah
MVP of game
I can’t decide if it is for Bibby, Josh or Al and that is with JJ putting 24 pts. Is that what balance is all about? If Jamal would not have missed so many 3 pt shots he would have been in the mix. Lets just say we played team ball and won.
by RivBoatGambler on Nov 13, 2009 11:41 PM EST reply actions
Five fake dollars?
Paul Johnson deciding not to go for it on 4th and 1 against Jacksonville St.
Cliff Lee intentionally walking Greg Norton
by dmortone on Nov 13, 2009 11:43 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Like Dirk Diggler not banging Rollergirl.
by Duff_Man on Nov 13, 2009 11:52 PM EST up reply actions 2 recs
It's like
A crack commando unit being sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didn’t commit, and NOT promptly escaping from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles underground and surviving as soldiers of fortune.
by Bronn on Nov 14, 2009 12:08 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
OK...that's gotta win.
I seriously laughed at that.
Then I cried because I remember watching the original A-Team. Sigh.
Like Ric Flair
NOT being a jet plane flyin, limousine ridin, kiss stealin, wheelin, dealin son of a gun!
WOOOOOO!!!
OMG - rick flair - you should be hunting lol
by RivBoatGambler on Nov 14, 2009 2:15 AM EST up reply actions
Ya know...
It’s like Young M.C. seeing a move and NOT busting it.
by axhfan on Nov 14, 2009 2:55 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
This is full of win!
Corey Zickefoose: I think they should still be able to play football, regardless. Tennessee is my place. You know, it's my football team.
Reporter: Even after they put a gun in your face, you say let them play football?
Corey Zickefoose: Yeah. It's Tennessee. That's the way it is sometimes.
Welcome to the SEC!
It's like
Pacman Jones bein’ up in da club and NOT making it rain.
by Duff_Man on Nov 14, 2009 11:53 AM EST via mobile up reply actions
It's like
Micheal Vick running in the open field and sliding instead of taking a hit from Ray Lewis.
by happyplayer23 on Nov 14, 2009 5:23 PM EST up reply actions
AMAZING
i dont know why celtics didnt have rondo go 1 on 1 with bibby but thats fine with me.
hawks frontline was on a mission – i like woodson mixing in joe smith and zaza. i am a marvin fan but whatsup with him?
either way huge win! we need to destroy the next few teams at home.
Already FOUR road wins?
We only had 16 all of last year. 4 winnable home games coming up. 11-2 or 10-3 would be insanely awesome.
Ummm...
Yayfullness!!!! 0_0
Hopefully, Teague will be more seasoned the next time we face the C’s. They will defenetly try to expose Bibby in the next game and we will need Teague to give Rondo the business.
Hornets say CP3 DEFENETLY won't play tomorow...
…Yayfullness x 2!!!!!! 8-2 BABY!!! BOOK IT!!!!
OK. Re-watching.
Joe Smith was off his ass tonight. He played great defense, got some boards and really was all over the place. I am loving that signing. Very solid guy coming off our bench. I can’t say enough. I am beaming.
Have to give a lot of props to BOTH big signings.
I know lots of folks were very skeptical…just gotta see how it turns out. This team looks like 55 wins is a distinct possibility.
And you have to give Woody credit for actually using the bench so far, too. What a year we’ve got ahead!
Still don't think
Woody’s used the bench well enough. I guess he has, but how he leaves Joe in the entire game and does not play Teague pisses me off
I still think Joe Smith's addition has also helped...
lead to improvements with Josh and Al. Name me another solid, veteran big man they’ve had as a teammate (and Ty Hill doesn’t count).
by Mr. Sanchez on Nov 15, 2009 12:01 PM EST up reply actions
I hope they savor this one....
Then forget it. They can’t have an emotional let down in the upcoming games.
Atlanta will win a championship....someday
by maxxj3 on Nov 14, 2009 12:34 AM EST reply actions 1 recs
Another observation...
Kudos to Mike Woodson for playing his best 5 in the fourth. Bibby, JC, JJ, Josh, Horf.
no problem with marvin - we do not have enough touches anyway.
If you look at his line he didn’t hurt.
by RivBoatGambler on Nov 14, 2009 2:21 AM EST up reply actions
Marvin needs to develop a little 4 game...
or if we had a 5 that could allow us to truly run a 4 out, 1 in lineup. But I agree in thinking that quintet (or basically just JC, JJ, JoshS, and AH with whoever is best for that night/game/opponent/matchup) is the best we got.
by Mr. Sanchez on Nov 15, 2009 12:03 PM EST up reply actions
Having Oakland, St. Louis, and Tampa to lose in a three team tease
Then switching to Denver, Tennessee, and Chicago.
Where’s my 5 dollars biatch?
That tease is a loser.
You heard it here first. Three teamers are always a “too good to be true” prop. Don’t be surprised if St Louis does something odd at home this week. I do like a Tampa let down.
Don't get me wrong...
you should never EEEVVVVVEEERRRR do a three team tease.
But if you do, those are the three teams you want to bet against
All teases are losers...
1 of the 3 always screw you.
by Mr. Sanchez on Nov 15, 2009 12:04 PM EST up reply actions
Thanks,
I just threw up in my mouth. The WORST trade EVER in ANY SPORT, only The Hawks could stab the fans in the back that bad.
by RamblininAlb on Nov 14, 2009 8:27 PM EST up reply actions
Smitty for Isaiah Rider was pretty bad.
Anyone else think JR Smith is following in the wrong footsteps asking to be called Earl?
by Mr. Sanchez on Nov 15, 2009 12:04 PM EST up reply actions
Like...
Twice KG had Mike Bibby guarding him on a switch, and he passed. Five fake dollars to fine a comparable analogy from another sport.
The hole is placed a foot from where Tiger is teeing off, but the regular distance for all other golfers. Tiger decides to use his driver.
Boston played scared in the end - shows what agression and no fear can do.
by RivBoatGambler on Nov 14, 2009 2:26 AM EST up reply actions
KG has never known anything else.
At one point toward the end they said “KG was far enough in to take that shot, draw a foul, something, rather than pass out” and I thought, same old KG. No big shots for KG.
If you smack Boston in the mouth and keep smacking the only one you have to worry about ids Pierce, because he’s the only one with any heart. And I hate him too, but you have to admit he’s a dagger at the end if the game is close.
Umm KG does have ring to dispute the notion of he doesn't have any heart don't you think?
by xavip on Nov 14, 2009 10:07 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Yes
But he had to have Pierce to rely on. Just watch the games, man, he always shrinks in the clutch.
I mean KG always shrinks, that is.
Certainly not Pierce.
"The Shelden Williams revival came to an abrupt end sometime in the first half. "
As The Landlord has proved in the past, he’ll never perform when the Hawks are in the house.
Like...
A perfectly straight fastball down the middle to Brian McCann with a 3-0 count and a runner on 3rd and he takes it trying to walk to let Garret Anderson drive in the runs.
Now you know
what great feeling. when i first moved to the A and became a hawks fan 5 years ago, i was waiting for the time we could be here.
it feels nice. bibby was great last night.
It feels great to have did what I have wanted them to do
Now its time to do that to cleveland and orlando. But first things first, NO tonight. Lets take care of business tonite. I would like to see cp3. he is exciting
by Hawksgirl on Nov 14, 2009 8:30 AM EST reply actions 1 recs
I hope we don't have a letdown.
It would not surprise me to see us win by, say, five points at the end of something.
I'm Most Impressed by the 4th Quarter Maturity
Except for a bit of over-dribbling, I was really impressed by the maturity of the Hawks in the 4th. I don’t think they win this game a year ago. Also, Josh Smith being 0-for-0 from Three Point Land makes me very happy. I think it was Dominique that said he could be an all-star if he laid off the triples.
by jdhawks on Nov 14, 2009 9:32 AM EST reply actions 1 recs
Congratulations, Hawks.
Tonight I went to bed sad ;)
Seriously though, good game. You guys beat us by out-rebounding us and it looks like the switches on your defensive end worked really, really well. I’m very impressed by last nights game, and as I said before it, I like your squad.
Good luck out there, and have fun this season; we’ll meet again.
- Celtic fan.
- Dirk van Boxtel, the wandering Celtic fan.
@DaarisDirk
by Kiorrik on Nov 14, 2009 10:33 AM EST reply actions 1 recs
Thanks...we are impressed too.
No one really saw how “grand” the plan really was in bringing in Crawford…even defensively, he fits. The switching is a good scheme if everyone rotates and is athletic enough to move their feet—completely eliminates the pick and roll.
I am reluctant to say this (and cannot believe I am), and it’s really early yet, but Woody might actually deserve some credit for this team and how well-assembled they appear to be.
Last night we saw a championship-calibre team
Yes, I’m talking about the Hawks. What was most impressive was that the Hawks won a relatively low-scoring game, the type of game that championship teams are known for winning. They held the Celtics to just 86 points on the road.
Two stats most responsible for the Atlanta win:
- The astounding 47-26 rebounding edge in the Hawks’ favor. This allowed them to get second-chance points and simply hold on to the ball more, sort of like a football team running the ball to control the clock.
- The miserable 1-15 three-point shooting of the Celtics. Boston is vulnerable (though to a lesser extent than Orlando) when it shoots treys poorly.
Last night’s win showed that Atlanta can get the third seed in the East and maybe even higher if Boston/Cleveland stumble. Miami indicated that it was not ready to take it to the next level when it lost at home to Cleveland on Thursday while it remains to be seen how Orlando will gel with Rashard Lewis back and playing with Vince Carter instead of Hedo Turkoglu.
With the Celtics and Cavaliers not being as dominant as they were last year, the Heat not being ready, and the Magic not at top form, I don’t see why Atlanta can’t take advantage of this opportunity to finally get into the top echelon of teams. It’s about time.
I like what Al Horford said to ESPN right after the game. He said that the Hawks have grown up. Right on. Now go out and beat Cleveland and Orlando. And then defeat the Lakers when they come back for the rematch in Atlanta.
Awesome!
While I (like most of us) hate giving Woody credit, they looked great last night, and in fact, they’ve looked very well coached all season.
I’m not sure if it’s a confidence thing or a maturity thing or a coaching thing (or some combination), but this is not the Hawks of old. Most impressive for me was the end (last 9 minutes) of the game. I can’t remember the last time the Hawks salted away a non-blowout win like they did last night or have this season generally. While years of seeing the Hawks blow good performances is tough to forget, this team is doing a great job of giving me amnesia!
Go Hawks!
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