Mar 27 2009
No Duncan; No Problem for Spurs in Atlanta
We knew it couldn’t last forever and the Atlanta Hawks would have to lose at some point on their home floor at Philips Arena. You just wouldn’t have figure the San Antonio Spurs would be the team to do it; since they did arrive in Atlanta with Tim Duncan in street clothes. The Spurs didn’t need him Wednesday night and they kept the Hawks at arm’s length all night long. It was a disappointing way to see the Hawks 8 game home winning streak come to an end. This game proves that the young Hawks have a lot of preparations to make before the NBA playoffs get here. This team isn’t ready to defend their home court like last year and they must start tuning up things in a hurry. The Hawks are playing without Marvin Williams right now and his back needs to heal fast, so he can get back on the court with the Hawks team.
The Hawks will miss Josh Childress who helped the team a lot last year in the playoffs. Childress was a guy that would get all the hustle plays and even picked up the name ”baseline bum” for a short time. Mario West is a guy that could make up for Josh’s absence, but it doesn’t seem Coach Mike Woodson has enough faith to play him in the 2nd half of games. Mario has did everything right and deserves major minutes for the Hawks. It’s not clear why players like Mario West and Zaza Pachulia stay in Mike Woodson’s dog house; when the Hawks will really need these 2 players coming down the stretch. Woodson hasn’t given these guys enough key minutes in games for them to have any confidence in their game and I’m sure the pressure is on when they do receive their limited playing time each game. Too much talent on the Hawks bench not to use in basketball games and these guys could be effective late in games. Joe Johnson is not the answer in Atlanta and they need the best 5 players on the court in the 4th quarter. That determination should come from how these guys perform in the first 3 quarters and let guys earn their time on the floor in the 4th quarter.
The fun isn’t over yet and the Hawks will face the Boston Celtics for the last time this season at home tonight. This is a must-win game for the Hawks. They can not afford to lose 2 games in a row at home and can’t let the Celtics team beat them for a 3rd time this season. This is a game that could give the Hawks a lot of confidence if they win. They will need more confidence as they continue to face some of the best teams in the NBA coming to Philips Arena this season. It is a tough schedule for the Hawks going down the stretch, but they need to prove they can beat these quality opponents. They can’t keep waiting until the 4th quarter to play hard and need to find ways to win games in the first half. Their desires to win games in the 4th quarter is not the mind-set this team needs right now and playing hard from the tip is what they must do each game now. It’s the Boston Celtics and Atlanta Hawks in Philips Arena tonight! This will be a playoff atmosphere game and the Hawks need to win this one convincingly.
