Atlanta Hawks

The Atlanta Hawks will be getting their first looks at Jeff Teague this week as they start their mini-camp at Philips Arena. This will be the first chance the coaches get a chance to work with the talented PG out of Wake Forrest. Teague was selected with the Hawk’s first round pick back in June and was the 19th overall player taken in the 2009 NBA Draft. Sergiy Gladyr from the Ukraine was the other draft selection from this summer’s draft and he will also be attending the Hawks mini-camp in Atlanta. Gladyr isn’t expected to stay in the States long or make the roster this year; but he will have a chance to show what he’s got and will be the youngest player attending this year’s camp.

One of the most interesting players attending this year’s camp will be Yaroslav Korolev from Russia. He was picked number 12 overall in the 2005 NBA Draft (higher than Teague) by the Los Angeles Clippers. He never could find his place in L.A.. He did get a 2nd chance to play for them in 2007 and played with the team during preseason; before he was let go at the start of the regular season. It should be interesting to see where his skill level is at now and if he can help the Atlanta Hawks in the 2009/2010 season. You may also remember another player that was taken in the 2005 draft and this was the Atlanta Hawks 2nd round pick that year. It was a basketball player from Turkey named Cenk Akyol and he will be attending the Hawks Mini-Camp that will begin on Tuesday (July 21). He was very young when the Hawks took him back in 2005 and I’m sure many fans will be curious to see (or hear) how well he does this upcoming week.

I’m sure the Hawks fans want to know about the big guys attending camp this year; since this looks like a big off-season need, that the team hasn’t addressed yet. A guy that did play a short spell with the Golden State Warriors is Chris Taft and he will be in attendance this year. His career high in block shots (3) came against the Hawks a few years back and perhaps it was this that caught the team’s attention. Taft isn’t a great free throw shooter and does need to improve in this area. A bad back has kept him out of the NBA the last couple of seasons and now could be his chance to return to the league. Other big men that will be showing up this week in Atlanta are Garret Siler (6′11″ 305 lbs) from Augusta State and Shawn Taggart (6′ 10″ 238 lbs) from Memphis. One of these 3 guys do have an excellent shot at making the team and especially if the Hawks don’t pursue a big man in free agency.

A couple of more notable players that will be showing up this week for the Hawks is long range shooter Dionte Christmas from Temple. He led their team last year in scoring at almost 20 points a game and was named the Most Outstanding Player in the Atlantic 10 Tournament last season. A little surprising that he went undrafted and no one wanted to take a chance on this guy in the 2009 NBA Draft. He will get a chance to show what he’s got this week; along with former Georgia Bulldog standout Sundiata Gaines. The Hawks fans have proven to like the local kids like Mario West from Georgia Tech and I’m sure the fans will be rooting for Gaines to do well this week at Philips Arena.

The rest of the guys attending the 3 day mini-camp:

Anthony Goods 6-3 Guard from Stanford

Ivan Harris 6-7 Forward from Ohio State

David Huertas 6-5 Guard from Mississippi

John Lucas III 5-11 Guard from Oklahoma State

Leo Lyons 6-9 Forward from Missouri

Frank Robinson 6-4 Guard from Cal-State Fullerton

Corey Williams 6-3 Guard from Alabama State

This is currently the guys we know that will be attending the mini-camp for physicals on Monday. The guys will get together for a 2 hour session on Monday; but the 2 practices a day session will start on Tuesday and only 1 practice scheduled for Thursday. It is possible we may see a new face or two show up when the camp actually starts and you may hear about more names later on. All 16 players will be trying to land a spot on the team’s roster for this year’s preseason games; that will begin in a couple of months. Do you see any of these guys appearing on the preseason roster for the Hawks? What about the regular season roster? I believe there is a lot of doubt for 15 of these guys; but we can already pencil in Jeff Teague for a spot on the team in 2009/2010 season. We may start to hear the Hawks name in a lot more NBA rumors concerning free agency, after the team gets a chance to evaluate these guys this week.

The Atlanta Hawks have announced their 2009 Summer League team for this year in Las Vegas. Don’t worry about grabbing a pencil and jotting the list down, because it is a very short one. Josh Smith is the only name on it and will be the only Hawks player to represent the team this summer in Las Vegas. This is because the Hawks will not have a summer team this year. Not sure why the team isn’t putting one together and I think they may be making a huge mistake. It is true that Josh Smith will be in Las Vegas this summer, but only in a mini camp for USA basketball. He was one of the 25 chosen players to be invited to Las Vegas for this 3 day mini camp that will take place between July 22nd and the 25th.

I always wondered why some NBA teams just don’t send the big boys out in summer ball action. It would be a great chance to get your regular players a little playing time and work on polishing a team for the new season. It would take away from seeing the new guys you just drafted or acquired via trades, so I figured that was the main reason. Now that I learn the Atlanta Hawks will not even be dressing a team to play in Las Vegas or Orlando (2 cities for NBA summer leagues), it makes me wonder even more about the direction of the Atlanta Hawks. They are two other NBA teams that will not be putting teams together for this summer, so the Hawks are not alone in their decision. The fans in Atlanta would love to see some of the new guys play and a chance to see an early glimpse of Wake Forrest star Jeff Teague. You do pick up on a few things in these summer league games and some players show what they have or don’t have during this short period of time. Marvin Williams was a good example of this and the summer league proved he wasn’t quite ready to be a starter in the NBA. The Rocky Mountain Review was the summer league the Hawks were playing in and that has now been cancelled. I know the people in Utah really enjoyed seeing this event each year and they got a chance to see other NBA teams; plus the Utah Jazz always took part in the action.

The Las Vegas summer league is just starting up and will last 9 days for the 21 NBA teams that did decide to play this year. If you’re a sports fan in Atlanta and was looking forward to seeing the Atlanta Hawks play this year; then I’m sure you’re disappointed. Perhaps the brass for the Hawks can make us all happy with the announcement of a big trade or free agent signing. I know Ramon Sessions would be a great place to start and this would make up for not having a summer league team this year in Las Vegas or Orlando. Sessions is another point guard and this might seem very unlikely since Mike Bibby has been resigned and the additions of Jamal Crawford and Jeff Teague. I think Bibby and Crawford are better 2 guards and Ramon Sessions is a much better 1 guard or point guard. You always find room for a guy like Sessions and he has a great game and would be good for any NBA team.

Maybe the Atlanta Braves helped out with their recent trade of Jeff Francoeur. I’m sure a lot of Braves and Hawks fans will have the TV on tonight to see the possible debut of Ryan Church. The Braves acquired him from the New York Mets for the hometown favorite Jeff Francoeur. Just for the record, the Braves got a great player in this deal and really gave up nothing to get him. It was the New York Mets that called the Braves to set up this trade and the fans in Atlanta will love Ryan Church. No summer team this year for the Hawks and no more Frenchy for the Bravos, so I guess we hold our breath for free agency and watch Mr. Church driving in runs for now.

The NBA Draft is over and now teams race to find the best players available in the free agency market. It isn’t clear how active the Atlanta Hawks will be this summer at trying to lure free agents to the ATL. They have brung in two new players that might add instant help to the team for the 2009/2010 season. It all started with Jamal Crawford as the team was able to trade for him with the Golden State Warriors. Then the Hawks kept their 19th spot in the draft and took point guard Jeff Teague from the Demon Deacons of Wake Forrest. Teague was a questionable pick with Eric Maynor still on the board at 19 and the Utah Jazz quickly took him at 20; right after the Hawks selection of Teague. I think with the type of players Billy Knight has been drafting for the team over the past few years, that Maynor would have been a better fit. It would be interesting to know which PG he liked best between the two. The Atlanta Hawks Organization did have both guys in for workouts, so they do see Jeff Teague as the better player.

How much will first round draft pick Jeff Teague play for the Atlanta Hawks?

If the Atlanta Hawks manage to keep Mike Bibby in town; then Jeff Teague could be a first string back up, but that might reduce the playing time of Flip Murray. This also brings up the question will the Hawks be able to keep Murray? I think Flip did really well for the team last year and they will need to secure his future with the team, by resigning him this summer. If Bibby and Murray both leave; then Jeff Teague could very well be the starting PG in Atlanta next year. If Bibby does leave, I would fully expect Flip Murray to be the starting point guard and Teague would come off the bench to back up Flip.  The only thing that is clear right now is that Jeff Teague will be wearing the number 0 for the Hawks next year.

Now more attention will focus on the Hawk’s backcourt as the team managed to get sharp shooter Jamal Crawford from the Golden State Warriors. The Hawks sent Acie Law and Speedy Claxton to the West Coast for a player that will certainly help next season. The fans in Atlanta will love having a guy like Crawford around and he isn’t afraid to put it up. The Hawks backcourt could get real scary for opposing NBA teams if they do manage to lock up Flip Murray and Mike Bibby this off-season. I think Atlanta has lacked a good jump shooter for the last few seasons and Jamal Crawford will fill a void for the team. He has the ability to take over a quarter and light it up for 20 points or more. He has the ability to carry a team on his back; when his stroke is on the money. He is going to stretch the defense and give the inside guys like Josh Smith and Al Horford a chance to produce from inside. Teams that choose to lock up these inside threats for the Hawks will have to hold their breath when Jamal Crawford, Marvin Williams, Flip Murray, Mike Bibby, Maurice Evans, or Joe Johnson take those long jump shots.

How much of an impact will Crawford and Teague make next season?

Since both guys are guards and the Hawks have a couple of guards that could be on other NBA teams next year, it’s hard to gauge just how much of an impact either player may have. We know what we are getting with Crawford and he should be a big help and command major minutes for the Hawks next season. It looks like he may be coming off the bench right now, but even if he doesn’t start, he should be on the floor a lot in the 4th quarter and at the end of games. Teague isn’t as likely to see time on the floor during the 4th quarter and the majority of his minutes may be in the first half. Coach Mike Woodson does tighten up the belt in the 2nd half and gives his starters more minutes. If his pattern of coaching continues; then Teague is likely to get 5 to 8 minutes of time in the first half of games and depending on how he does there, will determine if he gets another 5 minutes in the 2nd half or remains on the bench the entire time. Mike Woodson does have the “win now” mentality and hasn’t done a good job at developing young players with playing time. I think we saw this with Josh Smith in the early years and again with Josh Childress, Acie Law, and Solomon Jones for the Hawks.

Who did the Atlanta Hawks take in the 2nd round of the NBA Draft?

After selecting Jeff Teague in the first round of the NBA Draft, the Hawks did have a 2nd round pick too. They had to wait until the 49th overall selection before they could take Sergiy Gladyr out of the Ukraine. He is 19 years old and will more than likely stay in Europe and continue to play basketball over there. He is a long range threat and has great mechanics according to some basketball scouts on his approach to shooting. We may just see this young man wearing an Atlanta Hawks uniform in about 3 to 4 years. He is a project for now and was a great pick; since the team didn’t have a roster spot for a player now. Sergiy Gladyr can continue to work on his sweet stroke from long range; while staying over seas.

Overall the Hawks Organization addressed the backcourt heavily this off-season with the trade for Crawford and taking two guards in the NBA Draft in New York. Most will agree that the Hawks need another big man, but we will have to wait and see how free agency goes, to see if Atlanta can add another player to the squad this season. Let’s just hope that Jeff Teague develops into a better player than Eric Maynor for the Utah Jazz and we can feel good about taking the better point guard. I believe the front office has took a positive step forward and made the team better to this point. After seeing the bold moves Cleveland and Orlando did on draft day; the Hawks may have to make one more move to keep pace in the East.