ATL-WAS: Series tied at 2-2

[Jamaaliver]

It's not just you, it looks like the Dwight Howard experiment is on the verge of failing, and I wouldn't at all be opposed to cutting his minutes for the rest of the series.

Yeah. It's hard to deny how limited D12 has become on offense and defense. His lack of mobility on defense, and lack of range/passing offensively, severely limits what we can accomplish in our system.

I'm hoping that Budenholzer finally revamps the entire offense this summer and Wilcox surrounds Dwight and Dennis with shooters.

I do wish we'd gotten the chance to see a Horford/Howard combo. Everything that AL struggles with is Dwight's forte. And all of Dwight's weakness are AL's strengths.

That kind of twin towers combination could have been dominant together.

Millsap + Dwight has been...adequate.

[Jamaaliver]

BPI UPDATED AFTER THAT GAME 1 DEFEAT:

[Jamaaliver]

Thabo Sefolosha the odd man out?

Thabo Sefolosha received a DNP-CD in the Atlanta Hawks' Game 1 loss to the Washington Wizards on Sunday, even though he was healthy to play, and could rack up another one from Mike Budenholzer for Game 2 on Wednesday.

"We won’t change the starters," Budenholzer said. "Between now and Wednesday, we’ll keep thinking about the best groups and the best guys to give us a chance."

Sefolosha, a free agent beginning on July 1, started 42 games out of the 62 he played during the regular season and averaged 7.2 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.7 assists.

ESPN


Thoughts?

Predictions?

Concerns?

Thabo was installed as a starter in last year's playoffs (too late) after Korver struggled in BOS and CLE. Might we see a similar adjustment later in this series?

[MaceCase]

They can say that he's healthy but groin injuries are very tricky and long lasting adding to the fact that Thabo didn't look all to great after returning during the regular season. If he's actually 100% then he represents the Hawks best perimeter defender and should play but if he's just "good enough to go" then I can agree with sitting him.

[Jamaaliver]

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I AM not a fan of the Morris brothers...but I like the enthusiasm and toughness.

Dwight is the biggest, strongest dude in this series. He needs to play some MMA. Set a tone. Put this young dude on his backside.



<-- Hawks trying to play MMA with a younger, tougher team.

[ducler]

[DirtybirdGA]

If only the Hawks could score worth a damn, they get close then fall to 7-10.

[ATL Boy]

Hawks looked like they were right in it up until the final 3 mins. That's when Kent Bazemore threw everything into the trash.

This is the last straw with Bazemore for me, I've officially given up on him.


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[Tricky_Kid]

Again Howard was invisible. It was my concern going into this series that Dwight will abuse Marcin and we don't have Mahinmi to play against him in case our starting C will be in foul trouble.
Bud should force Gortat to fouling from the start. Neither of Smith or Morris are capable to fight against DH

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[atlantabbq99]

Hawks will continue to lose as long as their three point shooting is this bad

[Jamaaliver]

Again Howard was invisible.

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Might be time to limit Dwight's PT and focus on outgunning WAS by going small.

[D21]

I don't get it.
This time, Howard was not at his level, but he has positive impact. He finished with +5 while Muscala got more minutes this game but was in negative.

Does anybody in the coaching staff give at least a look at this during the game ?
You should rely on your eye, but if you have any doubt, just look at the Plus/Minus

[Tricky_Kid]

I don't get it.
This time, Howard was not at his level, but he has positive impact. He finished with +5 while Muscala got more minutes this game but was in negative.

Does anybody in the coaching staff give at least a look at this during the game ?
You should rely on your eye, but if you have any doubt, just look at the Plus/Minus

Bud said Wiz went small ball lineup so he subbed Howard. He also said Howard was good in 3rd q

[Jamaaliver]

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[dlts20]

Atlantas problem is that Schroeder and Millsap are their 2 best players and they play great when Jennings, Oubre, or Smith, Gortat are on them but they don't do anything when Wall or Morris are on them

[Jamaaliver]

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[tbhawksfan1]

Need to use the rest of the series to highlight DH and Baze trade value....

[Jamaaliver]

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The story behind John Wall's death stare at Dennis Schroder dates back 2 years

Early in the third quarter on Wednesday, Wall stole the ball and went on the fast break...Hawks point guard Dennis Schroder made an effort to contest Wall, but the Wizards star slammed home the one-handed dunk.

After the play, he gave Schroder a brutal staredown along with some clearly vulgar trash talk.

Where did that come from?

...this moment stood out in particular given the history Wall has with Schroder. It was the closest the two came to being alone on one side of the court in years, and Wall let Schroder hear it.

The feud between Wall and Schroder dates back nearly two years:

The 2014-15 Atlanta Hawks were the story of the NBA. After the Hawks won Game 5 [of their playoff series against the Wizards], [Wall] came away from the game upset with Schroder and called him out to the Washington Post for telling Kent Bazemore to target his fractured right hand.

...before Wednesday’s Game 2, Wall again brought up the accusation about Schroder. Wall still hasn’t let that moment go. He took it personal, and it’s been evident in this series.

That stare he sent Schroder’s way on Wednesday was two years in the making.

USA Today

There is some lingering tension between Wall and Schröder from Washington’s loss to Atlanta in the second round of the 2015 playoffs, and he has gone out of his way to embarrass his counterpart in this series. Look at this sequence, where he intercepts a pass intended for Schröder, takes the ball the length of the court with Schröder on his trail, and dunks on him — then stares him down for five seconds.

The Ringer Video

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[chrismikayla]

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I AM not a fan of the Morris brothers...but I like the enthusiasm and toughness.

Dwight is the biggest, strongest dude in this series. He needs to play some MMA. Set a tone. Put this young dude on his backside.



<-- Hawks trying to play MMA with a younger, tougher team.

Maybe physically but not mentally.

[Jamaaliver]

Atlantas problem is that Schroeder and Millsap are their 2 best players...but they don't do anything when Wall or Morris are on them

Indeed, particularly Schroder:

What Wall has done to Schröder is just plain mean. The Hawks point guard has been a different player with Wall guarding him. He was 1-of-5 with Wall as his primary defender in Game 2, and 7-of-16 with anyone else. Only one of his five shots against Wall came inside the 3-point line. He’s a 34 percent 3-point shooter whose game is based on getting to the rim; if he’s settling for jumpers, it’s a big win for the defense. When he does go inside against Wall, he has to worry about plays like this chasedown block in transition. This is like an eagle tracking down a pigeon, which is roughly the size differential between the two:

The Ringer


Wall blocking DS