RealGM

I say WE SHOULD KEEP JOE and GET A COACH THAT WILL CHANGE OUR OFFENSIVE SYSTEM and our starting lineup. Yeah, that's right, I say Keep joe. Because not only was Joe cemented as a 2nd tier star in that offense, Marvin + Bibby were also exploited badly. But the thing is, Bibby is a very good shooting PG who is still one the best at Pick & Roll/Pop. And Marvin has did nothing special at all in his entire career, but he has the skills and abilities to do something but he does not fit in our starting 5.

LINEUP CHANGES
#1 - Big Center to start and move Horford to PF
WE need a starting center (who doesn't need the ball to be effective) - Ideas: B. Haywood, Ilgauskus, Shaq (pipe dream), or E. Thomas
Preference: B. Haywood (maybe unlikely) - young and some what cheap

#2 - Start Teague at PG
Teague needs to spends all summer in the gym with his jump shots (especially off the dribble). Remember, Jason was not a very good shooter in his 1st year with us. But he worked on it in that 1st offseason, shooting 500 or more jumpshots a day and he immediately became a shooter that next season. And every since, Terry has been known as a great shooter. Teague just needs to do the work this summer. He has every bit of the speed of Chris Paul and Brandon Jennings, plus he's more athletic and a better onball defender than both. Paul gets more steals but Teague would limit opponents to less points and less offense. Teague just needs the PT and trust from a coach to let him loose.

That move also would move a starting caliber, former allstar PG in Bibby to the 2nd unit with Crawford. Bibby is a 3pt threat that spreads the floor and would light up 2nd units on a nightly basis and not have to defer as many shots. We would have the best backcourt off the bench in the NBA- LoL!!!

#3 - Move Smoove moves to SF and Marvin to bench
Marvin + Crawford + Zaza + Bibby in the 2nd unit would give us a strong bench that could really dominate 2nd quarters and late 3rd quarters vs opposing 2nd units. We also would lose anything when a started gets in foul trouble. All 4 bench players could provide 20-25 solid mins per game. I strongly feel that they could possibly win 60+ games next year (depending on the NEW coach and system).

#3 - Sign tough, hard nose PF to bench
We need an high-energy, physical PF in our 2nd unit to come in and do the dirty work and provide HUSTLE that impacts/changes games in the mid quarter where the Hawks faltered so much in the past. We need a guy inside with Zaza that can match his hustle and hard work on the glass. It would also open Zaza's game to get a few more shot oppotunities because you wouldn't HAVE TO have Smoove or Al on the floor with him. - Ideas: L. Amundson, B. Wallace, Craig Smith, or K. Thomas
Preference: B. Wallace - proven vet, still can be a beast in spurts, and you can't add more toughness than Big Ben

With a new coach and a solid defensive big, lineup changes, we still can be title contenders with what we got. Our new team would look like this:

C - Haywood / Zaza / [a scrub or rookie]
PF - Horford / Big Ben
SF - Smoove / Marvin
SG - Joe / Bibby / West
PG - Teague / Crawford / [a scrub or rookie] - Crawford replaces Teague because there would be more backup minutes than behind Joe

The only thing dumber than bringing Woodson back would be to invest even more money into the head coach & roster. This team has peaked. They need to go in a new direction.

I'd only bring Joe back under 3 circumstances.

1. If he was going to be the 2nd option to someone like Lebron.

2. If Lebron and Dwight both suffered a major injury in the next 2 months.

3. If potentially taking Orlando to 6 games instead of getting swept meant something to me.

HoopsGuru25 wrote:I'd only bring Joe back under 3 circumstances.

1. If he was going to be the 2nd option to someone like Lebron.

2. If Lebron and Dwight both suffered a major injury in the next 2 months.

3. If potentially taking Orlando to 6 games instead of getting swept meant something to me.

Just curious, what would be your plan for the hawks?

I haven't figured out what I want the Hawks to do. I do think that the number of wins the Hawks have next year are irrelevant if they don't improve attendance or find a way to beat Orlando or Cleveland.

HoopsGuru25 wrote:I haven't figured out what I want the Hawks to do. I do think that the number of wins the Hawks have next year are irrelevant if they don't improve attendance or find a way to beat Orlando or Cleveland.

If Joe leaves, attendance will drop. There is no reason, as of now, for more fans to show up.

ATL DirtyBird wrote:If Joe leaves, attendance will drop. There is no reason, as of now, for more fans to show up.

Not necessarily.

I doubt many people came out to see Joe Johnson play. If we make smart decisions, work out a S&T that's beneficial, and continue to stay among the best in the East the attendance won't drop.

HMFFL wrote:

ATL DirtyBird wrote:If Joe leaves, attendance will drop. There is no reason, as of now, for more fans to show up.

Not necessarily.

I doubt many people came out to see Joe Johnson play. If we make smart decisions, work out a S&T that's beneficial, and continue to stay among the best in the East the attendance won't drop.

Well. If Joe leaves, then they won't be among the best in the east. I don't see who they would do in a S&T and bring in an equal to JJ.

I disagree with the fact that this team has peaked when you have Al, Smoothe and to a lesser extent Marvin and Teague (who did not get enough PT during the regular season).
It may apply to JJ and surely Bibby (as a starter) but not to our young nucleus.
Al, Smoothe, Marv and Teague can only get better from such an experience. I will even add Crawford to that mix considering that it was his 1st taste of PO Basket Ball. They will be back (if management allows) with a revenge.

resign or try to get good value for JJ in S&T
play Bibby off the bench or trade for a PG like Harris
replace the cheap old pieces (Joe Smith, Collins) with energy young players out of the draft or FA

No way has this team peaked. Smoove has just started to show consistently good play. Horford's future is in front of him. Crawford has more to learn as a 6th man. Marvelous - well everyone knows I'm prejudiced there - I think has much to offer to a coach who'll use him. Teague will definitely grow (there's just no way to know how much).

I think Joe's peaked but it's not bad to peak as the 3rd best SG in the NBA.

This team has more to come.

Roy and Manu are better than Joe.

To steal an idea from peachtreehoops-the Hawks have peaked in the fact that they can no longer be considered a team on the "rise" yet they still aren't true contenders. Horford and Smith may get better..but that will probably be offset by Joe,Bibby,and Crawford declining and the fact that they may NEVER have a year where everyone stays healthy like they did this year.

Bibby has absolutely begun to decline, but Joe and Crawford are 4 years or more from decline.

We need a PG to improve, no doubt, but acquiring one is easier than getting lucky on some rebuilding project. Re-tooling by getting a PG is also preferable to tearing down the team. We've been through that for too long already. I need a break from rebuilding.

HMFFL wrote:

ATL DirtyBird wrote:If Joe leaves, attendance will drop. There is no reason, as of now, for more fans to show up.

Not necessarily.

I doubt many people came out to see Joe Johnson play. If we make smart decisions, work out a S&T that's beneficial, and continue to stay among the best in the East the attendance won't drop.

I wasnt saying that JJ put butts in seats. I was saying that he was a big reason why we won 50 games this year. Without him we are a 30 win team. The more the team wins, the more people show up. Am I wrong in my assumption here?

I would love to work out a S&T for someone, but who is reasonable at this point? There quite a few up and coming teams in the east. The Hawks could be in trouble if they dont improve.

I dispute that without Joe we are a 30 win team. Without Joe running Woodson's system sure I see us as a 30 win team, but moving on with a different offense and defense and I see us as still a lower playoff team. And that's with him walking without a S&T returning something. If we are able to add a replacement player then I think we can be within 5 games of last season's win total.

As far as the suggestion to keep Joe, I would like to know at what price tag would you sign him?

Full Max? 15M per year? 13M per year? What's the number you are willing to go to and how long is the deal?