Fourth-year players' timing could not be better
Their timing couldn't be better.
Fourth-year Hawks players Josh Smith and Josh Childress are playing their best basketball of the season this month, a stretch that includes what is perhaps the most challenging portion of the team's schedule.
After wrapping up Tuesday night's five-game homestand against Denver, the Hawks will play seven of nine games on the road, including a wicked five-game Western Conference trip to finish the month.
If they survive this month they'll return home still in playoff contention. If they get buried, they'll spend all their time in February trying to catch up to the pack.
Whatever happens, the Hawks need both Smith and Childress to continue playing at the level they've shown so far this month.
"They're doing exactly what they need to be doing," coach Mike Woodson said. "We need both of those guys to be doing exactly what they're doing and more. They're a huge part of what we're trying to get done here, and that's making the playoffs."
"You've just got to be able to kick it up to another notch, especially now that we're playing for something," Smith said. "We're not carrying the team on our backs or anything, not with [Hawks captain and All-Star Joe Johnson] doing his thing. But we know we've been here long enough that every month we have to produce, we have to stay on an incline if we're going to make this playoff push. We have to keep climbing."
Smith's been on a steady climb in nearly every category since the start of the season. After struggling with his shot in November, shooting 37 percent, he's improved dramatically. He shot 44 percent in December and averaged 18 points per game as the Hawks finished the month 8-4.
"I think it's better sometimes to ease into the season and keep getting better," Smith said. "This is a marathon, not a sprint. So now that we're in the middle of the race it's time to focus in and really find a comfortable pace. I'm feeling good about what I can and cannot do out there and how I can be most effective."
"It's just a matter of getting in a rhythm and picking your spots," Childress said. "You get a better feel for the team by now and knowing where guys are going to be on the floor. And honestly, I think my production should be better than it is. I don't think any of us has really played as well as we can. Hopefully, the best is yet to come."
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