So... Atlanta...

[tsherkin]

I haven't had a chance to follow the Hawks this year; I know a little about some of the players and I know that they looked pretty fine last year all the way up to and through a tight series against the Celtics, which was surprising (because of Atlanta's recent history... with which I sympathize, because I'm from Toronto), but awesome, because it's always better to have a bunch of good teams in the conference so you can have a tight pennant race (like in baseball, as the 'Tap article noted).

So I was cruising the box scores last night and I happened to see that the Hawks got a win, which was cool, and that they're 28-20. WTF?

I didn't realize you guys were doing so well this year, that's on-pace for like 48 wins, which would be a +11 improvement over last year.

So I zipped over to the team stats page and noticed that both Marvin Williams and Josh Smith were shooting better than expected and, of course, Mike Bibby looks great and Horford's still doing his simple-but-effective thing, etc.

So first off, awesome! Congratulations on becoming a good team again (though you were half-way there last year, I know). It's been long in coming and it's great to see.

Second, can anyone tell me what's happened to Josh Smith that he's suddenly more efficient from the field? I mean I know he shot well by his own standards last year, but he's at nearly 50% this year. I'm sure he can't be shooting all that well from away from the rim because he's a horrible 3pt and FT shooter and his eFG% on jumpers isn't very good, so what is it? Is he driving more? Has he developed his post game more effectively? I know he was learning how to be a real 4 over the last year or two. I looked at his hot spots, and saw that he's hitting wing Js from mid-range pretty well, that he's doing acceptably well from the right block and that he's shooting a filthy 62% right at the rim, so is that it? Lots of jump hooks, layups and dunks?

In any case, it's good to see and I'm glad it's happening.

Thanks!

[tontoz]

Smith hasn't been shooting 3s lately which helps. he is shooting his midrange jumpers at roughly 38% which sucks but is still good for him. Getting off the 3 pt line allows him to get more easy baskets on putbacks or cuts to the basket.

He is getting better at posting up. Last night he posted up for several baskets on jump hooks. He is also getting better at finishing in the lane on drives.

Running pick and rolls with Bibby (they don't do this nearly enough) has helped too.

[conleyorbust]

Smith hasn't been shooting 3s lately which helps. he is shooting his midrange jumpers at roughly 38% which sucks but is still good for him. Getting off the 3 pt line allows him to get more easy baskets on putbacks or cuts to the basket.

He is getting better at posting up. Last night he posted up for several baskets on jump hooks. He is also getting better at finishing in the lane on drives.

Running pick and rolls with Bibby (they don't do this nearly enough) has helped too.

Pretty much what tontoz said. I know you're familiar with 82games but a quick glance at that shows that his efg% on jumpers is up substantially, even if it still blows, and he's finishing his layups and hooks at a higher rate than last year... and he was decent last year.

His post game definitely has improved and I guess the threat of a less terrible midrange J has made it easier for him to get to the hoop when he faces up.

As tontoz mentioned, when we do run the pick and roll with Josh and Bibby, it tends to work very well. They can make something out of nothing because Bibby can just throw the ball in the vicinity of the hoop if Josh is rolling with some space underneath.

The 10% drop in his FT% is annoying though.

Thanks for the congrats.

[JoshB914]

Josh has continued to improve his offensive game just as he has every year. He figured out that he needs to stop shooting the trey because he wants to win, and I think it became clear that as much as he might want to improve his three-point shooting, trying to get that shot going during games wasn't going to help. It was only a matter of time until Josh figured it out, you could see him slowly starting to get it over his career so far, and hes continued those improvements into this season and has become a truly efficient player on offense for the first time in his career.

If you ask me, the improvement is because of two things: Experience and Mike Bibby. Our players realized what kind of level they have to play at during that playoff series against the C's, and guys like Josh and Marvin have become much more efficient players because of it.

Then there's Bibby. We actually have someone that can run our offense effectively, and also make plays on his own. He's a very smart and crafty player and has lead this team to many wins. The problem is, other than him and Horford, we have absolutely zero leadership. If you watch the team on the road, that becomes painfully obvious. Our star in Joe Johnson is a hard worker, but he is not by any means a guy that has inspired his teammates to play better basketball.

The rest of our players have terribly low bball IQ (Smith, Marvin and virtually everyone off the bench). You should see the plays this team makes on the break, which shouldn't be a problem considering the speed and athleticism we have.

It's a mixed bag with this team. We have some talent and that's why we're winning. But as a UNIT we have a long way to go. I've grown sick and tired of our ridiculous inconsistencies: there is no reason whatsoever for us not to be a very good defensive team, a .500 team at least away from home, to blow leads by taking our foot off the gas EVERY TIME we build a nice cushion. That all comes from a lack of team leadership. No one is held accountable for their mistakes and until that happens, we will continue to be a good but not great team.

[Hawks]

Record wise we are good. If you watch this team play on a consistent basis and you see the record. You ask yourself "is that right?" Bibby has bailed this team out so many times this year, Talent wise we are very good. Mentally this team is still a long ways off.

[tsherkin]

Thanks for the responses, guys, much obliged.

It's nice to see Smith improving, I've been pulling for him since he was drafted and have been miffed that his J didn't start really improving earlier than it has... but it's starting, so awesome!

Also, it's great to see Mike Bibby playing well again, I hope he's healthy and productive for a long time. Always liked him, back to his days in Vancouver. Clutch little SOB and an underrated passer. Should have been an All-Star at LEAST once.

Anyway, thanks again and good luck with the rest of the season.