LD and the management are clearly to blame

[Years80HAWKS]

I would like to start saying that I am not completely unhappy with how things happened in the post season. By being the 5th team in the East we were able to confront the Magic and the Bulls, which I think were much better options for us than the Heat or the Celtics...

I am also happy because, in certain periods of these POs, I saw some really good plays, some toughness, both physical and mental, we saw that we played some good defense (but we did not rebound well at all), some intelligent options trying to maximize our strenghts and minimazing our weeknesses.

But then I go over all things that happen during this season, before this season and during the developement of the POs and I get angry. I get angry because I really think we lost a great opportunity to achive something really important. Not getting to the Finals, but may be fighting for them until the last game of the ECF. Something that could change our current image around the League, to fans in the USA and aroud the world, where I can assure is really quite bad. Something that could have made free agents want to come here to play.

Instead, we lost 4-2 to a team that, being strictly realistic, has the League MVP and two good players that, depending how you let them play, can be really mediocre or really good. Also both of them had some important health issues and we did not even try to get advantage of them.

I have a bunch of questions for our coach, so I would just leave them here.

- I do not understand why, during the season and POs 1st round, Teague did not play the amount of minutes he was capable of play as we saw in this second round. He could have been a difference maker and also could have allowed the team to play less depending on JJ.
- Based on the previous question, I do not understand why we traded the rookie Crawford for Hinrich when we already had a good guard in the roster. Hinrich is a good player, I must admit, but may be Crawford was somebody as special as Teague. We will be missing him once Jamaal leaves this summer. Here I blame both the coach and management.
- I do not understand how an NBA team can change line.ups and minutes of play so much based on the rival's carachteristics. But one thing I understand even less is how one can see that the "big line up" is killing Chicago in that 5th game during the 3rd qr then he decides to go small during the 4th one. He did the same in the 4th game and it worked, so he thought it would work again, but he did not realize that in the 5th game the small line up played badly against their bigger players.
- I do not understand how a coach wants to implement a new style of of play, the players decide that is not the way, clearly go out and just play as id they were in their back yard, with nothing similar to a game set, and he does not resign.
- I do not understand how JSmoove can shoot so many bad shots and the coach is unable and uncapable of stoppinng this, which is clearly a bad option for the team.
- I do not understand how he decides to defend Boozer with our 5 (Collins or Zaza), so Boozer decides to shoot over them instead of posting up and he connects almost all his shots. Have you not read on the press that he is injured, can not move with ease and has problems with movements. Why not defending him with Horford to see in he can stay with him in his shots or to see if Boozer changes his plays and something good for our interests happen?
- How can you see that Smith kills Deng every time he posts up or drives to the basket, yet he plays outside as much as he wants to.
- How a coach at this level cannot get Jamaal to play off the ball some so JJ can play his game and can pass the ball to Crawford when he is in a 2x1 so Crawford can begin a play with an advantage instead of playing 1x5 all the time? How I coach can see how a player dribbles and shoots everytime he gets the ball with a 45/50% chance of geting a basket at the most. Much better things shoud have been got of Crawford.

Well, this could be endless. I just really think LD is not the man who can carry us to another level. I believe our core players could offer a much higher level of play with a different personality in the bench and, especially, with a coach that can make good things bigger and bad things smaller.

And, for the management, I do not understand how we can spend 120 in JJ, 60 in Smith and Horford, a ton in Marvin and then we have such a low profile coach at the driving wheel.

I do not think a change will be made, so let's hope a year's experience will show positive things during next season.

And, please, management, we need a big that can do anything on offense. Collins and Zaza can really do certain things, but others need to be done too. But, in order to get baskets inside, JJ has to pass, Crawford should play in a different way, Smith also... uff... we would be getting back to coach Drew...

[Ruhiel]

Smith needs to bulk down and add speed. Marvin->Thabeet.

Teague needs a point guard camp. He needs to become a floor general and develop the mid-range game he showed when drafted.

[Harry10]

you can't blame Drew for how bad Horford played PF, and Kirk getting hurt. Collins was great, Smith was great, Teague was great, Joe and Jamal were okay. If Horford just didn't suck so bad and gave us his season average of 16/10/.600FG then the Hawks could have easily put away the Bulls in 6 games.

[wizardg]

One Spurs fan's take on the Hawks. I have had Hawks season tix for 5 of the last 7 years so I've see a lot of those guys.

Hawks probs start with management.

1. When is the last time the Hawks have had a proven coach? I honestly can't remember. Wilkins I think is the right answer.

2. Teague played under Woody and Drew during the regular season but never played as well as against Chicago though he showed moments. Why? I don't think he was coached to do what he could do.
a. Woodson was a subpar PG coach - I believe.
b. Against Chicago Teague was free to play his game because the other PG was gone. He was not going to get DNP'd or yanked from the game. he was free. It's also possible that Rose was an easy defnsive matchup for him. He seemed to be able to take Rose whenever he wanted to. It's impossible to play offense like Rose and still be a great defender. LeBron Wade and Jordan are the only ones I remember pulling it off and they are freakishly fit and strong athletes.

3. Josh's bad shots are due to the Hawks having no offensive structure and no real PG. When Josh shoots those shots is Horford or Joe posted up? Is joe or Marvin or JC slashing to the hoop?

No. The offense (what offense?) is stuck. That how JS winds up with the ball 20' from the basket in the first place.
I'd love to see D'Antoni with these guys. or Adelman or a proven offensive minded coach.


4. Considering its Larry's first year I give him a C for regular season and a B for post season. Drew made adjustments on the fly.

Case in point. II was screaming at Popovich to play Splitter and Duncan together agaisnt Gasol and Zbo. He hardly played Splitter until desperation and I don't think he ever did play Duncan and Splitter together. Now I read that Pop says Splitter will start with Duncan next year. Too late. You gotta make adjustments on the fly.
I would only fire Larry after I knew I could get a proven coach.

[td00]

Time for LD to be released of his responsibilties.

He coached a .500 team after Week 1 throughout the year. The team had more ups and downs than an elevator.

Leave it like it is next year, and you gain nothing. The same inconsistency they played with all year.

A major shakeup is in order, beginning with management. If you don't, you watch another team like Philly and maybe Indy pass you by in the standings.

I don't like the current makeup or the wishy washy answers that Drew gives. He should lose his job based on how he has handled Teague. He also moved Josh to the 3, Al to the 4, and I don't see the long-term benefits.

I don't expect big moves, but big moves and risks from Sund are needed. I think we end up with the same GM and coach and plod through another lackluster result.

[Geaux_Hawks]

Time for LD to be released of his responsibilties.

He coached a .500 team after Week 1 throughout the year. The team had more ups and downs than an elevator.

Leave it like it is next year, and you gain nothing. The same inconsistency they played with all year.

A major shakeup is in order, beginning with management. If you don't, you watch another team like Philly and maybe Indy pass you by in the standings.

I don't like the current makeup or the wishy washy answers that Drew gives. He should lose his job based on how he has handled Teague. He also moved Josh to the 3, Al to the 4, and I don't see the long-term benefits.

I don't expect big moves, but big moves and risks from Sund are needed. I think we end up with the
same GM and coach and plod through another lackluster result.

+10