TheNorthCydeRises

Worst loss of the year. Especially considering who the opponent was and how big of a lead we had.Shake it off and get back on track next week.

Zaza doing all of those "unseen" things to help us win . . . . smh

9 min to go in the gameAll-Star Josh:7 points ( 2 - 12 FG )8 rebs5 asst3 blks2 stls4 turnoversAll-Star Al4 points ( 2 - 7 FG )6 rebs3 asst1 blk1 stl1 turnover

Pierce proving why he's still an All-Star caliber player. Hawks have completely collapsed in this 3rd quarter. Josh and Al are nonexistant.

Don't get me wrong. I definitely want to flip some of these guys for a better impact type of player. And I wouldn't be against bringing in Rudy/Wroten for say a Harris/Korver/Morrow trade. An athletic freak like Rudy may sell well in ATL, although people would hate the trade at first.PG - Teague . . Williams . . . WrotenG - Stevenson . . JenkinsF - Rudy . . ( Stevenson/Smith )PF - Smith . . Ivan . . Tolliver . . ScottC - Horford . . Zaza . . PetroMay have to go out and get another backup PG or SF, even though we simply use Lou as a scoring PG on that 2nd team.I just disagree why and when Memphis would think about trading Rudy.

The year that Memphis pushed OKC to 7 games in the WC Semis, they were DEAD LAST in 3 point makes and 27th in 3 point %. The strength of that team ( without Rudy ), was that Zach Randolph was playing like a top 15 player in the league, and they could lock you down defensively. And in the playoffs, he was playing like a top 10 player. Spot Up shooters like Korver and Morrow are not going to significantly help that team, because Conley isn't exactly a wizard when it comes to creating shots. On every team, you need a guy that has the ability to take and make tough shots. Trading Rudy for shooters doesn't achieve this because Memphis isn't a assist generating team ( and never has been ). Let the people, players, and coaches in Memphis . . Rudy isn't the problem . . . this is the problem. http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2013/jan/02/griz-must-pick-up-the-pace-to-be-successful-in/

Memphis isn't giving away Rudy Gay, at least not right now. They had a rough December ( ironically after we went down there and destroyed them defensively ). They've been a .500 ballclub since we put the smack down on them.Having said that, the team still has Championship aspirations, and will not just GIVE Rudy Gay away before the trade deadline. Now if that team crash and burns in the playoffs, and Rudy doesn't play well, that's when you'll see the market open up for Rudy from a "giveaway" standpoint. But by then, the Hawks couldn't use expiring their expiring contracts to get him.Now this could change if Memphis really struggle in January. And their schedule this month is NOT easy ( @ GS, @ SA, @ DAL, @ OKC, @ CHI, @ PHI . . home vs SA, BKN, LAC, LAL, IND ). And even the 4 other games aren't exactly cupcake type games ( play the Kings twice, @ PHX, vs NO ).That team will prove if they belong amongst the elite this month.

Jenkins on the year so far, in limited stats:26 - 49 FG . . ( 53.1% )10 - 22 3FG . ( 43.5% )Top 4 Offensive Plays- Off Screen . . . 28.8% of plays . . . 52.9% FG ( 9 - 17 ) . . 33.3% 3FG ( 1 - 3 ) . . . 1.12 ppp- Spot up . . . . . .18.6% of plays . . . 45.5% FG ( 5 - 11 ) . . . 28.6% 3FG ( 2 - 7 ) . . . 1.18 ppp- Transition . . . .18.6% of plays . . . 87.5% FG ( 7 - 8 ) . . . . 80.0% 3FG ( 4 - 5 ) . . . 1.64 ppp- PnR Handler . .11.9% of plays . . . 25.0% FG ( 1 - 4 ) . . . . 0% 3FG ( 0 - 2 ) . . . . . .0.57 pppJust watching how fluid he is on video, this guy is a natural scorer, and not a one-dimensional one. If he has any type of space, he's knocking that shot down about 60% of the time, no matter where the shot is located. As Nique says about Korver, you can't leave him open. The same applies to Jenkins.He also shows a step back jumper in which to create space between he and the defender. And has a nice head fake to get the defender in the air so that he can take a side dribble to get his shot off. A veteran guy like Kyle Korver can and will help him become a better offensive player, especially with his ability to find that open space on the court to make himself available for a pass to come his way.The ball handling is shaky, so he shouldn't be used in a lot of pick and roll situations or in situations in which he's trying to create for others. If he gets the ball, I want him shooting it, not going PnR or ISO ( even though he probably could do that over time ).

Heck . . Korver, Morrow, AND Stevenson can be added to that list. Of that group, Jenkins is the best shot creator. Let me see what Synergy says about the kid.

And yet, you still can't disprove any of the conclusions I derive from my "made up" statistics. It's all good. Hate it or love it.

I agree. Josh needs to at least play at the level he's been playing. If he plays above that level in January, he can get in. Below that level, and he may get snubbed like last year.If we're the #3 seed at the end of the month, one of those guys SHOULD make it. No guarantees though.As for the March schedule, no doubt that it is brutal. We've had brutal March schedules in the past, but they were loaded with home games. This one is loaded with road games. So these guys need as big of a cushion as possible going into March, to prevent some sort of freefall in the standings, if we struggle that month.

Nah coachx . . you have to add Lopez into that conversation. He's arguably been playing the best ball in Brooklyn18.6 ppg7.2 rebs2.2 blks52% FG71% FTHe's played in 25 games so far this year, with that total being over 35 games by the time the coaches have to submit their picks. The selection of Josh or Al or Lopez will come down to how each of those guys play this month.

After getting BLASTED by the Spurs, JJ took it upon himself to get his squad off to a rousing start. He usually has one game a year in the month of January in which he looks like a true superstar. His 33 points @ OKC was that game.

Congrats to Jordan for cracking the top 10 in NBA efficiency for shooting guards ( 9th in the league at this moment ). Not that it's a great rating ( 14.3 ), but it's a career high for Jordan.December numbers:19.1 pts5.1 rebs6.1 asst41% FG34% 3FGGood job man.

From the peachtreehoops.com article: Before you get excited about the lack of WOW on that list, consider that maybe 60 percent (3/5) of the 13 man roster will be front court players Can somebody confirm with a link that the NBA is selecting 13 guys for each side, instead of 12? I thought that there was talk about a 13th roster spot being added, but I'm not sure if they did it or not. And through my searches, I can't find anything that says that 13 guys will be selected for each East and West All-Star team. That 13th roster spot could be huge for Josh or Al, if that's the case. Having said that, I basically laid all of this out in this post last week, when one of you guys said that Smith looks like he'll be making the All-Star team. http://hawksquawk.net/community/topic/375196-looks-like-smoove-could-be-making-the-all-star-team/?p=591154 The guy I forgot though, was Brook Lopez. Like I said in that previous post, only 4 guards out of the East truly deserve to make it. You could easily argue for 8 frontcourt players out of the East to make it, with a guy like Lebron having the ability to play guard on that team if need be. The Hawks need someone to overtake Garnett in that fan balloting. Under the old system, he would already be out of the running, and a guy like Horford would have as good of a shot as anybody to get that center spot. The new system definitely hurts Horford in that aspect. Unless the Celtics get red hot in January, I can't see many coaches voting Garnett in. So the only way he's getting in is via the fan vote. As for Josh, he blew his All-Star chance last year with that horrible middle/end of January he had. This year, he needs to not only be consistently good, but play well vs the East teams. The wild card is definitely Brooklyn though. They have a guy that probably deserves to make it ( Brook Lopez ), and their struggling backcourt could make a late run at roster spots, if they get hot ( Deron and JJ ). Larry Drew doesn't need to vote for any of the top frontcourt guys who could take a roster spot from his guys, since he can't vote for his own players. That also means to not vote for Brooklyn players. So if that means that Drew's ballot looks like this: - Horford - Smith - Bosh - Irving - Holliday - Ellis - K. Walker Then so be it.

I wish more of you hardcore fans would bite the bullet and purchase SynergySports. It will erase some of the misconceptions you have about players, and maybe validate your opinion about other players.Harden is one of the best attacking guards in the league. His jumper hasn't been on this year ( especially in ISO situations ), so he's looking to get to the rim more than ever. And when he does it, he's not just looking to draw a foul, he's looking to score and pass as well.On jumpers, he does the exact same thing that Lou Williams does, when he purposely tries to draw contact on a jumper to get to the line. But Harden attacks much more than Lou, and goes hard to the rim.So people loved Jamal Crawford's And-1 Mixtape summer league style of play, but wouldn't like Harden?Hard for me to believe, but to each his own.

What's the old NASCAR saying?If you ain't cheatin', you ain't tryin'.What you call "cheap", is simply a part of basketball.And like PSHH said earlier in the thread, Lou Williams does this all the time, just as much as Harden. And when you're able to draw contact whether it be by being aggressive, or "lunging" into the defender, the officials will expect you to get fouled every time they get in traffic.Meanwhile, Jeff Teague can't buy a call, even when he gets hit.The fault doesn't lie with the player. The fault lies with inconsistent calls from the refs. Larry Bird was the MASTER in giving a head fake and jumping into a defender to draw a foul. But when he did it, it was called "smart basketball", not "cheap basketball".

You trade Morrow AND Harris for a guy who can be an impact player.That's a 12.5 million trade chip that Ferry could use on a guy who could really be a difference maker for the Hawks.

And the opposite of this was Joe Johnson, who looked to score with a floater in the paint, rather than look for contact and draw the foul.Which type of player would you rather have?- the guy who can make over 50% of his shots in the paint via a floater, but never get a foul call because he's either not initiating contact . . or doesn't get a call when he does go to the hole?- or the guy who can draw a shooting foul on shots in the paint at almost a 25% clip, because the refs almost expect him to be hit everytime he goes to the hole?The way Harden attacks the paint is a lot more like a hybrid of Dwyane Wade and Allen Iverson. And like those guys, he isn't afraid to get hit. And if you DON'T hit him, he's so good around the rim, that he's going to make you pay for not fouling him anyway.The way to defend him is to prevent him from getting into the paint. Once he gets in the paint . . YOU'RE DEAD.

LOL . . I think we've scored 4 points total since I made this statement. Just survive the run and get to halftime.

SMH . . . Orlando couldn't hold on. Heat win.Zaza totally ineffective vs the Rockets smallish lineup, so Drew had to get him out.

Beautiful basketball by this team so far, on both ends of the court.Horford in beast mode right now.

I can only fulfill 1/2 of your request. I can list the guys who are available, but why just limit the list to potential backup centers? Remember, we're only going to have like 3 people signed when the Summer hits ( Horford, Jenkins, Williams ), Everybody else can potentially be on the free agent block. The goal of the Hawks should be to get a STARTING caliber center, to make this frontline even stronger. The total list was to initially see how Zaza stacked up with the rest of the league. So knowing that, here are the guys in that top 30 who will be available in the summer of 2013 - Dwight Howard . . ( Unrestricted FA . . C . . who will command MAX money ) - Al Jefferson . . ( Unrestricted FA . . C . . who may get close to the MAX like Josh Smith ) - JJ Hickson . . ( Unrestricted FA . . PF/C . . makes 4 mill this year ) - Nikola Pekovic . . ( Restricted FA . . . C . . T-Wolves will probably match any offer under 8 mill/yr ) - Chris Kaman . . . ( Unrestricted FA . . C . . made 8 mill this year ) - Andray Blatche . . . ( Unrestricted FA . . PF/C . . makes league vet minimum ) - Tiago Splitter . . . ( Restricted FA . . PF/C . . makes almost 6 mill this season ) and Andrew Bynum, who hasn't played yet this season. We're talking about upgrading this team to put us in championship position. At least 6 of the 8 players above, are better than Zaza. And if some other team wants to get rid of their big man ( for whatever reason ), we have a lot of trade chips to swap with them. The mindset simply needs to change around here. We don't HAVE to keep anybody that isn't progressing this team toward a title.

LOL. I need to make up more stats.

For a person who supposedly doesn't know what he's talking about, you sure do spend a lot of time reading and dissecting my posts.In my original post, I flat out said that this isn't an "end all, be all list" when evaluating the center position. I also said that if you look at a defensive metric ( like Opponent Counterpart Production at Center ), Zaza would rate higher.But what NBA Efficiency DOES SHOW is who can come into a game and flat out start putting up numbers ( positive or negative ) . . . and who can't. And Zaza is one of the ones who shows that he can't do it on more nights, than he can.On a team that could desperately use a low post scorer ( especially during playoff time ), Zaza and his current 26% FG in Post Up situations isn't going to cut it.I understand exactly what NBA Efficiency is and how it's calculated. But because I didn't say it the way YOU would state it, it has to be wrong in your eyes I guess. Of course it's a "box score metric", which is why I also stated that you need to put up numbers to get a high efficiency number. You know . . . fill up the stat sheet or box score with good and plentiful numbers. And the main way a person can put up numbers ( or nimbers, as Nique would say ), is if he gets the minutes TO put up those numbers.Ivan Johnson this season, like Faried last year, is another example of what I'm talking about. His efficiency number is currently at 7.3, which ranks 49th amongst PFs. But he's only playing 13.5 minutes a game, which ranks 60th amongst PFs. When Ivan gets the minutes, he puts up the numbers.Ivan has played 15+ minutes in 10 games this season. His average efficiency in those 10 games?11.5 . . . . . in 19 minutes per game. The same as Zaza in 28 minutes.And that's partially why people go crazy around here when Ivan gets a DNP or reduced minutes. You don't have to look for "things that don't show up in the box score" to see how he impacts a game. You can actually SEE his impact, when you look at the box score.The fact is that Zaza is a free agent at the end of the year. There is no way in hell I'd want to pay Zaza more than 5 mill a year, if the only contribution he can bring to this team is rebound his own misses and play good defense every other game.And do you REALLY want to bring +/- into this conversation? According to 82games.com ( which goes through 12/28 and doesn't count Zaza's great performance vs Indiana on the 29th ), The Hawks were +1.6 with Zaza on the court . . . +2.9 with Zaza off the court. I don't have to make up an "index rating" to see that the Hawks are -1.3 worse with Zaza on the court, than off.Of course the counter to that will be . . . "but . . look who Zaza is playing with." Tell that to Ivan, seeing that the Hawks +2.4 with him on the court ( 5th highest on the team, by the way ) and +2.3 with him off the court. There's virtually no change with the Hawks when Ivan plays. can't say the same about Zaza though.Zaza is a solid backup center. But there will be better backup centers available when free agency comes this summer.