Packfill

Zaza and Dirk are completely different players. Zaza is an interior player - he does not have a reliable jumper, he does not handle the ball particularly well, and he is not likely to "blow-by" the vast majority of starting power forwards in the NBA.

He is a nice young player with limitations, nothing more.

Put the bottle down.

Exactly, and in Diaw's case, he needed a very specific system in order to really even give an effort.

I'm sure I'd be far less bitter about it if a) the players themselves were not incredibly rude to the franchises they leave, and b) the media didn't use it as an excuse to bash the poor Atlanta franchises (and fans.)

The Suns took the ball out of JJ's hand when they signed Nash and don't seem to be regretting that decision.

JJ is extremely talented, but until he leads the team to some wins he is just another talented player on a bad team. LeBron, Wade, AI and even Arenas have lead teams to the playoffs. As soon as JJ does that then you can compare him to those guys, but that day has not come yet.

Someone else already posted this.

To me, Rudy Gay makes the least sense of any of the top picks for the Hawks.

So there is hope after all!

The Hawks traded away their 2007 pick so no sense factoring that draft into the equation.

Agreed, you take Thomas and try and trade the redundant assets to fill the holes in the roster.

It is equally interesting that Colangelo and Paxson mentioned they they do not necessarily need to get younger and that in drafting duplicate players they may be willing to trade off some of their redundant assets (i.e., the Raps would trade Charlie V. if they drafted another forward; the could move Chandler if they trafted Thomas).

I would be inclined to trade down and draft O'Bryant somewhere around the 10th pick in the draft.

If the Hawks keep the 5th pick Roy is the obvious pick.

What is with all the whining? The Hawks got the second pick in the draft last year and were able to take the player many "experts" consider to have the most "potential" in the entire draft.

Didn't the Hawks get exactly what they wanted last year? Are we really crying in our cereal because the Hawks did not draft Bogut?

If you have listened to what Steve Nash has said during their playoff run this year he said they are less talented then a year ago (i.e., with JJ and Amare) but play better as a team.

To me, that is everything. Great teamwork can overcome a collection of talent any day. That is why teams like the Knicks suck and teams like Phoenix are so good.

I am sure San Antonio had David Robinson fake that injury . . .

Certaintly possible, but no guarantee.

Assuming the Hawks do not get a top 3 pick, if you had to choose between the two which would you rather have: Josh Childress or the pick (whether it be 4, 5 or 6)?

I think Childress is a good player who would do well as a starter, probably not a star, but a good player who does things that help his team win games. I am not so confident in the abilities of this years draft class, so personally I value Childress higher then a non-top 3 pick. My only reservation is the obvious - i.e., the glut of small forwards currently on the roster.

What do you guys think?

Only time will tell. But what if the 2005 draft parallels the 1999 draft where Charlotte took stud college point guard Baron Davis and passed on high school phenom Jonathan Bender, whom Indy took two picks later?

Now, Baron is a little overrated but he certainly has more value then Bender.

A bigger problem with your analogy is that in 1995 while Stoudamire was an experienced college player, Garnett was a high schooler. In 2005, Paul came out after his sophmore year, and is only a year older the Marvin, who had the benefit of playing a year of college ball - rather then being a totally green high schooler.

Point is, we do not know.

Honestly, I don't think Salim warrants a large role on this team, or any team really. He is a guy who you play if he is shooting really well and bench the rest of the time.

I will also go on record as saying I don't want him. Unless the team is gearing up to win a championship in the next year or two I do not see the point.

The funny thing is that some of the people that bash Morrison are the same people who think Bargnani should be the pick. The thing is, neither is a great athlete by NBA standards and other then a few inches in height, they are similar players with similar skills.

I would happily take the shorter player if he plays with heart over the taller guy that does not play with heart. Not saying Bargnani does not have heart - impossible to tell from the limited exposure most of us have of his game - but just something to think about.

I agree, it is unfair to compare anyone to a player the caliber of Dirk, just as it is unfair to compare another player to LeBron.

The Dirks and LeBron's of this world are the exception, not the rule.

I think that would be a great move. Realistically, none of the guys in this draft seem like franchise players so might as well fill some needs with some very athletic, talented players with excellent upside.

If both those guys developed into contributors the Hawks defensive shortcomings would be a thing of the past. JJ, Smoove and Marvin presumably could handle the load offensively.

Could not agree more. If JJ's numbers increase dramatically it likely means none of the young players are filling Al's void (assuming Al is no longer with the team). Now, if the team is winning that is not such a bad thing but if they are not improving in the win column then that is not a good thing.

Agreed. Just saying that we are not in line for a Lebron like prize.

Oh yeah just what we need. To overpay for a guy that would not make us anything more than fringe playoff team for 3 years before his age and money made him consider retirement.