Packfill

Quote: I not saying that Sheldon is the number 1 pick, but he is on a #1 team and plays against teams every night and rises to a level above most of the players he plays against. I'm not sure Aldridge is a better player only taller . Agreed. I would worry if Sheldon measures out less then 6'8", but he certaintly plays the game in a way that would unquestionably help the Hawks.

In NY he doesn;t really have a choice because the vets are so bad.

Don't be a moron. I first asked whether he had a height advantage - which if he does it is only negligible, particularly when you consider the quality of athletes he will face night-in-night out. The net result of which is that he does not have a competitive advantage because of his height. That does not mean he won't become a great player, it just means his height, which is certaintly not outside the normal range for a small forward, and is certaintly is not a disadvantage for him, does not give him an "advantage" in the post. If he were 6'11", sure, that would be an advantage, but 6'8"ish, not so much.

Quote: Look i don't like the pick either but it is time to get over it. Marvin is here. he isn't going anywhere. Right now he has no post game at all that I can see. All I said was that he could be very effective if he develops one because of his height for the position. If that offends you then you have issues. And all I said was that his height does not give him a competitive advantage in the post as a small forward. If that offends you then you have issues.

Give me a break, you know height advantage means nothing if it doesn't lead to a competitive advantage. My point was that Marvin would not have a competitive advantage.

Yeah, but guys like RJ, TMac, LBJ, Wallace, etc. can jump out of the gym and are great athletes, so no real disadvantage there.

Will he have height advantage? Aren't most 3's in the 6'7"+ range? Marvin is 6'8"ish. I am thinking of T. Prince, LBJ, Pierce, TMac, RJ, R. Lewis, G. Wallace, C. Butler, Battier, Deng, Marion, Artest, Carmelo, etc. Marvin would not have a meaningfrul size or speed advantage over any of those guys.

I like Sheldon too, but not at the number one pick - which the Hawks have the inside track on.

Why can't the Hawks play good team defense?

His recent blog about draft prospects is a little depressing. The point guards are not playing up to expectations and there are not many bigs, if any. The Italian dude sounds more like a Dirk type forward, not a defensive brut like the Hawks need. Splitter may or may not be a big time prospect, and even if he is it is not guaranteed that he will be available this year because of the buyout issue. All of the college big men sound like question marks or developmental projects. I just hope the Hawks aren't getting painted into a corner.

Remember when Diesel bashed Al and Nicholas and others loved him? Amazing how much all of our opinions have changed in a little over a year.

Quote: When your whole team plays bad defense, then everybody looks bad and your bad defenders look worse. For example. Steve Kerr was a horrible defensive player... UNTIL he went to Chicago. When he got to Chicago, they found out that he can stay in front of his man and make it hard for his man to shoot. Another example... Mario Ellie. All while Ellie was in Houston, the word on him was that he didn't try on defense. He went to San Antonio where he was backed up by Duncan and Robinson and became clutch on offense and defense. Even Big Dog. Big Dog was ridiculed here. However, last year in the playoffs/Championship, Big Dog became a defensive stopper in one of the finals game... Check this out.. And it rang true: Quote: Robinson is not known for his defense, but Popovich said they can work around that. "The good thing is that he's intelligent and he understands the game," Popovich said. "He'll pick up the team-defense concept, so he won't have to be the best individual defender." As Macdaddy said, there are some things about Al's game that you just can't find... Namely, an inside/outside game offensively... A lot of you tried to compare Al to Reef, but when has Reef ever been good from outside or fast enough to take a four off the dribble?? We try to compensate for a badly coached defense by getting rid of good offensive players (WITHOUT equal compensation).. That's welfare. This is a remarkably sane post. Good point about how a good team defensive scheme can mask an individual players shortcomings. Al was never considered a defensive liability in Indiana. Quite frankly I think Al's problem with the Hawks - and the teams defensive shortcomings as a whole - are in large part due to lack of effort and a bad scheme. I blame the coach.

Blasphemy! Are you saying fundamentals and team play are more important than length and athleticism?

Quote: Okafor is a PF/C, not a SF. Their normal lineup is Knight Felton Wallace Okafor Brezec If they trade Knight for Al, they would start Felton Wallace Al Okafor Brezec Wallace is a SF, but he can easily play SG. He doesn't give you too much outside shooting, but Al does. Again, I don't think they'd do it, but it's not completely impossible. To me, it would be a money issue, they won't be willing to give him the cash he will get from someone. I don't think Wallace would play shooting guard. It would be akin to playing Smoove at shooting guard - sure he could do it on some level but it makes no sense with his skill set. Wallace is a small forward, period. The dude is a better shot blocker then Smoove (I only know because he is on my fantasy team). They need outside shooting desparetly to open things up inside for Brezac, Okafor and Wallace. Al makes no sense for them. Sorry.

Chandler has played in just about all of Chicago's games this season. Is it his back again?

The Bobcats have no need for Al - Okafor and Wallace are solid starting forwards. They desperately need a shooting guard, but not another forward.

There, I said it. Unbelievable what a few good pieces that work well together can do. They have a shot to get better if JR Smith can find a way to turn himself into a player, otherwise their upside is a little limited and they will have to replace PJ in a few years.

I realize we don't need to spend it this off-season - which seems impossible anyway given the dearth of available big men. Realistically, I see Nene as the Hawks best shot to get a legit big, assuming you consider him legit. Pryz, because of his past history here, I doubt he signs unless we way overspend. That leaves Ely or someone like him who are really back-ups. Maybe there will be more available the following off-season, but going through another season without a point guard or big man will be unconsiconable. Maybe they can get one in the draft, but those guys will be a few years away from contributing (unless the pick is Sheldon Williams, who does not seem like a BK guy).

Quote: Quote: Anyone acquiring Lue is acquiring him with the idea he will be a back-up, at best. No actually the Lakers were pursuing him in the offseason but he chose to stay here. You may not like it but the simple fact is that Lue is the best 3pt shooter and best ball handler on the team. I would trade Lue for Smush Parker in a heart beat, so LA can have him if they want. He didn't want to go to LA because he knew Kobe would ride him to play some defense.

Quote: Everyone knows that Lue is made to be a backup. That does not mean that he is worthless. He and Bobby Jackson are 2 of the best backup PG's in the league. You could get something in return. Maybe not a starter, but something. There are a lot of other back-up point guards in this league that I rather have, from young guys (Jack, Felton, Devin Harris, Livingston, Mo Williams, Udrith, Calderon, Barbosa, Blake, Head, Duhon, etc.) to old guys (Claxton, Daniels, Jackson, Tinsley, Snow, McInnis, Arroyo, Watson, Boykins, etc.).

If we don't sign Al this off-season what are teh Hawks going to spend the money on. I am not lobbying to resign Al because of the duplication on the roster (though I like Al as a player and would be all for keeping him if BK did not draft Marvin). Nene may get $8+ this off-season but none of the other free agents the Hawks should be interested in (i.e., Pryz, Ely, other big man) are going to get more then $5 million. If the Hawks don't use the money this off-season, then don't they have to start worrying about signing their own players next off-season and start saving money for big extensions for Smoove, Marvin, etc.?

Quote: Quote: Your right or teams would have pursued him stronger when he was a free agent this past off-season. We got Stephen Jackson because other teams did not pursue him strongly in the off-season and traded him for Al Harrington. I'm not saying Lue has that kind of value (he doesn't) but I wouldn't write him off as a guy another team would be interested in acquiring. I would. Al and Jackson were both acquired with the idea that they would be starters. Anyone acquiring Lue is acquiring him with the idea he will be a back-up, at best.

Woodson should start and play for a majority of the game - a lineup of Ivey, Childress, Smoove, Batista and Edwards (when healthy) and tell them to play defense like their careers depended on it, then see if everyone else gets the message. There really is no downside since it is unlikely they would win anyway.

Agreed. Moreover, the Bulls success came only after the team shifted its drafting strategy to drafting college players who could come in and contribute immediately - i.e., Hinrich, Gordon, Duhon and Deng.

Chicago is also lamenting how piss poor Tyson Chandler is playing. Another waste of talent. They won't be good until either Chandler steps up or they get another legit big man. Similar to the Hawks really accept a lot further ahead in their development.