Packfill

We would be lucky to get one of those guys (i.e., Swift, Kwame, etc.) let alone two.

It is still early so obviously a lot will change between now and the draft, but right now it is hard to get real excited about any of the big men in the draft. Bogut, Taft, Martynas A. (sorry I cannot spell his last name), Splitter and even Boone have been mentioned as potential top 5 big men but all have questions. Bogut has had a great season but is he strong and athletic enough to translate his game to the pros? Taft has the athletic ability but where is the heart and production? Martynas is a mystery. Splitter has potential but is real thin and more of a power forward, which we don't really need anyway. Boone is o.k. but is he athletic enough and what position does he play? Right now if I had to pick any of them I would go with Bogut just based on production, but I am not sure he is the right fit for the Hawks (unless we get rid of both potential power forwards Al and Toine and sign someone with some defensive presence). Taft just seems like one of those guys that will go fat and lazy on you like Kwame, Kandi, Kemp, etc.

I actually agree with Diesel on this one. If I am the Philly GM I would not trade Dalembert for a Walker rental - because even if it means a potential improvement in the standings and a possible run in the playoffs it does not realisticly position me for a championship. Philly and O'Brien seem to be warming up to Dalembert as his minutes have increased in the last several weeks. If the Hawks could get Dalembert for Walker I would do it in a heartbeat even if it meant taking on one moderately bad contract.

I don't think anyone expects Childress or even Smith to be on the Kobe/Lebron level. But if Childress becomes as good as Joe Johnson then I think we are set at shooting guard for ten years.

You guys are all parking up the wrong tree. Childress – like many of his lottery brethren – will probably not be a superstar. It would be great if he did but I think the more plausible and realistic option is that he turns into an excellent all around player. Probably not a number one option but a solid support guy. There are lots of examples of these types of players who entered the league at age 20 or older and had less then fantastic rookie years. All of the guys listed below averaged less then or right around 10 points per game as rookies and have gone on to become solid contributors to superstars: Dirk Nowitzki Reggie Miller Rasheed Wallace Michael Redd Sam Cassell Joe Johnson Quentin Richardson Larry Hughes Of the above, you can honestly say that Nowitzki and Miller went on to super star status. The rest are all good players who could play for and start on any team in the league.

Quote: We should have drafted Deng because Walker will not be here next year, and we could have simply moved Al over to power foward. As for Woodson we all knew that this was going to be a long year no matter who the coach was so cut the guy some slack. No, Josh Smith will move into the starting small forward spot (his more natural position) and Josh Childress or some other newly acquired player will start at shooting guard.

The fact that Deng is performing better then Childress at this point is not necessarily indicative of their future success. Last year Carmelo Anthony had a better rookie year then Dwayne Wade. This year, that is not the case. Point is, the draft is a crapshot and once you get beyond the few true can't miss players (Duncan, Lebron, Shaq, etc.) you have to be both good and lucky.

Would Deng really be a better pick for the Hawks now? I don't think so because Josh Smith and Deng are both forwards were as Childress has at least some ability to be a guard. If anything you could argue Igoudala would have been the better selection.

With the sixth pick in the draft a team would be lucky to get an impact player. Five of the most recent 6th pick are Childress, Chris Kamen, Dajuan Wagner, Shane Battier and DeMarr Johnson. None of these guys are impact players and Childress has a chance to be better then any of the others.

Is Perkins any good? Obviously Jefferson has surpassed him on the depth chart. At least he is big.

Bynum will not be drafted because he is only 6' and is not a point guard. He is too short to be a starting shooting guard and does not shoot well enough anyway. He doesn't even make .30% of his college three pointers. If I was going to go after a tweener guard in this draft I rather have Daniel Ewing, BJ Elder or Luther Head - all show more ability to handle the point on a part time basis, both are bigger and both shoot better.

I would consider Lang on a ten 10 contract but the rest of those guys have way too much baggage (Clark, Robinson) or are just not good enough to make it in the NBA (Cook, Hatten). Jay Williams would be interesting but I rather just draft Paul or Felton if the opportunity exists.

Toronto does not do that trade - they are going to build around Bosh.

Wrong. Joe Johnson was traded by Boston in a deal that brought Boston Rodney Rogers and I think Tony Delk.

Lets be honest here, Orlando is not trading Dwight Howard, especially for Harrington and a '05 lottery pick, unless some draftable prospect steps up bigtime in the next few months.

The reason NO is willing to part with both Baron and Magloire is because they cannot win even when both are healthy - it would take a healthy Mashburn to do that. The Hawks would have to gut their team to acquire both and there is no reason the hawks could win with those two if NO cannot.

Lets just be clear here, as good as Josh Smith is he is no Lebron. Josh has a lot to work on before he is a superstar. I definitely think he has the ability to become one, but it is no given. Just for comparison sake, Darius Miles as a rookie played 26.3 minutes per game and had averages of 9.4 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.2 assists, 1.5 blocks and a .505 field goal percentage. These numbers are very similar to what Smith is doing right now. Problem is, Miles has not improved that much. Yes Miles has had some injury issues, but the point is there are no guarantees and Josh needs to work extra hard to improve.

I read something recently that said Louis Williams is a long shot to go in the first round right now because he is only 6'1" and is not a point guard and his shooting is streaky at best. He is basically in the Dejuan Wagner mold - which is not a favorable comparison these days. He likely would be much better served going to college.

I am probably just overstating the obvious, but the recent 4 game losing streak of the Phoenix Suns without Steve Nash is the perfect example of how valuable a good point guard/distributer can be to a team. Nash sets the tone for that team by being the on-court QB distributing the ball, getting others involved and generally controlling tempo. Without him Phoenix is a much different team - and a beatable one at that. The Hawks need their Nash. Whether it be Paul or Felton or whomever, I think this should be Billy's focus. Fortunately, the Hawks futility this season is putting them in position to get a high pick in what appears to be a point guard rich draft.

Quote: Your are right KG had about the same kind of year Josh Smith is having, but keep in mind KG averaged 28.7 minutes per game his rookie year and they had absolutely no goto scorers like Antoine and Al. 8 times out of 10 when Antoine gets his hands on the ball he is going to shoot it. Josh is averaging about 20 minutes a game and he is playing with No 1 and 2 option Antoine Walker and Al Harrington. They get their shots 1st and then everyone else gets the crumbs. So it is not exactly an apples to apples comparison, but you can consider KG as the one, two or three rookies out of High School that has done this well his rookie year. KG is one of my favorite players. Dwight Howard and Josh Smith are definately the best High Schoolers out of this years class!! The sky is the limit for this guy. Minnesota did have a go to scorer KG's rookie year - Tom Googliata (he was a 20/10 guy at the time). Also Al Jefferson may be giving Josh and Dwight a run for their money as the season goes on. Bu, your point is correct, Josh is coming along nicely.

Swift is a good player but he is a little too much like Josh Smith at this point, meaning neither is the type of guy you run an offensive set for. Harrington you can run plays for and if you get rid of Walker someone has to carry the offensive scoring load.

Quote: Quote: I would love to land Dalembert and Felton but would rather sign a shooter like Redd then Walker. Josh smith is a forward, not a shooting guard, and needs to play there full time as of next season. In order for that to happen either Walker or Harrington has to go. and what makes you think Michael Redd would play for the Hawks? Seriously, no one wants to play here and Michael Redd will be getting offer's for what he is worth. Unless you want to max contract the guy then he isn't coming here. People need to start being realistic. The Mavericks want Dalembert. Where does he go, Here or Dallas? I don't think Redd is a realistic option (but I could be wrong), all I am saying is that the team would be better and more balanced with a quality shooting guard then three starting caliber forwards.

The logic is that Josh Smith needs to start - and start at forward. Thus, either Harrington or Walker need to go to open up the spot for Smith. It has nothing to do with cap space.

If Head can play point guard then he could be a nice option, but if he can't then he is an undersized shooting guard in the mold of Tony Delk.

I would love to land Dalembert and Felton but would rather sign a shooter like Redd then Walker. Josh smith is a forward, not a shooting guard, and needs to play there full time as of next season. In order for that to happen either Walker or Harrington has to go.