Packfill

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.

The beef most people have with Sprewell is not that he wants more money, it was his remarks about him needing more money to put food on the table for his family. Since the majority of the the NBA fan base won't make in their lifetime what Sprewell is making this year his statement is borderline vulgar and completely insensitive.

Probably at least 85% moron.

Well, I think the idea is to create a foundation with the homegrown talent. So whether the team improves is more a product of their development.

As talented a player as Sprewell is, he really is a complete jerk. It is hard for me as a fan to support a player like that. Same goes for Cassell.

Quote: That Al and Smoove are both 4's. To me it is obvious that Al is out of position at the 3, and I see very little shooting or ballhandling skills from Smoove. I know he is just a baby, but his shot is poor and he has absolutely no handles..I keep reading here how Smoove will develope a good shooting touch and ballhandling skills, but I don't ever see NBA wing type potential there for him. I see many college freshman with much better shots and ballhandling. I think he will get bigger, develope a more short range game and become a dominant 4. Everyone here wants so bad for him to become the next Nique, they ignor the fact he is actually much closer to being the next Shawn Kemp type player.I hope people don't take this as a negative post, but Smoove just looks much more like a 4 to me.. I think it will be easier for him to develop a jumper then to "grow." There is no guarantee he grows another inch and if he doesn't, he simply is not big enough to play power forward. If he does grow fine, but I know I have not grown since I was 18, maybe even 16. Smith was measured under 6'8" at the combine w/o shoes. He needs 2 inches and 20+ pounds before he reaches true power forward size. Again, I think he will be a small forward in the Shawn Marion mold if he can develop a jump shot.

That team plus a healthy dose of Josh Smith and another athlete or two would be interesting in todays basketball landscape.

If winning fundamental basketball is boring, then I wish the Hawks could be as boring as the Spurs!!

Felton is an excellent player but my only concern with him is that he is not much of a shooter. Itis hard to predict which college point guard will be most effective in the pros, which is why we all have our favorites. The thing that makes Nash so effective is (a) playmaking ability and (b) the ability to knock down shots from the perimeter - this forces the defense to guard him close opening up passing and cutting lanes for his teamates.

Very underrated. The Hawks would be infinitely better with a Steve Nash type point guard. Maybe Chris Paul, Jerrett Jack or whomever else is drafted becomes that player.

Is he better then Ivey?

Only problem with that plan is that we do not have the shooters that the Suns have. If Smoove and Chill improve their outside shooting prowess then that opens up a lot of possibilities. I actually think that Josh Smith's game has alot of similarities to Marion (albeit stylistically the two are very different). Hopefully he does develop along the lines of Marion in that he is an extremely athletic small forward, with good defensive skills, strong rebounding, excellent finisher and a solid jump shot.

Quote: I think we can convert Chandler into a C. I mean for God's sake he's a 7 footer. I am attracted to his shot blocking. I would follow this up by signing Swift. Chandler/Swift/Smoove/Chill/(Paul)... I know.. I see Harrington is not there. But before you comment.. Look at the rebounding and Blocked shots!!! Paul is not for sure. I think whichever of the ACC guards is most ready and able. I take Paul because I think he'd be more of a scorer and this team will need a scorer. Harrington can come off the bench! Big problem with that team - no scoring! Also, I realize that Chris Paul can score (and has been doing so very well lately) but the reason why everyone and their brother likes him so much is his playmaking abilities. Scoring is the icing on the cake.

Even if BK liked Swift before the season I am not sure he fits into the plans at this point given Josh Smith's faster then expected development. Swift at center would mean a very small line-up for the Hawks - albeit a very athletic one.

I like Szczerbiak because of his shooting prowess but I am not he can guard an NBA shooting guard. His more natural position seems to be small forward. His contract is a killer though so not sure I would do it. Otherwise, I like the signing of Watson - but only if the Hawks do not draft someone like Paul or Jack. Definitely would need a sure handed point if Wally and Smith are the starters on the wings. As for center, Swift is definitely better then anything the Hawks have, but that would leave the Hawks with a serious size disadvantage. He works better at center for Memphis because they have a 7' power forward.