Packfill

For crying out load. Like any of the Hawks players outside of JJ is good enough to disrespect anyone. If true, this evidences a lack of leadership and a poor environment created by management and the coaching staff.

Anytime a team losses a high lottery pick for nothing is a loss in my book as it essentially means that it was a bad pick to begin with or something went wrong with the negotiations. Let's hope the Hawks don't squander the rest of their assets.

Thanks for the summary. I thought BK was bad (and still do), but Sund is up to at least strike two now (strike one being retaining Woody). This is frustrating.

Of the three, I think Howard/Bass is easily the best return of talent. I don't have any confidence that Amir will amount to anything.

I penned this little diddy a year or two ago, but still think it is on topic: and up yours Mr. Gearon Hawks fans hate you more than you will know bohoo bohoo go away please Mr. Gearon Hawks fans can only pray hey hey hey...hey hey hey we like to know a little bit about you for our files we like to help you learn to help yourself look around youu all you see are wasted draft picks stroll around the empty arena until you feel at home and up yours Mr. Gearon Hawks fans hate you more than you will know wuwuwu go away please Mr. Gearon Hawks fans can only pray hey hey hey...hey hey hey Hide Rick Sund in a hiding place where no one ever goes Put him in the unemployment line It's no secret, just the Gearons' don't understand Most of all, you've got to do it for the fans Coo, coo, ca-choo, Mr. Gearon Hawks fans hate you more than you will know (bohoo, bohoo) Go away please, Mr. Gearon Hawks fans can only pray (Hey, hey, hey...hey, hey, hey) sitting on a sofa on a sunday afternoon Going to the Hawks forum Lament about it, cry about it When you've got to choose Ev'ry way you look at it, you lose Where have you gone Ted Turner, the Hawks nation turns its lowly eyes to you, boohoo, boohoo, what's that you say Mr. Gearon Ted Turner has long left and gone away, oh vey, oh vey, oh vey

Being a Hawks fan is hard work!

Given May's history of injuries, let's hope Marvin doesn't follow May's conditioning routine.

What is the point of trying to be "decent" for one year? Neither of those deals makes the Hawks a title contender next year and neither deal makes the team a title contender in the future. It is one thing to go all in to win it like the Celtics did, but it is an entirely different thing to go "half-in" just so you can win 44 games.

The ASG better be willing to step up to the plate and give Smith a contract similar to what Okafor got. There really is no excuse now.

That trade idea is horrific for the Hawks. It might make the team better in the shortrun but in the long run it is a real loser. If Odom can't win a title with Kobe and Gasol then there is zero chance he is going to win one with JJ and Bibby, unless Horford is the second coming of Tim Duncan. Trading away a young asset like Smith only makes sense if you are getting a franchise player in return (like Boston getting Garnett for Jefferson).

Quote: LOL . . . you mean, just like that? After all of that crying and complaining . . then we sign somebody . . and it's over? Well, I guess we can offiially have the Chill funeral now, and pay our proper respects. He will be missed. He was definitely underappreciated as a Hawk, and will go down as probably one of the top 10 most popular Hawks of all time. I feel more bad for the little kids at Philips, that loved him and his fro, than anything else. I for one am ecstatic that this franchise has been able to turn a high lottery pick into a journeyman bench player. It would be stupid for fans to ask for more, right?

Quote: Quote: It should be easy from here on for the Hawks to sign Smoove now that market has been set. In fact the market has been set since Bogut sign his contract. Now that one of the RFA has sign the market is set once again. If this doesn't get ASG back to the table then nothing will. And by back to the table I mean ASAP. Or... just as reasonably... "If this doesn't get Smoove back to the table, then nothing will. And by back to the table I mean ASAP." Why is this so hard to acknowledge that it's a two-way street? (... and possibly even a three-way, if Smoove is waiting on anything from Europe to fall in his lap). An $11 million offer from ASG would likely get Smoove back to the table. The ball is in their court.

I think Ellis' deal does set the market for Smith. No reason why they ASG should not get a deal done with Smith soon at the same dollar amount.

Quote: My guess is that you regard anyone who doesn't utterly despise the ownership group as an "apologist." If so, I gladly accept the label... that's as opposed to being lumped into a category on the opposite side where there is no conscious thought but only knee-jerk reaction. (That's not to suggest that all ASG critics are that as a result of knee-jerk reaction, any more than to suggest it's valid to say that all ASG apologists do so out of a knee-jerk reaction.) Having said all of that... I've scoured this article, and must be reading right over top of it.... humor me... so, WHAT EXACTLY IS IT that suggests here anything more than a decision to eliminate a middle management position? I see nothing here, except what amounts to a slight by a hockey player... is that your point?... I'm supposed to care what a hockey player thinks of playing in ATL? Because, I guess, since one hockey player has opinion X, that's what all NBA players think of playing in ATL...?????? If that's your schtick.... I'm sorry, but this is a woefully impotent thread for your purposes. For the record, the article mentions the departures of two VPs, but also the CEO and CFO. In most companies, the CEO and CFO are the top two executives, not middle management positions.

Quote: Atlanta Business Chronicle I don't know if this article has been posted already. The shedding of Atlanta Spirit LLC executives continued July 10 with the decision not to renew the contract of chief marketing officer Lou DePaoli, who handled the day-to-day operations of ticket sales for the NBA's Hawks and NHL's Thrashers and had nearly half of the entity's 320 employees reporting to him. "I'm leaving," DePaoli said. "I had some time to reflect. My contract ended. I decided time to move on to a new challenge." He said he has been in correspondence with a number of people about future employment, including NBA commissioner David Stern via e-mail. Starting in October 2007, senior vice president of communications Tom Hughes departed for a job with public relations firm Hope-Beckham Inc. In January, the ownership elected to part ways with CEO Bernie Mullin and chief financial officer Bill Duffy, choosing to take a more active role in the management of the franchises and Philips Arena. Vice president of human resources Ginni Siler was another executive who has departed the company in recent months. None have been replaced by the ownership group, which remains in litigation with estranged owner Steve Belkin over how to buyout Belkin's large minority share. DePaoli, 41, came from the NBA's team services division at the league's New York headquarters, where he worked under Mullin, who came to the Spirit with the recommendation of Stern. DePaoli's contract expired on June 30 and his last day will be July 11. He was informed that his contract would not be renewed earlier in the week after returning from vacation, a source said. An e-mail that DePaoli sent to Spirit employees on July 9 announcing his departure obtained by Atlanta Business Chronicle said: "My departure will impact a number of departments and over the next few days the Executive Committee will share with you the company's plans for a new reporting structure for those affected by this change. I wish all of you the best of luck in the future and look forward to seeing both the Hawks and Thrashers in the playoffs next season." The executive committee ownership created to report to it in Mullin's absence now has been reduced from seven to six. That panel consists of Bob Williams, the arena president, Rick Sund, general manager of the Hawks, Don Waddell, general manager of the Thrashers, in-house counsel Scott Wilkinson, Tracy White, vice president of broadcasting and sponsorships, and Phil Ebinger, vice president of finance. At this point, it appears that DePaoli will not be replaced. A message was left on the cell phone of Spirit owner Michael Gearon Jr. and a request for comment was sent to the e-mail address of his Blackberry. In his position as chief marketing officer, DePaoli used statistical analysis to project attendance for individual games and created strategies -- discounts, group sales, advertising and other marketing -- to improve attendance. He also was instrumental in setting the organization's prices for tickets, as he has attempted to push them higher on both the Hawks and Thrashers' sides to increase revenue and get them closer to the league averages. While Hawks' ticket sales have indicated a rise after their first playoff appearance in nine seasons and a first-round series that resulted in pushing the eventual NBA champion Boston Celtics to seven games, Thrashers ticket sales are sure to be a challenge. The team finished 28th in the 30-team NHL and with the exception of defenseman Ron Hainsey, largely was unable to make a splash in free agency. The perception of the team has taken a beating around the league in recent weeks, especially in an article in the St. Petersberg Times last week when top-tier defenseman Dan Boyle was quoted as saying the Tampa Bay Lightning threatened him by putting him on waivers where he would be claimed by Thrashers as leverage to wave his no-trade clause: "...at the end of the day, I was misled and lied to and completely disrespected," Boyle told the paper of the Lightning's actions. "When you threaten to be put on waivers and end up in Atlanta, it was an eye-opening situation for me." How can this not make you feel good about the Hawks?

Quote: Quote: So all of the talk of Sund(ASG) offering a good, fair offer is and was BS. Sorry but that's simply not true. Our offer was more than anyone else could offer and would have averaged about 7 million per season. There is no way in hell he is worth more than that and some would debate that he is even worth that. I hate that Childress won't be here next year, but if he wanted to be a Hawk and get his deal done early then he should have accepted the offer, which was above market value. If it is true that the Hawks extended an initial offer and then withdrew it, only to extend a second, lesser deal, then they have no one but themselves to blame for Chill walking. I don't know if it is true though so we are all speculating at this point.

Quote: Quote: Quote: "I haven't really done anything yet" NO.CHIT. Understatement of the year. Actually, he's already done too much....resigning Woodson. Well, ASG told Sund to resign Woody, so at least Sund was telling the truth.

Quote: ...for a complete unknown variable: ie, that a Greek team would consider Chilz so valuable that they would pay $11 mil/yr to get him. Everything else worked out perfectly. The team offered a fair number, and by all accounts, the best number that Chilz could get. His options were severly limited, if he had any other NBA options at all. Why is that so hard to fathom? Because the lynchmob has torches lit, and are looking for someone to pay... and when you're looking for someone to pay, class envy (characterized by the idea that these rich people are all numbskulls who have money only because they inherited it) is always an acceptable vice. Embarrassing. It is hard to fathom because of the ASG's history of bumbling. Maybe you forgot how they can't even get along and have aired their dirty laundry to the world to the detriment of the franchise. Let us also not forget their porr decisions in making managerial hires, and blocking trades that would help the franchise. But you are right, the ASG is a bright beacon for hope in Atlanta.

Bring Travis Hansen back!!!

Quote: "I haven't really done anything yet" NO.CHIT. Understatement of the year.

Quote: Quote: haha and Marvin will have to play 48 min now and will not exit at 6 min mark. The question now is will Diesel still be watching? Now that's the bright side. We might lose Diesel as a fan Let's be honest, the Hawks need all the fans they can get. Look at it this way, if the Hawks were smart and drafted Paul or Deron instead of Marvin then Childress probably remains in the fold and the team is a contender now.

Quote: How many years do you think he plays there? 1, 2, or 3? 3 years. He comes back after having made his money to play for a contender.

Quote: bk wanted to trade chill for calderon last summer but was stopped... Who stopped him?

Quote: No cap space, but you can use the following exceptions: MLE --> $5.585M (The MLE can be split up between multiple players if you choose). BAE --> $1.91M Minimum --> varies (generally around $1M) Does Childress' cap hold remain on the books for the Hawks (assuming they do not renounce his rights)? If so, for how long?

Quote: I don't get it? Sure, I'm upset Chillz left for Greece, but here is the bottom line: The Greek offer was way more than we or any other NBA team could have given him. I don't blame Chillz for taking that deal at all. I would take it too. How is any of this the fault of the ASG? Because the ASG has caused this franchise to have a culture of ineptidude. Their public squabble over ownership coupled with very questionable front office and coaching hires has resulted in a second class franchise.