Terrance Moore - hard talk about us......

[Admin]

NBA DRAFT: Hawks need wins, not just optimism

Terence Moore - Staff

Thursday, June 27, 2002

These are strange times for a normally docile franchise trying to join the NBA's elite. Despite more question marks than exclamation points, the Hawks suddenly are big, bad and bold about their future. They are guaranteeing they'll make a swift transition from mediocrity to the playoffs.

If not, they say they'll pay you and you, and everybody else with a Hawks season ticket along the way to a loss of $500,000.

Translated: The Hawks are on the verge of losing that $500,000. Blame it on those question marks, ranging from whether Lon Kruger really is more than just a college coach to whether Theo Ratliff can spend more time this season on the Hawks' bench wearing a uniform than a suit.

Then again, maybe the Eastern Conference is that feeble these days, and maybe all of those half-empty glasses we're seeing for the Hawks actually are half full. Let's start with Wednesday's NBA draft and the Hawks' first-round pick.

They didn't have one. Still, deep into the night, the Hawks flashed a rare burst of enlightenment by sending one of their two first-round picks next season to Sacramento in exchange for point guard Dan Dickau, picked by the Kings at No. 28. Just so you know, the Hawks need a point guard, and Dickau was the ballhandling and scoring wizard for Gonzaga during its series of NCAA miracles. That said, it's too early to tell whether the deal for Dickau is fish or fowl. That's because Hawks general manager Pete Babcock is famous for such legendary picks as Cal Bowdler, Roshown McLeod and Ed Gray for every Jason Terry.

Speaking of Terry, after he became the 10th pick overall in the 1999 draft, he struggled as a point guard. He eventually surged toward stardom the next season when the Hawks discovered through the injury of another player that Terry actually is a shooting guard. Now the Hawks say Terry likely will become a point guard again.

Huh? Don't ask. Well, if you must, the Hawks are in a nearly impossible situation when it comes to their need for an accomplished point guard, additional scorer and true center. We've told you about the uncertainty of Dickau. The Hawks also join most teams in the league by owning little cash under the salary cap to purchase free agents next month. As for trades, the Hawks haven't much that anybody else wants beyond Shareef Abdur-Rahim and Terry, and neither is available.

Then you have the Ratliff saga. Since the Hawks acquired the forward disguised as a center in February 2001, he has played just three games. He has befriended the injury bug, and whether he'll ever return to his All-Star form is debatable. So is whether he'll ever play much at all.

The cloudiness around the Hawks brightened greatly after they created a position this spring for Billy Knight, the team's first director of basketball operations. All Knight did with the Memphis Grizzlies was become the best general manager in the NBA that few knew about. With help from the Hawks, he built a wonderful base for the Grizzlies by acquiring Lorenzen Wright, Brevin Knight and the rights to Pau Gasol for Abdur-Rahim. Knight also drafted Shane Battier.

Even so, Knight was fired to clear room for the incomparable Jerry West. Then, after a call from Babcock, Knight agreed to join the Hawks and help with their guarantee. "Atlanta isn't different than any other city," Knight said. "Winning takes care of all of that." Yeah, but here's the Hawks' problem: Doing it before even more folks forget their way to Philips Arena during the NBA season.

[Guest]

He speaks the truth here.I hate to agree with people like

him but the question marks are far too many.Babcocks

says one thing and lies about another...He also seems to

struggle in making up his mind on things.We possibly are

going to trade JT to keep the"co-called"Bobby Hurley and

I sure remember that guy he was good in college but floped

in the NBA.

[Admin]

Why do you always assume that a player is the next big flop, rather than the next big success? Why are you so damn negative? If you knew anything about Dickau, which you dont, you would never claim that he is anything like Hurley. There games arent even close to comparable. I will be very glad though when you are eating your words later on this year because Dickau is going to be a stud for us.

[Guest]

Some one else did.I am concerned about us counting on a barely

first rounder.There is a reason nobody(including Utah)wanted this

guy.You can bring up Parker,but the playoff game TD missed Parker

looked pretty rough.As good as Parker is...playing with Duncan

makes everyone better.

I'm tired of buying hype.That is way I am not sold on another possible

undersized SG.You buy into Hype usally...but I've seen the Adam Keefes/

Ed Gray and us making the playoffs last year/Theo(in good health)and

I am simply no buying it anymore.I am not afraid to be wrong,I'd rather

be proven wrong and surprised than hyped up and be disapointed.

Basically,I'm not going to stick myself in a position to be disapointed.IF

you see that as a bad thing that is how you feel and I can't control

that.

[Guest]

Can anyone tell me what DID happen to Ed Grey? And on that note, Hurley too...I know I posted earlier about the car wreck with the drunk driver that ended his career...but I've forgotten these guys' histories.

As for "I am concerned about us counting on a barely

first rounder," how exactly are we "counting on him?" I think we're all pretty sure that DD won't be our starter, so giving him last pick of the first round money (I believe that's about 700,000 a year) isn't that big of a risk. Not to mention, as earlier mentioned, he could be packaged in a deal...he's still got good value.

[Guest]

He is probably hanging out in Riverside California driving a car with illegal tint while smoking a bowl.

In other words, he is not in professional basketball to my knowledge.

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[Guest]

Everyone knows how Long works.We will end up having to

count on a boardline first/2nd rounder pick that is under-

sized and it will cause problems.

[JTFan31]

Damn I coulnt agree anymore with ARR, great points ARR. Dickau was barely a first round pick and I doubt he will be even close to what JT is now, there is no way in hell JT will be traded, a proven guy for 3 years for a guy that hasnt even played in one NBA game. College games and NBA games are 100% different. No way a guy that was drafted 28th and slipped so much that supposedly he was the best PG according to almost everyone on here will be take JT's job, again I state a proven player in this league and slowly becoming an allstar PG in this league. It will only take another season for JT as a starting PG to put him in the same sentence with Kidd, A. Miller, B. Davis etc...