Message to JJ: Respond to the Kobe-Lebron Challenge

[TheNorthCydeRises]

While this is a week that the fans look toward to, as being important for the Hawks in the playoffs . . . it's also important to YOU.

This is your shot man. This is your shot to shut up all of these fans that doubt you and dog you for your play. Whether it be on offense or on defense, this is your time to prove your status in this league.

If you come out on FIRE, do NOT be afraid to completely TAKE OVER THIS GAME.

If your shot is off, then you show people why you're one of the most versatile players in the game, by setting up your teammates and playing lockdown defense.

There are going to be at least 8,000 -10,000 fans in Philips on Wednesday night . . . just to see Kobe. It is YOUR JOB to make sure that they leave saying . . "Damn . . the Hawks sure did ball tonight." Make Kobe a friggin AFTERTHOUGHT.

And when we go to Cleveland, we're going to need a game like what you played back in December, when your shooting kept us in the game.

Kobe and Lebron are the measuring sticks for all good and great players in this league. Rise to the challenge . . . and don't let those cats completely outshine you.

[NineOhTheRino]

it's a no-win north.

if he steps up they'll call him a ball hog.

if he defers to his teammates they'll call him the reluctant superstar.

and no matter what happens they'll say woody was out coached.

Edited March 29, 2010 by NineOhTheRino

[Crank]

it's a no-win north.

if he steps up they'll call him a ball hog.

if he defers to his teammates they'll call him the reluctant superstar.

and no matter what happens they'll say woody was out coached.

well see thats the problem too many fans equate stepping up like Kobe and Lebron to mean shooting every time down the floor .

[AHF]

If JJ leads us to victories over the Lakers and Cavs with strong play, he will be praised on here except for his most extreme critics. I wouldn't use those most extreme critics as a barometer for the fan base or for the Squawk.

[JTB]

While this is a week that the fans look toward to, as being important for the Hawks in the playoffs . . . it's also important to YOU.

This is your shot man. This is your shot to shut up all of these fans that doubt you and dog you for your play. Whether it be on offense or on defense, this is your time to prove your status in this league.

If you come out on FIRE, do NOT be afraid to completely TAKE OVER THIS GAME.

If your shot is off, then you show people why you're one of the most versatile players in the game, by setting up your teammates and playing lockdown defense.

There are going to be at least 8,000 -10,000 fans in Philips on Wednesday night . . . just to see Kobe. It is YOUR JOB to make sure that they leave saying . . "Damn . . the Hawks sure did ball tonight." Make Kobe a friggin AFTERTHOUGHT.

And when we go to Cleveland, we're going to need a game like what you played back in December, when your shooting kept us in the game.

Kobe and Lebron are the measuring sticks for all good and great players in this league. Rise to the challenge . . . and don't let those cats completely outshine you.

Damn good post bruh! I really hope JJ steps it up. He says and thinks he's a max contract player! here's a chance to really prove you can hang with the superstars of the game. Of course Kobe and LBJ and Wade are all elite stars over the nba superstars like melo, durant, etc but if jj can hang with kobe and LBJ and show us something, I say we do all we can to keep him!

[TheNorthCydeRises]

If JJ leads us to victories over the Lakers and Cavs with strong play, he will be praised on here except for his most extreme critics. I wouldn't use those most extreme critics as a barometer for the fan base or for the Squawk.

AHF . . . this goes FAR BEYOND anything that goes on with Hawksquawk posters.

Joe Johnson is the most underrated and disrespected player in the NBA. And it's not even close. Even his peers know this.

But a good number of Hawk fans, the Atlanta media, and even the national media underrate the guy. So now it's time to put everyone on notice ( if he can ), to show just how good he can be against a top level team. It's not like he HASN'T done that this year. But the majority of those games have been on the road, not on national TV, and has ended in a loss because we either didn't rebound well enough . . or the rest of the team didn't step up.

I saw an article on NBA.com that broke down the list of current MVP candidates this year.

Instead of discussing their top 10, they decide to discuss the next 10. Smoove actually was one of the ones that was discussed in that next 10. I personally have no problem with that. After what Smoove has done since the All-Star break, he deserves that attention.

But unless I totally overlooked it, there's no mention of JJ anywhere in that top 20. Not a word.

That's blatant disrespect to JJ. So now is the perfect time to rectify all of this.

He needs to shut up everybody . . from Nique, to Bradley, to Schultz, to everybody who has downgraded that dude. He hasn't had a "WOW Game" in Philips for a while. Wednesday night against the World Champs is the perfect opportunity for it. And if he can pull it off again in Cleveland ( on the National TV stage ), then maybe, just maybe, people will start giving this dude the credit he deserves.

If he goes for 35 or 40 . . . as long as he is hot . . that's all good with me.

If he scores 21 points and dishes out 11 assists, I'll take that too.

But it's the high scoring games, that get peoples attention, so I'd rather for him to come out hot and go for 35, while making sure that leads to a victory.

He's going to have to switch into "superstar mode" sometime in the playoffs anyway, so he might as well try to turn that light on this week.

Edited March 29, 2010 by northcyde

[benhillboy]

North, do I sense doubt from you towards you favorite player of All-Time?

How about some props for Woody. Matching the win total from last year with 9 to go, with glaring holes on the squad? Calling all Woody-Bashers. I'm not hung up on Iso-this and that. His attention to the Defensive End (you know, the end that he specializes in and the driving force behind that fat ring he wears from time to time) is very satisfying to me. Say what you will about his switching style, more teams have a problem with it than those who don't and it keeps the guys alert, invovled, cohesive, responsible,and versatile.

While I love the passionate Joe detraction from MVP and HawksweissErr, I am the resident Joe Basher here, and am very proud of the title. While Joe has been nothing short of an outstanding defender on Kobe historically since he's been here, I just find myself not caring about what he does anymore. 30 points? Cool. 33% shooting? Whatever. 2 free throw attempts? More than I expected. Disappearing for quarters at a time? What else is new. Getting hot from the perimeter on bad shots? Yawn. Dominating the ball with no sense of floor spacing, shot clock management, or matchups? Oh well, maybe his brain will switch back on the next sequence. The only thing I truly marvel at with Joe is his high assist nights, which are coming more often, to his credit. I swear one play, he looks like the quintessential focal point/ facilitator, with crisp, determined passing, great back downs, and intelligent manuevers to get to his spot, draw defenders, space the floor, etc. The very next play, it's one on five like "Did you not just remember the last play where you drew the whole defense and kicked to Bibby or Craw for the open three/ Al for the open 15 footer?" He's the most inconsequential leading scorer at 20+ points on a very good team I've ever seen in my 22 years of watching the NBA. To place him on a competitive scale with LeBron and Kobe is proposterous. The real battle will be keeping the Cav's and Lakers' front line off the glass, not some test for Joe to prove himself against two guys in another stratosphere.

I was thinking more along the lines of what has been consistent and dominant all year: Josh, Al, and Jamal, with Joe as a nice, waaaay overpaid compliment.

Kinda bored, just looking for a spirited debate with North. It's been a while. And to touch on a comment about my post praising Jamal after a bad game, I'm not that dude. I don't wait for a good game to post praise, nor a bad game to post blame. Players' styles don't change from night to night, numbers do. I dislike Joe whether he drops 50 or 5, win or lose. Joe advocates need to stop crying about the Joe bashers here. Everything isn't sweet and peachy. I don't fall in love just because he scores 20 and has a Hawks uniform on. There's so much more to a man's game. Positive and negative opinions are both healthy and thrive off each other. I'm a basketball fan first, then a Hawks fan. I'm sure there are passionate fans in Cleveland and L.A who can't stand their backcourt's inconsistency or Andrew Bynum's slow growth curve, respectively. When Joe starts communicating to his teammates, showing some athleticism, finishing at the rack, going to the line, keeping consistent focus, and showing passion, then my criticisms will turn into praises. Until then, I'll enjoy making Joe Lovers sick to their stomachs.

With that said, "Let's Go."

Edited March 29, 2010 by benhillboy

[coachx]

it's a no-win north.

if he steps up they'll call him a ball hog.

if he defers to his teammates they'll call him the reluctant superstar.

and no matter what happens they'll say woody was out coached.

That is just the lunatic fringe that now dominates hawksquawk.

[coachx]

I was thinking more along the lines of what has been consistent and dominant all year: Josh, Al, and Jamal, with Joe as a nice, waaaay overpaid compliment.

Trying to be funny I would hope.

[TheNorthCydeRises]

No debate against you, nor doubt in JJ's game whatsoever. You can't be anywhere close to being objective when it comes to JJ, so there's no debate.

Like I said, my comments go far beyond any Hawksquawk haters on here. I simply want him to "flip that switch" in these next 2 games. He's going to have to do it anyway when the playoffs start, for us to have any shot to get past the 2nd round. This is simply a dress rehearsal for JJ.

Like I said, he's done it all year on the road. Now it's time for him to do it in frnt of the home crowd. The last thing I want to hear, are all of those fake Laker fans cheering louder than our home crowd. JJ and the Hawks need to shut them up with the quickness.

[Crank]

I just like to see a focused,intense JJ and I believe everyone else will follow suit.

[NineOhTheRino]

can't wait to hear the haters tear down JJ and Woodsons after this one

smh @ the great PJ doing his nails as his team get their but kicked

Edited April 1, 2010 by NineOhTheRino

[hawkman]

It looks like JJ accepted the Kobe challenge. Lebron is next. JJ looked "elite" tonight.

[TheTruth]

JJ did look elite tonight. With games like tonight, it is hard for teams to slow us down. Don't forget he had something like 8 assists and just one turnover.

[NineOhTheRino]

No doubt about it. JJ is one of the best players in the NBA.

[Plainview1981]

JJ gave it to Kobe good tonight. He won the battle and the war tonight.

[TheNorthCydeRises]

Test #1 . . . . .PASSED WITH FLYING COLORS

This is what he needed to do tonight. The Hawks basically played their A-game tonight. And JJ was brilliant in that 2nd half

LMAO . . of course, ESPN is going to make a big deal of the Kobe sprained ankle, even though they were down 10 at that point. It's OK though. The Captain did what he needed to do tonight.

Next up . . . Test #2 @ Cleveland

[benhillboy]

Signature, statement, landmark, TEAM win. It may have looked like the Laker's were flat and uninspired due to their recent trending, but they were totally forced by our densive pressure to fold not long after the second half started. Joe showed out. His immaculate one-on-one arrest of Kobe near the end of the 1st half pretty much set the tone for the rest of the game, after Mo got under his skin brilliantly with his knowledge of Kobe's manuevers. I also enjoyed Phil's reaction to Pau giving up the mid-range jumper to Al. Josh the facilitator. Awesomely, we blow them out with 1 free throw attempt from our starters, and of course, embarrassing numbers from Marvin. If Mo and Zaza can have this type of impact consistently and Joe plays like he has something to prove, look out.

Edited April 1, 2010 by benhillboy

[WraithSentinel]

JJ stepped his game up big time tonight.

[TheNorthCydeRises]

And look at the national media as of right now . . .

- Smoove and Marvin defending Kobe . . . cover of ESPN.com

- JJ going around Artest and Gasol . . . cover of NBA.com