Official Game Thread: Kings at Hawks

[lethalweapon3]

“Schröder HAS 20 SECONDS TO SET UP THE OFFENSE, OR ELSE I WILL RELEASE THE BAZE…”

 

Issa Must Win! There will be plenty of days ahead to strategitank for our Atlanta Hawks, but not today! Back home at the Highlight Factory, they’ll look to raise their season win total by 50 percent tonight versus the Sacramento Kings (7:30 PM Eastern, Fox Sports Southeast, NBC Sports California).

The Kings (3-10), like the Hawks, arrive with just one road win under their belt, at Dallas last month. Sactown has the league’s worst road Net Rating of -15.8. They conclude their brief East Coast swing licking their wounds after consecutive blowout road losses, at MSG and at Washington. The stars are aligned for the Hawks, if they so choose, to get off the schneid, if only for a brief moment, and collect their first win in front of a sparse but head-nodding Philips Arena crowd.

Similar to the road-wearier Hawks (50.6 road 2FG%, 7^th-lowest in NBA; 38.4 road 3FG%), the Kings are hitting three-pointers decently, but the interior offense has been a struggle (NBA-low 46.6 road 2FG%, but 38.6 road 3FG%). That they take as high a share of two-point field goals as anybody yet connect at the lowest percentage, hasn’t done much for offensive efficiency. They are leaving plenty of points on the table at the free throw line (70.4 road FT%, 28^th in NBA), even though they haven’t been getting there terribly often.

Former Grizzlies head coach Dave Joerger guides his team as they play with a Memphis-style tempo (95.7 pace, lowest in NBA). To help disrupt the opposing Kings offense and produce extra quality possessions for his own team, Atlanta’s Kent Bazemore (4.5 deflections per-36 and career-high 2.1 SPG, both 2^nd in NBA) while be joined at times by Ersan Ilyasova, who will be brought along slowly after missing weeks with a bone bruise in his knee. With a shored-up frontline, the Hawks defense could use one more key contributor tonight.

Real Plus/Minus data has never been terribly kind to Hawks point guard Dennis Schröder. He comes into today’s action ranked 420^th among 421 NBA players in Defensive RPM, as per ESPN data. The good news for The Menace, tonight, is who checks in at #421.

Rookie De’Aaron Fox has been granted ample playing time, perhaps more than was anticipated at the outset while free agent pickup George Hill (38.6 2FG%) worked through his struggles. Fox’s Lonzoian shooting splits (39.6/19.0/71.1) have been less than desirable. But both have been sound passers, neither averaging more than 2.0 TOs/game while splitting duties, keeping the Kings on solid ground in the area of transition defense (14.8 opponent points-per-48 off TOs, 4^th-best in NBA).

Young Dennis, why you trappin’ so hard? Atlanta (2-12) will need Schröder and the wing defenders to harass the primary ballhandlers and force the ball early in shot-clocks into the hands of teammates like former Grizzly great and leading scorer (!!!) Zach Randolph (12.7 PPG, 8-for-18 3FGs), or shooters like Buddy Hield (39.3 3FG%) or Garrett Temple (42.3 3FG%) who don’t fare as well when they must put the ball on the floor.

Willie Cauley-Stein says, of guarding Kristaps Porzingis after the 118-91 loss to the Knicks, “I have the same body size, the same skill-level.” I may have the same crooked big toe as The Unicorn, but sadly that similarity doesn’t, in and of itself, translate into NBA superstar competency. “I think I gotta get more selfish,” says Cauley-Stein (2.1 APG, tops among the Kings’ non-point guards), which is probably not the best tack to take.

Perhaps struggling with some early Stromile Swift Syndrome, the 2015 lottery pick has struggled to stand out in a log-jam by design. Joerger assigns ten Kings between 19 and 27 minutes each, shuffling veteran plodders like Z-Bo and Kosta Koufos with lighter fare, like second-year pro Skal Labissiere.

After wrangling with the likes of Andre Drummond, DeMarcus Cousins and Marcin Gortat in recent days, Dewayne Dedmon (13 minutes in the Hawks’ 106-105 loss @ NOP, 5-for-5 FGs) and rookie John Collins (16.5 O-Reb%, 4^th in NBA) should be able to find amenable matchups that keep them on the court for longer, more positively impactful tenures. Sacramento 15.2 opponent second-chance points per-48 is the highest in the league, while their 73.7 D-Reb% ranks next-to-last.

There should be enough options available for Schröder to make connections all across the floor, and not be satisfied with being funneled into fruitless straight-line drives, as was too often the case in recent losses (last 2 games: 7-for-34 FGs, 5.0 APG, 4.0 TOs/game). Schröder has to show that between he and Fox, when matched up, Dennis is the superior defensive player, and not just by default. As most Californians would agree, 420 > 421, always.

Some fans, dreaming of future tie-breaker possibilities, want the Hawks to drop early games to similarly downtrodden competition like the Kings. But with 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8 M’s in their respective bank accounts, this is one game where Hawks players should want to be stuntin’ and flexin’ their muscles, and reppin’ the ATL well. As the Hawks have been the most accurate three-point-shooting squad (41.4 3FG%, better than Golden State’s 41.2%) over the past ten games, how many Atlanta jump shooters will be at the ready to gun these Kings down?

Let’s Go Hawks!

~lw3

 

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[Thomas]

Knowing what this particular season involves would like to see us not worry as much about matchups per se and play our obvious future more. Just a thought many have pointed out already this season.

[lethalweapon3]

1 minute ago, Thomas said:

Knowing what this particular season involves would like to see us not worry as much about matchups per se and play our obvious future more. Just a thought many have pointed out already this season.

I had to review a paper where a grown adult repeatedly wrote, "per say", so this comment is a breath of fresh air!

~latinw3

[AHF]

11 minutes ago, lethalweapon3 said:

I had to review a paper where a grown adult repeatedly wrote, "per say", so this comment is a breath of fresh air!

~latinw3

You don't se!  

[Peoriabird]

I've seen it all now...Bud runs out a line up of Taylor-Delaney-Belinelli-Babbitt-Cavanaugh

[nathan2331]

 

Damn, we're beating the brakes off this Kings team. I don't know how sustainable Dedmon's production will be for the future, but it its been great to see. And someone fix 21's earpiece, his performance sounds and looks awful.

 

 

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[TheNorthCydeRises]

46 point victory.  Largest in franchise history?

[benhillboy]

Damn these boys hooping.  Collins dominating (loving him staying away from the 3 point line) while Dennis plays with random kids.  Dedmon with the vintage vet breakout year under Bud.  Z-Bo gotta be turning over in his grave.

For a tanking team they damn sure steal (4th), hit threes (4th), and sink FTs (6th) like a good one.  How about our first 40 point win in 23 years?!

[DBac]

Babbitt, Belinelli, Dedmon are gonna be attractive trade pieces by the deadline.

[NBASupes]

I've already seen posts about people willing to offer firsts for Dedmon. That might be something to look into for Feb

[bleachkit]

Best game of Taurean Prince's career.

[Sothron]

Fantastic game from almost the entire team. I think Ilyasova was the only one with an off night.

[Peoriabird]

1 hour ago, NBASupes said:

I've already seen posts about people willing to offer firsts for Dedmon. That might be something to look into for Feb

So the goal is to own half of the 1st round?  What would that do?

[nathan2331]

So the goal is to own half of the 1st round?  What would that do?

We could consolidate some picks to move up in the round.

 

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[benhillboy]

I thought Dedmon was on the wrong side of 30 from his face.  Seeing as how he’s just turned 28 I wouldn’t mind him on the squad going forward at all. 

And I’ll always contend that the best brand of Hawks ball, tanking or not, is keeping Baze around 23 minutes.  Rings true every time.  Mix in Plumlee if for no other reason than to spell Ded and Bap with Bembry and we can watch some decent ball as the clock ticks to the lotto.  You rarely see tanking teams with a floor system in place so our operation feels a bit different than usual tank missions.

Edited November 16, 2017 by benhillboy

[lethalweapon3]

Good news for the Kangz... it wasn't the WORST performance ever! (h/t to my dude @redapples)

21 was awful but it still wasn't Carl Lewis/Roseanne National Anthem bad! To be fair to those other two, they were never anywhere near the Billboard charts, and it wasn't like they wrote and should recognize their own lyrics. And to be fair to 21, as hinted at by @nathan2331, he was done in by the remodeled arena's suddenly problematic audio feeds (that, and his contracted demand to Not-Cuss for apparently the 1st time in his natural life.)

~lw3

[Thomas]

If Dedmon is willing to stay for that 6.3 million which is incredibly cheap for him, just maybe he can very affordably help groom our rookie center at the very least in next year's transition. Bud is always going to be slow on that rookie into the fire stuff so it would make sense. Several more games like last night by him and 6.3 million won't be so enticing for him though. Anyway, bizarrely great game by us, certainly don't mind a glimpse here and there you know.

http://www.spotrac.com/nba/atlanta-hawks/dewayne-dedmon-13536/

[DS5]

9 hours ago, NBASupes said:

I've already seen posts about people willing to offer firsts for Dedmon. That might be something to look into for Feb

I can't see any of the contenders giving up a first for Dedmon...but if anyone does, we have to jump on it, specially if he keeps playing this way.

[nathan2331]

I can't see any of the contenders giving up a first for Dedmon...but if anyone does, we have to jump on it, specially if he keeps playing this way.

I doubt we could ever get a first, considering he can opt out at the end of the season and sign for much more. But I'd happily take it and try to sign him in the summer if a trade becomes available.

 

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[TheNorthCydeRises]

11 hours ago, lethalweapon3 said:

Good news for the Kangz... it wasn't the WORST performance ever! (h/t to my dude @redapples)...

21 was awful but it still wasn't Carl Lewis/Roseanne National Anthem bad! To be fair to those other two, they were never anywhere near the Billboard charts, and it wasn't like they wrote and should recognize their own lyrics. And to be fair to 21, as hinted at by @nathan2331, he was done in by the remodeled arena's suddenly problematic audio feeds (that, and his contracted demand to Not-Cuss for apparently the 1st time in his natural life.)

~lw3

21 is easily the worst live performance I've ever seen.