Thoughts on the new players and last nights game..

[Admin]

First off, man I REALLY like Toine. Remember how many times we got pissed off at SAR for not being more active, for having the offense stall when the ball go to him? Well none of that with Antoine. I love the fact that he is always trying to keep the offense moving and he is a better passer than I remember, although he does try and get a little too fancy on occassion. It is also evident after seeing how he hustles after loose balls and rebounds that he is twice the player that SAR is, at least effort wise. If SAR gave that kind of effort he would be the great player everyone thought he could be. I hope that we keep Antoine past this year as I feel he will be a great player for us.

Harrington.....man he is physically imposing. He is a monster down low, but until he developes some trust in his outside shot we are going to struggle with him as the SF because he just didnt have the confidence right now that is needed from a SF to shoot the ball from outside......but I do think this is the right move to make him a SF, or at least teach him to be a SF so that he can be even more versatile for us. This year will be a learning curve for him but it should only make him better in the long run.

Childress.....well he is certainly very athletic. He also has an ugly shot. I believe that once he gets comfortable with the offense, his teammates, and the speed of the NBA game that he will be okay, but its going to take a lot of time and patience. I will say that he is MUCH more aggressive than DJ ever was and that alone will allow him to play at this level much sooner.

Josh Smith.....I was really surprised to see him get so much playing time. I was very impressed with him all things considered and I wonder if he will continue to get this kind of playing time in the regular season.

Other thoughts.....we are going to be really hurting at C this year. We are thin and not very athletic. We are also going to be hurting at PG, although Anderson did a pretty good job of getting us into the offense. Next year we have to focus on getting a true C and a legit PG, both of whom need to be young so that they can grow with this bunch. Not neccesarily rookies, but maybe guys coming off of their rookie contracts or players that we can trade for in their 2nd or 3rd years.

I think that I was too overly optimistic about this years team having success after seeing them last night. Hopefully Childress will come around quick and Delk and Barry will be able to contribute off the bench......but with Harrington learning a new position we are going to struggle to score points this year. I just hope that they play together as a team and the young guys learn to play defense.

[Weez]

ok, I agree with Toine and Harrington...for the most part. why does Harrington have to be the 'sf'? we know that Toine has a much better (or at least trusts) his outside shot a whole lot more, plus is a better passer/has MUCH better handles. I still say we play Al at the 4, Toine at the 3, but with both being more 'post' oriented.

what exactly impressed you about Smith? yeah, he was out there trying, but he looked so lost, even when guarding the other team's inbounding player (inbound play). he's got tools, but his game and adjustment has A LOT of time to go. I think he got so much time last night because we were so out of the game. Why not play him? we weren't going to come back from 30. good move to play him, though i wasn't 'impressed' in the least...but neither was I 'disheartened' ~ he's got tools, just needs a lot of development.

Childress could have the second ugliest shot to Marion's in the L, but I don't really care as he has shot a high percentage in the past (I only worry about his outside shot being blocked ~ but that's not really a problem with Marion, who takes them only when open). He had one really really nice drive/aggressive move to the baseline last night.

[Wretch]

And I saw the other one when he took it on the baseline and stepped out. Watching all the clips of him, he seems to have a knack for that. That's why I belive Childress will have a VERY strong game going to the hoop. When he gets stronger and more comfortable with the NBA game, he is going to be a tremendous player.

I like him.

With Smith, I like the things that he's trying to do. To me, it just seems like his timing and confidence are off. God only knows if he will work on developing the skills neccessary to finish those types of plays (exciting blocks, dunks, reverse layups) but if he does...he will be a MEGA-STAR in this league.

I like our future, but we need to decide if we're a team pushing for wins or looking to develop. We can't do both and I don't think we can do it with the dramatic mix of players and the coach we have....

Something will have to change by midseason. Either we make some moves, or we start winning some games....