AJC > Sports > Hawks > Blog > Archives > 2006 > November > 15
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
Where’s the defense?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I know I got all parental and preachy yesterday. I’d apologize and try and make amends if it was in me - it’s not. And anyone who’s ever dealt with me knows it’s not. So without further ado, and anymore bellyaching, let’s get back to the matter at hand – and that would be the goings on in Hawksville.
Two heartbreakers by a total of three points and the Hawks have no one to blame but the men in the mirror.
Which leads us to the hump-day version of the five things we already know (aka the five things that should have been painfully obvious to the Hawks during Wednesday’s film session):
No. 1: Anytime you give up 58 points in the paint to anyone, your chances of winning decrease tremendously.
It wasn’t just the Milwaukee big men that had their way inside, their guards slashed their way to the basket repeatedly without being cold-cocked by the Hawks’ big men. All five Bucks starters scored in double figures and as a team they made just 4-of-11 3-pointers. You do the math.
No. 2: Don’t be fooled by the Hawks’ rebounding edge (45-33) in the game.
You can thank Shelden Williams (15), Lorenzen Wright (eight) and Josh Childress (seven) for the margin. But as nice as it looks, the Hawks didn’t get the ones they needed at crucial moments in the game. The Bucks’ starting backcourt of Michael Redd and Mo Williams outrebounded the entire Hawks backcourt rotation 11-6. Not good.
No. 3 You can’t squander a home game when Joe Johnson, Tyronn Lue and Josh Childress shoot a combined 29-for-48 from the floor.
You just can’t. And all three had their moments when they were downright ridiculous. Childress was sensational in the second quarter. Lue in the third. And Johnson, who battled early foul trouble, sprinkled his in throughout the night (per usual). That’s two straight games with three 20-point scorers and two straight losses. It doesn’t make sense.
No. 4: Someone other than Joe Johnson has to make it their mission to become the Hawks’ defensive stopper on the perimeter.
Is it asking too much of Johnson to not only serve as the Hawks’ offensive catalyst but also their lockdown man on the other end of the floor? Well, his counterparts in both Seattle and Milwaukee have the luxury of not having to handle the ball (Luke Ridnour and Mo Williams have those duties) and Damien Wilkins and Ruben Patterson, respectively, can handle the dirty work of guarding the opposition’s best scorer on the end of the floor. But burning Johnson at both ends during games is dangerous (but a necessity for the Hawks because they don’t have that backcourt defensive ace and role player on the roster. Or do they?).
No. 5: The starting unit has to carry its weight every night, or else.
The starting frontcourt of Josh Smith (check Wednesday’s paper for a more detailed item there), Shelden Williams and Zaza Pachulia were offensive no-shows Tuesday night, marring a 56-point effort from the bench with their combined 16-point showing. That’s largely because the Hawks starters didn’t attack the basket, something that was repeated over and over again after the game and again at practice Wednesday. Each of those guys player more than 26 minutes yet they shot just six free throws combined. They have to go on the attack inside if they want to impact games. Jump shots won’t cut it.
