AJC > Sports > Hawks > Blog > Archives > 2007 > February > 06
Tuesday, February 6, 2007
Where there’s a Rid(nour) there’s a way…
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I know I talked about easing up on my trade scenarios of a few weeks back, but with the trade deadline looming, and the Hawks still within theoretical striking distance, I’d be a fool to stick to that. So I’m back. And I’m sounding my familiar refrain about the Hawks needing to add a young point guard to their mix (does the name Luke Ridnour ring any bells?).
Don’t make me say it. I know that landing a quality big man that would fit he Hawks’ specific needs is a much tougher assignment. And to be honest, as bad as the Hawks have been in the paint this year, they could survive the rest of the year without a significant trade deadline upgrade there.
Where they can’t survive without immediate help is at the point. Tyronn Lue’s hamstring injury won’t heal to 100 percent before this season ends without him missing a huge chunk of time between now and mi-April (which would essentially bring an end to his season anyway). And the time it would take to get Speedy Claxton to the point where he can be most effective has already passed. He’d have to play above and beyond his means the rest of the way. And it’s obvious, that’s not going to happen this season.
So the need is clear and what needs to be done is even more obvious. The Hawks have to make at point guard if they want to give serious chase to that eighth and final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. Perhaps even more important than that, if there is anything more important than taking advantage of the weakness of the Eastern Conference this year, is that the Hawks rectify past wrongs and get their hands on a young point guard that fits with their core group of Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, Josh Childress and Marvin Williams. (You know I championed the cause for Marcus Williams prior to last June’s draft and I’ll continue to believe that he would have been an ideal fir with this team, no matter how long it took for them to work the holes out of his game).
All that leads me back to Seattle and one of my favorite young point guards, Luke Ridnour. If there is any way at all Seattle is willing to part with him, now is the time to dig in and find out, because he’s at the perfect stage of his career to be plucked from his current team. He’s a young guy who’s had a chance and proved he could lead a team (the Sonics won a division title with Ridnour running the show two years ago).
What it will take to make a deal I don’t know (it could be any combination of things that cements a deal, that’s what the negotiations are for). But my reasoning for making an immediate move is simple if the Hawks are indeed serious about the playoffs this season and not just saying it because it sounds good. If the league’s best teams are aggressive at the trade deadline (some contender always makes a splash this time of year), any team dreaming of making the jump from also-ran to playoff hopeful or contender, needs to be twice as aggressive.
