AJC > Sports > Hawks > Blog > Archives > 2007 > April > 02
Monday, April 2, 2007
Clarity … and so much more
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Like most people in this business, I strive to write stories that answer all your questions. My hope on a daily basis is that you don’t finish up a Hawks story with more questions than you got answers. But I realize that all of us fall short of the goal sometimes.
That’s why, in an effort to provide even more depth to the story in Monday’s paper about the Hawks’ point guard situation, I’m going to address it here again (while also reserving a little space at the end of for some of my daily ramblings about all things basketball). The point was and remains this; three veteran point guards is too many. It just doesn’t work, in any way shape or form.
So I went about asking the people involved what their thoughts were about how the whole thing will shake out. Now the responses you read were deadpan assessments from all involved - Mike Woodson’s comments regarding Speedy Claxton seemed to strike the biggest nerve with people, and for good reason. Why anyone would think Woodson would accept Claxton’s disappointing and injury-plagued season without some tough love comments for his (high-priced) free agent pickup is beyond me. I thought he was, per usual, more diplomatic than other coaches would be in a similar situation.
If anything, Woodson’s reluctance to crack guys more often has always surprised me (for example, Larry Bird routinely used the media to poke and prod his players when he coached in Indiana, as have countless others in the same situation). I think Woodson goes overboard to keep from doing that, which is an admirable trait in a coach in this day and age of players being coddled from their first day of AAU basketball.
Anyway, there’s only so much space in a given (newspaper) article for blabbermouths like me to get it all out. So here are some other comments regarding the point guard situation from some of the guys involved that didn’t make the paper:
“We have to go with the guy that … well, you have to evaluate who is more valuable and who will help you win games. That’s what it all boils down to. Healthwise, who you can you depend on? That’s the stuff that factors into the decision. But I think this summer someone will have to sit down and make those tough decisions that can help us move forward. Because we’ve got to get better at the point. Everybody knows that.” - Hawks captain Joe Johnson, when I asked how you determine which guy(s) to roll with next season.
“My knee just never allowed me to have the season I wanted to have. I’m not making an excuse, that’s just the reality of the situation. I’m trying to get it right this summer and I’m trying my best to come back and play the way I know I’m capable of playing so people can really see what I can do.” - Hawks guard Speedy Claxton on how he deals with all the drama made about him being a free agent bust.
My favorite assessment of the entire situation came from Royal Ivey, the fourth point guard on the roster and the guy who bailed the Hawks out last season by starting 66 games during the 2005-06 scramble at the point. His contract expires at the end of this season and it’s no secret that he’ll likely be moving on to another team somewhere. His perspective is as unique as it is sharp, and for the record he doesn’t think it’s as ridiculous as I do to keep three veteran point guards.
“Speedy came in and he was going to be the starter for the next few years but he was hurt. And that’s unfortunate. But he’ll be the guy at the helm next year,” Ivey said. “T. Lue has another year on his contract and so does AJ, so I expect us to keep that rotation with those three guys toting the load. Why wouldn’t we? I think with those three guys we should be fine. All three of them do very different things. And all three of them, when they’re healthy, can be extremely effective. I don’t think people should sell them short.”
Interesting. We’ll have to see how it shakes out.
Now, a few other weekend observations from the newfound center of the basketball universe that is downtown Atlanta:
I’m always cracking NBA officials for being the worst part of the NBA game, but they’ve since been surpassed as the “worst” by their college counterparts who did their very best to ruin Saturday’s national semifinals. It’s utter foolishness, some of the fouls that were called. Utter foolishness. Had I paid for one of those $2,200 tickets, I’d be asking Myles Brand for a refund.
And what’s with all the yammering about Florida being able to beat up on the NBA’s worst teams? Don’t the Gators need to beat Ohio State tonight before we crown them the one of the “greatest teams of the past 30 years?” If anyone thinks the Gators, a fine collection of guys with a true zeal for not only the game but the team aspect of the game, could whip any NBA team, they need to lay off the GATORade. Seriously.
And as much as I love watching them, I’m not as ready to anoint this Florida team as the greatest crew of the past decade, let alone the past 30 years. That’s just a huge statement when you consider the current state of the game in this country. Think hard now about the teams you’ve watched in the past and tell me if you think these Gators could handle that UNLV team from 1990, the Duke team that dethroned them a year later when they were gunning for an undefeated repeat, or the Duke team that followed up that 1991 title team with another one the next year (over my Fab Five)? And those are just four of the teams that I think would make it into the conversation involving the best teams of the past 30 years.
If you’re looking for something great to watch late night, when everyone else in the house is snoring, TiVo “The UCLA Dynasty” special on HBO. It could have been three hours long and you’d watch every drop of it. There’s jaw-dropping footage of everyone from Gail Goodrich to Marques Johnson during UCLA’s dynasty years. But if you haven’t seen high school and college footage of one Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor Jr., you’re missing out on something special. When I asked a couple of the Hawks’ young players before Sunday’s game if they’d ever seen footage of the man who would become Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and they said they had not, I was heartbroken for them. I’m a history nut, not just about basketball but in general, so my affinity for black and white footage goes beyond the norm. That footage of Mr. Alcindor should be required viewing for all aspiring big men. No excuses.
Thanks to the one cat one the planet that would rock a Braves with a tuxedo, Slam Magazine’s Lang Whitaker, my day started earlier than necessary on Saturday (he did drop a new nickname on me, “Tubby Smith,” that had me laughing for a good 10 minutes). I rolled with Slang (I got jokes, too) to the adidas Nations event at Emory (after a very large cup of hot coffee from Dunkin Donuts) to catch a glimpse of the kids whose names will be on your brains in the coming years (and just to be clear, the only basketball I didn’t watch this weekend was the CYO national tournament). Some of the best rising juniors and seniors in the country were on the floor, going through drills and scrimmage work run by former NBA player and coach Paul Silas (at least someone is trying to teach the youngsters the right way). There were some notable performances, namely by Coney Island fave Lance Stephenson, who has all the prerequisite flash and swagger that comes with his basketball roots. But my favorite player there was Larry Drew Jr. The son of the Hawks assistant by the same name has sick game (wrote a story about the prodigious Drew crew during an LA trip last year). The younger Drew is one of the best ball handlers I’ve seen, at any level. It was a nice set up, I just wish I’d have known there was a 4 p.m. session as well as the morning joint.
The more I think about it, the more I’m starting to believe that LeBron James is being overlooked in the MVP race for reasons that I can’t figure out. Is there another star player in the league doing more with less help? He willed the Cavs to a win over the Bulls Saturday (which led directly to the Bulls grinding the Hawks down late Sunday). I’m just worried that we’ve become so immune to LeBron’s exploits (dude has been on TV since he was a bearded seventh grader) these days that we’re ignoring how great a season he’s having and how truly special a player he has become.
I did my Jack Bauer all over the city this weekend and I still can’t find Georgetown’s Jeff Green. That was low, but that’s another thing that’s been nagging me the past 24 hours. Green’s no-show against Ohio State was probably the most disappointing aspect of my entire weekend. I was hoping for a star-making turn. But he didn’t even show up. (big Roy Hibbert showed me chops, though, as did Mike Conley, and all the Florida boys, especially reserve big man Chris Richard, who has to get a long look from some NBA team searching for a rugged big man).
After talking with some NBA types Sunday, the consensus seems to be that Florida’s Corey Brewer was the best player in town this weekend not already on a NBA roster. I’m not kidding. Three different guys told me Sunday that everyone thinks he’s the best player in the Final Four. I disagreed of course (you take Brewer, I’ll take Oden). But I could see where his showcase in that win over UCLA would sway some people.
That’s it for now. I’ll be back during the title game with some real-time observations of what’s going on between the Buckeyes and Gators.
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