AJC > Sports > Hawks > Blog > Archives > 2008 > April > 21
Monday, April 21, 2008
PUSH IT!
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Boston - Forget shocking the world (the Philadelphia 76ers did that already anyway).
The Hawks need to focus now on just making this series respectable.
They need to concentrate on not being laughed out of the playoffs by the basketball public after Sunday’s brutal showing against the Celtics.
The only chance the Hawks have of doing that is by finally accepting who and what they are (and undersized but uber athletic bunch that is at its best when they play at a frazzled offensive pace and gamble on the defensive end, hoping that their quickness and length will allow them to disrupt the passing lanes and force the opposition out of their comfort zone long enough to take advantage of the craziness).
We saw it in spurts Sunday, namely during the second quarter stretch were the Hawks rallied from an early 14-point deficit to get to within a basket, with 10 minutes to play and the Celtics looking like they wanted no part of an up and down affair.
But the flashes were so brief and so far and few between that you needed Blue Blockers to see them.
The bottom line, just like it was for the 76ers months ago when they reinvented themselves on the fly, is that flawed teams have to come up with a style that suits them best.
Philly was down 15 points to the Pistons playing the exact same gambling style that carried them out of that hole and to victory. And therein lies the beauty of their approach, win or lose, you play to your strengths.
The Hawks, stubbornly, have refused to embrace the obvious all season long … something about “you have to defend and rebound to run otherwise blah, blah, blah.”
It’s not often that I agree with a card-carrying member of the Republican Party on anything. But TNT analyst Charles Barkley said it (loudest and as well as any of us ever have) Sunday night when he said this about the Hawks:
“Obviously the Celtics are the better team, but the Atlanta Hawks are one of the more athletic teams in this league,” Barkley said. “They really struggle in the half-court set and they really don’t have a go-to guy. Not just this year, but also for the future, they have to play at a much faster pace.”
Services »
