HAWKSVILLE - That was Hawks coach Mike Woodson’s response after Monday’s win over Charlotte when asked for a status update on the sprained left thumb Marvin Williams sustained in the first quarter of the game.

And that has to be the best news for the Hawks, who played particularly well with their bigger lineup on the floor for much of the second half of the game.

Williams said afterwards that he was “fine” and that he’d be “alright.” But he had no other concrete information other than whatever tests were run Monday night came back positive in terms of long-term damage.

He did bend his hand back pretty good trying to fight through a screen on the defensive end. And he had that funky tape job like Mike Bibby (who sat out with injury Monday but is fine and expected to return to the lineup as early as Wednesday’s game against Phoenix) had last season when the Hawks acquired him at the trade deadline.

That contraption lasted only a few trips up and down the floor in the second quarter before Williams snatched off the webbing that tied his index finger and thumb together.

“I can bend my hand but I can’t extend it,” he said after the game. “It’s throbbing right now, but I’ll be fine.”

Playing without Williams in the second half Monday was excellent practice for the Hawks, who improved to 3-1 this preseason, since they’ll play the Oct. 29 regular season opener without him (you remember that clothesline job on Rajon Rondo from Game 7 of the series with Boston, it cost Williams a game).

I have to admit, the bigger lineup Woodson has been talking about since the summer looked better in person than I imagined it would. The Hawks were much feistier with Zaza Pachulia and Al Horford working inside together (which allowed Josh Smith to work the wing and the break as much as he could).

The results were rather pronounced as well. After managing just 11 rebounds and just four fast break points in the first half the Hawks piled up 20 and 13 after halftime.

It should surprise no one that the Hawks were 10 points better in the second half playing a more up-tempo and aggressive style than they did in the first half.

“That’s our game right there,” said Acie Law IV, whose driving layup with 4.6 seconds to play sealed the win. “We’re at our best when we’re going full speed like we did after halftime.”

PERFECT FITS: Bobcats coach Larry Brown noticed what everyone else did after halftime Monday, Flip Murray and Mo Evans are perfect fits for what the Hawks plan to do this season.

“Atlanta is going to be good,” Brown said. “They have a lot of depth. Mo Evans and Flip Murray are really going to help them and Acie law is much improved. They’re a good basketball team and they are very well coached. They did a much better job guarding the pick and roll than we did. I thought that was a big key. They were very active and they used the pick and roll very well.”

As for his point about Murray and Evans (the FlipMo Squad as they were so aptly named a couple weeks back), when you marry yourself to playing at the pace the Hawks did in the second half Monday, those guys are truly perfect fits.

Even when they don’t shoot lights out they’re ideal fits because both guys are capable going to the basket and finishing, and Murray can finish well with either hand making him even more dangerous.

They seemed to crank up the play of the entire second unit, even the members that didn’t score a whole lot.

“Our bench played a major factor in the second half,” Woodson said, “especially coming down the stretch. I thought Mo, Zaza and Solo[mon Jones] stepped up on the defensive end. I’m not sure what Solo looked like on the stat sheet, but he altered a ton of shots.”

SHARE THE LOVE: After four preseason games the only real glaring deficiency I see with the Hawks right now is their paltry assist numbers. For a team that was sharing the ball like crazy the first week of camp (especially the first unit), averaging just 19.3 assists per game coming into Monday’s game just doesn’t seem like enough.

They only managed 18 against the Bobcats (who finished with 27) and that, to me, could be a problem as the season progresses. With the ball moving the Hawks tend to be a much more dangerous offensive team.

Without that movement, their offense bogs down and becomes terribly predictable and much easier to defend than when they’re sharing the love (and the ball).

Permalink | Comments (97) | Post your comment |

Advertise here »