After Wednesday’s practice, Hawks coach Larry Drew said he had not made up his mind about whether he would start the big or regular lineup for Thursday’s Game 6.
Drew did note he thought the Chicago Bulls had an easier time matching up with the Hawks’ regular lineup, in which Al Horford lines up at center, compared to the past two games, when Jason Collins has started at center and Josh Smith has moved to small forward.
“I think [the big lineup] makes it a little bit tougher” for the Bulls, Drew said.
One option might be to start Zaza Pachulia at center instead of Collins, although Drew in the past has said he likes to bring Pachulia’s energy off the bench. Pachulia had 13 points and four rebounds in 23 minutes Tuesday. His plus/minus rating of plus-7 is the best of any Hawks player this series.
Numbers up
Give Hawks spokesman Arthur Triche an assist. Scorers for Game 5 somehow managed to not credit Smith with any blocks despite having multiple clear-cut rejections. After Triche asked the league Wednesday to review video of four plays, Smith was awarded with three blocks. Unfortunately for the Hawks, Bulls backup Taj Gibson still had all of his 11 fourth-quarter points. Smith has 17 blocks in the series.
Undecided
Should the Hawks somehow win the next two games and guard Kirk Hinrich is healthy, Drew said he didn’t know yet if he would start Hinrich or Jeff Teague.
Said Drew, “I’d like to have that problem.”
Odds are against it. In NBA history, there have been 159 instances of a seven-game series being tied 2-2. In 132 of them (83 percent), the team winning Game 5 won the series.
‘Cheap shot’
After taking a forearm from Bulls forward Carlos Boozer on Tuesday, Smith was ready to put the matter behind him, more or less.
“It was a little cheap shot, but it is what it is,” he said. “I think it got handled and dealt with, so hopefully it doesn’t happen again. I don’t know what would happen if it happens again.”
Etc.
News that fans will be given white T-shirts for the whiteout pleased Smith. “It’s about time,” Smith said, smiling. “We’ve got to give away those T-shirts. Stop being stingy.” ... The NBA announced Wednesday that, should there be a Game 7, it will start at 8 p.m. Sunday time and be televised by TNT. ... The Hawks are asking fans attending the game to arrive early for Thursday’s 8 p.m. tipoff. Extra security measures at the entrances are expected to cause delays. Tickets were still available Wednesday evening.
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