Everybody’s entitled to an opinion, OK? Sometimes, though, I wonder if some of us media types say things just to hear the sound of our dulcet voices.
The 19-game winning streak having been halted, the next item on the list of Hawks-related Media Issues is this: Can a team without A Go-To Guy win come playoff time? There’s a feeling among some in our business that the NBA East is still Cleveland’s — or Chicago’s; opinions vary — to lose, even as (here I’d raise my voice for emphasis were I speaking, as opposed to typing) the Hawks entered play Wednesday 10 games ahead of the Bulls and 10 1/2 in front of the Cavaliers.
Let me stipulate that I understand the argument: The Cavs have maybe the second-best player ever; the Bulls have the 2010-11 MVP. The Hawks lack such star power, though we note that LeBron James isn’t quite the same at 30 as he was at 28, and also that Derrick Rose might never again be as dauntless as he was on pre-surgical knees.
The Hawks-can’t-win crowd points to the Cavs and says: “With that team, you know who’s going to take the last shot. Who’s going to take it for the Hawks?” But think about that: If every Cleveland opponent knows the ball will go to LeBron and no Atlanta opponent knows where it’s going, who has the advantage? As great as he is, LeBron is one man. (And his teams are 2-3 in NBA finals.) The part about the Hawks not having A G0-To Guy is true, but so’s this: The Hawks have four Go-To Guys.
We saw it again Wednesday. Paul Millsap, the Hawks’ leading scorer on the season, had a quiet night, taking only seven shots and scoring 11 points. The great shooter Kyle Korver made one basket. No matter. The Hawks beat Washington, now a distant second in the Southeast Division, with something approaching disdain. Jeff Teague scored 26 points, Al Horford 21, DeMarre Carroll 14.
(It was fitting that this game came on the night the NBA honored the Hawks’ starting five as its Eastern Conference player of the month, the first time the league has ever spread the honors so broadly.)
Back to the Go-To discussion: Don’t say Millsap and Teague can’t create a shot. Don’t say the opposition could double-team either or both without fear. Don’t say the Hawks can’t throw the ball in the post and get a basket. Don’t say a team that can turn to anybody on the floor ever lacks for options.
Yes, this is NBA, and the NBA is a superstar’s league. But if you look closely, you’ll see that the NBA has fewer superstars at their peak than at any time since Bird and Magic arrived. As noted, LeBron is 30. Kobe Bryant is 36 and breaking down like a man of 66. Tim Duncan is 38. Anthony Davis, who’s 21, is the league’s best player by some distance, but the Pelicans haven’t afforded him a supporting cast.
Oklahoma City has two superstars in their prime, but three years ago we figured the Thunder for the next great team. Instead they traded James Harden, who’s a big deal paired with another big deal in Dwight Howard, but the Houston Rockets aren’t as good as the Hawks, and neither are the Clippers of Chris Paul and Blake Griffin.
But don’t take my word for it. Here are the thoughts of a man who was a superstar who once scored 47 points in a Game 7 on a day his team lost. Said Dominique Wilkins: “When I played, my objective was for us to shut down the other team’s two main scorers. That’s not possible with the Hawks because you don’t know who their scorers are going to be.”
Then this: “We complicate things for other people because all 10 of our guys can shoot.”
There’s a stylistic component, Wilkins said. “Today’s game is played from the outside in. In my day, it was played from the inside out. I always wanted to go inside first. Today you see a team like Portland go into the fourth quarter (as happened Friday against the Hawks) having shot one free throw.”
Come spring, it’s possible that LeBron could go for 40 every game and rule a series. But I’m not sure that in today’s NBA that even a great player (plus Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love) can beat a great team. And that’s what these Hawks are becoming — a great team.
