Ball or Nuthin' » Hawks

Magic Complete Most Dominant Series in NBA History

T Lamont — Tue, 11 May 2010 03:20:11 +0000

At this specific moment, there’s no doubt that the Orlando Magic are the best team in the NBA.

The Magic completed their sweep of the Atlanta Hawks tonight with a 98-84 win in Game 4 at Phillips Arena. It wasn’t so much the sweep, but the manner of their dominance over the team with the fourth-best record in the East – a team that swept the Boston Celtics during the regular season – was the most impressive part of their accomplishment. The Orlando Magic rewrote the history books by orchestrating the most lopsided playoff series in NBA history – outscoring Atlanta by 101 points (in their four game sweep).

While the Magic have certainly sparkled in the postseason, their success has not come suddenly. Orlando has reeled off 14 straight victories (dating back to April 2nd), and they are performing as every team hopes they would – peaking during their playoff run.

Tonight was just like the others against the Hawks. Orlando dominated in all aspects of the game, and made Atlanta look like they were a high-school AAU team. With such a powerful presence in the post in Dwight Howard, the Magic space the floor with outstanding shooters and dare their opponents to double team the big fellow.

And, boy, were those shooters outstanding. The reigning Eastern Conference Champions connected on 16 threes – with Vince Carter (22 points), Rashard Lewis (17 points) and Mickael Pietrus each nailing four.

With a healthy Jameer Nelson, the Magic have looked a little sharper than they did last year.

Meanwhile, the Hawks have the look of a team that may be in for some shake-ups prior to next season. All-Star Joe Johnson recently made comments regarding what he perceived as a lack of fan support. And after he threw up another stinker of a game tonight, the fans let him hear it with a conservative shower of boos as he was taken out of the contest late in the fourth quarter. With him being a free agent this summer, that may stick in his memory – meaning those boos may have been the last that he will hear from Phillips Arena for some time.

Of course, if Johnson exits, then who’s going to be the go-to-guy on this team? Newcomer Jamal Crawford would probably be the best (and only) candidate, although he was cast brilliantly this season in his sixth man role. Veteran point guard Mike Bibby is slowing down and may be best in a reduced role. Josh Smith is a do-it-all type, but not the type that will create shots for others with superior playmaking ability. Al Horford is a brute, plain and simple. And Marvin Williams can’t decide when he wants to play basketball and when he wants to spectate.

But the Magic took advantage of the disjointed Hawks, and appeared to be the most cohesive unit in the 2010 NBA Playoffs. And their legs will be even fresher than their opponents in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Now that’s just scary.

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Hawks Crushed at Home

T Lamont — Sun, 09 May 2010 00:48:50 +0000

There are two characteristics of championship teams that have been consistent throughout the years – a commitment to defense and the ability to maintain focus on the road.

The Orlando Magic displayed both in their 105-75 win against the Atlanta Hawks in Phillips Arena, giving them a 3-0 series lead.

Orlando dominated from start to finish by shooting better and controlling the boards. Defensive Player of the Year Dwight Howard paved the way with 21 points and 16 rebounds. The Magic also got an efficient game from forward Rashard Lewis, who had 22 points on 8-13 FG – including four triples. In total, the reigning Eastern Conference Champs shot 51% from the field and canned ten three-pointers.

Will Joe Johnson's postseason struggles cost him any money in free agency?

The Hawks were outscored in each quarter by the Magic. Atlanta, who tied for the second-best home court record in the league, was not ready for a team with the Magic’s depth, skill and execution. After a few consecutive playoff appearances, the Hawks have to be wondering what it will take to get to the next level (i.e., the Eastern Conference Finals). Their best player, Joe Johnson, has looked nothing like the All-Star status that he has achieved over the years. Johnson was only 3-15 tonight, bringing his series shooting down to 12-42 (29%). With his free agency looming, there will be a lot of question marks surrounding his value to other teams. Efforts like tonight will have many Hawks fans on edge this summer.

Orlando looks like a team that is a cut above everyone else at the moment. Although some may regard the Bobcats and the Hawks as two of the easier opponents that a top-tier team can have in the first and second rounds, Orlando has been focused and have not let one game slip away from them. They are performing as a title contending team by putting away teams that it should. The Magic look to be peaking as a team at the right time of year.

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Milwaukee Bucks Pull Off Game 5 Shocker in Atlanta

T Lamont — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 03:28:11 +0000

Not long ago, Brandon Jennings said that if the Milwaukee Bucks made the playoffs, he should be the NBA Rookie of the Year.

After tonight’s win, he has definitely converted some additional non-believers.

Jennings hit four clutch free throws in the final half-minute to seal the Bucks’ 91-87 victory over the Atlanta Hawks in Phillips Arena. The Game 5 win puts the underdog Bucks only one game away from reaching the second round of the postseason.

The rookie point guard – who scored 55 points in a game earlier in the season – provided Milwaukee with a 25-point effort. He was brilliant all night, and kept the Bucks within shouting distance in the third quarter. The Hawks had stretched out to a 13-point lead during the third, but the Bucks kept battling behind Jennings and speedy backup Luke Ridnour – who contributed 15 off the bench.

John Salmons did his thing down the stretch of the Bucks' 91-87 win.

Shooting guard John Salmons took over in the fourth quarter. Although he had a rough 6-17 shooting night, Salmons finished the game with 19. But perhaps his biggest contribution was holding All-Star Joe Johnson to 13 points.

The Hawks got big production from Al Horford (25 points, 11 rebounds) and Marvin Williams (22 points, 8-10 FG). But Atlanta have to be disheartened by the fact that they let a 13-point third quarter lead slip evaporate against a team with limited offensive firepower. Suddenly, the Hawks face a desperate situation in Game 6 which we be held in Milwaukee on Friday. With all of their talent, size and athleticism, it’s still the same old story with Atlanta – a lack of consistency for 48 minutes.

Too much credit cannot be given to Scott Skiles and his Milwaukee team. They have battled through injuries that he dislodged core members of their team (Michael Redd, Andrew Bogut), and have exceeded all of the wildest hopes of their fan base. The Bucks were projected to finish this season in a position to compete for the lottery, and tonight they stand on the brink of advancing to the second round of the postseason for the first time since 2000-01.

There are no such things as moral victories – but regardless of whether or not Milwaukee gets past Atlanta, they will look back on this season as a success.

The Hawks, on the other hand, have all the pressure on them based on their improvement from previous seasons. Losing to the Bucks could be just the right motivation to see some changes made – and to push Joe Johnson out the door.

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Surprised? – Game 2′s Produce Expected Results

T Lamont — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 03:10:04 +0000

On Tuesday night in the NBA Playoffs, there were a host of Game 2′s that yielded fairly predictable results. Let’s take a closer look at each one:

Bucks 86, Hawks 96

Unfortunately, it was - and will continue to be - the same old story for Milwaukee. They simply do not have the horses to contend with Atlanta. Atlanta’s three-headed monster of Josh Smith, Al Horford and Joe Johnson combined for 68 points and shot over 60% from the floor. Smith even added 9 assists on the night.

After a remarkable Game 1 performance, Brandon Jennings got shut down. He shot 3-15, finishing with only 9 points and 2 assists. The Bucks, being hindered by their lack of size, need their guards to play flawless ball. On this night, Jennings struggled mightily.

Smith messed around and almost got a triple-double against the Bucks.

There’s absolutely no reason that the Hawks shouldn’t pull off the sweep in this series. If they don’t, it speaks volumes as to whether this team will maintain a consistent approach to their opponents.

Heat 77, Celtics 106

With KG suspended for Game 2, the Celtics looked much better than usual. That’s no surprise, however, because Garnett slows the game down. He is required to get his obligatory touches in the post, even though his offensive effectiveness is a shadow of what it used to be. But his absence means that Boston’s most offensively talented players – Ray Allen, Paul Pierce, Rajon Rondo – get the dictate the flow of the game. And while Pierce had a relatively pedestrian performance with 13 points, it was Allen who came on like gangbusters. The sharpshooter nailed 7 treys, finishing the contest with 25 points on just 13 shots. Rondo was the ultimate floor general, dishing out 12 assists.

And what about KG’s substitute? Glen “Big Baby” Davis played a whale of a game with 23 points and 8 boards.

A couple of days after Dwayne Wade firmly stated that the pressure was squarely placed on the Celtics, I have to ask:

Who’s feeling the pressure now?

Blazers 90, Suns 119

You just knew that the Suns were going to pick up the pieces after being stunned at home in Game 1. Phoenix was back to their normal selves , shooting 52% for the game, moving the ball (26 assists compared to 12 for Portland) and limiting their turnovers (6). When Grant Hill plays as efficiently as he did (10-11 FG), they are a hard bunch to stop. Throw in Jason Richardson proving that he’s more than just a dunker, and this team can look very special.

Durant and Westbrook need to find their chemistry against the Lakers.

That being said, the Blazers are giving the Suns their moneys worth. Winning just one of the next two games in Portland will guarantee that the Blazers will come back home for Game 6.

The Suns are going to win this series, it’s just a matter of how much energy they want to expend in the process.

Thunder 92, Lakers 95

The Thunder will get an introduction to postseason basketball. That’s what we all thought, and we were exactly right.

Unfortunately for Oklahoma City, it won’t be any more than that. The Lakers can score when they want to. They can keep the Thunder from scoring when they want to. Kobe Bryant woke up a bit to score 39 points, and Pau Gasol’s line (25 points, 12 rebounds) shows the dominance that the Lakers possess on the interior.

Kevin Durant did his thing with 32 points, but his eight turnovers proved to be very costly. He and Russell Westbrook have to find a chemistry to be able to pull out a game in this series. Westbrook has been good in this series, but he needs to be better. He is the key to any success that the Thunder will have against Los Angeles.

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NBA Eastern Conference Playoff Preview

T Lamont — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 04:12:14 +0000

Aside from the top-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers – who are equipped with a fully-rested man-child named LeBron James (the soon-to-be MVP of this season) – is there any team that is a lock to advance to the second round in the NBA’s Eastern Conference?

Let’s dig into these matchups and see how the opening round will play out:

#4 Boston Celtics vs. #5 Miami Heat

Boston Advantages: Boston is old, but they have tons of playoff basketball experience. K.G., Ray-Ray, the Truth, and ’Sheed are perennial participants in the NBA’s postseason – and they just happen to be the best players on the Celtic roster (with exception to PG Rajon Rondo). Their bench play is sporadic, but definitely has the potential to be far more effective than that of Miami.

Miami Advantages: D-Wade. That’s about all you can say about the Heat these days. Miami will only go as far as he can carry them. Michael Beasley should be a mismatch in favor of the Heat, but he’s still refusing to dominate games like he’s totally capable of. Jermaine O’Neal has been playing above average ball, and the Heat have been 11-4 with him in the lineup since the beginning of March.

Bottom Line: While the Green Machine has clearly demonstrated sign of aging this regular season, I can’t pick them to go home in the first round. They’ll find a way to get things done and move on to a more daunting opponent. Sorry D-Wade. Maybe he should have Gabrielle Union sit near the Celtics bench or something.

Scott Skiles and Brandon Jennings have their work cut out for them in their first-round series.

#3 Atlanta Hawks vs. #6 Milwaukee Bucks

Atlanta Advantages: The Hawks have a rare commodity of size and athleticism. Josh Smith and Al Horford defend the basket well, yet they both have cat-like reflexes. With the exception of the point guard spot, they are big at every position. And with the Bucks missing Andrew Bogut, their advantage in the paint increases exponentially. Jamal Crawford is, perhaps, the best bench player in the league (a top candidate for Sixth Man of the Year) and the top closer on Atlanta’s roster. You know that you have some special talent on your team when perennial All-Star Joe Johnson is your second option in crunch time.

Milwaukee Advantages: They don’t have many. Brandon Jennings has the speed and quickness advantage over veteran point man Mike Bibby. Scott Skiles will have to insist that Jennings pushes the ball, penetrates into the paint and stop jacking up quick threes. Forward Ersan Ilyasova is aggressive offensively, and 15-20 points per game is not out of the question for him. If he’s able to provide that each game, it’ll keep the Bucks close to the Hawks. Skiles can out-coach Mike Woodson and he seems to get more out of this Milwaukee bunch than he should.

Bottom Line: It was going to be hard enough for the Bucks to outlast the Hawks in a seven-game tilt. But with Bogut out of the mix, Milwaukee simply does not have the requisite toughness to hang with ATL. It’s really a shame, because the way that the Bucks were playing, this could have been the best series of the opening round.

#2 Orlando Magic vs. #7 Charlotte Bobcats

Orlando Advantages: Dwight Howard, who’ll likely become a repeat winner of the Defensive Player of the Year award, anchors a solid, but non-spectacular defense. Orlando has guys that can really fill it up from the perimeter – Rashard Lewis, Jameer Nelson, J.J. Redick, Vince Carter, Mickael Pietrus, Jason Williams and Matt Barnes all represent threats from beyond the three-point arc. Consequently, there’s a lot of space inside with which Howard is left to operate.

Charlotte Advantages: Charlotte’s biggest advantage is having two guys in their organization who you never can count out – head coach Larry Brown and guard/forward Stephen Jackson. They both execute their craft with skill and emotion, which can be a volatile combination…either for themselves or their opponents. The Bobcats have players that will attack the basket (Gerald Wallace and Tyrus Thomas come to mind), and they’ll have to try and curtail Howard’s dominance by getting some early whistles blown against him.

Bottom Line: If a team struggles to score consistently during the regular season, do you think it would get any better in the playoffs? And besides, almost all of the key Magic players have been postseason-tested. Stan Van Gundy’s group has superior offensive execution and talent. While defense may win championships, a horrid offense won’t even get you there.

Gerald Wallace and Charlotte need to attack the paint with aggression.

#1 Cleveland Cavaliers vs. #8 Chicago Bulls

Cleveland Advantages: Their lead for the best record in the NBA was locked up so soon that they have been able to rest LeBron James for the last 2 weeks. So, now, if you’re Chicago, you have to face a 25-year-old who averaged 29.7, 7.3 and 8.6 and hasn’t played since April 6? Having Antawn Jamison and Maurice Williams play during James’ hiatus gave them some much needed confidence and momentum that will have them prepared to contribute when the playoffs begin. The Cavs should be able to pound the Bulls into submission with its abundance of bigs: Shaquille O’Neal (that’s right – he’s barely an afterthought these days), Zydrunas Ilgauskas, J.J. Hickson, and Andersen Varajeo. And who knows? There may even be a Leon Powe siting…

Chicago Advantages: All-Star Derrick Rose has been great as the pressure of making the playoffs has mounted. Over his last four contests, he’s putting up 28.5 points and 7.5 assists while shooting 57% from the field. His hot hand will have to lead the Bulls if they want to be competitive at all. Joakim Noah has unseated Andersen Varajeo (only for the moment) as the best Carrot-Top player in the league. His activity at both ends of the floor saves possessions and/or creates new opportunities for Chicago. His relentless energy will have to make up for Chicago’s tendency to have scoring droughts.

Bottom Line: LeBron James is playing against a team that has absolutely no answer for him. The Bulls won’t be playing in a seven-game series this year. That’s the bottom line.

More NBA Playoff Analysis – Western Conference Preview

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