Thanks to Swamp legend DSafetyGuy, the Frog will be featuring a team-by-team NBA Preview from now until the beginning of the season. Let me just say that DSG has forgotten more about the NBA than you’ll ever know. Unless you are The Schwab. Then, maybe you know as much as he has forgotten.
We’ll be doing the team previews alphabetically. But, lucky for you, the most interesting team in the league comes first …
Atlanta Hawks
Atlanta remains synonymous with the dregs of the NBA. Poor attendance, mismatched players, and an ownership situation that ties their hands when it comes to making free agent moves combine to make this the most stagnant franchise in the league. But, hey, new uniforms!
There may be no better way to sum up the Hawks than their point guard mess of recent years. If you can remember all of them, you likely need to check in somewhere for “relaxation.” The Hawks, though, addressed that black hole in the draft by taking Acie Law IV with their second pick in the first round. Law is certainly the most talented point guard on the roster and should get the keys to the car for the start of the season, but the question is if he is the guy who sets up his teammates for three-and-a-half quarters, then buries his foes down the stretch or if he is the guy who lacks the athleticism and pure point skills to be a top player. Joining him in the backcourt is Joe Johnson, who missed one-third of the season. Johnson is simply the best player on the team, but is mired in obscurity due to the team’s struggles. Did you have any idea he averaged 25 points per game last year?
If this is the season where Josh Smith finally breaks out and fulfills his potential, the NBA should welcome a new star.
However, there is a good chance he maintains his usual performance of poor play in the first couple months, then hitting the switch in midseason and taking off. Smith is too talented to continue sleepwalking his way through late fall, as shown by him having his scoring go up each month of the season from 12.4 points per game in November up to 21.1 in April. He is certainly capable of scoring 20 a night and it is just a matter of focus. Marvin Williams should grab the starting power forward job this year and make his high draft spot pay off. Williams was given major minutes last April and responded with almost 17 points per game, including topping 20 points in five of the final six contests of the year.
Zaza Pachulia is a competent center with good shooting touch, but needs to bring more to the defensive end, including to his rebounding on that end. In 28 minutes per game last year, Pachulia averaged 4.2 defensive rebounds and 2.8 off the offensive backboard. The evidence says he can rebound, but the question seems to be if he will.
Tyronn Lue, Speedy Claxton, and Anthony Johnson give the team three short backup point guards who fill the roles of “fast,” “injury-prone,” and “slow,” in that order. None of them are particularly good shooters (Lue’s 43.6 percent career field goal mark is the best of the three, by far) and Johnson seems best suited for the role of coach to Law. Josh Childress gives the team great flexibility from the two to four spots. Childress can play either swing position, moving Smith to the four spot for some minutes this season while providing efficient shooting (career 50.5 percent on field goals and 79.6 percent at the charity stripe) and good rebounding. Salim Stoudemire is another undersized guard, but a streak shooter (37.1 percent mark from three in his two years, had 37 points against Portland last year and seven treys against Milwaukee) who should get some minutes at the two in a small, offensive-minded lineup. Shelden Williams should provide rebounds (11.5 per 40 minutes) and fouls (5.3 per 40 minutes) down low. Lorenzen Wright should be the veteran influence for the Hawks’ other first-rounder, Al Horford. The Hawks would love to see a quick transition for the former Florida Gator to give them a low-post presence on both ends of the floor.
The Hawks have a lot of young talent, but it remains to be seen if they can put it together. Three of their starters have the ability to score 20 any night, but defense has been an issue for this squad. They finished 14th in points allowed in the Association last season, but that is a misleading stat. They were 23rd in field goal percentage allowed, 28th in defending the trey, and 24th in free throw attempts allowed. Only their slow pace kept them from getting scored on more, but they still averaged almost five points less per game than their foes. Just looking at the names on the roster gives no reason to think things are going to turn around, especially on the defensive side. It’s more likely three of their starters will get injured, Smith will spend some time in the coach’s doghouse, and neither rookie will produce much simply due to association with the phrase “Atlanta Hawks.”
Posted September 30, 2007 
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