ATLANTA — These are not the same Atlanta Hawks we grew accustomed to seeing in the regular season — both offensively and defensively. Need proof? Atlanta’s 15 assists on Friday night tied a season low. Need more proof? Cleveland closed the game with 10 consecutive misses from beyond the 3-point line and still finished at 40 percent from deep as a team. [Read more…]
ATLANTA — In a game when J.R. Smith stole the momentum away from the Atlanta Hawks and slowly quieted the Phillips Arena crowd, it was a potentially devastating injury to Hawks wing DeMarre Carroll that silenced the crowd altogether and may have been the biggest story of the night. [Read more…]
Despite all the talk of a parity-filled, wide open, volatile NBA postseason, the top two teams from each conference advanced to the conference finals. For those of you who ignored the Eastern Conference outside of Cleveland and Chicago, the Atlanta Hawks won 60 games and are the top seed out East. Game One is Wednesday night in Atlanta, with LeBron James’ Cavaliers wearing the road burgundy, or those unattractive navy alternates. Atlanta went 3-1 against Cleveland during the regular season, although
The Bulls are out, but Houston staged an incredible fourth-quarter comeback in L.A. to stay alive, with a good chance to become one of the rare teams to win an NBA playoff series after trailing 3-1. Dwight Howard, Josh Smith and Corey Brewer were simply amazing down the stretch. [Read more…]
Over the weekend, we saw a trio of buzzer-beaters from Derrick Rose, Paul Pierce and LeBron James win NBA playoff games. All three were certainly fantastic moments that ended intense, exciting postseason games. But before we get too excited about them, let’s consider these two factors. 1. The shots by Rose and Pierce were lucky. Yes, lucky. The next NBA player who actually tries to bank in a straightaway shot will be the first. Was some experience and skill involved in finding
There’s never a good time for a serious injury to a key player. John Wall $9200 (wrist) has multiple fractures in his left wrist and hand, leaving him officially “questionable” for Game Three tonight at home against Atlanta. [Read more…]
Beyond the young stars who will receive their first max contracts this offseason, few players have improved their stock and value in the NBA this postseason more than Atlanta Hawks small forward DeMarre Carroll. The only Hawk starter who wasn’t an Eastern Conference All-Star this season, Carroll brings energy, intensity, strong perimeter defense and a smooth 3-point stroke. At a time when the NBA emphasizes “3 and D” players more than ever before, Carroll (22nd in our Free Agent Rankings) is set to
Monday night began with a mild surprise — the Bulls won in Cleveland as Derrick Rose and Jimmy Butler were superb. [Read more…]