Hawks game: The good and the bad
First, the good: We were without Z and Boobie, two of our better offensive options, and we were very close to winning a game on the road, against a good team, on the end of a 4-in-5 stretch, and after playing poorly for 2/3rds of the game. That alone speaks volumes about just how good this team is potentially. We played 1/3 of the game well and were still in position to win the game, and again were on the road against a good team without two key players.
The really good: The fact that this team showed so much resiliency, so much will to win, so much heart during the last 1/3rd of the game. Most teams would have folded being down 12 on the road midway through the third, but we didn't. We could have pitched in the towel, but we kept fighting. This team had won 11 straight games, and we are obviously going to make the playoffs and most likely be one of the top seeds, this game, one measly loss, wouldn't have mattered in the long run; but it did for this team, this team didn't want to lose this game. We showed a ton of heart and determination tonight. Yes, we ended up losing, but if we showed this much will to win in a game that really doesn't matter at the end of the year, think how much heart we are going to play with in the playoffs.
The bad: Our two weaknesses got exposed tonight. Lack of offensive scoring depth at the 4/5 and lack of size at the SG position. The Hawks packed the defense in around the lane and made us shoot too many contested jump shots for most of the game. Not having Z to spread the floor is a huge loss. We need another Joe Smith to come off the bench and do essentially the same thing that Z does. If Z is healthy and never in foul trouble, then obviously we can probably do without another big who can shoot, but that's not always going to be the case.
Second, we need a SG who can defend premier SGs in the league. Delonte is simply too small if the other SG has a post game. Why MB had Delonte on JJ and was sending double teams every play instead of letting Sasha play him straight up is beyond me. If Sasha is in there, JJ may get a couple more buckets because he'd be in single coverage, but Bibby wouldn't have gotten 24 points if Mo wasn't always coming over to double. And then, why was Delonte in when LeBron was guarding JJ? Marvin Williams simply posted him up. I don't want to put too much blame on Delonte, and it is moreso on MB not taking him out when he's obviously a liability on D and can't make a shot on the other end. I don't have the confidence in Delonte to stop Johnson or Ray Allen on a consistent basis without needing too much help from other players, and I certainly don't think he can defend Kobe for 7 games in the Finals, if that is what it comes down to.
If MB doesn't have the confidence in Sasha to play big minutes against teams with the better SGs, we need to go out and get a SG who MB has enough confidence in to guard premier SGs. And then, we need to go out and get a big who can shoot from 15-17 consistently. Neither of these players need to be all-star caliber, just good role players who can step up and play big roles. We don't need a TMAC or VC, though it would be nice. I'd rather get a Battier and a Scola than just a TMAC or VC, because we already will have plenty of scoring options if we were to get 2 solid role players that is the case. Someone with enough size to guard premier SGs, and a big who can shoot pretty well from 15-17. I don't think that getting two players of the caliber of Battier and Scola should be too difficult with our expirings.
Just my $0.02
