Hawks News

"Thirteen hours after their season ended with a brutal Game 7 loss to Boston, the Hawks began cleaning out their lockers and preparing for an offseason full of promise and uncertainty. Only now do they have time to comprehend what they did this season — the NBA's longest playoff drought ended after eight seasons, and surprising many by taking the Celtics to seven games. And only now do we have a chance to analyze the seasons of all 13 players that finished the year on the Hawks' roster:"

"Atlanta forward Marvin Williams was suspended one game without pay for committing a flagrant foul, penalty two in the Hawks' Game 7 playoff loss in Boston. Williams, who will serve the suspension in his first game next season, knocked Boston's Rajon Rondo to the floor with 9:09 left in the third period of the Celtics' 99-65 victory on Sunday."

"Six potential replacements for outgoing Hawks general manager Billy Knight, who resigned Tuesday after six years on the job (in alphabetical order): Chris Grant, Billy King, Milt Newton, Scott Perry, Tommy Sheppard, Steve Smith."

"It wasn’t a question of “if” Billy Knight would go as general manager of the Hawks after six uneven (OK, mostly strange) seasons. It was a question of “how,” followed by “when.” As for the “how” and the “when,” Knight announced today that he will resign after his contract runs out at the end of June. Good. That was opposed to his bosses at Atlanta Spirit doing what they would have done without Knight’s voluntary departure notice, and that is force Knight to leave. This was a necessary split. In fact, it should have happened about two or three strange moves ago by somebody who was obsessed with obtaining a bunch of players who looked and played alike."

"Atlanta Hawks general manager Billy Knight has resigned after six years with the organization, effective July 1. Knight resigned Tuesday night after a late afternoon meeting with Hawks part owner and NBA Governor Michael Gearon Jr."

"Two of their key players, Josh Smith and Josh Childress, are restricted free agents and must be re-signed; the price tag for both could be huge. Hawks coach Mike Woodson and his staff have contracts that end June 30, and Hawks general manager Billy Knight is in a similar situation, with the team holding an option on his contract for next season."

"It seemed everybody in the Hawks locker room was thinking something different after yesterday's 99-65 Game 7 loss to the Celtics at the Garden...The Hawks had lost by 30 points before this season, but in that game they still put up 92 points on the Suns. But the loss the Celtics handed them yesterday was a different kind of beating."

"Garnett had 18 points and 11 rebounds, Pierce scored 22 points, and the Celtics turned back the pesky Hawks with a 99-65 victory Sunday in Game 7 of their playoff series to advance to the second round. Next up: LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers. Game 1 is Tuesday night."

"As Atlanta walked back to the huddle for one of the final times yesterday, the painful chords of “Midnight Train to Georgia” played over the Garden sound system. Talk about a bittersweet serenade. But as they left town following yesterday’s 99-65, Game 7 loss to the Celtics, the Hawks did so with full respect from the other side. That respect, and the fact they were able to push the Celtics to seven games, will have to be enough for now."

"The Celtics admitted it was a challenge to restrain their emotions and not allow yesterday’s 99-65 victory over the Atlanta Hawks to erupt into an all-out brawl early in the third quarter, when point guard Rajon Rondo was clotheslined by Marvin Williams while going up for a layup. Williams’ hit came just 2:51 into the second half, with the Celtics already holding a commanding, 51-28 lead. Paul Pierce stole the ball and fed it ahead to Rondo, who appeared ready to break in for an uncontested layup."

"Kevin Garnett performed last rites with - typical for him - a gesture not intended for a family venue. He laid the ball in with 3:04 left in the third, got pushed by Zaza Pachulia, and kept stumbling forward. Garnett abruptly pulled up and stared at the fans, made a slashing motion across his throat and said, “It’s all over.” The Celtics were leading by 36 points (70-34) at that point. No amount of time was enough for the Hawks to recover. And they didn’t. The C’s kept pouring it on in a 99-65 win that was one of their biggest routs of the season."

"Sunday may have marked coach Mike Woodson's final outing under contract with the Hawks. His contract ends June 30. There has been no official word on whether or not he'll receive a new contract. And Woodson refused to discuss his job status during the postgame media session. Hawks captain and All-Star Joe Johnson is firmly entrenched in the Woodson camp, though. "I hope he comes back," Johnson said Sunday."

"Now that the Hawks nine-year playoff drought is over, the franchise must face some difficult offseason questions. Several key contracts run out at the end of June. Mike Woodson's contract expires at the end and forwards Josh Smith and Josh Childress and guard Salim Stoudamire become restricted free agents. Joe Johnson, the Hawks lone all-star, wants to see Woodson and his staff remain in place."

"Many have come to the Hawks late. But Brielle Gould says she was a fan in utero. Twenty-eight years ago, she said, her mother commenced labor while at a game inside the old Omni. Little Brielle was just that anxious to get a look at John Drew. After sitting through Sunday's lopsided Game 7 playoff loss to Boston, she might have a clearer idea of the pain mom felt while watching the Hawks."

"Any questions about Marvin Williams' readiness to play in Game 7 Sunday were answered beforehand, when he made it clear that it would take more than a sprained left knee to keep him out of the biggest game of his life. But he didn't make it to the finish. He was ejected for flagrant foul (2) on Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo with 9:03 to play in the third quarter. "

"Josh Smith thought he was ready. If the Hawks were going to "Shock the World" then Smith knew he'd need his A game for the rowdy fans at TD Banknorth Garden on Sunday in Game 7 of the first-round Eastern Conference playoff game. While Hawks star Joe Johnson got off to a good start, Smith and the rest of the team didn't follow suit in a 99-65 loss."

"Sometimes a game is just too big. Sometimes the opponent is just too good. Sure, it would have been nice if the Hawks could have pushed the Celtics in Game 7, but they’d already pushed the No. 1 seed to the wall. This series ended with a crashing loss, but in the long run it will be seen as a shining victory. We Atlantans have spent years inventing ways to ignore the Hawks. After the three games in Philips Arena, we can ignore them no longer. They’re a real team again, a real team with a real future."

"The Hawks showed up at TD Banknorth Garden Sunday with a chance to make history. They did just that, but for all the wrong reasons. An epic Game 7 battle with the Boston Celtics quickly turned into a rout of epic proportions and the Celtics ran away with 99-65 win to clinch this first-round playoff series and end the Hawks' dream playoff run."

"Kevin Garnett’s first priority Sunday, after laying waste to the Atlanta Hawks’ self-worth and whipping a packed arena into a deafening frenzy, was to go to sleep. It figured to be a very long nap. “I’ve been up damn near 24 hours,” Garnett said after leading the Celtics to a 99-65 demolition of the Hawks at TD Banknorth Garden."

"Josh Smith is perfectly clear on what should happen Sunday afternoon in a winner-take-all Game 7 of the first-round playoff series between his Hawks and the Boston Celtics. "I know, I know, on paper we don't have a chance," the Hawks' power forward said. "But if you look at that same paper, it says we weren't supposed to be in the playoffs. And we weren't supposed to be in this series past four games. It says all sorts of stuff. And we couldn't care less."

"In all of sports, there’s nothing so dangerous as a team that by all rights shouldn’t belong but has convinced itself otherwise. Think of the Braves in September of 1991. Think of the Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC tournament. Now think of these Hawks, 37-45 in the regular season but 3-3 against the No. 1 seed in the crucible of postseason play. Think of a team that trailed the Lakers by 41 points in a first half in February scoring on 17 consecutive possessions in May."

"Hawks forward Marvin Williams said he's ready to play in Game 7 of the first-round playoff series with Boston this afternoon, even if that means playing with some discomfort in the left knee he sprained late in the Hawks' Game 6 victory Friday night at Philips Arena. "I'm good," Williams said Saturday afternoon. "I ready to go. This is Game 7, man. Nobody wants to miss Game 7 of anything.""

"So when the Hawks were thumped in the first two games of a best-of-seven Eastern Conference series by the Boston Celtics, a collapse of the Hawks’ rebuilding project did not seem far away. Mike Woodson, the coach, was already in jeopardy of losing his job. Given the ease with which the Celtics sliced up the Hawks, it seemed very likely that the roster would be examined closely. But the Hawks have had the last word against the doomsayers. Atlanta suddenly looks like a promising franchise because it has taken the Celtics, who had the N.B.A.’s best record this season, to Game 7 on Sunday in Boston. "

"Joe Johnson shook off a poor night to hit a crucial 3-pointer with 1:07 remaining and the Atlanta Hawks forced an improbable Game 7 with Boston, beating the top-seeded Celtics 103-100 on Friday night. Marvin Williams led the Hawks with 18 points despite missing most of the fourth quarter with a knee injury. Kevin Garnett paced the Celtics with 22 points and Ray Allen added 20."

"So much for that NBA-best 31-10 road record. The Celtics are as ineffective in Atlanta - and thus far on the postseason road - as Mike Bibby is in Boston. They dropped Game 6 - and their third straight game in Atlanta - with last night’s 103-100 loss to the Hawks, forcing Game 7 in Boston tomorrow."

""Shock the World" has been the Hawks battle cry. On the strength of some strong play from the reserves, the underdog, under .500 and under appreciated team did just that. Scrapping for loose balls, making key passes and scoring down low Friday, the Hawks reserves — led by forward Josh Childress — helped to force a Game 7 in the first-round playoff series against the Boston Celtics. "I think us running the way that we did and us not backing down, frustrated them a little bit," said Childress after the 103-100 shocker before largest crowd in Hawks history at Philips Arena."

"It wasn't nearly as emphatic as the last time, but every bit as dramatic. There's just something about these Hawks when they get on the floor at Philips Arena in the playoffs. They won't lose. Hawks captain and All-Star Joe Johnson scored five of his team's final seven points in yet another stunning home playoff win. This one a do-or-die 102-100 Game 6 win over the Celtics before the largest Hawks crowd in arena history, forcing a deciding Game 7 Sunday in Boston."

"While Joe Johnson is the Hawks' All-Star and fiery Atlanta native Josh Smith its soul, Horford has quietly assumed the same leadership role with these Hawks that he occupied on back-to-back NCAA Championship teams at the University of Florida. Gators coach Billy Donovan nicknamed Horford "The Godfather" for the way he quietly commanded respect. It's a moniker that still fits. Horford, the runner-up for the NBA's Rookie of the Year award, has been the unifying force for these Hawks."

"The sudden surge of enthusiasm for the Hawks gathered such strength early this week that the team said it sold more than $100,000 worth of new 2008-09 season tickets during Monday's playoff victory. And there was such demand for tickets to tonight's Game 6 of the series against the Boston Celtics that the Hawks vowed to pack as many people into Philips Arena as the fire marshal would allow. It seems so abrupt, Atlanta's rediscovery of its pro basketball team. But there were hints, perhaps widely missed, that a surge was forming."

"The Hawks pride themselves on their resiliency. No one thought they'd make the playoffs after a two month swoon before the February trade deadline. And no one thought they would make much noise against Boston, the league's best team, in their first round playoff series. So they're counting on everyone counting them out for tonight's Game 6 against the Celtics at Philips Arena. A loss will end the Hawks' season."

"The Celtics are up one game after waxing the Hawks' tails in Boston Wednesday night. Our guys have got to deliver tonight or put up their size 18 sneakers for another season. Or would that be glass slippers? If ever a team qualified as Cinderella, the smudged toiler who needed magic to get to the ball, surely the Hawks are it. No less than a couple of psychologists say so. And, lest you think we're playing favorites, we ... well let's not give that away just yet."

"Doc Rivers wishes for a case of selective amnesia. Dominique Wilkins, too. Rivers has been in this spot before, up 3-2 in a best-of-seven Hawks-Celtics playoff series. Now, he's the Boston coach going into Game 6 Friday night. He'd like to forget the first pass through. Then, he was the Atlanta point guard and the Hawks were one win from knocking out the four-time defending Eastern Conference champion Celtics in the second round of the 1988 playoffs with Game 6 in the Omni."

"Lakers or Celtics? Mike Bibby doesn't play favorites. He dislikes the former – for obvious reasons – and is developing a healthy disdain for the latter. Also for obvious reasons. "They can boo me all they want in Boston," Bibby said on his cell phone Wednesday, a few hours before his Atlanta Hawks were routed 110-85 at TD Banknorth Garden in Game 5 of the best-of-seven Eastern Conference series. "It's nothing I haven't dealt with before. They booed me in L.A. even after I was traded. They don't forget what you do, I guess." No, they don't forget. This is the postseason."

"It has been replayed again and again. It might be the best "Saturday Night Live" skit of them all. Jon Lovitz, playing Mike Dukakis, debates Dana Carvey, playing George Bush. Listening to a particularly hideous Bush ramble, Lovitz looks into the camera and says, "I can't believe I'm losing to this guy!" That's how this Celtics-Hawks playoff series feels to me. I can't believe the Celtics ever lost to these guys. I can't believe the Hawks knotted the series in Atlanta. I can't believe the Celtics went into last night's game facing a "must-win." I can't believe they put any doubts in our minds. I can't believe the series isn't over yet."

"It's been said time and again that defense wins championships. Forget championships right now. The Celtics need their defense just to get out of the first round of the playoffs. more stories like this While the Celtics are known for having Kevin Garnett, Ray Allen, and Paul Pierce, playing tough defense was a big reason they earned a league-high 66 wins during the regular season. After consecutive playoff losses in Atlanta, the Celtics relied on their defense to get back on track in a 110-85 Game 5 victory over the Hawks last night at TD Banknorth Garden."

"Dominique Wilkins is the Atlanta Hawks’ director of basketball and resident legend, and he certainly appreciates how his team fought its way back into the first-round playoff series. But as a veteran of the league, he knows it wouldn’t have happened without some help from the Celtics. “I think teams sometimes take other teams for granted,” Wilkins said before his Hawks took a 110-85 loss last night that left the Celtics with a 3-2 series lead."

"Joe Johnson refuses to buy into the notion that the Celtics [team stats] are clearly the better team. Even after the Celtics pummeled Johnson’s Atlanta Hawks, 110-85, last night at the Garden to take a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series, the standout guard is convinced the difference between the two teams is closer than one might expect. “We lost a lot of games during the year that if we won, we would have gotten a higher seed,” said Johnson, who poured in a team-high 21 points. “But the seed we have now is great, I don’t think the team we’re playing is that much better than us. I don’t think they have much more talent than us.”"

"Atlanta Hawks center Al Horford failed to win the NBA Rookie of the Year award, but he ended up with something yesterday that Kevin Durant can’t claim: An autographed jersey from the Red Sox’ David Ortiz. The inscribed message? “To my man, Al Horford: Go and get them. David Ortiz (34).” Et tu, Papi? “He mentioned something to me (during Atlanta’s visit for Games 1 and 2),” Horford said last night prior to his team’s losing Game 5 of the Eastern Conference playoff series to the Celtics, 110-85. “I didn’t get it until (yesterday).”"

"Hawks rookie center Al Horford took the news of Kevin Durant winning the NBA's Rookie of the Year award in stride. His coaches and teammates, however, weren't nearly as understanding after hearing the news before Wednesday's Game 5 against Boston in their first-round playoff series. "It's a travesty and it's not right," Hawks coach Mike Woodson said. "

"Hawks point guard Mike Bibby may have provided the needed push to end the franchise's playoff drought. But in the Eastern Conference first-round playoff series against Boston, he has yet to deliver a mega-game. The 10-year veteran, acquired from Sacramento in February, was kept in check again and heckled relentlessly for his troubles in Game 5. Bibby scored only six points and had just one assist as the Hawks were routed 110-85 Wednesday."

"Friday night's Game 6 of the NBA playoff series between the Hawks and the Boston Celtics is officially sold out. But some tickets were still available through online services and ticket brokers. Here are where tickets could be purchased Wednesday afternoon:"

"A strange series saw a return to relative normalcy Wednesday night. The NBA’s best team played like the NBA’s best team. The Hawks acted as if they weren’t sure they deserved to be tied with the NBA’s best team after four playoff games, and now they aren’t. Maybe asking the Hawks to beat Boston three times in five days was too much, but the underdogs did nothing to make Games 3 and 4 seem a new world order. In Game 5 they were outscored by 17 baskets and beaten by 25 points. They weren’t the fearless bunch we saw in Philips Arena; for reasons unclear, they seemed willing to counterpunch."

"The chest-thumping swagger the Hawks rode to rousing victories before sellout home crowds in Atlanta didn't clear security for their trip to Boston. Neither did their shooting touch, defensive pressure nor anything else they needed to win their most important road game, to date, of the season. Instead, the Hawks were run off the floor at TD Banknorth Garden for a third straight time in the series. They lost Game 5 of the Eastern Conference playoff series 110-85 Wednesday in blowout fashion to a Celtics team that appeared to regain a bit of the composure it lost in back-to-back losses in Atlanta."

"It all came back to them with the change in latitude, as if cooler weather was needed to drive Atlanta’s shooting back down to the depths, and their own fortune back onto a hot plate. Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen all took their star turns, with key fill-ins supplied by Sam Cassell, James Posey and an absolutely thunderous Leon Powe. The Celtics, faced with a frantic public and a brave opponent, nailed down Game 5 and their third win of the series last night with a 110-85 roll over the Hawks."

"Kevin Durant, who led all first-year players in scoring, assists and free-throw percentage, will be named the NBA's rookie of the year and become the first Sonics player to win the award. Two league sources confirmed Durant outdistanced second-place finisher Al Horford, an Atlanta forward."

"Josh Childress had a little smirk on his face. It turned into a big smile when he was asked how unexpected it was for the Atlanta Hawks to be tied with the Celtics in the teams’ Eastern Conference first-round playoff series."

"According to league spokesman Mark Broussard, the NBA will hand out no suspensions as a result of the altercation that took place between Celtics forward Kevin Garnett and Hawks center Zaza Pachulia during Game 4. Celtics center Kendrick Perkins and Hawks forward Marvin Williams faced possible league suspensions for leaving the bench during the matter, in which Garnett and Pachulia had to be separated."

"The Hawks have already done the unthinkable by drawing even at two games each in their playoff series against Boston. Now they have to do the improbable and win on the road in a hostile environment with everything on the line for both teams."

"The Hawks, with only two players with any playoff experience, were caught in the glare of the bright playoff lights. Mike Bibby's comments ignited the Boston fans, making the situation worse."

"By Tuesday morning, four games into the Hawks playoff run, Barrington Williams' voice was hoarse and his speech broken by long, deep yawns. He was up until 1 a.m., screaming for the Hawks win over the Boston Celtics and cleaning up the fan shop inside Philips Arena."