November 19
Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel
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The stakes weren't the same. But everything else seemingly was Wednesday night. Each team had its moments of utter control. The Atlanta Hawks flashed their athletic brilliance. And, in the end, the Miami Heat came up short. Meeting for the first time at Philips Arena since last season's Game 7 of the first round of the playoffs, the two teams picked up where they left off last May, in a punishing contest that, in the end, drained the Heat's spirit. This time it was a 105-90 Hawks decision, decided by keeping Dwyane Wade under control and daring anyone else to seize control. "We just have to be a little sharper," Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said, after his team fell for the third time in its ..."
November 19
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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At some point, the Hawks will cool off. But that point wasn't Wednesday night. It was Miami's turn to be fed into the Hawks' threshing machine, which chewed up the Heat with a determined defense on All-NBA guard Dwyane Wade and a furious second quarter that helped secure the Hawks' sixth win in a row, 105-90 over the Heat. Over that span, the Hawks have won by 11 or more points five times and have held their opponent under 100 points in the past four games. "I can't ask for anything better," Hawks coach Mike Woodson said. "I couldn't be more proud of a group of guys that made a commitment when they came into camp this year." Using what has become a familiar pattern -- solid defense, a ..."
November 11
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Five members of the Atlanta Hawks were included on the 2010 NBA All-Star ballot, which was released earlier today. Mike Bibby, Jamal Crawford and Joe Johnson are among the 24 guards on the Eastern Conference ballot. Josh Smith is among the group at forward and Al Horford is one of 12 on the ballot at center. Voting will continue through Jan. 18."
November 10
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Hawks guard Joe Johnson was named Eastern Conference player of the week Monday after averaging 20.0 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.3 assists in four games. He shot 47.2 percent from the field in the four games. The Hawks went 3-1 in the week, beating Portland, Denver and Sacramento while falling to Charlotte. It's the fifth time in his career that he's won the award."
October 28
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Joe Johnson learned the hard way that planning for anything beyond today in the NBA is a fool's paradise. The Hawks' captain and three-time All-Star was the 10th pick in the 2001 draft and a starter as a rookie in Boston. He was good enough to start for most of the first half of that season and feeling pretty good about things when the Celtics, without the slightest warning, traded him to Phoenix. "I learned my lesson right then and there," Johnson said. "And I learned it the hard way. You can't count on anything in this league but right now. It's a now-or-never thing, man, because the clock is always ticking." That lesson needs to be applied to Johnson's Hawks this season. They kick off ..."
October 28
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
columnist Jeff Schultz
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Their often praised offseason notwithstanding, the difference between where the Hawks are and where they want to go isn't about the roster. It's not about having more depth at point guard or more size coming off the bench or even some assurances that Josh Smith won't again fall into a black hole immediately following the occasional spectacular 25-point, 15-rebound, seven-block, I-own-this-game kind of night. The difference between good teams and great teams in any sport is mental toughness. It's winning road games, close games, games that are decided by intangibles, not talent. It's a coach making the right decision in the final two minutes. It's a team and a go-to guy acting accordingly. ..."
September 29
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Hawks captain and All-Star Joe Johnson said he will not sign a contract extension with the Hawks and will play out the final year of his contract this season. Johnson will be an unrestricted free agent next summer. The Hawks extended a four-year, $60-plus million contract offer to Johnson this summer. But Johnson said he decided not to sign the extension after mulling it over during the offseason. By not signing Johnson will enter a deep free agent crop next summer headlined by reigning MVP LeBron James as well as fellow All-Stars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. "My sole focus right now is on this team and what we're trying to accomplish this season," Johnson said. "I have some goals set for ..."
April 30
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Joe Johnson was due for a big game. The Hawks' captain labored through four games in this first-round playoff series against Miami without once looking like the three-time All-Star who sparked the resurgence of the franchise. All that changed Wednesday night, when Johnson and super sixth-man Flip Murray got loose in the Hawks' 106-91 Game 5 victory over the Heat. They turned it up inside and out as the Hawks ran past the Heat for a 3-2 series lead before a sellout crowd of 19,051. Johnson led a balanced Hawks attack with 25 points, his first game in the series with more than 15 points. He made only six of his 15 shots from the floor but went 12-for-15 from the free-throw line and also had ..."
April 19
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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If you came here looking for the next Denzel Washington, you're going home disappointed. Joe Johnson is a lot of things - a captain for the Hawks, the face of a franchise, one of the game's rising stars and as mellow a man as anyone could expect of a three-time All-Star in the midst of his athletic prime. What he's not is a thespian, or anything near it. That's why he was in his element Monday afternoon on the set of a TNT playoff commercial shoot in a ballroom at the downtown Ritz Carlton. The script required Johnson to play chess against an imaginary foe, manufacturing emotions, facial expressions and board moves for the camera while uttering not one single line of dialogue. "No lines?" ..."
March 16
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Hawks captain and All-Star Joe Johnson has given the same stock answer after all four of his 30-point games in the past nine days when asked what it is he's doing to post such numbers. For those of you that missed it, he's just "being aggressive." Johnson burned Portland for 35 Sunday as the Hawks won their fifth straight game. The last time he scored 30 or more in this many games was in late November and early December of 2006, when he dropped 30 in five straight games. So rather than ask Johnson again what he's doing, the question was posed to Hawks coach Mike Woodson, who was asked what he's feeding his star to fuel these standout performances. "Whatever he's eating he needs to keep ..."
February 11
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Mike Bibby knew something was up when he saw Joe Johnson practicing trick shots after practice Tuesday morning. "I didn't know what he was doing at first," Bibby said smiling. "He was trying his hardest to be a Harlem Globetrotter." Not quite. Johnson is one of three players who will compete in a H-O-R-S-E competition in Phoenix on Saturday as a part of the NBA's All-Star Weekend festivities. Oklahoma City forward Kevin Durant and Memphis rookie guard O.J. Mayo will join Johnson in the inaugural event. The competition will be televised live on TNT during Saturday's special two-hour edition of "Inside the NBA" from 5-7 p.m. Bibby will have a little work of his own to tend to later that ..."
February 6
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Joe Johnson won’t join the Hawks for tonight’s game against the Bobcats at Time Warner Cable Arena. Still out with a viral infection, there were rumblings that Johnson might miraculously rise out of the bed and burn up the pavement on Interstate 85 and hit the floor with his teammates tonight. But he wasn’t at this morning’s shootaround practice and won’t be seen again until the Hawks convene at Philips Arena tomorrow afternoon for Saturday night’s game against the Los Angeles Clippers. Whether or not he plays against the Clippers remains up in the air. Without the aid of any practice this week, Hawks coach Mike Woodson said he’d have to see how Johnson feels before even entertaining the ..."
February 3
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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The Hawks won’t have their captain and All-Star Joe Johnson when they face Minnesota Wednesday. On the night they get starting center Al Horford back after a 12-game absence, the Hawks must deal with depleted ranks again. Johnson missed the past two days of practice with what coach Mike Woodson described as “some sort of viral infection.” He listed him as day-to-day and Johnson did not travel with the team to Minnesota. Meanwhile, Acie Law IV was in his hometown, Dallas, to be with his ailing grandfather. He also missed practice Monday and Tuesday but is expected to meet the team in Minnesota. “We’ve got great timing, huh?” Woodson said with a half smile after his team wrapped up practice ..."
January 28
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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You let Joe Johnson tell it, he's fine. There's nothing he's doing now that he wasn't doing last month. In December, Johnson led the Hawks to 11 wins in 15 games and a top four spot in the Eastern Conference standings. Take a quick look at his numbers in January and it's clear the Hawks' captain and All-Star isn't fine. Take another look at his body language on the floor and it's clear he's fatigued, physically and perhaps psychologically, as teams use bruising tactics to crowd him and force him into uncomfortable positions on the floor. In December, Johnson averaged 24.2 points, 6.0 assists and 5.0 rebounds while shooting 47 percent from the floor and 35 percent from beyond the 3-point ..."
December 28
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Mike Woodson's smile came before any words. And he knew, like the other 18,031 folks who watched his Hawks knock off Chicago 129-117 on Saturday night at Philips Arena, that no matter how many times someone talks about defense winning championships, nothing beats an offensive masterpiece. "So much for defense, huh?" the Hawks' coach said before breaking into another big smile. The Hawks did it early and late, matching the Bulls basket for basket from start to finish to secure their sixth win in seven home games. The finale of their eight-game home stand comes Monday against Denver. "Everybody has fun when you play those types of games," Hawks point guard Mike Bibby said. "And it shows ..."
December 9
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Joe Johnson's focus isn't on the Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs or any other team on the Hawks' upcoming schedule. That focus is reserved for another team that Johnson wants to keep an eye on - his own. The Hawks captain is trying to make sure that his team finds ways to sustain the positive momentum created by the best start in a decade. That's why he talks passionately about making sure his team is on the "same page" and plays as a unit. "You've got to play whoever is up next and you know our coaches will make sure we're prepared for whoever that is," Johnson said with the Rockets up Tuesday night at Toyota Center. "But right now, it's more about us and what we're doing. We haven't ..."
November 25
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
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Joe Johnson's absence at Hawks' practice Monday was understandable for his teammates. If anyone needed an extra day off it's their captain and All-Star. Johnson draws superstar attention from opposing defenses but rarely enjoys the fruits of a superstar's labor. Johnson shot just 1-for-8 from the floor and scored a season-low four points in Saturday's loss in Cleveland while playing on a sore foot. The injury sent him to the foot doctor Monday to get "his orthotics adjusted," according to Hawks coach Mike Woodson. Woodson said he expects Johnson will practice today and play Wednesday against Milwaukee at Philips Arena. "He needs a couple days off," Hawks center Al Horford said after ..."