Today it was reported out of Atlanta that Carlos Arroyo will be out for 32 days. Rumors are that the Hawks are sitting him because of his attitude off the court. The Hawks front office denies it as does Arroyo, but Arroyo does mention that he had a sit down with the coach. "It was just a talk I had with the coach. I was worried about the team's 0-2 start this week as well as my shooting performance. I feel better about everything and am happy to be in Atlanta. I have some bone spurs and will be out a month, that is all." General Manager Pudgy Flash has also announced the team has traded for 3 point threat Erick Piatkowski in exchange for Chris Crawford. To take the place of the "injured" Arroyo, the Hawks have signed Mateen Cleaves. The Hawks play the Lakers in LA tomorrow evening.
The sold out LA arena left stunned and grumbling after a huge 100-70 win by the Atlanta Hawks. Atlanta used a stifling defense and an inside out attack to stun the hometown Lakers by 30. The game was never in question as Atlanta held a double digit lead throughout the game. Wally Szczerbiak led the way with 24 points and Travis Best did a masterful job with distributing the ball in the absence of Carlos Arroyo. The bright spot for the Hawks continues to be Carlos Boozer who had another double double. Al Harrington also continues his hot shooting after making the move to power forward. Harrington is quoted as saying he "loves the position change because he can better utilize his feet and quickness against bigger forwards."
The defense was the real star tonight as they held Kobe Bryant to 21 points on 9/29 shooting. Josh Childress and Boris Diaw are credited most as the young duo used their athletic skills to get in Kobe's face. The lone dark spot for the Hawks was newcomer Erick Piatkowski, going 1-6 from 3 point land and earning a quick trip to the doghouse for his shooting.
Atlanta officially has a winning streak after hanging on against the Cleveland Cavaliers, 95-84. Atlanta got out to a 20 point lead before an atrocious third quarter allowed the Cavs to cut the lead to 4. Travis Best put in a career performance tonight, scoring 24 and getting 14 assists. Erick Piatkowski came off the bench to spark the offense and lead the team with 25 points. Atlanta used outside shooting to get the offense rolling and was forced to pick up the slack of a struggling Wally Szczerbiak.
For the Cavs, Lebron James had 31 to lead all scorers. Cleveland failed to hit a 3 point shot all game, but was able to climb back in by second chance points and rebounding. Eric Snow went 8-11 from the field and handed out 7 assists.
01-07-2013, 11:43 PM
