Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

[mattlanta]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

GAME 56: Atlanta Hawks (40-15) @ Utah Jazz (29-26)

To wrap up their road trip, the Hawks went to Utah to battle Deron Williams and the Utah Jazz.

In the beginning of the game, it looked like it would be a shootout as every one was making their shots, but it was until the third quarter did the Hawks finally put their foots down and played good, solid defense.

Leading the defense was MVP candidate Josh Smith. Smith recorded 4 steals and 4 blocks to go along with his MVP-worthy performance of 14 points and 13 rebounds.

Joe Johnson continues to struggle as he went 6-for-20 on the field today.

PG Deron Williams: 20 points, 3 rebounds, 8 assists
SG Joe Johnson: 16 points, 5 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal
SG Jamal Crawford: 16 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal
PF Josh Smith: 14 points, 13 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals, 4 blocks
SF Andrei Kirilenko: 14 points, 6 rebounds

Scoreboard	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	OT	Total
Jazz (29-27)	26	22	17	17	0	82
Hawks (41-15)	32	14	28	15	0	89

Next Game: The Hawks will head home to the Philips Arena to face off against the Minnesota Timberwolves. One of the worst teams in the league, the T'Wolves have a record of 19-39 this season and have been 3-7 in the past 10 games.

[mattlanta]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

Just a very quick recap for #57. Got exams this week so not much time to do much else but study!

GAME 57: Minnesota Timberwolves (19-39) @ Atlanta Hawks (41-15)

Not much to say bout this one. Crawford just stepped it up tonight. (Sorry not too much time to post recaps).

PF Al Jefferson: 27 points, 13 rebounds, 6 assists
SG Jamal Crawford (POTG): 23 points, 2 rebounds, 11 assists, 1 steal, 1 block
SG Joe Johnson: 22 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal
SF Marvin Williams: 19 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 5 steals
SG Wayne Ellington: 19 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists

Scoreboard	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	OT	Total
Hawks (42-15)	18	33	25	19	0	95
T'Wolves (20-40)	28	18	21	21	0	88

Next Game: The Hawks stay home to face Dallas who are 32-26 this year. They have been 6-4 in the past 10 games.

[JSmoove5]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

Great work here dude - Go Hawks!

Love the Heyward/Freeman avatar, too.

[z4ckdabeast]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

Great work mattlanta! I'm following.

[mattlanta]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

GAME 58:

@

The NBA-leading (42-15) Atlanta Hawks went to battle against the (32-26) Dallas Mavericks in the Philips Arena Friday night. The last time the Hawks faced off against the Mavs, they won a close game as they only got by by three points. Tonight, the Hawks and head coach Mike Woodson wanted it to be a different story.

The Hawks came out of the gate steaming hot as they outscored the Mavericks by 8 points in the first quarter and held them to only 15 points. After the first quarter, the game got a lot closer. Thanks to a lack of hustle from the Hawks' bigs, Dirk Nowitzki was able to rebound the ball 21 times. Twenty-seven!

"I don't know what happened," Hawks' center Al Horford said, "Dirk was just out-hustling all of us tonight. Props to him, really." Horford had no part of the laziness as he recorded 12 rebounds tonight.

The rest of the team had to pick up the slack on offense as their usual second-leading scorer Jamal Crawford was not on his groove tonight shooting a meager 30% from the field (3-for-10, 1-for-6 3PT). Mike Bibby realized that immediately as he brought in a performance worthy of the player of the game award (in which he would actually win) coordinating the defense and keeping up with Dallas point guard Jason Kidd.

Atlanta's Top Performers
Joe Johnson: 18 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 block
Josh Smith: 16 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal
Mike Bibby: 12 points, 3 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals

Dallas' Top Performers:
Dirk Nowitzki: 20 points, 21 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 block
Jason Kidd: 18 points, 2 rebounds, 5 assists
Jason Terry: 15 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal

Scoreboard	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	OT	Total
Hawks (43-15)	23	22	25	27		97
Mavericks (32-27)	15	24	30	18		87

Next Game: To end the month of February, the Hawks will face off against the visiting Milwaukee Bucks. The Bucks have been a bad team this year as they are 19-39 so far and have a record of 2-8 in the past 10 games. Milwaukee's forward Carlos Delfino is suffering from a sprained toe injury and is listed as day-to-day.

TRANSACTION REPORT
The Hawks renewed Mario West's 10-day contract earlier in the week. After this contract is up, NBA rules state that the Hawks must either release him or sign him to a contract for the rest of the year.

[mattlanta]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

Tried that new set up. Tell me if you guys prefer that instead of the previous layouts.

And thanks for the support, guys.

[mattlanta]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

GAME 59:

@

If you asked any NBA fan, die-hard or hardcore, none of them would have expected a game against one of the worst teams in the league, the (19-39) Milwaukee Bucks, to be even remotely close to the best team in the league, the (43-15) Atlanta Hawks. However, it is the NBA, and in the NBA sometimes, you never know what you're in store for.

Tonight, the Hawks hosted the Milwaukee Bucks. Not too many fans were in store to see this one go down as many, if not every one, expected it to be a blowout. That's what it seemed to be in the beginning as the Hawks' Joe Johnson immediately took over the game. Scoring 10 points straight out of the gate, it looked like the Hawks would be able to rest their starters in the second half due to their projected insurmountable lead... it was far from that. As soon as JJ left the game to take a breather, Michael Redd, said it was his turn to dominate. Jamal Crawford could not keep him in check, and Mario West, usually known to be able to play very sound defense, had to keep switching off as the Bucks came ready for the Hawks' switching defense.

The first half ended with the Hawks having just a one point lead, and Johnson having 20 points.

In the second half, the Hawks started out cold not making a single shot until their fifth shot, and it was by surprise, surprise, Joe Johnson. Still, the Bucks double, sometimes even triple teamed Joe Johnson for most of the second half, so the Hawks still could not make a decent push. They had to bring in Crawford, but Crawford was a bit rusty tonight only putting up 12 points.

Luckily, the Hawks had Joe Johnson. After all of those double and triple teams, Johnson still found a way to stick it to the Bucks. With only five minutes left in the game, the Bucks were to inbound the ball with a 2 point lead. Coming out of no where, Joe Johnson stole the pass and was able to shoot the game-tying layup. This sparked an 8-0 run for the Hawks - a run in which led the Hawks to this close to a tragic upset loss.

Also, to note, Jamal Crawford scored his 10,000th career point tonight. Congratulations, Jamal!

Atlanta's Top Performers
Joe Johnson: 38 points, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal, 1 block
Jamal Crawford: 12 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists
Josh Smith: 10 points, 14 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal

Milwaukee's Top Performers
Michael Redd: 23 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal
Luke Ridnour: 16 points, 6 assists, 1 steal
Andrew Bogut: 12 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists

Scoreboard	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	OT	Total
Hawks (44-15)	28	21	20	26		95
Bucks (19-40)	20	28	21	19		88

Next Game: On the first day of the month, the Hawks will travel to Chicago to face off against the 25-34 Chicago Bulls. Although they have a winning record, the Bulls have been on a roll lately posting a 7-3 record in the past 10 games.

[mattlanta]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

FEBRUARY WRAP UP

Players of the Month:
East: SG Dwyane Wade (MIA): 28.2 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 6.1 APG, 2.6 SPG, 1.8 BPG, 51% FG
West: PF Al Jefferson (MIN): 22.8 PPG, 13.6 RPG, 1.1 APG, 0.4 SPG, 2.5 BPG, 52% FG

Rookies of the Month:
East: SG Terrence Williams (NJ): 10.7 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 3.5 APG, 1.4 SPG, 0.9 BPG, 42% FG
West: SG James Harden (OKC): 15.3 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 3.6 APG, 1.1 SPG, 0.0 BPG, 46% FG

HAWKS	PPG	RPG	APG	SPG	BPG	FG%	MPG
Mike Bibby	9.8	2.2	5.5	1.0	0.2	48%	29.8
Jeff Teague	5.8	1.1	2.5	0.4	0.0	45%	11.8
Joe Johnson	21.4	3.6	4.9	0.8	0.5	44%	35.1
Jamal Crawford	15.9	2.4	4.3	0.7	0.3	45%	25.7
Maurice Evans	4.8	1.6	0.6	0.5	0.1	53%	13.3
Mario West	1.0	0.0	0.2	0.0	0.4	50%	2.8
Marvin Williams	12.2	4.8	1.9	0.7	0.6	42%	30.3
Josh Smith	15.0	8.3	2.4	1.5	1.9	60%	32.3
Joe Smith	2.7	2.7	0.2	0.1	0.4	52%	10.4
Al Horford	12.5	10.4	1.4	0.8	0.6	55%	32.8
Zaza Pachulia	4.6	4.7	0.8	0.3	0.4	48%	16.4
Randolph Morris	1.8	1.3	0.2	0.1	0.2	52%	3.8
Jason Collins	0.4	1.0	0.3	0.0	0.3	18%	3.5

Southeast	Southwest	Northwest	Pacific	Atlantic	Central
Hawks (44-15)	Spurs (37-20)	Thunder (32-26)	Lakers (39-21)	Celtics (37-20)	Cavaliers (36-25)
Magic (34-27)	Mavericks (33-28)	Nuggets (32-27)	Clippers (29-30)	Raptors (35-23)	Pistons (27-32)
Heat (32-28)	Rockets (30-28)	T. Blazers (33-29)	Warriors (27-31)	Nets (31-28)	Bulls (25-34)
Bobcats (29-29)	Hornets (31-29)	Jazz (31-28)	Suns (25-36)	76ers (23-36)	Pacers (22-37)
Wizards (26-32)	Grizzlies (28-31)	T'Wolves (20-41)	Kings (22-37)	Knicks (19-40)	Bucks (19-40)

[mattlanta]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

After my Bulls game, I kind of messed up. Mario West's second 10-day contract was up, and I didn't know if the Hawks would re-sign him or not in real life (they probably will I think in real life anyways) so I was forced to release him or sign him to a minimum contract. And, because I thought I would have another chance to sign him later on, I chose to release him and wait and see if the Hawks would officially sign him next week.

I checked to see if I could do that, and unfortunately I can't. I have to wait until the offseason it says for me to sign him to a minimum. So I guess I will be without Mario West for the rest of the games this season...

[mattlanta]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

GAME 60:

@

The (44-15) Atlanta Hawks faced off against the (25-34) Chicago Bulls for the fourth time this season. Having been 3-0 against them this season, it's hard not to imagine what this game's outcome would be.

Josh Smith brought his A game going into Chi Town. Grabbing 12 boards and recording 3 blocks, J-Smoove was the difference maker on defense tonight. Joe Johnson, on the other hand, was the difference maker on offense. With Jamal Crawford on a bit of a slump, Johnson has really picked up these past few games. Tonight, Johnson scored 24 points on 9-for-20 shooting and 2-for-3 from three.

It looked like it was going to be close with John Salmons and Kirk Hinrich both reaching the 20's in points scored. But the Hawks finally picked up the pace in the second half outscoring the Bulls in both quarters.

The Hawks played solid defense on Derrick Rose allowing him just 11 points from 2-for-11 shooting. He did record 13 points, however, and was 7-for-12 from the line. Acoording to Woodson, that was the gameplan all along, "When you're going up against a team like the Bulls who has a potential All-Star point guard like Derrick, you've got to focus your gameplan on stopping him. We know Bibby may have troubles keeping up with him, so I gave him some different looks here with Jeff Teague or Mario West"

In other news, Mario West, signed to a second 10-day contract two weeks ago was released from the team today. The Hawks weren't willing to sign him for the minimum and was forced to release West. They will be able to re-acquire him next offseason if they are still interested.

Atlanta's Top Performers
Joe Johnson: 24 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks
Al Horford: 19 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks
Josh Smith: 15 points, 12 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 blocks

Chicago's Top Performers
John Salmons: 22 points, 3 rebounds, 1 steal
Kirk Hinrich: 21 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists
Derrick Rose: 11 points, 13 assists, 3 steals

Scoreboard	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	OT	Total
Bulls (25-35)	18	23	17	23		81
Hawks (45-15)	14	26	23	28		91

Next Game: The Hawks will ride their 5-game winning streak back to Atlanta. Their next opponent is the 23-36 Philadelphia 76ers. The 76ers are 5-5 in the past 10 games and have no injuries to report.

[mattlanta]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

GAME 61:

@

The struggling (24-36) Philadelphia 76ers traveled to Atlanta to play the NBA's best (45-15) Atlanta Hawks. The last time these two teams met each other was on November 27th, and the Hawks dominated the game winning 110-91.

The outcome tonight was nothing short of dominant. The Hawks, although not as explosive on offense, played shut down defense. They held the 76ers to just 67 points in 4 quarters. The defense was led by Josh Smith as he recorded 3 blocks and 1 steal. He continues his defensive streak of good games.

Samuel Dalembert led the 76ers today with 17 points and 18 boards. He dominated the Hawks early in the paint, but Woodson was able to rally his troops enough to finally keep him from outrebounding every man on the court.

Scoreboard	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	OT	Total
Hawks (46-15)	16	27	20	21		84
76ers (24-37)	15	19	14	19		67

Next Game: The Hawks are now on a six-game winning streak and are looking almost impossible to beat. In the past few losses for Atlanta, it seemed like they beat themselves. Speaking of losses, they will now face off against the team that beat them last. The 28-32 Golden State Warriors will travel to Atlanta to try and better them again. Last time they faced off, it was an offensive game as the points racked up and the defense was minimal. Hawks' forward Josh Smith said that he will do every thing he can so that that won't happen, "Yeah, this game is special for us. They (the Warriors) were the last team to beat us, and we really want to get them back. They showed us that we can't beat them if we play by their standards, so we are going to have to play lock down defense tonight."

(Sorry, no stats. The game doesn't show it for this one. But Josh Smith led the Hawks in points by 24, and Crawford continued to struggle. Smith and Horford both recorded double-doubles.)

[mattlanta]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

GAME 62:

@

Revenge. Supposedly, best served cold. That is the topic for tonight as the (46-15) Atlanta Hawks try to get the (28-32) Golden State Warriors back after the Warriors handed them their first loss in quite some time back in January. The Hawks were riding an 8-game winning streak then, and today, the Hawks were riding a 6-game winning streak.

Speaking of cold, Joe Johnson seemed to have ice cold blood today as he was the penetrator, the passer, the shooter, and every thing else for the Hawks. Finishing with 35 points, the player of the game award, and in better spirits because of the win, Johnson said, "It's just great to get the win against a team that kind of embarassed us the last time we played them. We came out here with a gameplan, and we executed it to the fullest. I'm proud of how we played, I really am." Johnson was the only player to rely on as Jamal Crawford continues his awful streak of bad performances. Shooting just 3-for-14 and 0-for-5 from beyond, Crawford logged in another bad performance. Johnson was able to pick up the team's slack again as he was also the player in the 4th that nailed the clutch free throws as Josh Smith was unable to do so.

Coach Mike Woodson knew that the team would struggle if they tried to go in a shootout with this team, who is the second leading scoring team in the NBA behind the Hawks. As soon as he saw that Curry was burning Bibby on every possession, he immediately sent Crawford out there to play him. "We know our strengths and weaknesses on defense, and we try our best to help each other out. It was great team defense out there today... that's great to see." Joe Johnson played a great part in the defense as he held Monta Ellis to just 7 points in 3-for-13 shooting.

The game itself was close - like many who paid for the tickets in the arena, which were sold out by the way, expected. At one point in the game, it looked like the Warriors would torch the Hawks yet again, but once the Hawks started playing defense and started playing more composed, it was a much better matchup.

Atlanta's Top Performers
Joe Johnson: 35 points, 7 rebounds, 8 assists
Josh Smith: 16 points, 8 rebounds, 1 steal
Al Horford: 10 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, 1 block

Golden State's Top Performers
Stephen Jackson: 21 points, 3 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal
Andris Biedrins: 7 points, 18 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal
Stephen Curry: 19 points, 3 assists

Scoreboard	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	OT	Total
Hawks (47-15)	20	30	24	24		98
Warriors (28-33)	25	27	22	19		93

Next Game: The Hawks are riding a seven-game winning streak. They will bring that momentum with them to Miami as they face off against their division rival Miami Heat. The Heat have been rolling as of late, posting a 7-3 record in the past 10 games. They are 34-28 so far in the season.

[Limbombe]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

love the new format matt

[mattlanta]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

GAME 63:

@

When the last couple of ticks were being burned in the fourth quarter, the crowd was chanting "MVP". They were doing that because Dwyane Wade did what many players in the NBA can not do. He, along with Michael Beasley, beat the Hawks while they were down most of the game.

The (47-16) Hawks have been handed their first loss in quite some time and this loss signals the end of their win streak. The (35-28) Miami Heat now have a record of 8-2 in the past 10 games, making them one of the hottest teams in the league.

It looked like this game would be a blow out. Joe Johnson and Jamal Crawford were dominating, and it looked like any of the Hawks' bigs could dominate the paint. "I don't know what happened," recalls Hawks' captain Joe Johnson, "We were all playing so well on defense, and it seemed like we just stopped caring in the fourth quarter. We can't let up in the fourth quarter. Winning teams never let up." Head coach Mike Woodson agreed, "We just made a huge mistake in underestimating Wade and the Heat's ability to catch up from behind. We made a huge, huge mistake."

Atlanta's Top Performers
Jamal Crawford: 28 points, 1 rebound, 6 assists, 1 steal
Joe Johnson: 18 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals
Josh Smith: 14 points, 8 rebounds, 0 assists, 1 steal, 1 block

Miami's Top Performers
Dwyane Wade: 27 points, 5 rebounds, 14 assists, 1 steal
Michael Beasley: 24 points, 7 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal, 2 blocks
Jermaine O'Neal: 15 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 5 blocks

Scoreboard	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	OT	Total
Heat (35-28)	18	22	25	33		98
Hawks (47-16)	30	20	23	22		95

Next Game: Will this loss mean a losing streak for the Hawks? Hawks center Al Horford doesn't believe so, "We made huge mistakes on defense against Miami. We've been working on every thing in practice. We want to get back on that winning streak. We want to be the best that we can be." The Hawks travel from Miami up to New York to face off against the 20-42 Knicks. This should be an easy win for the Hawks, but as shown in the past, the Hawks seem to struggle after losing on the road. The Knicks are 4-6 in the past 10 games and have really been struggling all year.

[Limbombe]

Re: Reporting from the Highlight Factory (Atlanta Hawks - 2K10)

if you want it