Reserves lead Hawks past Cleveland in regular-season finale

By Bud L. Ellis

Wrapping up their most successful regular season in years, the Atlanta Hawks didn’t need to trot out their A-list lineup Wednesday night.

No, the guys on the bench drew the vast majority of the playing time in the regular-season finale at Philips Arena. But that’s OK. The stars of the Eastern Conference’s No. 3 seed already were preparing to tip off the second season.

Atlanta downed Cleveland 99-83 to conclude a regular season where the Hawks won 53 games, earned the No. 3 seed in the East and feel like they have what it takes to break through to the conference finals for the first time since the team was based in St. Louis.

This one was all about who wasn’t on the hardwood. The Hawks rested Joe Johnson, Al Horford, Josh Smith, Mike Bibby and Jamal Crawford. Cleveland didn’t bother playing LeBron James or Shaquille O’Neal.

One thing to note from this one: Atlanta’s top draft pick last summer, point guard Jeff Teague, showed a season getting minutes here and there might be the foundation for a really good NBA career. Playing all 48 minutes, Teague finished with 24 points on 11-for-19 shooting and 15 assists.

He had help on this night. Seven Hawks scored in double figures: Joe Smith, Marvin Williams, Zaza Pachulia, Mario West, Jason Collins, Mo Evans and Teague.

Atlanta plays host to Milwaukee in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at Philips Arena.

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Thursday, April 15, 2010 at 11:00 pm by bud

Tags: Al Horford, Atlanta Hawks, Cleveland Cavaliers, Jamal Crawford, Jason Collins, Jeff Teague, Joe Johnson, Joe Smith, Josh Smith, LeBron James, Mario West, Marvin Williams, Mike Bibby, Milwaukee Bucks, Mo Evans, National Basketball Association, Philips Arena, Shaquille O’Neal, Zaza Pachulia

Bench pushes Hawks by Wizards

By Bud L. Ellis

It wasn’t pretty by any means, but the Atlanta Hawks found a way to grind past the Washington Wizards Wednesday night at Philips Arena.

And a key part of the victory came from a guy who knows the Hawks – and the Atlanta area – very well, but found himself playing in Maine as recently as last weekend.

Former Georgia Tech standout and Douglasville native Mario West, signed to a 10-day contract earlier in the week, gave the Hawks a boost during a decisive 23-5 second-quarter run, scoring five points with five rebounds to help the Hawks push past Washington 94-82.

West (who played with the Hawks the past two years but was cut in training camp, playing with Maine of the Developmental League), Jeff Teague and Jamal Crawford provided the oomph off the bench, as Atlanta’s reserves outscored the Wizards’ bench 35-9. Crawford scored 22 points, and Teague teamed with West to throttle the offense into high gear in the second quarter as the Hawks turned a 17-13 lead after one quarter into a 40-18 advantage.

Joe Johnson led the way with 24 points. Josh Smith pulled down 11 rebounds and added 10 points. Marvin Williams tied a career high with four blocks and scored 16, and Al Horford added 10 points.

The Hawks continue a five-game homestand Friday against Phoenix.

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Thursday, January 14, 2010 at 6:47 am by bud

Tags: Al Horford, Atlanta Hawks, Jamal Crawford, Jeff Teague, Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, Mario West, Marvin Williams, National Basketball Association, Philips Arena, Washington Wizards

Hawks cut defensive stopper West

By Bud L. Ellis

He didn’t light up the scoresheet by any stretch of the imagination. He didn’t play very often.

But Mario West made a big impact on the Atlanta Hawks the past two years.

The native of the western suburb of Douglasville, West surprised everybody by walking on at Georgia Tech after his high school days. He ended up becoming a team captain and leading the Yellow Jackets to the 2004 NCAA championship game.

West surprised everybody yet again two years ago by making the Hawks’ roster as a non-drafted free agent. In his two years with Atlanta, West earned praise for his hustle and his tenacious defense. Often, the Hawks would put him into the game near the end of a quarter or a half, when Atlanta needed a stop.

With the additions of Jamal Crawford and Jeff Teague this offseason, West’s odds of making the roster were even longer this preseason. Wednesday, those odds were cashed in, as West was cut from the Atlanta roster.

Here’s hoping he lands on somebody’s NBA roster. The way he plays the game is worth somebody giving West a shot at earning a spot.

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Wednesday, October 21, 2009 at 9:17 pm by bud

Tags: Atlanta Hawks, Georgia Tech, Mario West, National Basketball Association

Hawks using preseason to tune roster, find chemistry

By Bud L. Ellis

With three games in the next four nights, the Atlanta Hawks ramp up preparations for the 2009-10 season.

It’s likely by the time this three-game stretch ends Wednesday, there will be a few players who will be looking for another team.

Cuts are likely to come down at some point during this stretch, which begins at 6 p.m. today at Detroit. Atlanta returns home Monday to play host to Charlotte at 7 p.m., then travels to Memphis at 8 p.m. Wednesday.

As the Hawks’ staff evaluates the guys on the fringe, the more-established veteran players and the top newcomers brought onto the roster in the offseason will continue to work on meshing together as a team.

That’s what preseason is all about. Guys like Jamal Crawford, Jason Collins and Joe Smith are seeking the chemistry and where they fit into a team coming off back-to-back playoff appearances. Other guys, like Mario West, Othello Hunter and Courtney Sims, are hoping they can do enough during the next three weeks to land on the opening-night roster.

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Sunday, October 11, 2009 at 9:35 am by bud

Tags: Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Bobcats, Courtney Sims, Detroit Pistons, Jamal Crawford, Jason Collins, Joe Smith, Mario West, Memphis Grizzlies, National Basketball Association, Othello Hunter

Balanced attack paces Hawks to win in preseason opener

By Bud L. Ellis

It’s not the type of game that will foster dreams of playing in June. Quite the contrary: the preseason opener, held in the opening days of October, is merely a time to return to the court against competition, the first step of a long journey toward next spring.

 

But the Atlanta Hawks made the most of it nonetheless, running out to a big first-half lead en route to a 101-84 win over New Orleans on Wednesday, in the preseason lidlifter at Philips Arena.

 

Plenty of optimism surround these Hawks, following consecutive playoff berths and the franchise’s first postseason series victory in a decade last spring.

 

Wednesday, Atlanta rode a balanced attack to earn the victory in the preseason debut. Joe Johnson and Zaza Pachulia led five scorers in double figures with 17 points each, Johnson knocking down 7-of-10 shots from the floor in 19 minutes. Jeff Teague, the team’s first-round draft pick from Wake Forest, added 15 points in 26 minutes.

 

Josh Smith scored 14 and pulled down seven rebounds. Al Horford added 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting. Reserve Mario West pulled down a team-high nine rebounds.

 

Again, one cannot read too much into a victory to open the preseason, but there were plenty of positives for the Hawks on this night. Atlanta shot 50 percent (35-for-70) from the floor, committed just 11 turnovers, and used a withering 30-12 second quarter to build a 62-36 lead at intermission.

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Wednesday, October 7, 2009 at 9:41 pm by bud

Tags: Al Horford, Atlanta Hawks, Jeff Teague, Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, Mario West, National Basketball Association, New Orleans Hornets, Philips Arena, Wake Forest, Zaza Pachulia