Something Missing

What's missing with the Atlanta Hawks? We can make the case that they have a young nucleus, a bunch of good players and arguably all the pieces in place to make their run, get to the next level and maybe compete. But some way, somehow is not happening. Mike Bibby plays at PG. Bibby is the head of the team, an accurate passer and an amazing shooter. He has experience from the glory years with Chris Webber, Vlad Dvacs, Rick Adelman and the Sacramento Kings, plus he really seems to be the leader of the crew. Joe Johnson is the talented one. Johnson was an important piece of fun Suns and if he hadn't "broken his face" in 05, he, Steve Nash and Mike D'Antoni would have a ring. The Hawks' frontcourt is the heart and soul of the team. Josh Smith is the emotional part that every team needs. By the way, he should on the next Slum Dunk Contest. Marvin Williams is not a very good shooter but his size and athleticism helps to defend the rim. At Center, they resigned Al Horford. Horford is a rebound machine and very productive on the defense event. The offseason was very productive for the Hawks so far. They understand that they already have a foundation which means that they didn't have to go out there and get a bunch of guys but a few players that could help them in specific situations. When they faced the Cavaliers on the last playoffs, it became clear their lack of depth off the bench. Atlanta needed a shooter out of the bullpen, so they took advantage that Don Nelson kicked Jamal Crawford out of Oakland and signed him. Crawford can be their sixth man that average something between 10 to 15 points and be an important part of their offense. They also needed somebody to play with Zaza Pachulia in the second unit, so they got the immortal Joe Smith. Smith is one of those players that became a fashion in the NBA after the PJ Brown effect: big men that can shoot, rebound, upgrade the size of the team and be a good influence inside the locker room. The Hawks had a good regular season last year but when playoff time came they had problems maintaining their stars healthy. Joe Johnson, Marvin Williams and Al Horford had their issues what made it difficult for them to compete. The Hawks have a very good basis with a lot of pieces in place to make their run however if they wanted to go deeper they should add couple more, small and big ones. They took care of the role players, Joe Smith and Jamal Crawford helps them exactly where they needed. Now they should look for an ace. The summer of 2010 is coming, so watch out for Atlanta because a guy like Dwayne Wade or even Dirk Nowitzki could transform that really good team into a top 3 contender. check full post with stats: Where Amazing Happens