With the holiday season just around the corner, here's a look at what the Atlanta Hawks could use from Santa this Christmas.
1) Energy off the bench- The Hawks finally have a credible second unit coming off the bench, anchored by the great scoring of Jamal Crawford. But they still don't have much energy, especially at the power forward position.
Joe Smith is a great addition and a reliable backup, but not the best fit for such a young and athletic team.
Atlanta needs a young big man to come off the bench and spark that second unit, much like Sheldon Williams is doing for the Celtics and like Ronnie Turiaf used to do for the Lakers.
Answer?
It could be Jeff Adrien.
The 6'7" power forward and former captain of the University of Connecticut Huskies under Jim Calhoun, Adrien averaged a double-double his senior year playing alongside Memphis's Hasheem Thabeet.
He recently played on the Philadelphia 76ers/New Jersey Nets summer league team in the Orlando Pro Summer League.
He also played for the Memphis Grizzlies team in the Vegas Summer League and led the team in rebounding, getting cut loose before the start of regular season play.
Adrien, a high energy guy who brings a solid mid-range jumper, toughness, rebounding, and the ability to score over taller players, could just be the answer to Atlanta's energy off the bench.
2) Better control over Josh Smith- Josh Smith has been very controlled this season...for the most part. But there are times when he can be a little out of control.
Take for instance the Hawks recent loss to the New York Knicks. Smith complained about a foul call and received two consecutive techincals to get himself ejected from the contest.
New York, who had lived by the three ball the entire game, was finally able to penetrate and get some easy baskets. Why? Because the NBA's leading shot blocker at 2.60 per game was in the showers.
Atlanta's players and coaches must do a better job of containing Josh Smith in those situations. They cannot let him pick up his second technical foul.
He is the main reason for their early success and, without him on the court, the Hawks struggle on both ends of the floor.
With Smith out of the game, Atlanta's rebounding, field goal percentage, and paint defense greatly suffers.
3) Breakout play from Marvin Williams- So far we have seen stellar early play from the likes of Atlanta's young bigs, Al Horford and Josh Smith.
But we are yet to see the same kind of play from Marvin Williams, who shows flashes of brilliance in some games yet disappears almost completely in others.
He has an exceptional game off the bounce and, being a 6'9" small forward, often has a size advantage against his opponents. But he and the Hawks continue to fail to take advantage of it.
Marvin Williams is usually reduced to a catch and shoot guy in the Hawks' offense, only showing his immense athleticism when Atlanta is on the break.
The Hawks could be much more successful if they run a few plays to take advantage of his skills and if Marvin himself will be more assertive.
4) Better play against worse teams- Twenty games into the 2009-10 season and Hawks are a respectable 14-6. Good, right? Not so fast. While Atlanta is an impressive 8-2 against teams at or above the .500 mark, they have struggled greatly against sub .500 squads, going just 6-4.
The problem? Effort.
Against weaker teams Atlanta has a tendency to settle on the offensive side of the ball, taking too many jumpers and completely forgetting about the game in the post.
Against a New York team with no shot blocking, the Hawks were content to continue to settle outside, instead of driving the ball to the basket.
When Atlanta faces weaker squads, especially ones with little to no shot blockers, they must take full advantage of their athleticism and pound the ball inside. When they do, they shoot a greater field goal percentage and get to the foul line more often.
5) Old school uniforms- And last, but not least, Santa should bring back Atlanta's old school unis, the jerseys of red, white, and yellow from the days of Atlanta great Dominique Wilkins.
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