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I hope hawks won't get Oden, they don't deserve to have a great player.
ATLANTA (AP) -- Just as Speedy Claxton was returning, the Atlanta Hawks lost Marvin Williams to the same injury.
Williams, the No. 2 overall pick in last year's NBA draft, broke a bone in his left hand during practice Thursday and will be out up to eight weeks. The Hawks open the regular season Wednesday at Philadelphia.
Coach Mike Woodson said the injury occurred as Williams swiped at the ball during a routine drill, just as he was getting ready for his first season as a starter.
"It's one of those freak accidents," the coach said. "I feel for the player. Marvin put in a lot of time to get in this position. It's definitely a setback."
The Hawks were expecting to be at full strength for the first time when they played their final preseason game Friday night against the Charlotte Bobcats in Chapel Hill, N.C.
Claxton, who broke the same bone in his left hand during a Sept. 18 workout, is set to return against the Bobcats after missing the first seven preseason games. But he won't get to play with Williams.
"We are kind of snake-bit," Woodson said. "But that's part of our league. Those are things you can't control."
Williams was looking forward to returning to the city where he played his lone college season, helping the North Carolina Tar Heels win the national le in 2005. Former teammates Raymond Felton and Sean May now play for the Bobcats.
After being picked behind Andrew Bogut in the NBA draft, Williams averaged 8.5 points and 4.8 rebounds in a backup role. But his scoring average increased each month and he improved more over the summer, winning MVP honors in the Rocky Mountain Review.
The Hawks were counting on Williams to start at power forward. Now, they'll probably have to put rookie Shelden Williams at that spot or shift Josh Smith over from small forward and move Josh Childress into the lineup.
The loss of Marvin Williams is another blow to Atlanta's rebuilding efforts. The team hasn't made the playoffs since 1999 -- the second-longest drought in the NBA -- and went 26-52 last season. Only New York and Portland won fewer games.
Claxton was the team's major acquisition during the offseason, agreeing to a four-year deal worth about $25.5 million to handle the Hawks' troublesome point guard position.
He averaged 12.3 points and 4.8 assists for the New Orleans-Oklahoma City Hornets last season and was the runner-up in voting for the league's Sixth Man Award.
"We've missed him all through camp," Woodson said. "It was good to see him back on the court running around."
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_yl...v=ap&type=lgns
I hope hawks won't get Oden, they don't deserve to have a great player.
What's with that at ude? Because the management is trash fans aren't deserving of a good team on the floor? The Hawks are headed in the right direction, you can tell they're at least trying to rebuild the right way, stockpiling young talent when they can. Half the forum wants one of the Hawks multiple swingmen. It's not like the Hawks are some nutcase team where everyone is fighting and arguing with refs.
A franchise isn't only fans and hawks' owners, frotn office and coaching staff don't deserve to have a player like Oden.
Oh, so who does deserve to have Oden, a guy who hasn't even played a college game yet. Please explain what teams "deserve" to have one player.
That's crappy news, especially for Hawk fans.
Now the four-swingmen experiment that is doomed to failure will be delayed and therefore the decision for Billy Knight to finally admit his mistake and attempt to correct it. Another consequence is that Billy might actually keep his job longer because the poor record can be blamed on injuries.
I like Marvin Williams, but playing him at the 4 when he's still lacking an inside game and is still thin would've been a mistake and would've lasted about as long as the decision to play JJ at the point (also a failure).
Living near Atlanta, I've come to like some of the Hawks players, but it has also made me realize why the Spurs are perennial championship contenders and the Hawks are in the Greg Oden convo.
Thank God I'm a Spurs Fan!
Hawks' whole staff has been horrible for years : they don't deserve to get a great player, who will turn their failure into a success, only because they have the luck to win the lottery.
A team like Bobcats deserves more to be the lucky one that get Oden.
I don't think the Bobcats have done a great job. They were a team building for the future in 2004, but took a "now" prospect in Emeka. They drafted another low-upside guy in Sean May and though Felton was a decent pick, they could've packaged the two picks for a high-upside guy like Marvin Williams or Bogut. And finally, they went out and signed sqau with all the cap room they had this summer. A guy like Al Harrington would've really helped them out.
I do have to give them their due on signing Gerald Wallace to a great contract and for having the balls to draft Ammo when people said he wouldn't be a good enough athlete (he'll struggle early, but do well).
I know they're not the mess that the Hawks currently are, but to say that another team deserves Oden over the Hawks is just wrong. Did the Spurs deserve Tim more than the Celtics? Leave the Hawks alone, they won't be in this ownership situation forever and they'll crawl out of the ditch eventually.
Having said all that, if Billy Knight is still the GM by this time next year, Greg Oden will not be on that team even if they get the first pick. It'll be Josh McRoberts because of his "versatility".
Who will you have drafted over Okafor or May ?
With hindsight, both were quite good draft picks.
They will have a lot of capspace next summer too. They just sign vets with short contracts that won't hurt them in the future. Don't forget too that these vets will cost them nothing because of the min salary rule.
It sucks for the fans and the players. They might actually be good if they had decent management.
Hindsight, I'd have gone with Josh Smith (he'll be a monster!) or Jameer Nelson (a real leader and lights-out shooter)...though if I were picking that day I'd have gone with the player thought to have the second most upside in that draft....Shaun Livingston.
In the words of Tommy Boy's Dad, "If you want to wait it out, you'll be just that...Out." Ok I know it's a horrible reference, but the point is that fans of Charlotte already had to wait a couple years for the full salary cap to be utilized and when it finally was, they saw a huge letdown. How long will they have to wait for the 'cats to make a big splash in free agency? I saw all this publicity on the '07 FA class, but after most of the notables signed extensions, who's left? Kirk Heinrich (maybe) and Vince Carter are the only two I can think of. What about you?
We could probably argue this point all day, but I'm willing to concede that the Hawks are the worst run franchise in the NBA...they still should have a chance to redeem themselves.
It's difficult for a struggling team to sign free-agents, unless there's some sort of attraction to the city or the team has a rich history. Charlotte has neither, so they pretty much have to build young. That's why the Hawks had to overpay for Joe Johnson. You can blame it on poor management or w/e, but the Hawks had to do that deal if they wanted to attract other top free agents to Atlanta. You just can't tell a top free agent: "hey, here's the same contract your current team offered you, come play for a team that's much worse than the one you're at now," without giving him an incentive to move.
Someone looks like a bust...
I have a theory: Hawks players keep breaking their hands because they are punching solid objects because the Hawks suck.
That is probably true....
seriously teams that consecutively do every year and get alot of high draft picks shouldnt even be gettin those picks, there should be a new rule restricting this , i just hate seeing either hawks/bulls keep on gettin high picks and not gettin any results from it.
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