By Sam Amico
ProBasketballNews.com
Atlanta’s starting lineup will look something like this:
Rookie Al Horford at center, Josh Smith and Marvin Williams at the forwards, and Joe Johnson and Mike Bibby in the backcourt.
Would you give up Shelden Williams, Tyronn Lue, Anthony Johnson, and Lorenzen Wright to look like that?
The Hawks sure would (and did in a trade with Sacramento) -- and it has turned into GM Billy Knight’s best move yet.
Yes, this is even better than signing Johnson,
because before Knight pulled off the Bibby deal
late Friday, Johnson had no experienced running
mate. He had guys like Smith, Horford and Marvin
Williams -- all very good young players with tons
of potential. But the key word there is “young.”
When it comes to Bibby, the key phrase is “been
there.” As in, he’s been a winner, been to the
Western Confernce finals, been a member of
Kings teams that won at least 50 games four
times. One of those teams finished 61-21,
another came within a Game 7 overtime loss
to the L.A. Lakers of reaching the Finals.
Mostly, the Hawks were desperate for a point guard, and until Friday, had been that way during Knight’s entire reign. Yet he kept drafting big men and wing players -- and it was almost as if he didn’t think the point guard position was all that important.
Obviously, that wasn’t really the case. In reality, Knight was just living by the credo of taking “the best player available” during all those years in the lottery. Suddenly, he looks pretty crafty.
How good was this deal for the Hawks?
Good enough that Lue told the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, “If you could trade me and (Johnson) for Bibby, you've definitely upgraded the point-guard position."
Remember, this is Lue doing the talking. And when a guy who’s been traded says his former team really made out … well, then you must have done something right.
Not long ago, you couldn’t say that about the Hawks. Not long ago, the Hawks couldn’t seem to do anything right.
But slowly, things are getting better. It’s true that the Hawks are still inconsistent, sometimes even maddeningly so. Yet they’re fun to watch, and even before the Bibby deal, were contenders for the playoffs (they currently hold the No. 9 seed in the Eastern Conference).
“The guys are starting to grow up,” Hawks coach Mike Woodson said about his team back in early January.
Woodson deserves a lot of credit for the players’ maturation, and with Bibby on board, the Hawks should be a lock for the playoffs. Especially in the East, where at least one team from last year won’t get in (Miami) and another had better pull itself together quickly to make it (Chicago). Plus, two of the teams ahead of the Hawks, Philadelphia and New Jersey, haven’t exactly established themselves.
Last month, no less than Cleveland superstar LeBron James referred to the Hawks as an athletic, up-and-coming team.
Interestingly, it was James’ Cavaliers who had come close to acquiring Bibby at least once in the past year. Now, it’s possible they’ll have to face the point guard they wanted when it means the most -- in the playoffs.
The Hawks haven’t drawn well at home and it’s been a long time since they mattered. For the past decade, they were just sort of there.
That all changed with the Friday’s trade, and the addition of Bibby suddenly gives basketball fans in Atlanta (and throughout the entire league) a reason to play close attention to this team.
Sam Amico is the editor ot ProBasketballNews.com. Contact him or subscribe to his free e-mail newsletter at amico@probasketballnews.com.
