The Atlanta Hawks beat the Portland Trailblazers on Monday night, halting Portland’s 6-game winning streak and sweeping the season series. With quality wins against Boston & Denver and a 9-2 record, it may be time to take these high-flying Hawks seriously.

The Hawks needed a 35 point effort from Joe Johnson & a 20 point and 16 rebound performance from Josh Smith to overcome the stubborn, division-leading Trailblazers 99-95 in overtime in Atlanta on Monday night. It’s beginning to look like the Hawks have the makings of a true winner for the first time since Dominique challenged Bird in the mid 1980s.

Save a road loss to the Lakers and an embarrassing gaffe against at Charlotte, the Hawks have taken care of business this year. They are undefeated at home (5-0) and managed and impressive road record of 4-2, including a win at Boston. But how are they doing it? Is it smoke and mirrors, lucky breaks, or are they legitimate contenders in the East?

The success of the Hawks can partly be attributed to three things:

  1. A Rejuvenated Josh Smith
    Josh Smith has shrugged off a disappointing 2008 campaign and returned with style. Maybe he was worried about his contract extension but that has long been put to bed. J-Smoove is averaging career highs in rebounds (8.9), assists (3.9), and most importantly field goal percentage (58.6%) — while maintaining his stellar defensive averages of 1.7 steals and 2.7 blocks. Credit shot selection for helping Smith turn around his performance, as he has yet to attempt a three pointer this year. But when you combine his defensive efforts with a suddenly-experienced Al Horford, Atlanta seems to have an answer to the “where’s the beef?” question.
  2. An Upgraded Bench
    The off-season acquisition of veteran gunner Jamal Crawford has added a dominating scoring threat to the sometimes-challenged Atlanta offense. Never shy with the ball in his hands, Crawford has been averaging almost 17 points a night. In addition, he takes pressure of of Joe Johnson & Mike Bibby, as he can bring the ball up the court and backup either guard position. His outside shooting threat has also opened up the spacing, allowing big men Horford and Smith more room to operate down low. Finally, doubling Joe Joe is no longer an option when Crawford plays the third guard. Just too many weapons. Throw in the veteran rebounding and leadership presence of one-time #1 pick, Joe Smith, and Atlanta is far better off when they go to the bench than in years past.
  3. A Sense of Purpose
    Mike Woodson will tell you that the playoff victory in the opening round series against Miami last year has changed this team. It was a successful step up from the contentious 7-game loss to the Boston Celtics the year before. Looking at the mentality of the Hawks this year, you’d be hard pressed to argue otherwise. The Hawks have a swagger about them that I haven’t seen since Doc Rivers was running the point. They expect to win. The young nucleus of Marvin Williams, Al Horford, and Josh Smith have grown up. Joe Johnson is in the final year of his contract and continues to play at an NBA All-Star level. And Mike Bibby is facilitating all the action and is still deadly from the outside. Big wins against Boston, Denver, and Portland, and smackdowns of lowly opponents are giving this team real confidence.

The Hawks have yet to play Orlando and will be tested when they meet Miami for the first time later this week. But for now, these birds are flying high and atop the Southeast Division. If they continue to play like they have the last two weeks, expect them to stay there.

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Tagged with: Al Horford • Atlanta Hawks • basketball • Jamal Crawford • Joe Johnson • Joe Smith • Josh Smith • Mike Bibby • Mike Woodson • NBA • Portland Trailblazers

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