[外電] Playoff preview for young team
Playoff preview for young team
By SEKOU SMITH
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 04/14/06
Coaches around the league are sweating every detail, even more
so than usual, players are fighting for rebounds as if their
lives depend on grabbing them and fans who casually observed
their favorite or local teams for months are now watching intently.
"It's playoff time," Hawks coach Mike Woodson said. His team,
though, will miss out on the postseason —- the second straight
year during his tenure, and the franchise's seventh consecutive
playoff miss.
That doesn't mean the Hawks' final four games, starting with
tonight's date with Southeast Division rival Charlotte at Philips
Arena, can't have that playoff zeal.
Wednesday night's loss to Chicago had everything found in playoff
basketball, complete with several near skirmishes and an ejection
for Josh Childress for swinging at Chicago forward Andres Nocioni.
Additional punishment for Childress could be handed down by the
league today.
Woodson said he doesn't mind intense games like the one the Hawks
played against the Bulls. He'd just rather be on the winning side.
"It goes both ways," Woodson said of the physical play late in a
season. "We made a bunch of hard plays on the ball. We played
hard, we battled and you've got to like games like that."
You've got to love this time of year, even if your team isn't
headed for the playoffs. Because this is the time of year that
team's establish identities and make statements to the rest of
the league as to what they can expect to deal with in the future.
"The games get rougher, tensions are heightened and every shot,
rebound and loose ball seems like the most crucial one of the
season," Hawks forward Josh Smith said. "We play hard and we're
not going to back down from anybody. We're not going to fold up
because someone is being physical."
That's what made the altercation between Childress and Nocioni
with just 2:33 to play Wednesday night such a startling sight
for the Hawks. Far from the Hawks most physical player, he didn't
hesitate to fire back after Nocioni caught him across the jaw
with an errant elbow.
"We might be young but we're tougher than you think," Hawks point
guard Royal Ivey said. "That [Chicago game] was one of the most
physical games we've played in a while. It was a battle. But we
went out there as a unit and made it clear that we weren't
interested in anything but winning.
"People can say that it was a must-win game for the Bulls because
they are fighting for a playoff berth. But it was just as much
of a must-win for us. We're treating every game like a playoff
game and we've been doing that for a while now."
That's music to Woodson's ears.
It also reinforces the message he delivered to them after the
Bulls game, where the Hawks' 20 turnovers were turned into 20
points in a 96-90 loss.
Every little thing matters when you're talking about competing
for a playoff spot.
"That's one of the things I told my guys in the locker room,"
Woodson said. "This was like a playoff game. So next year, if
we're able to get over the hump and get into the position to
play playoff basketball, this is what it's going to be like."
資料來源
http://www.ajc.com/hawks/content/sports/hawks/stories/hawks0414.html
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