Hawks Look Back To Maintain Focus Going Forward...Or Something

As much as I'd like to take the opportunity to make a joke about my motivational prowess (and the even stronger mojo of Prof. Hollinger) I'm more disheartened by the unquestioned ubiquity of this sentiment:

Stung by the predictions of the pundits who didn’t even pick them to make it back to the playoffs this year, the Hawks are still using those perceived slights as their rallying cry.

Thus, Hawks coach Mike Woodson doesn’t have to manufacture anything to motivate his team.

“I like that, I do,” Woodson said. “When we started this thing, I made sure to let them know it’s about these 15 guys in that locker room and these coaches. And I don’t care what all the naysayers say or about any of the negativity out there. I don’t care about that. It’s about us as a group figuring out what we’re supposed to do.

“And we’ve done that so far. We’re just trying to handle our own business. … These guys are trying to play for something, and that’s what playoff basketball is all about.”

I don't think it's reasonable to expect the Hawks to discuss their gameplan for Wednesday's game in the press but can't we discuss "handling business" in terms of creating and executing a defensive strategy or the wonderful, atypical rebounding performance in Game 1 rather than in generalities?

Yes, I was wrong about this team. In and of itself that's not an especially interesting* fact. I don't expect the players or coaches to proffer the self-analytical particulars of why but it would be nice if there were someone there trying to draw out an enlightening bit of information about how a basketball game is won when the opportunity arises rather than allowing the coaches and players to fall back on the simultaneously self-pitying and self-aggrandizing (and, at this point, cliched) complaints about disrespect. I believe we can rise above that level of discourse.

*or unusual