Initial Feedback: Zero Effect

By James Goeders

Initial feedback: A completely subjective response to the events of the game, featuring a comment and rating, the latter on a scale of 1 to 10, on every player who saw the floor and the head coach, along with ephemera and miscellany as the author deems necessary.

Your ratings and commentary, dear reader, are welcomed in the comments to this post.

Boxscore

Players

Joe Johnson: One of the better games Joe has played on the road this season having 19 points on 8-for-17 shooting (and 3-for-9 from behind the arc) but only 3 rebounds and 2 assists. Needs more help offensively than Willie Green. 4/10

Jeff Teague: Other than his rundown block of Wesley Matthews it was a forgettable night for Teague. Finished 1-for-10 from the floor (and 0-for-3 from behind the arc) for 5 points. Added 4 assists but did not have a single rebound or steal. 2/10

Marvin Williams: One of only four Hawks in double figures but grabbed just 2 rebounds. One of few guys playing with energy the entire time he was on the court, but like always he played the fewest minutes of any of the starters. Need Marvin to be more of a presence on the boards. 3/10

Zaza Pachulia: Some extremely ticky-tack fouls went against Zaza early which may have altered his effectiveness under the basket. Made four-of-six free throws and grabbed 10 rebounds to go with his 8 points. 3/10

Josh Smith: One assist shy of a triple double, but went cold for an extended period of time that spanned across the second and third quarters. Finished with 14 points on 7-of-14 shooting, but why is he taking 2 bad 3 pointers? The 10 rebounds were nice, but only 1 offensive board when the Hawks were limited to 4 on the night compared to the 15 the Trailblazers were able to grab. 5/10

Vladimir Radmanovic: More fouls than points. Totally ineffective while in the game and a defensive liability. When the Hawks went small (Teague, Hinrich, Green, Josh, and VladRad) he was lost in the paint and only grabbed a single rebound the whole night 1/10

Ivan Johnson: Only a single point and a -4 in 2 minutes of meaningful game time. Added a dunk late in the game when Drew cleared the bench. 1/10

Tracy McGrady: Sitting out the entire game on Wednesday must have not been enough time off for TMac as he only played 5 minutes and missed his only field goal attempt. 1/10

Kirk Hinrich: Completely forgettable 20 minutes of action. Missed all four of his field goal attempts but added 3 assists and 3 steals. His miserable airball on the Hawks' final possession epitomized the night for the entire team. 1/10

Willie Green: When he's your offensive spark off the bench you know it's going to be a bad night for the Hawks. Had double digits points for the second straight game and hit 7-of-9 shots from the floor (including 2-of-3 from behind the arc). Not able to bring anything else to the court, but without his 17 points this would have been even more of a laugher. 4/10

Jannero Pargo: Looked just as lost as everyone else in his few seconds of game time. 1/10

The head coach
Running three guards (including Hinrich and Teague both on the court together) did not pay off at all. The Trailblazers were on fire from the field in the first quarter, but won the game by destroying the Hawks on the boards (50-27). Dampier never saw the court and Ivan Johnson only played 4 minutes. The Hawks were only down 8 after the first quarter, but Drew went with the entire second team for an extended period in that 2nd quarter and the Hawks never got out of the hole. 2/10

A thought regarding the opposition
Nicolas Batum and LaMarcus Aldridge dominated shooting combining to go 17-for-34 from the floor for 41 points. The Trailblazers didn't beat the Hawks on fast breaks (they only had 8 fast break points) but rather by grabbing rebounds and making jump shots. Very frustrating game to watch as a Hawks fan.