Hawks And Young Ahead of Schedule
Whatever Happens Sunday, Hawks on Course. The Braves' Hot Seat. NFL's Jab Issue
I was walking around State Farm Arena with Hawks CEO Steve Koonin two years ago and we stopped in one of the team stores before a game. We watched for a few minutes. The kids were tearing Trae Young jerseys off the rack and handing them to mom and dad to buy.
“Gotta have it, dad, please.”
Trae was them. They were Trae. Short guy. Baby-faced kid. The children could identify with the Atlanta Hawks guard.
I turned to Koonin and said, “He’s going to be a superstar, if this keeps up.”
Koonin smiled and said, “He is right now.”
The Hawks were not a good team two years ago. Trae was being hammered across the league for poor defense. But the kids, holy smokes, they were enthralled by him. A Super Hero.
And now look at Trae Young as the Hawks have evolved into a very good team. An assassin. A guy who reads the floor like a 10-year veteran and makes his teammates so much better. An artist. A performer. He took a bow in Madison Square Garden, for crying out loud, and now all of New York is going to talk about him, which means the world will see.
The Hawks play Philadelphia in Game 7 on Sunday, but they have arrived…ahead of schedule. It is very good team with a great player, the player even your Mom is going to know by name. That’s status.
Young’s performance in the playoffs has assured his superstar status and just in time for the NBA. LeBron James and Steph Curry are aging and the league needs to reload with wondrous players.
Zion Williamson is not playing with a good team and Luka Doncic’s reputation has taken a hit with the upheaval in Dallas.
Trae is Next. He is averaging 28.9 points and 10.6 assists in his first 11 playoff games. His next 11 will be better. His 11 after that will be better still.
Here is the thing about Trae Young. He found the perfect coach to coalesce with: Nate McMillan, a calm professional. They did a deal. Nate handed the offense to Trae, at least that’s what it looks like.
McMillan: You run it, you create, you make the plays. I’ll take care of the rest.
Trae: Great. I’ll bust my ass on defense.
Young busting his ass on defense means that is one less chemistry issue for McMillan to worry about. Nate can do what Nate does, which is orchestrate defense and keep a poised hand on the rudder.
And so here are the Hawks, in the Eastern Conference semifinals, in a do-or-die game. They are here without De’Andre Hunter, who was developing into one of the best two-way players in the East. They are here early without much of a playoff resume.
They are here because Trae Young has jumped to the top shelf.
Uh Oh, Braves GM Feels Team Is Underperforming
I read an interview with the Braves General Manager Alex Anthopoulos. He feels the Braves are under-performing. AA did not offer the alibis of injuries for the 32-35 record. He just said the talent is there and believes the club should not be on the rocks like this.
I don’t agree, but the manager and the coaching staff better keep their heads on a swivel. When the overlords see a problem with talent not performing somebody has to take the fall.
And it might be time to ask this:
Did the Braves over-perform the last three years? Did they simply take advantage of a weak division? Did the Baseball Gods gift all those 1-run games?
Was there a measure of unbeatable luck in three seasons with those 1-run wins and the luck has run out?
Anthopoulos doesn’t think so and the coaching staff is in the line of fire. It might not be manager Brian Snitker right away, but it could be the pitching coach Rick Kranitz. The GM might feel the pitchers need a new voice in their head.
Once again, my belief is the talent is not there. The Braves sorely need two everyday outfielders. Centerfielder Cristian Pache may be a Gold Glove on defense, but so is Ender Inciarte, and the Braves pushed him to the bench. Pache did not hit before he was injured. The Braves are also having to deal with the growing pains of a rookie catcher.
Marcell Ozuna may go down as a bust for the GM. Ozuna (injury, legal trouble) is done for the season and it has impacted the Braves’ offense, not just for the fact they miss his power, but that Freddie Freeman does not have the same protection and the lineup is not as deep.
The Braves are going to have to package three or four prospects, at least, for a starting left fielder, or starting centerfielder, who can hit in the middle of the lineup, if they hope to win the National League East. They are 5 1/2 games out of first place. The fact the Mets have been able to ride out their injury bug much better than the Braves and are getting healthy adds to the urgency.
The NFL Has A Vaccination Problem
So much for using the influence of professional athletes to drive up vaccination.
“I probably won’t get vaccinated until I get more facts and that stuff. I haven’t caught COVID yet, so I don’t see me treating COVID until I actually get COVID.”___Washington edge rusher Montez Sweat.
He isn’t the only player to dodge the vaccine. The NFL is full of players that will not get the jab.
So now the NFL has to make it clear to teams that they will be at a competitive disadvantage if their players refuse to get vaccinated. And when that happens these players will lose their jobs.
Already, non-vaccinated players will not be able to travel during the season’s off week. They cannot leave training camp. They could miss games if somebody posts a photo of them at a party or a night club. An unvaccinated player has to sit five days, if they come in contact with somebody with Covid.
Atlanta Falcons’ coach Arthur Smith told Ball Atlanta pal D. Orlando Ledbetter of the AJC that he is “very comfortable with where we’re at” in terms of vaccination rate.
The Falcons may be comfortable, but the NFL is not, and the 2021 season and “normalcy” is looming.