Powell: A Good Sign
The Hawks announced on Monday afternoon that they have officially added free agent big man Josh Powell to their roster. Powell, a two-time NBA Champion with the L.A. Lakers, is a good signing AND a good sign for the Hawks organization.
Powell is widely regarded as a quality big man whose minutes were hurt by the fact that he was playing in a loaded frontcourt that featured Pau Gasol, Lamar Odom and Andrew Bynum (not to mention Ron Artest and Luke Walton if L.A. was going with a smaller line-up). There is a high probability that Powell had drawn interest from other top teams (previous rumors had him linked to Denver, Chicago and Miami) and the fact that he chose to return home to Atlanta reflects positively on how players view the organization at this point.
There was a time not too long ago when an experienced player coming from a championship team would not even consider Atlanta as an option. It is amazing how little influence the mild winters of the South had on free agents when the team was coming off a 13-win season. A 53-win season and all of the key pieces returning can put any city on the map as an attractive free-agent destination.
HOMECOMING
Powell was named the 2001 Metro Atlanta Player of the Year by the Atlanta Tipoff Club while a senior at Riverdale High School, averaging 22.7 points and 13 rebounds per game. While at Riverdale he set nine school records including career scoring, career rebounding, most points in a game (40) and most rebounds in a game (18). Shot 63 percent from the floor during his prep career, and registered a school record 67 dunks as a senior. He is the only player in school history to have his jersey retired.
CHARACTER
When the Lakers visited Atlanta last season, Josh made a point to stop by his alma mater to donate $20,000 for a new computer lab. Powell brought two teammates to the assembly held at Riverdale that day – Kobe Bryant and Derek Fisher. The fact that two extremely accomplished stars would go out of their way to support a ‘role player’ speaks very highly of their respect for Josh as a player and a teammate.
Speaking with Powell earlier today, my first impressions are that he is a well-spoken, intelligent guy that sees a great opportunity to get minutes here in Atlanta. His strength, toughness and post-season experience should be a solid addition to the Hawks roster.
Good article. Like the hometown/character spin.
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wow powell but this is what i want to know is jamal better than joe
any way cograts hawks you finnaly signed a center not
I am very excited to add Josh. It’s nice to have a hometown player. I think he will be exactly what we need. Good Job Hawks management!
While I enjoyed having Joe Smith on the roster last year, Powell will be a quality back-up for Josh Smith and will match this core line-up quite nicely. Look forward to hearing positive moves regarding a Jamal Crawford extension, and preferably one with Al Horford. Make it happen ASG!!!
All we need is Shaq and the puzzle will be complete.
i agree sign shaq
shaq are you kidding me if we get shaq he is going to end up scoring 3 pionts
still can get rebounds and dunk and no center can push him around
Cant deny the m this pretty good move okay what next?
The Hawks need to do something that could actually make them better. Resigning overrated Joe Johnson doesn’t really do much of anything.
good move shaq and one more player and we should finish 2nd in da east!whats da deal wit da point guard situation?
I love the fact that he’s a hometown guy, but this is just another cheap move by hawks management. when will be go out and actually spend some money to make this team better?
thank u finally someone agrees with me
Good move 4 the hawks, we need shaq 2 complete the front court. Please stop comparing crawford 2 joe. Joe is a great player who can defend, get 2 the lane and assist, while crawford has good off skills, his def is weak. Joe deserved his money. He comes 2 work on~time, works hard and complains 1 time and now he is a villian. Joe needs help just like kobe, lebron, and wade.He told da truth, a 53 win team and only 18th in attendance n da 7th largest market, come on my fella fans. If we pack da seats like da other teams, the spirit would not mind paying da luxury tax.
Just two issues!!
1. Deserving the money is one thing that is questionable from the stand point his level of play at playoff time coming off barely averging 10 points per game against Orlando and Big shot after Big Shot missed that max contract type players shouldn’t miss.
2. As opposed to LeBron, Dwyane and Bosh, Joe maxes out the money leaving nothing on the table to recruit the players he stated he would try to do when he signed. How much is enough money anyway. If you want to win here in ATL show it like the 3 in Miami and not put team in financial jail!
Big difference between “GOOD” and “GREAT” !!!
WHY? All I want to know is why? Oh, so y’all got him just because he is a defending champ twice that didn’t play only but 2 games in this yr finals. And I could careless about him being from GA.
LOOK AT HIS STATS!!!!!!
PPG: 0.7
RPG: 0.50
APG: 0.1
EFF: + 0.69
His stats are like that because he dosent get any minutes
thats right atownhawk23 i mean he might help us but its not like he is going to be six man and he does get six man i yhink jamal crawford should slap the hell out of him and start his own team in washington and timberwolves have made another stupid move guys the trade sessions and holins to cleveland and get back west and telfair and waive west now stupid is that this is like them drating pape sow for the 4 pick well anyway got to go
i think there trying to get wes johnson rookie of the year but thats not going to happen
i wish hes pretty good we still need a center
hawks management=poo
josh powell sucks i think shaq wouldve been better
stupid gm wont move horford to naturally pf position and let shaq clog the middle
124 million for joe wata joke
hawks aint gonna win 50 barely 40
alot of teams got better hawks got nowhere powell will get no minutes he sucks nuts
Joe is fine, But if we can get Shaq in the middle start Bibby, Johnson, Smith, Horford, and Oneal (let bibby and johnson control the ball don’t let smith dribble..these guys should be leaping the Gym…but that’s hard to do when they have to constantly play 2 or more positions at the same time)….that will be a nice starting lineup…that’s about our only option rt now and we got the money..hell why not? management needs to go ahead and make that move…they so money hungry, they don’t know that this lineup will make them more money..GEEZ. I’m 28 and I have been a hawks fan since I was 5 and since Dominique they only had “sub-par” players..it ain’t but a matter of time before us hawks fans start traveling to Charlotte to watch the bobcats…sayin!!!
“Mike Bibby” start!!! Are you kidding me !!! His better days are gone!! He’s just a set shooter now with no drives to the hole!! His speed is “GONE”!!
atownhawk23 shut up man first of all Powell was signed to relace Joe SMith he’s goig t odo that perfectly second nobody said he’s going to be the SAviour of the Franchse, he’s not that good ye but trust me thoe numbers will go up on he Hawks, and third those are his playoff stats do the math yes he averged .7 pts in the plyoffs but he also only averag about 3 minutes, look at Jeff Teauge who everybody still ives credit even thouh he plays horrible and doesent seem to care, PPG 1.8 RPG 0.20 APG 0.4, in the playoffs, and he aveaged about 7 minutes, so chill out Powell will be decent next season for us, Backup PF’s never get minutes on our team anyway, now still trade CP3 and Okafor for Smoov, Zaza and, Bibby,
then if there is an truth to that rumor about 6ers wanting to get rid of Iggy trade Marvin, Teauge, and Mo evans for Iggy, that’ll add about 5 mill to the payroll but the money will be made back with ticket sales, then sign shaq mainly for extra tickets, and sign Taylor Griffin(Blakes brother who just got waived) to backup iggy and sign James Augustine and were lookng pretty Dam good next season.
1:Pau1/(Jamal)Crawford
2:Johnson/(Jordan)Crawford
3:Iggy/Grffin
4:Horford/Powell
5:Okafor/Oneal/Augustine
jeff teague will become an all star
this man can play and it bad when some one that is really good leaves THE LOS ANGELES LAKERS. GOD bless you with good a great start in Atlanta, you will be missed. LAKERS.
Josh Powell isn’t a bad pickup. he is an upgrade over Collins and Joe smith so I’m okay with this. I hear that Paul”likes” the direction the hornets are going in so I guess he isn’t leaving(not that I thought it was possible he could/would come here). I wish people would stop dogging jj. contracts signed and no matter how much you complain it won’t be erased. jj is a top ten sg so he was getting a max deal anyway. show up to the game so the team can feel your support.I would like shaq but not overpayed.
If the hawks don’t get a true center we will end up 3rd in the southeast!
we still could get the lakers back up we need a rebounder and shot blocker
i cant make up my mine if this is a good pick or bad and here my desicion so what up this summer zach um just thinking if this is a bad pick are good how many people have you told every body who havent you told the peolpe on hawks blog and you have you told lebron james just got off the phone with him what about rapper lil wayne he is the first person i told do you still cry doo im 15 well whats your desicion i have decided thats its a good move
we have a letter from kobe bryant it says hawks blog and mike woodson the person who was interveiwing him he did not tell me about this desicion netheir phill jackson and i grandateed that we will win a championship before the hawks does that bother you zach no i lived in la and my house was in the projects i heard worser thing and its somethimg he might regret the end haha
get off Joe case without him we can quite the convo about even going to the playoffs crawford is good yes but he his a damn six man he cant lead a team we saw it in Chicago and in New York he is going good doing what he is doing now man i swear some of yall dont know what yall be talking about but we need Shaq pick him up hawks give him what he wants we need a big man Joe we love you man thanks for not leaving us out to dry this guy is and All-star 4 times started lats year we need that in Atlanta
i just heard that thunder are front runner for shaq thunder has lots of caspace and can play they also looking at iverson t-mac and will bynum to back russel westbrook they also looking at west who just got waived what do yall have to say about that
can somebody get me a picture of jamal crawford wife i heard she was pretty
If the thunder overpay shaq then that just shows how crazy they are. as far as west, he is a point guard right? I feel our pg situation isn’t as bad as people try to make it out to be. we have a young pg that is very fast and loves to drive and get to the line and swat shots, a vet pg that can shoot and get quality steals, and two sg in jj and the difference that also play pg when necessary. so all we need to be looking for is a sf and a big if we don’t get shaq
rick sund signs a guy we barely know. Did it ever occur to you that the reason why he didn’t get any quality mins was becuz he suks. I also heard that we are goin to sign jamal to a max deal. we need a center that can bully dwight howard and that guy is shaq. sure he isnt an offensive beast like he used be but he is the only guy in the league that can handle dwight howard. Also we need another shooter so rick sund sign t-mac or eddie house to the veterans minimum so u dont spend all your cap space.
i did not about that ask if someone can give me a piture of jamal wife and thanks for telling me that hawks are going to give jamal a max deal jsmoove i thougt they were goin to give him the mid level
Pole Question: how much will josh powell effect our team?
SMH! JAML GETS MAX WOW! we reward Mediocrity with Max deals what a stupid Move! Aww man well it’s officiially over, we’ll be good but we wont win a championshhip….. anyway Heres a “Poll” (the correct spelling) Question are we going to win a chamionship andy time soon? I think not. Lets Break this Down, Right Now We are NOT better than Orlando,Miami,Chicago, possibly not better than Milwaukee, and Boston either, so were looking at possibly being 4th in the east , cmon man ASG ok were probablly not getting Paul but can we make a smart move please!
rick sund almost gave jamal 7 yrs 161 milion
i get accused of being more negative than anybody but even i dont think josh powell is that bad, he needs playing time, but with bibbys wheels coming off and unsurety of teague please bring in house or delonte west.
we dont need a dolonte west. First off he’s with the t-wolves now if u didn’t hear. second he makes bad passes,is an ugly shooter,and……. he just suks. so i agree we need to bring in eddie house, or rafer alston(veterans), but not delonte west.
found her she used to be a striper thats what i cant beileve and she is pretty they are supoosed to be having a baby
people gettin sick here about the line up. HAHA
Josh powell.- for me bad sign.Joe smith better. better in powell is he has better legs than joe smithh.. smith is a vetran though.
Joe Jhonson- leave him alone. he will do good. got a good back up with crawford.
Shaq??- he cant run. hawks a run gun team. but they can give him a post play. he will not get good minutes. and he cant score no more. he will be fould and will shoot 50% 40% in the line.. hell no shaq!
any better natural Cs out there??
PGs- c’mon they are better than people think they are.. a fast and young pg. and a veteran that can get everybody involved and can take some clutch shots. main problem is big.
now sign or gat a trade to get a natural C that can start put marvin to the bench or even use him in a trade to get that C
thats my idea… hehe
what is up with this facebook stuf
why are yall doing this to this
this is fun who thougt of this
JUST ONE WORD NOT EVEN ONE WORD ONE LETTER Y!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
BRING IN EDDIE HOUSE EICK SUND AND SHAQ OR A TRUE CENTER. IF WE GET THEM WE WILL BE SURE TO SURVIVE IN THE PLAYOFFS
i agree we need Shaq in we are going to have any chance to get out of the east.
agreed we need to bring in shaq, he still has something left in his tank he still can rebound and also we would have a prensence inside, and also bring someone else in like eddie house or someone else, but a great sign by the management by singin josh powell
Welcome to Atlanta Josh Powell! Looking forward to seeing him in action along with the rest of the 2010-2011 ATL Hawks squad.
Go Hawks!
since eddie house signed with the heat why dont we get t-mac or allen iverson
this is off topic but can we get new retro’s
AI or T-mac would not be good for our locker room. Too much egos.
can we bring back sergiy gladyr he deadly from the three point range
shaq to celtics way to go rick sund this has been the best offseason ever…. NOT!!!!