<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Memphis ? In the past six weeks the Hawks have been forced to play without Speedy Claxton, Marvin Williams Josh Childress and even starting center Zaza Pachulia at one time or another with varying degrees of success. Playing without Joe Johnson (strained calf), though, is the sucker punch to the gut the Hawks have always dreaded. It's only been three games, three straight losses without him and four straight overall. But not having their catalyst and the league's fourth-leading scorer in the lineup has exposed the Hawks as the one-trick outfit they appear to be without the versatile Johnson leading them. "We've never been in this position," said Hawks coach Mike Woodson, whose team will try and snap their skid tonight against the Memphis Grizzlies at FedEx Forum. "Joe's been there every step of the way since he's been here. We've had other people out but always found ways to win. Now our best guy is out and we have to figure out a way to win without him. "We don't necessarily need anyone to step up and fill Joe's shoes to do so. What we need is for guys to step up into their own roles and execute to the fullest and we'll have a chance to be successful." Trying to overcompensate for Johnson's absence ? he was back on the practice floor Thursday and is expected to return for Saturday's game against Chicago at Philips Arena ? has been the Hawks' biggest problem during this recent slide. Without Johnson on the floor to dictate tempo on offense and set the tone on defense, guys have tried on their own to solve all the team's issues on their own. "We don't have to do that," Josh Smith said. "It's got to be a group effort. We have to lean on each other. It has to be all of us. I said this the first night he was out and I'll say it again, our bond has to be stronger than ever. It's not a secret, we have key guys out. So we can't complain, we can't point fingers. It's all about us right now, not just one of us, and we have to do whatever it takes to maintain until we get Joe back."</div> Source
