<span class="template"><span class="headline"><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>HAWKS 101, MAVERICKS 94: Hawks impress but need more</span> <span class="byline">By Terence Moore</span> <span class="source">The Atlanta Journal-Constitution</span> <span class="date">Published on: 11/03/07</span> <span class="body"> You could tell in so many ways Friday night before an absolutely delirious gathering at Philips Arena that these aren't the same old Hawks.</p> First, they won.</p> <table width="175" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2" border="0" align="left"> </table> Let that sink in, and it gets better: They accomplished such a rare feat in recent years on opening night with a 101-94 victory over a standout Dallas Mavericks bunch. Not only that, much of the stuffed house spent the game's stretch drive delivering a loud and spontaneous collection of dancing, shouting and cheering.</p> Actually, when it came to the Hawks, all of that was secondary to this: They looked interesting. They looked enthused. They looked improved.</p> They looked good.</p> The only thing more impressive than the Hawks' energy throughout the evening was their refusal to collapse after several late runs from their typically explosive visitors who regularly travel deep into the NBA playoffs. "Our team is growing up," beamed Hawks coach Mike Woodson, telling the truth in the aftermath. Rookies Acie Law and Al Horford often played as splendid complements to Joe Johnson and Josh Smith, the Hawks' youthful veterans.</p> Woodson added that this was a team victory, with nice efforts from Marvin Williams and definitely Tyronn Lue, who contributed so many clutch shots near the end that the crowd wildly chanted "Lue, Lue, Lue" during one of his trips to the foul line.</p> That's all splendid, but the Hawks can't get around this: They could have gotten Chris Paul before he became a certified star for the New Orleans Hornets, but they didn't. They could have gotten Deron Williams before he became a rising star for the Utah Jazz, but they didn't. They could have gotten Mike Conley Jr. before he became a rising and certified star in waiting for the Memphis Grizzlies, but they didn't.</p> Instead, with the Hawks preparing earlier in the night to spend a dandy time against the Mavericks and threatening to become relevant for the first time in years, their starting point guard was Anthony Johnson, not exactly a clone of Paul, Williams or Conley.</p> Johnson is what he is, and that is a serviceable backup in his 11th NBA season after stops in Sacramento, Orlando, Cleveland, New Jersey, Indiana and multiple ones in Atlanta. In fact, how many times has Johnson been the starting point guard on opening night for one of your teams? He paused, while thinking. "This is my first time. Yeah," Johnson said, before taking the court against the Mavericks in search of trying to become the spark that turns the Hawks into an up-tempo inferno featuring all of that youth and athleticism.</p> Well, at least that was Johnson's designated mission in the short run. We're talking about the very short run. As for the long run, it came less than four minutes into the game. The long run even has a name for the Hawks, and it is Acie Law IV, the accomplished shooting guard from Texas A&M that the point-guard challenged Hawks drafted anyway this summer. He entered this one when Johnson misfired after hoisting an off-balance shot from the lane and traveled soon afterward.</p> In came Law, who instantly impressed.</p> That is until he instantly accumulated two fouls in three minutes for an early exit until the second quarter. Before that, he fed Marvin Williams with a nice assist in the lane, drove fearlessly to the basket into Dirk Nowitzki territory to draw a foul and barked commands like a veteran. They were wonderful signs of things to come for Law and the Hawks.</p> It's all encouraging. And remember: Hawks officials are promising a renaissance this season with new uniforms and a new attitude. The thing is, unless Law or somebody else is for real at the point, the Hawks will have an old problem —- no adequate and consistent guy at the point, which wouldn't be good. Not when the NBA has evolved from a league of the dominant center to that of the prominent point guard.</p> If you don't have a Steve Nash or a Tony Parker or a Jason Kidd or a Chauncey Billups or a (ahem) a Paul, Williams or Conley, you better have an overwhelming force such as a LeBron James or a Kobe Bryant to compensate.</p> Joe Johnson is the Hawks' LeBron and Kobe in spurts. That means he needs help, so this was a start. A spectacular start.</p> </span></span></div></p> </p> wow the Chris Paul thing is so played out, this dude does not want to let it go. Than he calls Conley a future star...LOL!</p>
