Morning Wrap: Tobias Harris With Buzzer Beater to Snap Hawks Streak

For those of us not home in front of TV's Saturday night, we missed a pretty good basketball game between two NBA Southeastern Division basketball teams.

The Orlando Magic pulled out a 100-99 win over the Atlanta Hawks after Tobias Harris drilled a 13-foot fadeaway jumper as the buzzer sounded in Orlando.

The Hawks, who were on a 9 game winning streak, thought they might have pulled out the win when Kyle Korver drained a 3-pointer with just 3 seconds to go, giving them a 99-98 lead.

But the Magic was with Orlando on Saturday, Harris led his team with 20 points giving his team their 10th win of the season.

Your highlights from NBA.com:

Hashtag Atlanta Hawks and The All Star Voting Skit

((ht: foxsports.com))

Okay, this is pretty funny. The usually low key Atlanta Hawks produced a video to promote some of their players (okay, all) for the 2015 NBA All-Star game in Brooklyn.

Props to the Hawks for doing something fun.

They had reserves Kent Bazemore and Mike Muscala do a pretty good takeoff of a Jimmy Fallon/Justin Timberlake skit where every sentence ended in "# Hashtag"....

We should note, the Hawks, though highly unrecognizable...even in Atlanta, have quietly jumped out to a Southeast Division leading 16-6 on the season and are riding a 10-game winning streak.

Nice job guys...and well done skit Hawks video:

Morning Wrap: Lance Stephenson's Buzzer Beater in 2-OT's for the Win

((ht: foxsports.com))

If you were like us, you probably did not stay home and watch TV Friday night. And apparently we missed a couple of crazy performances.

Like the one delivered by Lance Stephenson of the Charlotte Hornets.

Stephenson ended a long and crazy game in Charlotte against the Atlanta Hawks when he drilled a 30-plus foot 3 pointer as the buzzer. And he hit the shot at the end of the 2nd overtime. Had he missed, the two teams still might be playing.

Charlotte got the win, 122-119. Stephenson, an offseason free agent signee who last played for Indiana got to play the hero. And we have our first highlight to show from Friday night.

All is well.

Former NBA Star Blaylock Gets 15-Year Jail Sentence for Vehicular Homicide

((ht: ajc.com))

Former NBA All-Star Mookie Blaylock pleaded guilty to Vehicular Homicide and other minor charges in a metro Atlanta area courtroom Monday afternoon.

The charges stem from a May 2013 traffic accident south of Atlanta when he crashed into a car driven by Monica Murphy who died on the scene. Blaylock, who was also seriously injured in the crash, agreed to a plea deal with prosecutors that calls for 7-years of jail time and 8-years of probation, though he'd be eligible to have the prison term suspended after 3-years.

While Blaylock, who admitted he had an alcohol problem, was apparently not intoxicated at the time of the crash, he was under orders not to be driving due to a seizure disorder attributed to his alcoholism.

Read more from AJC.com RIGHT HERE

Blaylock played for 13-years in the NBA and retired in 2002. He was drafted in 1989 by the New Jersey Nets and played for the Atlanta Hawks and Golden State Warriors.

Here is some video of Blaylock with the Hawks:

Josh Childress With the Nasty Flying Elbow

Yeesh! We always wondered what happened to former Atlanta Hawk and Phoenix Suns player Josh Childress. Or the NBA player formerly known as the guy with Kid in Play's hair.

A few years ago Childress took a big money offer and left the NBA to play in we believe Greece.

Well, Josh appears to be working his way around the globe as he's now in Australia's National Basketball league, with even bigger hair and playing for the Sydney Kings.

He also appears to have found a bit of a temper.

Check out this video of Childress getting knocked down by a strong, but legal pick from Jesse Wagstaff of the Perth Wildcats.

Childress did not like the play. So much so that he sprang up from the floor and delivered a full speed flying elbow/clothesline to Wagstaff's face.

And yes, he was tossed from the game...

Yes Please: Dikembe Mutombo Wants To Get Involved in Buying Atlanta Hawks

((ht: ajc.com))

This would be the best thing ever....

According to a report from the Atlanta Journal Constitution this morning, former Atlanta Hawks center Dikembe Mutombo is meeting with a group of Atlanta investors who have expressed interest in purchasing all of or majority interest in the NBA's Atlanta Hawks.

Read the story from AJC.com RIGHT HERE

This would be the best thing ever in our opinion. Aside from the whole former Hawk thing and the issues that plagued the buffoonish ownership team this summer, think of the potential commercial marketing options...





Mind you, the sale is not imminent, discussions are in the early stages. Former NBA star Chris Webber is part of a different group exploring purchase options too.

But none of them could possibly match Mutombo the owner. Truly, Dikembe is one of the smartest and nicest guys we've ever interviewed. He'd bring a lot to the table and would be a great face of the franchise.

But oh, the thought of this has us laughing hysterically just thinking about it.

Aside from ownership, how could anything top this?

More Hawks Mess: Ferry Takes Leave of Absence as Copy of Report Gets Out

((ht: ajc.com))

Oy! This keeps getting worse and there are far more layers to the story of the Atlanta Hawks, owner Bruce Levinson, G.M Danny Ferry and others than anyone knew.

The latest is Friday's revalation: Ferry is taking an indefinite leave of absence from his job. And he is taking it on the heels of the disputed scouting report that got him in trouble in the 1st place was leaked to Atlanta TV Station WSB.

You can read the report in question RIGHT HERE (bottom of pg 2 is interesting stuff)

Sigh---

We are pretty sure the report, which is heavily redacted, came from bitter minority owner Michael Gearon Jr, who has been the source of most of the leaks coming out in this story. It's common knowledge in the Atlanta sports community that you could get info from him about the Atlanta Spirit that the others won't release.

That doesn't excuse what was said in the report, which is a very offensive characterization of Luol Deng. Though the rest of the report apparently speaks pretty highly of him. Deng, who was being recruited to join the Hawks, eventually spurned their interest and signed with the Miami Heat.

Ferry likely does not have a future in Atlanta. Agree, disagree or otherwise with what he said and how it got released, there's no excuse for it being put out there. None.

If you aren't from Atlanta, this is perhaps the worst place ever for something like this to happen. He (Ferry) will never escape this as long as he stays. It won't be forgotten.

Our guess is by October the Hawks have a new G.M, by next year a new owner. And by the end of the season a similar result to the past 7 or 8 seasons, good--not great, out in the first round of the playoffs.

UPDATE:

Ferry released a statement Friday afternoon through via the Hawks website:

"No words can adequately describe my remorse for the hurt that I have caused many people through the statements I repeated, most importantly Luol Deng.

Luol is a good man who I have known for many years and he has done a tremendous amount of good for his country and around the world.  I apologize to Luol and I apologize to all that I have offended. As I have said, while these were not my words, I deeply regret repeating them.  Almost all the background information I provided during the lengthy presentation regarding Luol was positive and my personal and professional recommendation during the call was very much in favor of adding Luol to our team but I never should have uttered those offensive remarks and for that I apologize.

My focus moving forward is to tirelessly work to rebuild trust with this community and with our fans. I realize that my words may ring hollow now and my future actions must speak for me.  I will maximize my time during this leave to meet with community leaders and further educate myself and others on the extremely sensitive issues surrounding race, diversity, and inclusion. I will find a way to make a positive difference in this area, and further learn from the sensitivity training that I will go through.”

Danny Ferry Audio "Leaked"

((HT: AJC.com/Vivlamore))

Here's the audio from the key passage in the Luol Deng conversation among Atlanta Spirit ownership and President/GM Danny Ferry.

It was "leaked" to the media and the HQ uses the word "leaked" in quotes because we all have a good idea who did the leaking...
Allegedly...
Just so you know... And this also from Vivlamore's piece: Ferry does not say specifically that he is reading from a background report on the available portion of the tape. The rest of the recording, requested during the investigations by both the independent law firm and the NBA, was said to be lost.
That's not good, either...

Hawks Cancel Meeting With Civil Rights Leaders

((HT: MyFoxAtlanta))

A scheduled meeting between Hawks CEO Steve Koonin and local civil rights leaders was cancelled last night by the team. THe action led the group to come down to the Hawks home, Philips Arena, and tell anyone with a camera that he and his group were less than happy.

The Rev. Markel Hutchins got a phone call from Hawks Media Relations Director Garin Narain asking that it be postponed, but Hutchins wanted to hear that from Koonin instead of the front office.

Hutchins and his group are calling for Hawks President/GM Danny Ferry to be fired for his remarks that he relayed from a scouting report about Luol Deng as the team was chasing free agents over the summer. They also want minority ownership in the team once the team is officially put up for sale.

Here's the lead story at noon today in the HQ
Atlanta News, Weather, Traffic, and Sports | FOX 5

Koonin maintains that Ferry has been disciplined, but he won't be fired.

All that may change when the team gets a new owner who wants to put his own stamp on the franchise, anyway.

Danny Ferry Releases Statement On Deng Appraisal, Hawks Continue Implosion

The Atlanta Hawks continue to be the schleprock of the NBA currently, and you know it's bad when Ray Rice is the only thing in the news keeping you from being the lead...

Hawks COO Steve Koonin maintains that President/GM Danny Ferry will keep his job after he read the backgrounder on Luol Deng aloud two years ago and the word crept out that this event actually did happen.

Ferry released a statement about his mea culpa:

"In regards to the insensitive remarks that were used during our due diligence process, I was repeating comments that were gathered from numerous sources during background conversations and scouting about different players. I repeated those comments during a telephone conversation reviewing the draft and free agency process. Those words do not reflect my views, or words that I would use to describe an individual and I certainly regret it. I apologize to those I offended and to Luol, who I reached out to Monday morning.

In terms of the email that Bruce sent, the situation is disturbing and disappointing on many levels and I understand Bruce's words were offensive.

I am committed to learning from this and deeply regret this situation. I fully understand we have work to do in order to help us create a better organization; one that our players and fans will be proud of, on and off the court, and that is where my focus is moving forward."

Co-owner Michael Gearon, Junior wanted Ferry gone right then and there and told anyone willing to listen that the guy should be out on his ear. A letter dated this June expressed his grave concerns for the franchise if the word got out. The letter was sent to television stations in the market and authenticated anonymously.

The minority partners made their peace in the next-to-last paragraph and the irony oozes from the words on the page:

"If Ferry's comments are ever made public, and it's a safe bet to say they will someday, it could be fatal to the franchise. All of our partners have worked and spent a lot of money not just to make the Hawks winners, but to make our city and region proud of the organization. As lifelong Atlantans with a public track record of diversity and inclusion, we are especially fearful of the unfair consequences when we eventually get thrown under the bus with Ferry."

The HQ has a good idea who made the letter public and it's a safe play that they weren't fans of Ferry's hire in the first place... or Levenson's place as majority owner, either.

And when the I-Team over at MyFoxAtlanta gets a hold of this, you know you're not in a good place.
Atlanta News, Weather, Traffic, and Sports | FOX 5

Hawks Internal Meeting On Deng Exposed Levenson

((HT: Fox News/AJC))

It appears that an internal background report that described a potential free agent pick-up may have sparked the whole "Bruce Levenson is now selling the Atlanta Hawks" turn of events...

A report linked to Luol Deng had some racially-insensitive words attached to it. GM Danny Ferry read the unedited report aloud in the meeting and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Chris Vivlamore has the paragraph in question as:

“He is still a young guy overall. He is a good guy overall. But he is not perfect. He’s got some African in him. And I don’t say that in a bad way.”

The background information on Deng had not been vetted appropriately and led to it being read in its entirety. GM Danny Ferry will be disciplined, but not fired for his recitation in the meeting.

The paragraph led to an internal investigation by the team's law firm. The firm then spoke to 19 people and reviewed over 24,000 documents, Hawks CEO Steve Koonin told the AJC over the weekend. It was during the investigation that the Levenson e-mail directed to Ferry and co-owners Ed Peskowitz and Todd Foreman was discovered.

Here's the HQ's alter ego discussing Levenson with FOSG Jonathan Serrie

((ed note--You'll have to click on the link HERE to watch because Fox's Webmaster is having a bad day and didn't code correctly and we can't fix it. --Go to about the 1min mark on the video))

DEVELOPING: Levenson To Sell Hawks Interest After "Racist E-Mail" Discovered (UPDATED With E-Mail))

((HT: Yahoo!Sports-Wojnarowski))

The Atlanta Hawks are the schleprock of the NBA...

No matter who the owner is and how much alleged investment is involved and/or promised to the community, nothing has changed since the days of Ted Turner being the media mogul/magnate and the days of Dominique versus Larry Bird.

The destination is as undesirable as you can get. The fan base small at best and the town is apathetic toward the franchise since the cirle of life lends itself to no marquee players- which means there is little reason to wander to a downtown arena in a mediocre conference where playoff appearances are, literally, assured and the team has to overpay to bring talent in- or get them to stay.

Remember Joe Johnson...???

So, when Adrian Wojnarowski announced on his Twitter feed that Levenson was selling, the HQ has the distinct feeling that some other action was on the cusp of happening (oh, like, a lawsuit or something...) and Levenson is out...

Commissioner Adam Silver released the following statement once the e-mail was discovered...

An e-mail written in 2012...

“Following Bruce Levenson notifying the league office this July of his August 2012 email, the NBA commenced an independent investigation regarding the circumstances of Mr. Levenson’s comments.

Prior to the completion of the investigation, Mr. Levenson notified me last evening that he had decided to sell his controlling interest in the Atlanta Hawks. As Mr. Levenson acknowledged, the views he expressed are entirely unacceptable and are in stark contrast to the core principles of the National Basketball Association. He shared with me how truly remorseful he is for using those hurtful words and how apologetic he is to the entire NBA family – fans, players, team employees, business partners and fellow team owners – for having diverted attention away from our game.

I commend Mr. Levenson for self-reporting to the league office, for being fully cooperative with the league and its independent investigator, and for putting the best interests of the Hawks, the Atlanta community, and the NBA first.

We will be working with the Hawks ownership group on the appropriate process for the sale of the team and I have offered our full support to Hawks CEO Steve Koonin, who will now oversee all team operations.

The NBA and its teams have long had in place anti-harassment and anti-discrimination policies in order to facilitate respectful and diverse workplaces. Earlier this summer, the league re-doubled its efforts by, among other things, making it mandatory for all league and team personnel to receive annual training on these issues."

Levenson issued a statement where he touched on what was said as he was trying to figure out:
 ways to increase attendance at games:

"In trying to address those issues, an e-mail I wrote 2 years ago that was inappropriate and offensive. I trivialized our fans by making cliched assumptions about their interests and by stereotyping their assumptions about one another."

"By focusing on race, I also sent the unintentional and hurtful message that our white fans are more valuable than our black fans."

"If you're angry about what I wrote, you should be. I'm angry at myself, too. It was inflammatory nonsense. We all may have subtle biases and preconceptions when it comes to race, but my role as a leader is to challenge them, not to validate or accommodate those who might hold them."

The Hawks, and their interim CEO Steve Koonin released their own statement:

To the City of Atlanta and Hawks Fans,

Today’s statement from Controlling Owner Bruce Levenson is extremely disappointing and the email that he sent over two years ago was alarming, offensive and most of all, completely unacceptable and does not reflect the principles and values of the Hawks organization. In partnership with the NBA, we will work to ensure that a new ownership team will be put in place that is united and committed to the Atlanta community.

Steve Koonin

CEO, Atlanta Hawks

It marks the next, and now, last involvement of the Atlanta Spirit, LLC group in this market that has been nothing short of an absymal failure on multiple levels- arena, ownership, legal battles, behind-the-scenes desires to sell, the loss of a hockey franchise, and now "racist" e-mails that are sending them out of town on rail...

But far too late for any of it to matter as, the HQ is certain, there are very few tears shed...

Exhibit A being below...
((HT: Sportsnet))


For the record, here's a link to the full e-mail which says in part:

My theory is that the black crowd scared away the whites and there are simply not enough affluent
black fans to build a signficant season ticket base. Please dont get me wrong. There was nothing
threatening going on in the arean back then. i never felt uncomfortable, but i think southern whites
simply were not comfortable being in an arena or at a bar where they were in the minority. On fan sites i
would read comments about how dangerous it is around philips yet in our 9 years, i don't know of a
mugging or even a pick pocket incident. This was just racist garbage. When I hear some people saying
the arena is in the wrong place I think it is code for there are too many blacks at the games.

I have been open with our executive team about these concerns. I have told them I want some white
cheerleaders and while i don't care what the color of the artist is, i want the music to be music familiar
to a 40 year old white guy if that's our season tixs demo. i have also balked when every fan picked out of
crowd to shoot shots in some time out contest is black. I have even bitched that the kiss cam is too
black.

Not good...

Mookie Blaylock Up On 14-Count Grand Jury Indictment

A suburban Atlanta grand jury has returned 14 counts against the former Atlanta Hawks guard in the 2013 crash that killed Monica Murphy. The 14 counts include 2 counts of felony homicide by vehicle.

Police said Blaylock left the northbound lanes of a Clayton County (GA) road, went into the southbound lanes, and crashed into the other car. Blaylock's license was suspended and had been told by physicians, according to the county district attorney's office, that he wasn't supposed to operate a car because of seizures that were being treated by medication.

Blaylock’s attorney, Don Samuel, said that doctors never told his client not to get behind the wheel of a car. He is refuting what the investigators are saying about the idea of Blaylock being told by doctors not to drive.

Blaylock has had several arrests involving 6 DUI charges in the past, but never had to serve any substantive time behind bars on any of the charges.

Here's the story from the time of the accident when the sheer volume of Blaylock's DUI's came forward...
((HT: 11Alive.com))

Blaylock could face up to 33 years in prison if found guilty in the upcoming trial.
No date has been set for the Blaylock trial.

BUZZER BEATER: Iguodala Shoots Down Atlanta Hawks

Down by 2 points with 3.2 seconds left Golden State's Andre Iguodala nails the game winner to defeat the Atlanta Hawks 101-100.

Thanks CSN Bay Area
"I started thinking if my man leaves, I'll be open." Iguodala said after the game.  "He (Stephen Curry) hit me back and I made the shot."

"I was the decoy first, and then it became my play once we didn't have our first option." Stephen Curry said.  "Knowing there was three seconds left you have time to catch and see what's going on.  I just tried to make the right play.  Once I got the ball in my hands they jump off of (Iguodala) and he jumped in.  A clutch, clutch, clutch shot."

Johnny Manziel Shows Limited Basketball Skills

Uh, yeah, so....um....Texas A&M football quarterback Johnny Manziel, (aka Johnny Football), well, he's back in the offseason spotlight. And at least this time it's kind of funny.

Manziel found himself at Saturday night's Atlanta Hawks vs. Charlotte Bobcats game in Philips Arena in downtown Atlanta.

((note---He's in the ATL preparing to lead his Aggies vs. the Duke Blue Devils in the Chick Fil A Bowl game Tuesday night))

And as what seems to be his (Manziel's) norm, he got a lot of attention.

So much so that he got called out of the crowd and was asked to take part in a "Skills" competition. Which is when THIS happened....

Ooops....(thanks for sharing ESPN)

Jeff Was The Best In The Teague Last Night

((HT: NBA))

The Hawks and Cavs kept Jay and Dan from being seen in the southeast for a while last night since they went to overtime...

Finally, in the second five minutes, Jeff Teague put us all out of our misery...


Atlanta Hawks fans have been clinging to the development of Teague since his drafting by the front office...

In the 127-125 2OT thriller, Kyrie Irving finished with 40 to lead all scorers and Teague scored a carer-high 34 and 14 assists- knocking down not only the game-winner, but the jumper that sent the game into the second overtime.

Hawknado an Atlanta Hawks Cheerleader Video: Yes, This Really Happened

((deadspin.com))

Uh….okay.

We have as good a sense of humor as anyone and we know the intent of this video was to be funny and parody the Sharknado movie that aired on the SyFy network this summer.

The movie trailer is here:



However….the knock off done by the folks in marketing for the Atlanta Hawks, well, let's just say not only was it not good, it quite honestly wasn't bad funny either.

The premise was this. Put the cheerleaders in this faux trailer to help promote sales of their swimsuit calendar. The idea: to get people's attention to buy said calendar.

And on one level their may be a modicum of success here. It's making the rounds of many sports blogs this weekend. But it's making the rounds for the wrong reasons.

We applaud the Hawks for trying. Lord knows they need to do something to get people's attention. They are and have been a moderately successful team of guys most people have never heard of. And they don't exactly play to a packed house in Atlanta.

Our message to the folks in Video Production and marketing, keep trying guys. Eventually you'll hit something that will get you what you are looking for.

But unfortunately, this one ain't it…

Morning Buzzer Beater: Al Horford With The Fadeaway For The Win

Nothing like falling down and throwing the ball towards the basket and seeing it go in for the win.

That's what happened last night to Atlanta Hawks center Al Horford.

Horford hit a shot just like the above description Friday night giving the Hawks a 101-99 win over the Washington Wizards.

Watch the video, you can see Horford falling down, but managing to kinda shoot the ball.

Nothing but net….

((Note--The snarky "This game shouldn't be in the 1st block of SportsCenter comment by anchor Neil Everett, was low class. Dude---you run highlights of crappy New York Knicks in the 1st block---all the time. Nobody cares))

Dennis Schroeder Says Hello To DeMarcus Cousins

((HT: NBA))

And gets a one-game suspension for it...


That wasn't very nice...

Schroeder serves his suspension tonight when the Hawks play Denver...

Hawks New Head Coach Busted For DUI (UPDATE W/Response From Attorney)

((HT: AJC/Morris))

This probably was not the way the new head coach of the Atlanta Hawks envisioned his new gig... (mugshot to the right, thanks

Atlanta City Jail)

Mike Budenholzer was charged with DUI and a tail light violation, and was released on $1,524 bond at 3:45 Thursday AM.

And what does the HQ say REPEATEDLY about events that happen after 1AM...???

Usually never good...

Just after 9 a.m. Thursday, the Hawks released a brief statement from president of basketball operations and general manager Danny Ferry:

“Bud made us aware of the situation last night. We are in the process of gathering more information and will have further comment at the appropriate time.”

When Budenholzer was pulled over by Georgia State Patrol, odor of alcohol was present (either on the person pulled over or in the vehicle itself- that information wasn't given), a field sobriety test was given, and Budenholzer was placed under arrest. GSP also says that Budenholzer refused a breath test.

Which is his option to do in the field when pulled over...

PM UPDATE: From The Hawks their own selves and 92.9 The Game through Budenholzer's attorney, Michael Hawkins

Last night, Atlanta Hawks head basketball coach Michael Budenholzer was stopped by a Georgia State Patrol DUI Task Force officer for a broken taillight. He was stopped solely for an equipment violation and committed no traffic offenses. The trooper demanded that he submit to a breathalyzer, and when Coach Budenholzer asked to consult with an attorney first, he was immediately arrested and charged with DUI.

While at the jail, after consulting with an attorney by telephone, he immediately volunteered to take both a breathalyzer and also requested that a blood alcohol test be performed. His request for testing was refused. Immediately upon his release on bond, Coach Budenholzer went directly to Piedmont Hospital where his blood was tested at the earliest opportunity, albeit several hours after his arrest. The official report from the hospital blood test revealed that his blood alcohol concentration was less than .01, well below the legal limit of .08.

Coach Budenholzer has no prior criminal record and entered a plea of Not Guilty to all charges this morning in the Atlanta Municipal Court.

The following statement was released through the coach's attorney:

“I take my role as a leader very seriously and hold myself to a high standard. I apologize to the fans and to the Hawks organization for any negative attention this incident has brought upon my family and the organization while the legal process evolves and I contest these misdemeanor charges,” said Coach Budenholzer.