The Hawks simply outran the Wizards in this game tonight. Josh Smith led the way for the Hawks in this game with 20 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocked shots. Joe Johnson only shot 5 of 16 from the floor but he still finished with 17 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists. Jamal Crawford really filled it up in 25 minutes off the bench as he finished with 16 points and 2 assists. The Hawks are now a solid 2-0 on the season.

The Hawks pulled away in the 4th quarter tonight outscoring the Pacers 25-15 to seal this win. The Hawks did it with offense tonight as they shot 52.9% from the floor! Joe Johnson led the way for the Hawks in this game with 25 points, 6 assists and 4 steals. Al Horford was a beast in the paint tonight for the Hawks finishing with 24 points, 16 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 blocked shots. Josh Smith stuffed the stat sheet like he always does with 18 points, 3 rebounds, 8 assists, 5 steals and 2 blocked shots. Head coach Mike Woodson was probably not pleased with the defense of the Hawks which allowed the Pacers to shoot 53.4% from the floor but he has to be happy with the win to start the year. The Hawks are now 1-0 on the season.

The Atlanta Hawks have improved as a team over the summer with some solid additions to the roster. The depth is better and they should have move firepower on offense and depth on the roster. I would definately bet the over with the Hawks this season as they will win around 50 games this year.

In head coach Mike Woodson’s five years in Atlanta the Hawks have improved in wins every single season. If that happens again the Hawks will be in great shape this season. The Hawks were 47-35 (57.3%) under Woodson last season and they were also 4-7 (36.4%) in the playoffs. Woodson now has a 153-257 (37.3%) in his five seasons with the Hawks during the regular season and he is 7-11 (38.9%) in the post season. The Hawks hope that Woodson continues the good work as the fans in Atlanta have high hopes for the 2009-2010 NBA season.

The Hawks are in great shape at center heading into the season. 23-year old Al Horford really stepped up last season and his game is still growing which should scare the hell out of the Hawks’ opponents. Horford played in 67 games for the Hawks last season and he averaged 33.5 minutes, 11.5 points, 9.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.4 blocked shots per game. He will have to work hard on the boards to improve his scoring as the Hawks don’t run many plays on offense for him. But his defense and rebounding will always be solid. 25-year old Zaza Pachulia was re-signed to back up Horford. Pachulia played in 77 games for the Hawks last season and he averaged 19.1 minutes, 6.2 points, 5.7 rebounds and 0.7 assists per game. He could step right back into the starting lineup if anything were to happen to either Horford or Josh Smith at power forward. 30-year old Jason Collins will serve as the #3 center on the Hawks this season. He played in 31 games for the T-Wolves last season and he averaged 13.6 minutes, 1.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game. 23-year old center Randolph Morris will have a hard time making the Hawks’ final roster. He played in 23 games for the Hawks last season and he averaged 3.9 minutes, 0.8 points, 0.9 rebounds and 0.1 assists per game.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE CENTERS IN 2009-2010: A-