The Hawks laid an egg at the wrong time last night.  The Hawks only shot 36.5% from the floor while the Bulls shot 53.2% from the floor and that did them in big time.  Joe Johnson led the way for the Hawks last night with 19 points, 3 rebounds and 4 assists.  Josh Smith filled up the stat sheet with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 1 assist, 3 steals and 2 blocked shots last night.  Jamal Crawford only shot 2 for 10 from the floor last night as he finished up with 8 points, 1 rebound, 2 assists and 1 steal in 24 minutes on the floor.  The Hawks lost this series 4-2 to the Bulls.

The Atlanta Hawks have acquired 30-year old PG/SG Kirk Hinrich and 26-year old center Hilton Armstrong from the Washington Wizards for 32-year old point guard Mike Bibby, 32-year old SG/SF Maurice Evans, 22-year old rookie shooting guard Jordan Crawford and a 1st round pick.  Hinrich will likely replace Mike Bibby as the starting point guard for the Hawks.  Hinrich played in 48 games (29 starts) for the Wizards this season and he averaged 30.6 minutes, 11.1 points, 2.7 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.2 steals per game.  He has now played in 562 games (462 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 33.8 minutes, 13.2 points, 3.4 rebounds, 5.7 assists and 1.3 steals per game.  Hilton Armstrong played in 41 games (2 starts) for the Wizards last season and he averaged 10.0 minutes, 1.9 points, 2.8 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game.  He has now played in 265 games (39 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 12.1 minutes, 3.2 points, 2.6 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game.  Armstrong gives the Hawks another big body but that’s about it.

Mike Bibby played in 56 games (all starts) for the Hawks this year and he averaged 29.9 minutes, 9.4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game.  The Hawks will miss his 44.1% shooting from three point range.  Bibby was slowing down though and Hinrich will be an upgrade.  Maurice Evans played in 47 games (12 starts) for the Hawks this season and he averaged 17.8 minutes, 4.5 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game.  Evans doesn’t seem to have much left in the gas tank.  Jordan Crawford was the Hawks’ first round pick last June.  He played in 16 games (0 starts) for the Hawks this season and he averaged 10.0 minutes, 4.2 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.9 assists per game.  Crawford was only shooting 35.1% from the floor for the Hawks this year.

In dealing Jordan Crawford and a first round pick for the Hinrich, the Hawks essentially traded two first rounders for him.  They better hope Hinrich steps up for them or they might regret making this deal down the road.

The Atlanta Hawks have waived 30-year old SG/SF Damien Wilkins.  Wilkins played in 13 games (0 starts) for the Hawks this year and he averaged 13.1 minutes, 2.5 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game.  Damien won’t go down in Hawks’ history like his uncle Dominique “The Human Highlight Film” Wilkins did.  The Hawks won’t miss him too much as they have a lot of depth on the bench.

UPDATE:  (1/8/2011) – The Hawks have re-signed Damien Wilkins to a 10-day contract.

The Atlanta Hawks will be without 24-year old starting small forward Marvin Williams for at least the next four games due to a back problem.  Williams has played in 30 games (28 starts) for the Hawks so far this year and he is averaging 30.0 minutes, 11.0 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.  Look for Jamal Crawford and Maurice Evans to see bumps in playing time until Williams is ready to return to action.

The Atlanta Hawks sign 30-year old SG/SF Damien Wilkins.  Wilkins played in 80 games (31 starts) for the Timberwolves last season and he averaged 19.8 minutes, 5.6 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.  He has now played in 390 games (126 starts) in his first six years in the NBA and he is averaging 20.9 minutes, 7.2 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game.  Damien Wilkins’ uncle is the best player in Atlanta Hawks’ history, Dominique ” The Human Highlight Film” Wilkins.

29-year old shooting guard Joe Johnson got a max deal from the Hawks over the summer and he’s playing like he’s counting his cash instead of focusing on playing basketball.  Johnson has played in 18 games (all starts) for the Hawks so far this year and he is averaging 35.5 minutes, 17.1 points, 4.1 rebounds and 5.2 assists per game.  Johnson is only shooting 40.9% from the floor and 25.6% from three point range so far this year and that’s awful for him.  The Hawks need Johnson to pick up the pace if they are going to play at a peak level.

UPDATE:  (12/2/2010) – Joe Johnson has underwent surgery on his right elbow earlier today and the injury will keep him out of action the next 4-6 weeks.

The Hawks will be without starting small forward Marvin Williams for a couple of weeks due to a knee problem. Williams has played in 5 games (all starts) so far this year and he is averaging 30.8 minutes, 10.8 points, 6.0 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game. Josh Smith has replaced Williams as the small forward, Al Horford has moved from center to power forward and Jason Collins is starting at center while Williams is out of action. Collins has played in 5 games (3 starts) for the Hawks so far this year and he is averaging 10.8 minutes, 2.8 points, 1.2 rebounds and 0.4 assists per game.

The Hawks have given 24-year old center Al Horford a 5-year, $60 million dollar extension to his contract. Horford has played in 4 games (all starts) for the Hawks so far this year and he is averaging 27.0 minutes, 14.8 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game. He has now played in 233 games (229 starts) in his NBA career and he is averaging 33.2 minutes, 12.0 points, 9.7 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.1 blocked shots per game. I love this signing for the Hawks as the NBA is, and always will be, a big man’s game.

The Hawks have signed 32-year old center Etan Thomas to a 1-year deal. Thomas played in 23 games (1 start) for the Thunder last season and he averaged 14.0 minutes, 3.3 points and 2.8 rebounds per game. He has now played in 396 games (74 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 17.7 minutes, 5.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 0.4 assists and 1.1 blocked shots per game. The Hawks are starting to collect a lot of big men who aren’t that good.

The Hawks have re-signed 31-year old center Jason Collins. Collins played in 24 games (0 starts) for the Hawks last season and he averaged 4.8 minutes, 0.7 points, 0.6 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game. He has now played in 596 games (429 starts) in his NBA career and he has averaged 22.7 minutes, 4.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.0 assist per game. Collins will be sitting near the end of the bench in 2010-11 for the Hawks.