Eastern Conference

Sporting News, The, March 15, 1999 by Jerry Bembry, Curtis Bunn, Peter May, John Delong, John Jackson, Bob Finnan, Steve Addy, Mark Montieth, Ira Winderman, Gregg Hoffmann, John Brennan, Greg Logan, Bill Fay, Jon Marks, Craig Daniels

Atlanta

Hawks offense is downright offensive

The Hawks have been pathetic on offense lately. Their horrific passing is difficult to overcome, and they continue to rank at the bottom of the league in assists. Worse, they are inept at making entry passes to low post players, and their spacing is abysmal. As a perimeter-shooting team, they're awful. Only Steve Smith is reliable outside, but point guard Mookie Blaylock continues to hoist 3-pointers, despite shooting 27 percent from downtown. And Blaylock has been unable, or unwilling, to create for his teammates via dribble penetration. It also doesn't help the Hawks' scoring chances when they throw the ball inside to center Dikembe Mutombo. He has the offensive moves of a tree, but for some reason, his teammates stand around and watch him pound the ball into the floor en route to a slow-motion move across the lane. Somehow, coach Lenny Wilkens has to institute an offensive scheme that promotes movement and proper spacing.

SEE A DIFFERENT GAME: Any game different from what the Hawks have played recently would be an improvement, because it certainly can't get worse. Look for Atlanta to be more conscious of taking the ball to the basket and pounding it inside to Henderson and Smith instead of throwing up 3-pointers before time expires on the shot dock. It's the best way to get out of the scoring slump. --Curtis Bunn

Boston

The Bomb Squad is wreaking havoc

Coach Rick Pitino has reason to be optimistic about his team. His rotation finally is rounding into shape, and that is bad news for the Celtics' opponents, who will begin experiencing the dreaded Boston press and trap. With Ron Mercer healthy and Walter McCarty able to go, Pitino is more comfortable with his starting lineup and his second unit, which has drawn the nickname "The Bomb Squad" for its ability to drop the big one and change things dramatically. McCarty, Bruce Bowen, Dana Barros and Andrew DeClercq are the main members of that group. They specialize in trapping, pressing, forcing turnovers and, most important, wearing down opponents. They were especially effective against the Nuggets last week, who were visibly tired by the end of the game. Pitino doesn't think twice about substituting en masse, and only injuries or unexpected foul trouble will alter things.

SEE A DIFFERENT GAME: The blending of crazy and conservative apparently is what we're going to see for a while. Pitino will play it straight with his starters and then bring in the reserves to wreak havoc. There are, of course, inherent risks in such a policy, and it's not always going to work. But it's also amazing to see NBA players, supposedly the best in the world, who have no clue how to deal with a basic trap. Pitino knows that, and that's why the strategy works much of the time. --Peter May

Charlotte

Club has bright spots despite its poor record

Though the team hasn't played well, individual performances from J.R. Reid, Bobby Phills and Chuck Person have offered hope for the franchise in the future. Reid and Phills continue to be the Hornets' most consistent and valuable players and were averaging 14.5 points and 14.3 points, respectively, through 15 games. Person broke out of a recent slump in the Hornets' 96-82 win at New Jersey last Thursday with a season-high 21 points, including four straight 3-pointers in the first quarter. Before last Sunday, Person had picked up his 3-point shooting, going 12-of-24 in a six-game stretch after a 4-of-23 slump.

SEE A DIFFERENT GAME: For the first time all season, the pot boiled over for point guard David Wesley after the Hornets' 93-76 loss at Orlando last week. Instead of taking the tactful approach and giving standard, partyline answers for the Hornets' seventh double-digit loss of the season, Wesley ripped into the team, himself included. "We have a sickening record and this is a sickening season we're having so far," Wesley said. "Each guy has to do whatever it takes to hit that first shot or get that first stop, because when we take four or five possessions to get going, it's like we're down 10 points already. We're not the kind of team that can play catch-up basketball all night." --John Delong

Chicago

Defense must come first when offense is worst

Last week the Bulls had four consecutive off days--a rare inactive period during the season's condensed 50-game schedule--but didn't use the stretch like their missing All-Star break. Coach lira Floyd used the time to address some of the problems that contributed to the 4-12 start. He hopes extending some practice sessions will help.... The Bulls are in dire need of a defensive focus, considering they gave up more than 100 points in recent back-to-back poundings by the Pistons and 76ers. Early on, the defense kept the team competitive while newcomers concentrated on learning the triangle offense. Before the loss to the Pistons, the Bulls had held five straight opponents under the century mark. They have little chance of staying dose, much less winning, when surrendering a lot of points because the offense hasn't increased its output significantly. Through last weekend, the Bulls were last in the league in scoring with 80.8 points a game.