A Wednesday Night at Philips Arena

So I was at the Hawks/Spurs game last night at the Highlight Factory (laughter).... and had a few thoughts....10 to be exact

1. The Crowd was absolutely dreadful....first of all, the game was "sold out"....this is a shocker in itself since it's the Hawks, but at tip time...I'm not exaggerating here at all btw....it was maybe 30% full....the stands filled throughout but it was probably the most lackluster packed house I've ever witnessed...it was worse than any late 90's Braves crowd....ESPECIALLY when you factor that the game was in single digits throughout, Tony Parker was out of control, and Joe Johnson had 30 points
2. Josh Smith was abysmal....this isn't news....3-12 shooting....a total liability on the offensive end....sounds like a broken record to me...
3. Flip Murray was absolutely unconscious in the 1st half...and Mike Woodson subsequently rewarded his 6-8 FG, 13 point half with only 28 minutes even on a night when Mike Bibby had it going AND Tony Parker was doing whatever he wanted....
4. Speaking of Parker....there's no matchup on this team for him....Mike Woodson won't even think about putting Bibby on him....Joe Johnson is too tall and Parker can just blow by him....Flip isn't a good defender...Acie Law was in street clothes....but after all that....Parker was UNBELIEVABLE last night....18-25 FG...42 points, 10 dimes and I had the feeling throughout he could've had 55-60...he took the entire 3rd quarter off it seemed like...if he makes jump shots, he's literally unguardable....and you don't realize how fast/crafty he really is until you are live
5. Roger Mason....24 minutes...18 points....0 assists....he was in a zone shooting it (7-10) but I can't get a dime? Speaking of which...I was informed last night by a confidant (hm, Ryan) that the Spurs had 13 assists for the game....they scored 102 points.....aka alot of Iso's for Tony Parker and Roger Mason....
6. Oh yea...I forgot...Tim Duncan, aka the most valuable player of the the last 15 years and the best Power Forward of all time....was a late scratch.....Manu Ginobili was a shell of himself...and the Spurs won by 10 on the road in a building that the Hawks had been dominating in.....I have no idea
7. Mario West should never play 9 minutes in a close game....
8. I liked Drew Gooden better with the hair patch....
9. Has anyone noticed that Bruce Bowen is D-O-N-E? His minutes are now Ime Udoka's....he looked old/slow/disinterested last night...like visibly so....and if your only skill is defense/intensity/etc...and you can't do that? Good luck to you....
10. This Hawks team isn't beating Miami in round 1....say what you want....home-court, blah blah blah.....Who stops Wade? Is there an ounce of your being that thinks if he wants to win the series the Heat won't win it? I've seen this movie before....Home court helps...but the team I saw last night doesn't stand a chance against a full-strength Heat squad.....add in Bennett Salvatore with a zebra shirt....end of series