ATL FTW | Hawks Franchise | NBA Live 19

Hawks Fly Under Radar
Winning matters - or does it?



To the surprise of just about everyone, the Hawks aren't terrible this year. With a roster of mostly young players with little experience on the big stage, Hawks fans thought this season was a write off. It appears rookie Trae Young was born ready, as the 19 year old is already putting up the numbers, averaging a clean 25 points a night. Coach Lloyd Pierce was taken aback when asked if Trae is a lock for rookie of the year, answering quickly - "and MVP too."

Trae isn't so sure of himself; "I turn the ball over too much" said the 19 year old rookie when asked about his coaches high praise - NBA vet and 8x All Star Vince Carter shouted across the room "fake humble" which got a loud laugh. Atlanta has a star to build around finally after years of treading water. Now it's up to Atlanta to take notice and rep their city and team, with dwindling attendance, it may be a race against time.

Last edited by tacitus kilgore on Wed Feb 06, 2019 4:39 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Trouble in Grizzlies den
Marc Gasol has demanded a trade, sources tell ESPN

It seems as if a Gasol is never meant to be a Grizzly for their whole career. With the Grizzlies struggling to get off the ground this season, the growing feeling among GMs in the league is that the Grizzlies owners are in denial. That denial met reality today when Marc Gasol requested a trade. The former all star big tweeted today: "I love Memphis. It's just time."

Memphis responded quickly, and if Yahoo Sports reporting is to be believed, Mike Conley is not off the table. Conley, who signed a massive extension two summers ago, has not shown any interest in being traded. Sources expect that a deal will be made before New Years.

Grizzlies-Lakers deal falls apart, Gasol headed to Atlanta
History almost repeated itself

The night before Christmas is supposed to be spent with family. The Lakers and Grizzlies spent the entire evening working out a multi player, multi pick deal that feel apart. Sources report that the Grizzlies have implied to league officials that the Lakers tampered with Gasol and his agent. This accusation forced the Lakers to back out, as the subject took over ESPN First Take, which led to Stephen A. Smith walking out of the studio mid debate due to the heated Max Kellerman, who went as far as to call Rich Paul and the Lakers cheaters.

Don't let the media frenzy distract you from the big picture: The Hawks, who are surprisingly 4th in the East, added veteran all star presence for two first rounders, most likely to yield a pick in the early 20s. Gasol is expected to play his first game as a Hawk at home against the Pacers on the 26th of December.


Gasol drops 30 in Hawks debut
Hawks win 104-99

The Player Coach

Paying it forward

Lloyd Pierce isn't afraid to share the spotlight. In the middle of team scrimmages, Vince Carter, 41, held the ball after a rebound - "Do that again, come here" - the bench players set the play up again, and as they went through the motions, Vince started getting in their ear. "Over the screen, not under! Stop clogging the passing lane!" Pierce, who's loud voice is routinely heard booming through the gym, left practice quietly.

Vince didn't seem to notice. The typical two hour Hawks practice turned into a five hour basketball clinic. The first hour was dedicated to relishing in contact, drawing the defender into you, "rip through rip through!" a half out of breath Carter told rookie Kevin Huerter, who was denied at the rim by a stiffling Vince Carter, "you'd be headed to the line right now." The next two were defensive based, with footwork being the primary focus.

"There is no excuse to shoot 3s all day", said Carter to ESPNs Brian Windhorst - "If I still had knees, I'd be shooting 30 free throws a night." Carter went on to say that too many young guys are "playing like they're scared to get injured" and that the physicality of the game has declined. The young Hawks team weren't shy about what they experienced, "Vince knows so much about the game" said star rookie point guard Trae Young, "It's crazy, he was one of my heroes as a kid, he's been through it all."

Trae Young and Vince have parallel locker rooms, talk before and after games, go eat together, "Vince has a lot of love for the young guys" said Marc Gasol, who only joined the team a few days ago, but played with Gasol in Memphis, "It inspires me to pay it forward too."

Jeremy Lin better win the MVP award!

Interesting direction to take this team. You have a nice young group around experienced veterans like Gasol and Carter.

Awesome to see someone do a story with a modern NBA Live. Following.

Hawks win low scoring bout with T-Wolves

91-81



"I thought it was over"

Trusting God

"I felt a part of me dying" Jeremy Lin said describing his first reaction to his horrific knee injury suffered in Brooklyn last year. Lin, who was once the center of media attention for his meteortic rise to fame, became the center of attention for a different reason, still in New York - the funeral of his career.

Quietly however, Lin was rekindling the flame that got him this far, "I thought it was over, God didn't", "I spent hours and hours in rehab and the gym, I didn't think about getting traded." The trade, made in July, showed the value others put in Lin - "I took it as having something to prove", Lin was dealt to the Hawks for the rights of a player who hasn't touched the hardwood and a 2nd rounder.

As the season started, Lin struggled with trust. "I got back to trusting God, but doubting my body." Lin was settling more, and slashing less - "getting to the rim again broke the ice." That it did, as Jeremy Lin is having one of the best seasons of his career, even if the media has been late to notice.

Interesting direction to take this team. You have a nice young group around experienced veterans like Gasol and Carter.

I think it fits the Hawks' tendency to be a treadmill team, to gun for the playoffs at the slightest hint of success. Hope we can add another piece and contend next year though.

Definitely cool to see an NBA Live 19 story. A nice subplot with Lin gunning for Sixth Man of the Year, too.

Jeremy Lin traded to the Raptors

Sixth Man of the Year front runner headed North

Jeremy Lin was yanked from Hawks practice yesterday as rumors swirled of a trade. The Lebronless East is up for grabs this year, and many across the league are taking this as the beginning of the arms race. Small forward/stretch 4 CJ Miles will be an Atlanta Hawk this season, as a package around the vet, Malachi Richardson and a 2nd rounder was enough to seal the deal.

Toronto is well known for its East Asian community, within minutes of the trade being confirmed, ticket sales saw a 10% spike in cost. As fate would have it, Lin will make his debut against the Hawks squad he was practicing with only a week ago on the 8th of January.

Joe Goes Home

Joe Johnson returns to Atlanta on 1 year deal

Joe Johnson, the former all star shooting guard, spent the best years of his career in Atlanta. After years apart, the Hawks and Johnson have met once more. The trade that sent Lin to the Raptors last night left a gap in ball handling off the bench, and the rest is history. Rookie point guard took to Twitter to welcome his new team mate, posting a photo of himself in Johnson's Hawks jersey with the caption ''iso Joe let's go."

Last edited by tacitus kilgore on Tue Feb 12, 2019 6:56 am, edited 2 times in total.

Definitely cool to see an NBA Live 19 story. A nice subplot with Lin gunning for Sixth Man of the Year, too.

Plot twist! And yeah I like Live 19 gameplay wise, if I fill in the blanks myself I can still have a good time with franchise mode.

An unexpected development indeed!

Raptors beat Hawks 62-72

Lin and Johnson

"We got the work put on us", said an exhausted Trae Young in a post game interview; "we can't be watching each other on offense, we gotta move." The Hawks will have to put this one behind them quickly as they head to Brooklyn, finishing off their back to back road trip.



Dec-January Record Update