“We’re not in a do or die situation, but we want to go out and play well. No one wants to go to New York down 0-2.”GRANT LONG
ATLANTA – He had played 48 minutes in the previous encounter, the fifth game win-or-go-surfing scenario against Detroit. And he was superb. But the heavy duty took a lot out of Grant Long.
So when the Eastern Conference semifinal series opened with the Knicks in Game 1 Tuesday, suffice to say he was less than superb.
“I wasn’t my usual energized self, let’s just say that,” Long smiled before last night’s Game 2. “Not whether or not it was fatigue, I’d never admit it anyway. Let’s just see what happens from here.”
Long is one of the Hawks’ emotional leaders, a quiet, get-the-job-done without fanfare or publicity type. He is very popular, very well liked and respected by his teammates, most of whom felt for him after his Game 1 struggles that included 0-of-6 shooting from the floor. Long grabbed seven rebounds but clearly was not the demonstrative presence the Hawks need inside against the bigger Knicks.
“You have to take your hat off to Grant Long. The guy played 48 minutes the last six, seven games [a bit of a stretch] because with Alan Henderson out, we don’t have a back up for him,” said Steve Smith who was a teammate of Long’s in Miami as well before they were reunited with the Hawks. “There’s going to be a time where he breaks down and unfortunately for us it happened to be the other day where he just was tired.
“He couldn’t get down the court. He couldn’t do anything. I take my hat off to the guy, though, he played so many games without subs,” Smith continued. “It’s important for him to be feeling well, obviously. It’s hard to play a game when you’re that tired but you’re never going to admit it.”
See Long’s reaction above.
“But you could tell by his face and the way he was playing that he was fatigued. It took a lot out of him, the last series.”
Long, however, says that is all behind him. He vowed renewed energy for last night which was in essence a “must” win for the Hawks.
“We’re not in a do or die situation, but we want to go out and play well. No one wants to go to New York down 0-2,” Long offered.
