One of the current top 10 players in the NBA will become a free agent on July 1, 2010, and his name is not LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, or Chris Bosh.
Who's left in that top 10 list? The Hawks' Joe Johnson, a man who has assumed leadership of the early season's biggest surprise out of the East.
Before this season started, NBA talking heads pegged Boston, Orlando, and Cleveland as the East's top three seeds in some order (a real ballsy call, considering they were the top three last season and that they all improved in the offseason).
Now, a month into the season, Atlanta has powered its way into the discussion of the top contenders from the East. The Hawks ranked No. 1 in NBA.com's Power Rankings and ESPN.com's Power Rankings only two weeks ago, after they shocked just about everyone by jumping out to an 8-2 record after the first few weeks of the season.
Joe Johnson's game has been a main reason for the Hawks' ascension into the top tier of Eastern Conference teams this season.
Give Josh Smith credit: He seems to have learned to harness his talents (and to not keep jacking up three-pointers) as he conti ...
Read Full Article at Bleacher Report - NBA
Article written by Bryan Toporek
Hawks’ Joe Johnson Playing His Way into Serious 2010 Free Agent Money
December 6th, 2009 by Bryan Toporek Leave a reply »
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