The Hawks' second annual Blog Night took place last night at Philips Arena, and the Hawks were nice enough to oblige our efforts to cull the best sports bloggers from the Atlanta area by putting on quite a show.

Frankly, last night's game couldn't have gone much better on the court. The Hawks came out smoking in the first half in much the same way they did against Chicago on Sunday, continuing the kind of up-tempo style that makes them infinitely more difficult to beat. They were incredibly unselfish against the Nuggets; every single player who saw meaningful action finished the night with at least 3 assists on the way to a season-best 33 dimes.

I don't want to jump to conclusions too quickly, but as I mentioned to several of the participants last night, it seems like the guys have started to figure this whole transition game out. If they go on to finish strongly and make the playoffs, I'm going to point to the second half against Cleveland on January 9 as the point where it appeared the light bulb collectively turned on. Since then, the Hawks have been pushing the ball very successfully in non-fastbreak situations, and if not for a few missed free throws (ok, more than a few) they'd be working on a nice little four-game winning streak right now.

I suppose we'll know for sure if something is really taking place here in the next segment of the schedule, as the Hawks start a 7-of-8 stretch on the road tonight in Milwaukee.

But back to Blog Night. We had a nice array of bloggers on hand (though no one drove in from Maine this year, I'm sorry to say), and since they got to see a convincing home win over one of the better teams in the West, many had very positive things to say about the experience (which included a pre-game arena tour, seats in a suite so they could tap away on their keyboards in peace, a post-game trip to Coach Woodson's press conference, and as a cherry on top, a chance to chat with Al Horford in the Hawks locker room).

It's funny - I don't think the sports world has quite figured out what to do with bloggers yet, but in both of the years we've done this (and once with the Atlanta Thrashers), everyone who has joined in has been respectful, courteous, and appreciative of the opportunity to take a small peek behind the curtain. If anything, I thought last night's crew went out of their way to prove nothing funny was going on (several perfectly acceptable questions for Horford were prefaced with "I swear, I am not writing this down!" qualifiers).

Certainly there are valid reasons to set standards for who you allow in as a member of the press, but as blogs become more and more mainstream, it will be interesting to see what kind of access they are given. Hopefully nights like this will help show that there are many people out there with intelligent, thought-provoking things to say about their subjects of choice - or at least will help continue the LOLcats craze. Either way works for me.

Here's a little sampling from last night; feel free to read the extended entries at each respective site:

Hoopinion:
"Denver fell so far behind in no small part due to Anthony Johnson's fine defense on Allen Iverson. Iverson still had a productive game (before getting tossed) but Johnson, for the most part, forced Iverson into scoring with his jumper. For a team that has had terrible problems keeping opposing guards from breaking them down off the dribble, I think this is as significant a lesson to take from this game as yet another example of how much more successful the Hawks are in transition as opposed to their half-court offense."

Kevin Cott:
"12:00 - Sitting to my left is the Crafty Veteran, whom I'm a little disappointed in at the moment.  The other night I agreed to wear an American flag bandana throughout tonight's game if he showed up in his white suit, but he chickened out.  We could have been the Springsteen and Don Johnson of Blog Night.  It would have been glorious.

0:00 - Fantastic tomahawk dunk by Mario West to close out the first half. It's unclear whether more credit belongs to the Hawks for pushing the tempo or the Nuggets for refusing to play any semblance of perimeter defense. I guess both were indispensable. Regardless, 65-44 Hawks after two."

Crafty Veteran:
"1:20 - Mario West just entered the game for the Hawks. He is my favorite story of the Hawks season so far. To go from a walk on a Georgia Tech to an NBA player based purely on working harder then anybody else is awesome."

"2:26 - The Hawks are playing Iverson very tough tonight. Usually, he is the type of player who gives the Hawks fits because of his quickness. But, Marvin and the Josh's are doing a great job of protecting the rim."

Hawks, Dawgs, and Jesus:
"Iverson makes a normal jumper and everyone ohhh and ahhhs. People, you don't have to make him feel better about himself because he is small."

"Josh Smith lists himself as a small forward on his myspace page, which I view as an official NBA document. Are there any other small forwards that do the opening tip?"

Atlanta Sports Fan:
"I wanted to watch for was to see how Childress gets so many rebounds considering his position, height, and the amount of court-time he sees. It’s clear, pretty quickly, that he is one of those guys that you could call a technical rebounder. For instance, he knows how to play the percentages on where the ball is going to carom on a miss, so he’s always standing in the right place at the right time. In short, I’d say he has good rebounding instincts."

"Marvin Williams picks up where he left off, scoring two quick points off a foul. Williams is a much better player than he gets credit for. He’s got a great jump shot, is an above average slasher, and has a pretty good low-post game for someone his size. He’s just an all-around good player and doesn’t get noticed. The only notoriety he has so far is that he was that guy drafted before Chris Paul."

Sports Gone South:
"The Hawks are starting to show off a variety of attacks; JSmoove just hit a running one-hander, and Horford bulldogged in a give-and-go shot with an And-one. This is the kind of thing that starts happening with a team on the upswing. Yes, I know they’re catching the Nuggets on the back end of consecutive road games, but this is a sign that the potential’s there."

"If Brett Favre plays the game like a little kid, the Hawks play basketball (at their best) like a group of playground all-stars, dishing and kicking and running the other team off the floor. They need one of those old Paul Westhead offenses, where they start running at the horn and don’t stop until they leap into bed at night. Screw fundamentals; if you can run yourself into 200 shots a night, you’ll be okay."

The Vent:
"Ocho Cinco is in the building. Jermaine Dupri is in the building bundled up like he's at the North Pole. It's cold outside and all, but it's not cold in this arena."

Braves and Birds:
"Childress makes me look good with a high hoop IQ play. He catches an attempted alley-oop pass from Acie Law that carried him past the basket. Instead of doing something dumb, he calmly locates Joe Johnson in the corner for an open three, which Joe nails. Kudos to Joe for running to the spot even though Law was throwing an alley-oop on the play."

"The extent of my interaction with Josh Smith:

Me: "Good game."

Him: "Thanks."

On the basis of this interaction, I have decided that the Hawks should pay him whatever he wants this summer."

Thanks again to everyone who participated - a few of the bloggers were familiar from last season, but there were also a few new faces, which was fun. And definitely thanks to the Hawks PR staff for agreeing to continue this tradition and also for arranging the time with the players - I fully expect an upswing in the number of Horford jerseys sold after last night.

Finally, if you read this and feel like you should be involved next year, well, start yourself a little blog and let us know about it. Who knows? It could be you up there next time.

Tonight the Hawks take on the Nuggets at Philips Arena in what promises to be one of the more entertaining games on the home slate. But that is only half of the fun going on tonight, at least for the internet community, as we will be hosting our second annual Blog Night during the game.

Several Hawks and Atlanta-area bloggers will be leaving their parents basements and hauling their laptops down to Philips tonight to live-blog the game, so if you can't make it down to the arena, definitely check out what they have to say over the course of the evening.

Here's a list of the blogs we expect to be represented tonight:

• Hoopinion
• Braves and Birds
• Hawks, Dawgs, and Jesus
• Atlanta Sports Fan
• Right Down Peachtree
• The Crafty Veteran
• Kevin Cott
• The Vent
• The Sporting Blog

Last year was a lot of fun, and we expect this year to provide just as much entertainment.

Blog Night went down at Philips Arena last night during the Hawk-Lakers tilt. As you can see from the picture above (thanks again to Dan Greenfield for passing along his photos), we had several bloggers with laptops in hand on hand to take in the action and provide their insight. As you can see, unlike the blogger stereotype, many of them appear to be clean-shaven and able to dress themselves on their own (though I suppose that part is debatable, I only got to see them once they arrived - but I'll give them the benefit of the doubt).

I for one had a great time - it's always fun to talk hoops with Hawks fans. Everyone has an opinion, and, much like a snowflake, every one of them is different.

Thanks to everyone who was able to make it out, and in particular, I have to give props to Chase, the editor of Impending Firestorm, who (and I am not making this up) drove to the game from Maine. Drove. From Maine. Chase, my hat is off to you, and I hope you enjoyed yourself and have either satellite radio or a 60 GB iPod to keep you company for your return home. That my friends is a dedicated fan.

Here are a few excerpts from the blogs who participated on the night:

The Crafty Veteran:
"Kiss Cam: And the highlight of the night is here. Easy now, Pops. There must be something in the air tonight or the crowd all watched Prince last night because they are definitely going at it more than usual. They didn't finish up with any of the players on the Lakers, but they highlighted two Lakers fans. I think we need to incorporate the idea of Kiss cam more into everyday life. Like at restaurants, movie theaters, malls or even work. Basically anywhere that needs a little extra spice."

Eric Cheek's Sports Chatter
"This city simply amazes me sometimes. Joe Johnson and Kobe Bryant just went back-and-forth exchanging three-pointers and the crowd roared each time the ball went through the basket. I have now decided that the average NBA fan simply roots for whoever is playing well at the time. That being said, the only thing that I hate about Atlanta (and I mean it, this is the ONLY thing that I hate) is that it seems like almost everyone is a fan of the “other team.” Maybe everyone is from another city originally or maybe it’s just “fashionable” to cheer for the Lakers. Either way, it disgusts me. We live in Atlanta, people!"

SportsGoneSouth:
"The Hawks have this fun promotion where if the team hits a three-pointer in a given two-minute span, some fan wins two free round-trip tickets on Delta. They’ve got a split-screen on the jumbotron now, and every time a Hawks player takes a step inside the perimeter, this fan looks like he’s going to keel over. Seriously–they need to hit an outside shot or this guy might croak on the spot."

Old School Nasty:
"Part of the 4th quarter turned into a duel between Joe and Kobe. Since the crowd was divided about 50/50 between Hawks and Lakers fans, there was a weird phenomenon going on. It had the feeling of a NCAA tournament game. Kobe hit a 3 and half the building went crazy, then seconds later Joe Johnson nails a three and the other half of the crowd explodes."

Hotlanta Hawks:
"Last night at the invitation of the great Micah Hart (the man that runs the Hawks website) (Ed. note - his words, not mine), a whole mess of bloggers rambled on down to Philips Arena to take in the Hawks vs. Kobe. I won't divulge too much about the men behind the greatest websites in the A, other than to say, well, we're all white dudes. I guess it's true what they say: "white people love blogging."

Impending Firestorm:
"8:13 Halftime. Gotta make sure I meet Mr. Smith (Sekou, the Hawks' AJC beat writer). They just talked about improving temperatures, which is 50 for them. It’s a little cooler up in Maine people, relax. They treat the game like it’s a show, they do a good job. There is some dude in a box for the halftime show. The world’s most flexible man apparently. He’s in a box.

8:17 Holy crap this guy is insane. I’m not sure who he is but his body shouldn’t be doing that. I think we’ve got a problem here…can someone call an ambulance?"

Braves and Birds:
"6:56 - Joe sets up Tyronne Lue for a THREEEEEE!!!!! Joe only has seven points so far, so the Hawks' barometer sees a storm. Then again, he's doing a good job on Kobe right now. I forgot to mention when I was whining about Johnson's all-star snub that his defensive production is just a wee bit better than that of Vinsanity. But then again, who is better suited for a meaningless exhibition in which there is no defense or passing?"

Rise Up Mofos:
"Philips Arena is awash with the putrid colors of Purple and Gold; Kobe jerseys are cheap tonight. Unfortunately, I think that there are as many people cheering for the Lakers as there are for the Hawks. I’m surprised as I would’ve figured that Kobe would’ve done his image permanent damage with the Colorado incident. He’s definitely a polarizing figure- when he was announced there were a ton of cheers and a ton of boos. I just don’t get the allure of Kobe’s game- the guy shoots way too much and doesn’t seem to elevate the players around him. I think that this was evident last season when Kobe was sitting at home during the playoffs and Shaq was winning another ring with the Heat. I’ve always argued that Shaq was the Show in LA and was the primary reason for the Championships; I think somewhere in Kobe’s mind he knew that too and that’s why he was always crying and pouting about Shaq."

Kevin Cott:
"7:39 - Bow Wow in the house. Also here are Martin Lawrence and Tim Allen(?!!).

7:40 - THIRD PHENOMENAL ALLEY-OOP OF THE QUARTER BY JOSH! Now is a good time to point out that I absolutely love his game this year. Hustles his ass off, changes the game defensively, can probably get higher on the glass than anyone else in the league - he’s quietly become a legit force.

7:46 - Right now I’m looking over Jeremy’s shoulder and announcing his observations to him as if they were my own. He’s not amused. But I am."

Hawks Hack:
"Everytime the Hawks would get close (i.e. within three), the Lakers would just pull enough away, but the Hawks would turn it on and come back. Eventually, the Hawks put up a good showing, but they ran out of gas and the Lakers were able to win by seven. The Hawks might have lost the game, but they showed great tenacity in coming back so many times when they were down and I enjoyed the experience of “Blog Night.” It was great to talk to other bloggers who share the same passion for the Hawks as I do."

Bernaisesource:
"In the end, it was a really great experience. It was interesting to hang out with bloggers who are more passionate about the subject matter than the technology that drives their discussions. I haven't decided about live blogging. It gives you a sense of immediacy, but it is hard for me to do much reflecting as I get caught up in the half time show -- the contortionist -- Rubberboy -- and the contortions of Kobe Bryant freeing himself from some pretty intense man-to-man coverage to score a basket."

All in all, I think it was a good time had by all, and thanks to everyone who came out and participated. For those that didn't...it's not too late. We may just do this again sometime this season, so if you are thinking of starting a Hawks-related blog, let us know!

Tonight is going to be a big night at Philips (as I may have just written in the title to this post). Not only are the Mamba-led Lakers in town, but tonight is our first-ever Blog Night as well. Over a dozen Atlanta-area bloggers are signed up to come down, laptops in tow, to provide you with their thoughts and analysis of the game as it happens (or soon thereafter, it's entirely up to them).

The Hawks will be looking for their second win in two days, thanks to yesterday's 101-99 win at New Jersey courtesy of your favorite braided Hawk and mine, Tyronn Lue. Lue downplayed his efforts slightly when I spoke to him about his game-winning buzzer-beater this morning, but if you watch the highlight of the play (which I have done several times already this morning), you can see just how excited the team (and Lue himself) was to come out of the Meadowlands with such an important victory.

Joe Johnson once again was spectacular, continuing his All-Star retribution tour by dropping 37 points on the Nets and their two All-Stars Vince Carter and Jason Kidd, but this game was a team effort. Everyone who played chipped in, including Speedy Claxton, who continues to show a little rust from his layoff. His offense may not be where he'd like it to be yet, but defensively, Claxton made two plays yesterday that were complete difference makers - the charge he drew late in regulation against a streaking Kidd, and then his pilfering of Carter with 33 ticks left in overtime and the Hawks clinging to a one-point lead.

Neither of the Hawks floor-generals are even close to 100% right now, but yesterday gave a tantalizing preview once again of some of the things they are capable of when they are up and running.

Tonight's game is going to be a tough one, no doubt, as any game is against a team with Kobe Bryant on the roster. Hawks assistant coach Greg Ballard said in breaking down the Lakers this morning that Bryant isn't the only one to focus on - Lamar Odom and company will be every bit as important to focus on tonight in order for the Hawks to win.

We have seen the Hawks play much improved basketball over the last couple weeks, winning five of their last seven. Still, this is the kind of game they need to win to show they have really put the slump of late December-early January to rest.

Can they get it done? Join us and a chunk of the Atlanta blogging community tonight at Philips and find out!

See you there!