What a performance tonight by Marvin Williams. I can't say enough about it. Normally a more deferential player who rarely does more than take what is given, Marv asserted himself tonight when his team needed him most, playing more aggressively than ever before in a 102-97 win at Charlotte. He was a revelation. No matter who they put on him, Marvin would put the ball on the deck and get to the hole, never letting shot-blockers like Emeka Okafor and DeSagana Diop intimidate him either.

Williams has scored more points than the season-high 29 he had tonight (his career-best is 33 last year in Seattle), but I daresay it'll be a while before any Hawks player earns their final tally the way he did tonight. Marvin was 18-20 from the charity stripe, a welcome turn for a team still struggling to convert free throws. 20 free throws! That is aggressiveness defined. Clearly the Hawks coaching staff impressed upon Marvin that this was what the team needed with Joe Johnson out with a viral infection, as Marv's previous career-high for FTAs was 14, which he set...Wednesday against the Timberwolves.

With offensive talents like JJ, Mike Bibby, and Josh Smith usually grabbing the headlines, Marvin generally gets a quiet 14-16 points most nights. And when Joe comes back (hopefully Saturday night against the Clippers), he may return to that role, who knows. But it's nice to know that when called upon, Marvin can be every bit the destructive force on offense as his more highly-touted teammates.

The team deserves a lot of credit for nabbing two straight road wins without their All-Star, and if nothing else, they certainly proved the Hawks are no longer a one-trick pony.

UPDATE: This just in from PR - the last time a Hawks player attempted 20+ free throws in a game, strangely enough, was Steve  Smith on Feb. 6, 1999 - ten years ago to the day! Smitty was 18-21 from the foul line that night. Againt it shows just how impressive Marvin's performance last night truly was...