Tyrone Corbin was asked what the biggest difference is between playing for the Atlanta Hawks and his old team, the Utah Jazz.
"In Atlanta it's a lot more up-tempo," Corbin said. "You come down and look to get something real quick. With Utah it was more take it down, be patient and work the ball inside."Surprise! That was the old Jazz, Ty. This year's edition wants to run the ball more.
"I hadn't heard anything about that," Corbin said, sounding a little skeptical. Then he added, "They do have the talent to play up-tempo."
So far the Jazz have shown both sides of their collective personality, running the ball in a victory over Miami at home and doing the John Stockton-to-Karl Malone thing in a loss to the Seattle SuperSonics in Tacoma.
What the Jazz will do against the Hawks on Monday (7 p.m.) at the Delta Center is anybody's guess.
As for the Hawks, Corbin says they are still trying to put it together. They are winless, having lost two tough ones at home.
"When you have a lot of new guys on a team, it's going to take time to adjust," Corbin said. "Once we get through this growing-pain period, we have enough talent to compete with anybody."
The Hawks' biggest pain was caused by the offseason loss of Danny Manning, who is basking in the Phoenix sun. And starting guard Craig Ehlo is out with an injury.
Besides Corbin, the key new guy for the Hawks is Ken Norman, the starting small forward. That means Corbin comes off the bench, a job he's familiar with.
"It's a role I've played at different times in my career, and I'm comfortable with it," he said. "You always work to be a starter, but you also go out and play the role that's handed to you."
Corbin has struggled so far, hitting just four of 16 shots from the field in two games.
"I haven't played as well as I'm capable yet," he said. "But everybody's still kind of off-key right now."