Vaughn Finally Finds the Range

Jacque Vaughn took the question in stride. After all, the Atlanta Hawk point guard had been asked plenty of times over the past month and a half.

How does a former first-round draft pick and the one-time heir apparent to John Stockton miss 22 straight shots?

“I think I was taking good shots, but they just weren’t going down,” Vaughn said patiently.

But Jacque, 22 in a row? All at the beginning of your first season with the Hawks?

“Well, it was over four games. Some guys shoot that many times in one game,” he said.

Whatever the reason, Vaughn finally made a shot in the fifth game--and promptly missed his next four.

Since that dreadful start, though, he’s gotten his shooting percentage back to a respectable 47 percent, hitting 57 percent in his past 24 games, including a 2-for-2 performance Thursday against Miami.

He still has lapses, like an 0-for-4 against Chicago followed by a 1-for-5 against Indiana, but for the most part, his game is back to normal.

That wasn’t the case during “The Streak.”

Vaughn, a quiet, likable fifth-year player who speaks in measured tones, was the butt of plenty of jokes. Like everything else, he took them well.

“I let people say what they wanted to say,” Vaughn said. “I knew that I could get the job done. And I had all of my teammates behind me. So none of that really ever bothered me.”

His change of scenery probably was part of Vaughn’s problem. After four years in Utah as the backup to Stockton, Vaughn wasn’t offered a contract. He signed with Atlanta as a free agent and found himself on the bench again, this time behind journeyman Emanuel Davis.

“I had been in Utah for so long, I knew what to expect, from the coaches, the players, everything,” Vaughn said. “I was excited coming here, but also a little apprehensive.”

Missing eight shots in the opener against Houston didn’t help.

“I think it was only natural he started pressing a little bit,” Atlanta coach Lon Kruger said. “Jacque’s a conscientious young man who cares about his team and his teammates. So I think he started trying a little too hard.”

The 26-year-old Vaughn didn’t get much playing time in those first four games, averaging 16 minutes. When he returned to Utah with the Hawks for the fifth game, things started to go his way.

First of all, he made a shot. Secondly, he played 36 minutes and handed out eight assists. Atlanta lost by seven, but Vaughn had contributed.

“It felt good to make a shot,” he said, “but I knew it would happen eventually.”

Since then, Vaughn has taken over as the starting point guard--after Davis broke his nose--and he’s played consistently.

Just how far he’s come was evident in a Dec. 11 victory over Philadelphia. The Hawks trailed by one in the closing seconds, and the play was set up for Jason Terry to go one-on-one. But Terry got double-teamed, and threw a pass to a wide-open Vaughn.

With no one around, Vaughn had time to set his feet and shoot, and the ball fell cleanly through for a one-point victory.

“I knew he was going to knock that down,” Terry said. “I never lost confidence in him. Jacque’s a veteran player who’s going to help this team out. He had a tough start, but it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.”

That’s what Vaughn is striving for--a strong finish.

“I came here because I wanted to be a part of this team, to help this team get better and make the playoffs,” he said. “I don’t have to score a lot of points or make a lot of shots to do that.”

Then he flashed a smile.

“But it’s nice to know I can.”