Atlanta Hawks: Camp Report Day 7
It appears the Hawks are in no hurry to add another veteran guard. And if Kirk Hinrich continues his quick recovery from shoulder surgery, Larry Drew said there’s a chance they may try to get by with that they have until he returns to the lineup.
“It sounds like he is healing pretty good,” Drew said today. “From my understanding, he is ahead of schedule, and that is a good thing. He wants to hurry up and get back but we have got to let this thing take its course. It’s something you can’t rush. Those type injuries they could really set you back.”
Hinrich had the procedure in early November and the Hawks said he would be out 3-4 months. He’s been shooting baskets but still doesn’t have full range of motion and hasn’t been cleared to run.
Drew said the Hawks inquired about free agent point guard Carlos Arroyo but were told he’s playing elsewhere. He said there have been internal discussions about Gilbert Arenas and other free agents but “right now we are not making decisions on any of those guys.”
So it’s possible the Hawks could start the season without adding another vet guard and patch it together while Hinrich mends.
“We’ve talked about that as a [coaching] staff and management,” Drew said. “But timetable-wise there is no guarantee when he is going to come back. It’s not like we know, ‘Exactly this date,’ and know what we are working with. We’ve got to make a decision from that point. Do we try to keep our head above water until he gets back or do we get some help? Right now we are going to go with what we have and if something falls through the cracks we will take a look.”
Right now at point guard the Hawks have Jeff Teague and Pape Sy plus camp invitees Brad Wanamaker and Donald Sloan. The shooting guards are veterans Joe Johnson and Tracy McGrady as well as camp invitees Zach Graham and Jerry Stackhouse. Sy and Wanamaker also can play there, and Drew said even Marvin Williams could spot minutes at shooting guard.
You can see that without Hinrich available to play both guard spots there’s not much depth at all, much less guys the Hawks can be certain will be productive and reliable. It spills over to small forward, too, where there is no real backup for Williams. McGrady, Johnson and Josh Smith can fill in there.
Camp report
- Rick Sund can sign another veteran to a minimum deal. I’m not certain if that would cause the Hawks to dip their toe across the luxury-tax line. They likely will end up with enough non-guaranteed contracts on the roster that they can make some adjustments later to avoid a year-end tax bill.
- Drew will have the ability to send out some very big lineups. How about McGrady, Johnson, Smith, Al Horford and Jason Collins or McGrady, Johnson, Williams, Smith, and Horford? “There are some different combinations I can use,” Drew said.
- Drew said Sy “has come a long ways as far as improvement,” called Wanamaker “a heady player” and still sounds like he’d like to keep Stackhouse: “He’s had a good camp so far.”
- As you probably heard by now, Jamal Crawford signed with Portland. It turns out he could have been had for the mid-level.
- The Hawks weren’t scrimmaging when media types were let in today but reports say Magnum Rolle has looked pretty good. Word is he’s playing much more aggressively than he did during last season’s Hawks practices and the June minicamp. Atlanta, of course, could use another true big in the rotation behind Al Horford, Zaza Pachulia, Jason Collins and Smith.
- Drew said McGrady sat out yesterday with a sore arm. He was back on the court today.
- Drew said there will be a short practice tomorrow followed by a 45-minute scrimmage. The public event starts at
7:307 p.m. at Philips Arena.
Michael Cunningham, Hawks beat
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350 comments Add your comment
Joe.Jeff.Smith.Leuer.Bogut
December 16th, 2011
8:15 pm
Why doesnt Horford want to guard Pachulia…
Slimjr
December 16th, 2011
8:15 pm
T-mac, conserving his energy for 12-28!
superiorblogman
December 16th, 2011
8:16 pm
Al tried to use his left hand for a change
Melvin
December 16th, 2011
8:17 pm
ZaZa what are you doing? Please don’t foul Marvin that hard in a scrimmage. He’s liable to miss the next month due to back spams…LOL
Joe.Jeff.Smith.Leuer.Bogut
December 16th, 2011
8:17 pm
Marvin’s signature rebound brick and putback.
marvin Williams
6′8.25″; 7′3.5″ wingspan
Chris Webber
6′10″; 7′3.5″ wingspan
All that wingspan…If only Marvin were an inch or two taller.
Slimjr
December 16th, 2011
8:17 pm
Marvin looks about 6′10″ out there!!! Also looks smoother and more fluid! Good for him!
Melvin
December 16th, 2011
8:19 pm
Who’s your Pape….
superiorblogman
December 16th, 2011
8:19 pm
Pape with the hops
FreshFromATL
December 16th, 2011
8:19 pm
Damn Pape got up lol…
BoneKollector
December 16th, 2011
8:19 pm
Pop!!!
Slimjr
December 16th, 2011
8:19 pm
Nice entry from Jsmoove for a dunk for Marv!
Joe.Jeff.Smith.Leuer.Bogut
December 16th, 2011
8:19 pm
Smith with the hero thread pass.
Smith with turnover then athletic dive on the floor, leads to alley oop. Trade Horford hes bumming it up against backups.
FreshFromATL
December 16th, 2011
8:21 pm
T-Mac is out there trying to do circus plays and ish….
Slimjr
December 16th, 2011
8:21 pm
I’m getting dizzy watching AIR-HARRY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
Slimjr
December 16th, 2011
8:23 pm
C’mon AIR HARRY PULL YOUR PANTS UP DUDE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!lol
Melvin
December 16th, 2011
8:24 pm
The Wizards uniforms are terrible. They hurt my eyes…
FreshFromATL
December 16th, 2011
8:25 pm
SMH @ the video presentation, lol
vava74
December 16th, 2011
8:25 pm
WTF are these guys doing. we want to see the product, not these freaking announcements!
Melvin
December 16th, 2011
8:26 pm
Did anyone else loose their feed?
FreshFromATL
December 16th, 2011
8:29 pm
Scrimmage is just sloppy now…
Can’t take much from this imo…
superiorblogman
December 16th, 2011
8:30 pm
Team has a long way to go. No-one playing like they are ready for the season to start.
BoneKollector
December 16th, 2011
8:31 pm
The presentation is terrible lol
ads flashing up low volume just weird lol
Najeh Davenpoop
December 16th, 2011
8:35 pm
The best part about this scrimmage is that someone else is wearing #12, which is a constant reminder that Josh Powell is no longer an Atlanta Hawk.
Melvin
December 16th, 2011
8:37 pm
Cut/Waive #44 right now for setting a hard pick on Teague…
Najeh Davenpoop
December 16th, 2011
8:38 pm
The only people playing hard are the unknown camp invites. #12 and #44 in particular. Everyone else is just chillin as they should be.
I see Kirk’s shoulder doesn’t hurt so bad that he can’t suit up.
Najeh Davenpoop
December 16th, 2011
8:40 pm
#44 seems like the type who would love popping that mid range jumper regardless of game situation and regardless of whether he is 0/10 already in the game. Kinda like Josh Powell, come to think of it.
Najeh Davenpoop
December 16th, 2011
8:44 pm
I see they are still going with the goddamn organ instead of paying the royalty money to play actual songs.
FreshFromATL
December 16th, 2011
8:46 pm
LMAO @ Najeh. ASG are cheap as sh!t
vava74
December 16th, 2011
8:47 pm
Teague is in mid-season form missing lay ups and tear drops!
Melvin
December 16th, 2011
8:48 pm
Wannamaker looks pretty good…
Macaroni Tony
December 16th, 2011
8:51 pm
JT0 is looking good out there besides that floater
Melvin
December 16th, 2011
8:52 pm
Teague move so quick, I think I’m going to sprain my ankle just watching him
superiorblogman
December 16th, 2011
8:55 pm
Teague gets anywhere anytime he wants, but he needs to finish consistently.
FreshFromATL
December 16th, 2011
8:55 pm
This was nothing more than a relaxed, glorified “pick-up” game. Can’t really take nothing from this except for no one got hurt…
Dueces
Melvin
December 16th, 2011
9:10 pm
Here’s a backup PG we can sign until Hinrich gets healthy…
Chuck Swirsky: Bull waive Jannero Pargo Twitter
Prison Mike
December 16th, 2011
9:18 pm
I wonder if LA is open to trading Kobe for Joe and filler most likely Marvin. Rumors of Kobe wanting out and divorce papers…
superiorblogman
December 16th, 2011
9:19 pm
What I took from this. I think Wannamaker will stick around longer than Sloan and is a better option than Pape at backup PG. I prefer Benson over Rolle. I will take Stack over McGrady. The starters did not impress. Teague can get anywhere anytime but needs to stop turning ball over and finish. This is just camp and preseason never know what happens when it’s showtime.
vava74
December 16th, 2011
9:28 pm
Liked Benson. He seems to be fond of rebounding. Good hands around the basket.
Rolle looks Solo mk.2 – good midrange nothing around the rim.
vava74
December 16th, 2011
9:29 pm
Watching the Nuggets scrimmage – as a reference – :
Faried is Fa-riel
rudy
December 16th, 2011
10:09 pm
wait! wait! wait!….the hawks signed jerry stackhouse, nothing against jerry or tracy but we are trying to get pass the 2nd round in the playoffs and now it seem we will not even sniff the playoffs…the hawks did what?!!!! dam dam dam…………….
Astro Joe
December 16th, 2011
10:12 pm
I just came back from the scrimmage but it looks like you all may have been able to check it out. A few first hand observations (mostly the new guys):
#44 Ivan Johnson knows how to set a screen and is THICK. He has decent skills and is clearly a tough guy. They have him listed at 6′8″ but that seemed way generous to me. He won’t make the team but I loved the toughness he brought to the court.
#25 Magnum Rolle appears to have passed by #13 Keith Benson. Neither struck me as being particularly athletic. Benson is longer and probably is a little more athletic. Rolle is much better. They are listed at 6″11 but Benson seemed taller than Rolle. Rolle was listed as being 5 pounds heavier but appeared closer to 20 pounds heavier to me. Rolle looks like a poor man’s Jason Thompson. I think he could be a keeper. Benson clearly has some skills but was being moved around like a toy.
Pape Sy is as much of a legit back-up NBA PG as I am. He is crazy athletic but please, let’s end the nonsense that he is a PG.
Wanamaker and Sloan looked pretty good. Wanamaker specifically deflected a few passes, seemed willing to attack the rim, help on the boards and knocked down some open jumpers. Hinrich-like IMO. Sloan probably has a more explosive offensive game.
TMac still has tremendous court vision but looked a little gimpy to me. I could see a scenario where we could skate by with TMac and Wanamaker sharing the back-up PG role. But if Teague gets hurt, we’re doomed as neither should play more than 18-20 minutes combined there (from my observation).
Stack is done. He may be a nice leader at the end of the bench but he looked like a guy who should be directing practice drills and not practicing.
None of the other wing players really struck me. Neither did Garcia.
Starters: Marvin looked a little more spry but still was more than ready to defer. Josh took a lot of jumpers and made quite a few early. Joe may not have much personality but he is so stupid talented that he made most others look like me on the court. Al didn’t appear to be in bad shape but seemed a little disinterested (or maybe tired). Teague is clearly a blur but still seems unsure what to do when he penetrates into tall traffic.
Others: Vlad appears better than I expected. He seems like a complete offensive player with a decent handle and court awareness. Zaza appeared to be ready for the season.
I think that covers it. The one strange thing was that Stack greeted the fans at the start of the scrimmage. Kind of strange that someone without a signed contract would be repping the franchise in that setting. And there were no signs of Jason Collins (at least I didn’t see him on the bench and he certainly didn’t play).
That’s my eyewitness report.
Astro Joe
December 16th, 2011
10:28 pm
Justin_Stangel Justin Stangel
Kobe Bryant’s wife Vanessa files for divorce. Apparently whatever he did wrong, they didn’t make a big enough ring
The Truth
December 16th, 2011
10:31 pm
AJ
your assessment seems to be contrary to LD. What give is?
doc
December 16th, 2011
10:35 pm
astro, nothing at all about your whipping boy josh or is he not on the team anymore?
interestimg oversight.
Astro Joe
December 16th, 2011
10:39 pm
The Truth, I saw about 2 hours of a scrimmage so I HAVE to defer to the head coach who has watched these guys play more than just the two hours.
doc, you missed it, I made a comment about his jumpers in the “Starters” section. I covered just about everyone by name except 2-3 wing players who made no impression whatsoever.
Astro Joe
December 16th, 2011
10:46 pm
Oh and there was a surprising number of fans down there. A long line had formed before the doors opened. If I were the ASG, I would have been thrilled with the interest in my product tonight.
Grandmaster JeJe
December 16th, 2011
10:59 pm
EVERYONE TALKS LIKE STACK MADENE TEAM. HE TALKS LIKE IT. THEN WE SEE SUND SAY WE PROB WONT SIGN AN SG
THIS IS SO F’ING ANNOYING. IS STACK A CONSULTANT OR IS HE GONNA MAKE THE DAMN ROSTER?
AND DONALD SLOAN SOUNDS LIKE A 70 YEAR OLDS’ NAME
KevinM
December 16th, 2011
11:00 pm
Also went to scrimmage and I agree with Astro Joe’s review. I went to see 2 things: do we have a backup PG and has Marvin improved at all? I say we might get a few minutes out of Sloan,wearing jersey 12 providing Larry shows any trust.
Marvin looks about the same to me. He seems to be a bit more aggressive, but really wasn’t involved for much of the 1st 2 quarters.
Jason Collins was on the Blue bench and was inactive the entire time. I thought Rolle has the edge on Benson, but neither will see much time.
No real surprises, but the points were very low in each quarter. I hope that changes fast.
Finally, i can’t see Pape getting many minutes. He’s not comfortable with the ball and to me he s neither a SG nor a PG….just an energy guy who might get you a steal.
Finally, if this is a running team, it won’t be with T-Mac on the court. He definitely likes to pace himself.
A good event to introduce he new guys, and I don’t see Stack making the roster. He is vocal though.
KevinM
December 16th, 2011
11:03 pm
Eager to hear what MC has to say about what he saw…..
Michael Cunningham
December 16th, 2011
11:10 pm
new blog is posted. shutting down this thread.