Category: Atlanta Hawks Blog

Atlanta Hawks center Dewayne Dedmon sustained a left ankle injury during a workout around one week ago, on Monday, August 27.

An X-ray and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed an avulsion fracture and he has been placed in a walking boot. He will be re-evaluated in one week, and his status will be updated as appropriate.

The Hawks are in rebuilding mode. Their core includes Jeremy Lin, Kent Bazemore, and a lot of youth. The team will probably give Dedmon decent minutes this season.

The Atlanta Hawks signed forward Thomas Robinson today.

Robinson has played in 313 career games (12 starts) with the Sacramento Kings, Houston Rockets, Portland Trail Blazers, Philadelphia 76ers, Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Lakers, averaging 4.9 points and 4.8 rebounds in 13.4 minutes (.470 FG%).

He spent last season with Khimki (Russia), where he averaged 8.5 points and 5.7 rebounds in 15.8 minutes in 28 games (.487 FG%).

Originally selected fifth overall by Sacramento in the 2012 NBA Draft, Robinson was a consensus First Team All-American and Big 12 Conference Player of the Year following his junior season at Kansas, where he played three seasons. He is a native of Washington, DC.

As his NBA career winds down, Vince Carter isn’t ring-chasing. In fact, he’s doing pretty close to the opposite, joining what should be one of the league’s weakest teams in the 2018-19 NBA season.

Carter on Friday (yesterday) signed with the Atlanta Hawks, who are completely rebuilding their roster from the ground up.

According to ESPN.com, it’s just a one-year deal. Which isn’t surprising, as he could retire any season now.

Carter clearly loves to play basketball. On a roster like Atlanta’s, he has a legit chance to get some pretty decent minutes. Though the best thing for the Hawks to do is focus on developing their young players. But Carter is a great teacher and should make the kids on the squad better, both in practice and actual season games.

Carter played in 58 games (four starts) last season with Sacramento, where he averaged 5.4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 17.7 minutes (.403 FG%, .345 3FG%, .757 FT%).

In 20 NBA seasons with Toronto, New Jersey, Orlando, Phoenix, Dallas, Memphis and Sacramento, Carter possesses career averages of 17.7 points, 4.5 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.0 steals in 31.4 minutes (.437 FG%, .373 3FG%, .799 FT%), appearing in 1405 regular season games (973 starts). In 88 playoff contests (66 starts), he’s averaged 18.1 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 1.1 steals in 34.5 minutes (.416 FG%, .338 3FG%, .796 FT%).

Carter was the 1999 NBA Rookie of the Year, has been named All-NBA twice (second team in 2001 and third team in 2000), is an eight-time All-Star and finished in the Top 10 in scoring six times. He won the NBA’s Slam Dunk contest in 2000, also taking home a gold medal that same year as part of the United States Men’s Basketball team in Sydney, Australia.

The Atlanta Hawks signed forward Alex Poythress guard/forward Daniel Hamilton today.

Poythress’ deal is confirmed by the team to be a two-way contract. Hamilton’s contract is probably a non-guaranteed deal that merely brings him to training camp.

The Hawks are in serious rebuilding mode. There isn’t a single player on the roster right now that is considered a star in today’s NBA. The good news is, this means there’s plenty of opportunity for almost everybody on this super-young roster to step up and quickly put their name on the map.

Eyes will certainly be on rookies Trae Young and Kevin Huerter, and young power forward John Collins, among others.

And then there’s Jeremy Lin. Maybe we’ll see Linsanity 2.0. Don’t count on it, because Lin is older now and coming back from serious injury. But if it were to happen, this is the year and the roster for such a blessing to occur.

As for today’s pair of signings, here’s more on each player:

Hamilton spent last season on a two-way contact with the Oklahoma City Thunder and Oklahoma City Blue of the NBA G League. In six games with the Thunder, he averaged 2.0 points and 1.3 assists in 4.7 minutes (.455 FG%, .400 3FG%). He started 45 games with the Blue, averaging 16.1 points, 9.0 rebounds, 7.8 assists and 1.2 steals in 32.8 minutes (.406 FG%, .813 FT%).

As a rookie in 2016-17, Hamilton appeared in 49 contests (47 starts) with the Blue, compiling 14.9 points, 8.0 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.3 steals in 31.2 minutes (.426 FG%, .374 3FG%, .767 FT%).

Following two seasons at Connecticut, Hamilton was selected with the 56th overall pick of the 2016 NBA Draft by Denver, before his rights were traded to Oklahoma City in exchange for cash considerations.

As a sophomore for the Huskies, he was one of two Division I players in the country (joining Ben Simmons) with 450 points, 300 rebounds and 150 assists. On the season, he averaged 12.5 points, 8.9 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.1 steals in 31.9 minutes, which earned him Second Team All-AAC honors.

A native of Los Angeles, CA, he attended Crenshaw High School before transferring to St. John Bosco for his final two seasons. He will wear No. 5.

Poythress (POY-thress) finished last season with the Indiana Pacers, where he appeared in 25 games. He began the season on a two-way contract with the Pacers and the Fort Wayne Mad Ants (originally signing on August 22, 2017), before his contract was converted on December 28, 2017.

In seven starts with the Mad Ants, he averaged 20.0 points, 8.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.3 blocks in 24.0 minutes (.482 FG%, .675 FT%).

As a rookie in 2016-17, the 6’9” forward signed a 10-day contract with the Philadelphia 76ers on April 1, 2017 and averaged 10.7 points and 4.8 rebounds in 26.2 minutes (.463 FG%, .800 FT%) in six contests. He also appeared in 46 games (45 starts) with the Mad Ants prior to signing with the 76ers, and put in 18.5 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.4 blocks in 31.1 minutes (.528 FG%, .403 3FG%, .783 FT%). Poythress earned All-NBA G League Second Team and All-NBA G League Rookie team honors, also earning a spot in the NBA G League All-Star Game that season.

In four seasons at University of Kentucky (2012-16), he finished his career with 966 points, 597 rebounds and 77 blocks, becoming the 12th player in program history with at least 900 points, 500 rebounds and 70 blocks. As a senior in 2015-16, Poythress compiled 10.2 points and 6.0 rebounds in 23.6 minutes (.601 FG%, .706 FT%), playing 31 games and starting 23.

He was named Tennessee’s Mr. Basketball following his senior year at Northeast High School in Clarksville, TN, also earning Parade and McDonald’s All-America honors. Poythress was born in Savannah, GA. He will wear No. 22.

Only players with three-or-fewer years of NBA experience are permitted to sign two-way contracts. Per league rules, teams are allowed to have up to two two-way players on their roster at any given time, in addition to their 15-man regular season roster. A two-way player for the Hawks will primarily play for the team’s NBA G League Affiliate, the Erie BayHawks, but can spend up to 45 days with Atlanta, not including any time prior to the start of Erie’s training camp and after the conclusion of their season.

The Atlanta Hawks today made several additions and promotions within their basketball operations department.

The Hawks hired Chelsea Lane as Executive Director of Athletic Performance and Sports Medicine, where she will oversee the Hawks’ Athletic Performance Team and medical staff. Other new hires to the APT staff include Michael Irr as Head Strength & Conditioning Coach, John Dusel as Assistant Athletic Trainer/Strength & Conditioning, and Ty Terrell as Assistant Strength & Conditioning Coach.

Dwight Lutz recently joined the organization as Director of Basketball Strategy & Analytics, Dipesh Mistry has been hired as Head Video Coordinator, veteran NBA executive Larry Riley has been named Senior Advisor, Nick Ressler has been added as Coordinator of Basketball Operations and Victor Williams has been named as a Security Consultant.

Promotions include Rod Higgins, who has been named Vice President of Basketball Operations, and Daniel Starkman, who has been elevated to Manager of Basketball Operations. Additionally, Therian Williams moves into an Assistant Video Coordinator role.

Lane was with the Golden State Warriors the last three years, serving as Head of Physical Performance and Sports Medicine the last two after beginning her stint as Head Performance Therapist. Lane joined the Warriors from High Performance Sport New Zealand, the provider of sports medicine and athletic performance programs for that nation’s Olympic athletes. The native of Australia was also the lead physiotherapist for New Zealand’s national track and field program.

Also formerly with the Warriors, Irr was most recently Head of Strength and Conditioning. He joined Golden State in 2015 after serving in a similar position for the Charlotte Bobcats from 2008-11 and as the assistant strength and conditioning coach for the Chicago Bulls from 2006-08. Irr is an Exercise Science graduate of University of Connecticut with a Doctorate in Physical Therapy from University of North Carolina.

Dusel comes to the Hawks from Golden State as well, where last season he was Assistant Athletic Trainer/Strength & Conditioning following a season as the team’s Sports Performance Intern. He has a Bachelor’s in Athletic Training from the University of New England.

Terrell spent the last five years with Indianapolis Fitness and Sports Training (IFAST) as a performance coach. Prior to that, he owned and operated True Athletic Development, where he developed and implemented customized strength and conditioning programs. He also has experience with the Indy 11 of the NASL. Terrell attended Indiana Wesleyan University.

Lutz comes to the Hawks from the Minnesota Timberwolves, where he was a Basketball Operations Analyst. Lutz was previously with the NBA for four years as Senior Manager, Game Analytics and Strategy. Prior to his time with the NBA, Lutz served as a Statistical Analyst for Harris Connect, LLC. Lutz also spent time as a Teaching Assistant and Instructor, as well as a Statistical Consultant, at the University of Florida, where he received his Master’s in Statistics.

Most recently with the Phoenix Suns as the team’s Assistant Video Coordinator, Mistry was formerly an Assistant Coach at McMaster University and Ryerson University. He also has experience as a Video Coordinator for the men’s and women’s senior Canadian national teams. Mistry holds a Bachelor of commerce degree from Ryerson.

A veteran of nearly 50 years in basketball, including the last 30 in the NBA, Riley was the General Manager of the Warriors from 2009 to 2012, later serving as a consultant for the team. He was also an Assistant Coach and Director of Scouting for the Warriors, an Assistant Coach and Advance Scout for the Dallas Mavericks, Director of Player Personnel for the Vancouver Grizzlies and an Assistant Coach and Scout for the Milwaukee Bucks. Riley is the former Head Coach at Eastern New Mexico and Chadron State (NE).

Ressler joins the Hawks after working as an Analyst with Tishman Speyer, a Commercial Real Estate firm in New York. He has internship experience with WME/IMG in their Global Partnerships Group, with Wasserman in their Team Sports Group and with the NFL Network for their Integrated Sales team. Ressler majored in Finance, earning a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Georgetown’s McDonough School of Business.

With a varied background in law enforcement, Victor Williams joined the Hawks after eight years as an Agent with Homeland Security, based in Miami. Following high school and eight-and-a-half years in the United States Coast Guard, the Norfolk, VA native worked with U.S. Customs while earning a Liberal Arts degree from Berry University. He later worked as a customs agent in Atlanta from 2000-05 and with the Joint Terrorism Task Force from 2005-10.

Higgins, a longtime NBA player, executive, coach and scout, played 13 seasons with Chicago, Seattle, San Antonio, New Jersey, Golden State, Sacramento and Cleveland, before retiring in 1994. Higgins was an Assistant Coach with the Warriors from 1994-2000 before joining the Washington Wizards as Assistant General Manager. He returned to Golden State as General Manager, then spent 2007-14 with the Charlotte Bobcats, finishing as President of Basketball Operations. He was a college scout for the Hawks last season.

Starkman began with the Hawks as a seasonal assistant in 2015 before being promoted to several different positions within basketball operations. He was most recently Manager of Basketball Information and Scouting Coordinator. He is a graduate of the University of Florida, where he earned a Bachelor’s in Business Administration, while also serving as a student manager for the men’s basketball team from 2011-15.

Therian Williams has been with the Hawks since 2016, working in video operations and player development. He was previously the Video Coordinator at his alma mater, St. Mary’s College, from 2013-16. He was team manager for the Gaels from 2009-13, earning his Bachelor’s in Sociology.

The Atlanta Hawks have requested waivers on guard Antonius Cleveland.

Cleveland saw action in four games with the Hawks last season, averaging 3.3 points and 1.0 rebounds in 10.4 minutes (.571 FG%, 3-3 3FGs, 2-2 FTs). He was signed to a multi-year contract on Mar. 14 after signing consecutive 10-day contracts on Feb. 22 and Mar. 4.

The Atlanta Hawks waived guard Jaylen Morris today.

Morris played in six games last season with the Hawks, averaging 4.7 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 16.4 minutes. He was signed to a multi-year contract on March 21 after signing consecutive 10-day contracts on February 28 and March 11.