Category: Atlanta Hawks Blog

The Hawks will begin training camp for the 2013-14 season in October. The first preseason game is Oct. 7 at the Heat.

Lighty, a 6-foot-6 shooting guard, played collegiately at Ohio State from 2006-11. He most recently played professionally for JSF Nanterre in France’s LNB Pro A League.

Dawson, a 6-9 power forward/center, played collegiately at Midwestern State from 2003-07. He has played professionally with the Spurs on two 10-day contracts in 2012.

Reported by Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal Constitution (Blog)

Atlanta Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer has apologized for his arrest on a driving under the influence of alcohol charge.

According to a report from the Georgia State Patrol, Budenholzer was pulled over at 10:30 p.m. Wednesday in Atlanta for not having working taillights. Trooper J. Nelms said Budenholzer had bloodshot and watery eyes ”and a strong odor of an alcoholic beverage coming from his breath.”

Budenholzer refused a breath test but agreed to a field sobriety test, according to the report. He told Nelms he had only one glass of wine and that he finished the glass about 15 minutes before being pulled over. Nelms said in the report that Budenholzer was ”polite” and that his speech patterns were mumbled, slow and slurred…

Budenholzer, who was released from jail on $1,524 bond, entered a not guilty plea at Atlanta Municipal Court on Thursday, according to Hawkins.

Reported by the Associated Press

The Atlanta Hawks have signed forward DeMarre (de-MAR-ay) Carroll, President of Basketball Operations/GM Danny Ferry announced today. According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, “Carroll agreed to a two-year, $5 million contract on July 5th, the same day the team agreed to a deal with his Jazz teammate Paul Millsap. The delay in signing was for salary cap reasons as the Hawks rebuilt much of their roster this offseason.”

Prior to signing Carroll, the Hawks requested waivers on DeShawn Stevenson.

“DeMarre is a great fit for our program,” Ferry said. “He is an unselfish, highly competitive player. His versatility in defending multiple positions will make him a valuable contributor to our basketball team.”

According to HawksBasketBlog, “Carroll is a more than capable offensive player, as shown by his 15.5 PER and 53.5 True Shooting percentage last season. He is most effective attacking the basket on off-ball cuts, running in transition, and scoring after offensive rebounds. In transition, Carroll was excellent last season shooting 64.6% from the field on 65 transition field goal attempts, per Synergy Sports. He will look to become a more proficient spot-up shooter this season, as he shot just 34.7% on 118 spot-up attempts last season. However, being surrounded by other shooters such as Korver, John Jenkins, Lou Williams, and others, Carroll’s spot up shooting will likely not be a prominent spot-up shooter. On offense, Carroll’s role will likely be small and he will be asked to attack the basket and bring pace and energy to the offense. The main focus for Carroll will be on the defensive end where he will look to come in and be a key defender for the Hawks on the wing.”

Carroll, 27, posted career highs last season with the Utah Jazz in nearly every statistical category including points (6.0), rebounds (2.8), assists (0.9), steals (0.9), minutes (16.8) and starts (12). He played in 66 games, scoring 10 or more points 15 times (the Jazz were 11-4 in those games) and playing at least 20 minutes on 27 occasions. The Jazz were 16-11 in those games and his averages jumped to 9.3 points on .514 shooting, including .429 from three-point range, and 4.1 rebounds in 24.0 minutes per game. His +/- average of +1.8 led the Jazz.

Before joining the Jazz on Feb. 8, 2012, the four-year veteran spent time with the Memphis Grizzlies, Houston Rockets and Denver Nuggets. The 6-foot-8, 204-pound forward attended Missouri and is from Birmingham, Alabama.

The Hawks waived DeShawn Stevenson Friday, according to a league source, in a move that clears the way for the team to announce the signing DeMarre Carroll. The forward agreed to terms with the nearly almost a month ago. The official signing of Carroll could come within the next day or two.

Carroll agreed to a two-year, $5 million contract on July 5th, the same day the team agreed to a deal with his Jazz teammate Paul Millsap. The delay in signing was for salary cap reasons as the Hawks rebuilt much of their roster this offseason. The Hawks were retaining Bird rights for several of their unrestricted free agents. However, Anthony Tolliver remains the only player that has not signed elsewhere or had his rights renounced.

Carroll, 6-foot-8, was selected in the first round (No. 27 overall) by the Grizzlies in the 2009 NBA draft out of Missouri.

Reported by Chris Vivlamore of the Atlanta Journal Constitution (Blog)

The Atlanta Hawks have named Jim Thomas as an assistant coach, Hawks Head Coach Mike Budenholzer announced today.

Most recently a college scout for the Oklahoma City Thunder for the last four years, Thomas was previously with the New York Knicks (scout, 2005-07), Indiana University (assistant coach, 2001-04), and Toronto Raptors as an assistant coach (1996-99) and scout (1994-96).

“We’re pleased to add Jim to our coaching staff,” Budenholzer said. “He’s been a part of a number of successful programs, and his coaching and playing experience will blend well with our group.”

Selected in the second round (40th overall) of the 1983 NBA Draft by the Pacers, the 52-year-old Thomas appeared in 161 games over four seasons with Indiana, the Los Angeles Clippers and Minnesota, averaging 8.4 points, 2.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 20.9 minutes (.471 FG%, .763 FT%). He also spent time playing in the Continental Basketball Association, World Basketball League and with Baloncesto Murcia in Spain.

Thomas played collegiately at Indiana from 1979-83, where he was the starting shooting guard on the Hoosiers’ 1981 National Championship team. He was also a 10th round draft pick of the Green Bay Packers in the 1983 NFL Draft as a defensive back. He grew up in Ft. Lauderdale, FL.

The Atlanta Hawks have been awarded forward/center Gustavo Ayon on a waiver claim, President of Basketball Operations/GM Danny Ferry announced today.

Ayon, 28, spent time with the Milwaukee Bucks and Orlando Magic during the 2012-13 season and averaged 3.7 points on .551 shooting, 3.6 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 13.4 minutes in 55 games (three starts). The 6-foot-10, 250-pounder started the season with the Orlando Magic, posting averages of 3.6 points on .536 shooting and 3.3 rebounds in 13.3 minutes per game (43 games, three starts) before being traded on Feb. 21st to Milwaukee as part of a six-player trade. He increased his averages to 4.3 points on .595 shooting and 4.9 rebounds in 13.6 minutes in 12 games with the Bucks.

“Gustavo has a high basketball IQ and is a hard-nosed player,” Ferry said. “He gives us quality depth at the power forward and center positions.”

As a rookie in 2011-12, Gustavo Ayon (goo-STAH-voh eye-OWN) played in 54 games (24 starts) with the New Orleans Hornets and averaged 5.9 points on .536 shooting, 4.9 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 0.9 blocks and 1.0 steal in 20.1 minutes per game. He ranked in the top 10 among all NBA rookies in field goal percentage (second), rebounding (fifth), blocked shots (fifth) and steals (seventh).

“I am very excited to join the Atlanta Hawks,” Ayon said. “I had a great conversation with Coach Budenholzer and can’t wait to get to the city, meet my teammates and get to work. Vamos Hawks!”

Ayon is just the third Mexican-born player in NBA history, following Horacio Llamas and Eduardo Najera. Prior to playing in the NBA, he played professionally overseas in Mexico, Venezuela and Spain.

The Atlanta Hawks have claimed center Gustavo Ayon off waivers, sources told ESPN.com.

The Milwaukee Bucks waived Ayon last week before his $1.5 million salary became guaranteed. The Hawks will pick up the 6-foot-10 Mexican’s salary, which now becomes guaranteed.

The Hawks and Bucks have been involved in a series of transactions involving each other this summer. The Bucks signed Hawks’ restricted free agent point guard Jeff Teague to an $8 million per season offer sheet, which the Hawks matched.

Reported by Brian Windhorst of ESPN.com

The Atlanta Hawks have signed forward/center Pero Antić, President of Basketball Operations/GM Danny Ferry announced today.

Antić, a 6-foot-11, 260-pound big man, has played with Olympiacos in the Greek Basketball League and the Euroleague the last two seasons, helping the club to back-to-back Euroleague championships. Last year, he averaged 6.2 points and 3.3 rebounds in 15.2 minutes in 30 games (.432 FG%, .321 3FG%, .714 FT%).

“Pero is a skilled and versatile big man who will add depth to our frontcourt,” Ferry said. “He will fit in well with what we’re building and we’re excited to add him to the team.”

A native of the Republic of Macedonia, Antić has played professionally since 1999, beginning with Rabotnički in his home country. He has also played with AEK Athens (Greece), Red Star Belgrade (Serbia), Academic Sofia (Bulgaria), Lokomotiv Kuban (Russia) and Spartak St. Petersburg (Russia).

Additionally, the 30-year-old Antić is the captain of the Macedonian National Team, helping the team to the semifinals of EuroBasket 2011 in Lithuania. He averaged 11.5 points and 8.8 rebounds over 11 games in the tournament, while collecting three double-doubles.