Jul 19 2009
Hawks Mini-Camp Roster
The Atlanta Hawks will be getting their first looks at Jeff Teague this week as they start their mini-camp at Philips Arena. This will be the first chance the coaches get a chance to work with the talented PG out of Wake Forrest. Teague was selected with the Hawk’s first round pick back in June and was the 19th overall player taken in the 2009 NBA Draft. Sergiy Gladyr from the Ukraine was the other draft selection from this summer’s draft and he will also be attending the Hawks mini-camp in Atlanta. Gladyr isn’t expected to stay in the States long or make the roster this year; but he will have a chance to show what he’s got and will be the youngest player attending this year’s camp.
One of the most interesting players attending this year’s camp will be Yaroslav Korolev from Russia. He was picked number 12 overall in the 2005 NBA Draft (higher than Teague) by the Los Angeles Clippers. He never could find his place in L.A.. He did get a 2nd chance to play for them in 2007 and played with the team during preseason; before he was let go at the start of the regular season. It should be interesting to see where his skill level is at now and if he can help the Atlanta Hawks in the 2009/2010 season. You may also remember another player that was taken in the 2005 draft and this was the Atlanta Hawks 2nd round pick that year. It was a basketball player from Turkey named Cenk Akyol and he will be attending the Hawks Mini-Camp that will begin on Tuesday (July 21). He was very young when the Hawks took him back in 2005 and I’m sure many fans will be curious to see (or hear) how well he does this upcoming week.
I’m sure the Hawks fans want to know about the big guys attending camp this year; since this looks like a big off-season need, that the team hasn’t addressed yet. A guy that did play a short spell with the Golden State Warriors is Chris Taft and he will be in attendance this year. His career high in block shots (3) came against the Hawks a few years back and perhaps it was this that caught the team’s attention. Taft isn’t a great free throw shooter and does need to improve in this area. A bad back has kept him out of the NBA the last couple of seasons and now could be his chance to return to the league. Other big men that will be showing up this week in Atlanta are Garret Siler (6′11″ 305 lbs) from Augusta State and Shawn Taggart (6′ 10″ 238 lbs) from Memphis. One of these 3 guys do have an excellent shot at making the team and especially if the Hawks don’t pursue a big man in free agency.
A couple of more notable players that will be showing up this week for the Hawks is long range shooter Dionte Christmas from Temple. He led their team last year in scoring at almost 20 points a game and was named the Most Outstanding Player in the Atlantic 10 Tournament last season. A little surprising that he went undrafted and no one wanted to take a chance on this guy in the 2009 NBA Draft. He will get a chance to show what he’s got this week; along with former Georgia Bulldog standout Sundiata Gaines. The Hawks fans have proven to like the local kids like Mario West from Georgia Tech and I’m sure the fans will be rooting for Gaines to do well this week at Philips Arena.
The rest of the guys attending the 3 day mini-camp:
Anthony Goods 6-3 Guard from Stanford
Ivan Harris 6-7 Forward from Ohio State
David Huertas 6-5 Guard from Mississippi
John Lucas III 5-11 Guard from Oklahoma State
Leo Lyons 6-9 Forward from Missouri
Frank Robinson 6-4 Guard from Cal-State Fullerton
Corey Williams 6-3 Guard from Alabama State
This is currently the guys we know that will be attending the mini-camp for physicals on Monday. The guys will get together for a 2 hour session on Monday; but the 2 practices a day session will start on Tuesday and only 1 practice scheduled for Thursday. It is possible we may see a new face or two show up when the camp actually starts and you may hear about more names later on. All 16 players will be trying to land a spot on the team’s roster for this year’s preseason games; that will begin in a couple of months. Do you see any of these guys appearing on the preseason roster for the Hawks? What about the regular season roster? I believe there is a lot of doubt for 15 of these guys; but we can already pencil in Jeff Teague for a spot on the team in 2009/2010 season. We may start to hear the Hawks name in a lot more NBA rumors concerning free agency, after the team gets a chance to evaluate these guys this week.
