Williams back at Hawks practice, won’t play

Marvin Williams joined Hawks teammates during the light contact portion of practice Monday.

That doesn’t mean Williams is going to return immediately, but it was his first live work in a month. He injured his lower back late in a March 7 win over Detroit and hasn’t played or practiced since.

Now with the Hawks on a three-game losing streak and desperate for a spark, there he was Monday, much to the delight of his coaches and teammates, back in the mix.

“Our training staff isn’t going to allow me to do anything I shouldn’t be doing,” Williams said. “They know what’s best. Obviously, I want to get back out there as soon as I can to help my team. And my back feels well.”

Williams is still listed as out indefinitely with the lower back injury. He’s missed the Hawks’ last 14 games. He will travel on a two-game trip to Toronto Tuesday and Milwaukee Wednesday.

That is a positive sign for Hawks coach Mike Woodson, who’s leaned on his regulars for longer minutes to compensate for the absence Williams and also reserve point guard Acie Law IV.

“I don’t know when he’s coming back but it was nice to see him back out there,” Woodson said. “I didn’t realize he was going to go through the shell part of practice. I was trying to get him off the floor but he said he needed to test it after doing all this rehab work on his own. He’s not going to play [against the Raptors or Bucks], but we’ll just have to see where he is in a few days and go from there.”

Law has missed eight straight games with lower back pain. He too was back on the practice floor Monday and eager to assist his teammates in desperate times.

“My back’s still sore, but I feel like can play through it and tolerate the pain,” Law said. “So I’m trying to get back out there and play. I’ve missed so much time already. I just want to get back as soon as I can without risking anything and hurting my back even more.

“But this is that time of year. We’re pushing ourselves to get back because this is that time of year where you can’t afford to be playing bad basketball. We need a spark and if you’re sitting over there in suits like we have been, you want to be that spark.”