Onyeka Okongwu played in his first game since last season, after undergoing surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder in July.
He has been ramping up activity in his rehab and saw 24 minutes of action for the College Park Skyhawks, the Hawks’ G League affiliate, helping the team to its first win of the season, a 117-98 victory against the Long Island Nets on Thursday night in New York. He started and tallied a double-double with 10 points, 15 rebounds, two blocks, two assists, two steals and three turnovers.
Okongwu picked up four fouls and shot 4-for-6 from the field and 1-for-3 from the line. Before Thursday’s game, Okongwu had looked good in 5-on-5 work during Skyhawks practice, Hawks coach Nate McMillan said.
Provided there are no setbacks, Okongwu seems like he’s nearing a return for the Hawks – that’s good news for the team, which could benefit from his presence on the second unit.
On what Okongwu needs to do to rejoin the Hawks, McMillan said: “As soon as we feel that he’s comfortable and his conditioning is such that he can come back and play with us, we’ll bring him back. Right now he won’t be able to get any type of 5-on-5 live action with us because we’re just not practicing like that. The more he can get 5-on-5, whether it’s in practice or games, we’ll do that until the trainers feel, and he feels, that he’s ready to come back and play for us, and hopefully that’s soon.”
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