And then there were nine.
The Hawks were down to nine healthy players with the loss of center Gustavo Ayon for Wednesday night’s game against the Wizards. The center missed the game because of the right shoulder injury he suffered in Tuesday’s loss to the Pacers.
Ayon was unable to play in the second half Tuesday. The Hawks offered no details as to the nature of Ayon’s injury or a timetable for his return.
Elton Brand, the lone healthy center on the roster, started against the Wizards. Ayon started the past 11 games since an injury to Pero Antic (right ankle stress fracture).
Coach Mike Budenholzer said he would use a combination of Paul Millsap and Mike Scott for the time that Brand, in his 15th season, rested.
“We’ll find a way to find a group that gets out there and competes and hopefully work their way around the system and the court,” Budenholzer said. “With Elton as the only traditional center, we’ll have some unique lineups out there.”
The Hawks also played without DeMarre Carroll for a third consecutive game because of his left hamstring strain. Cartier Martin got his second consecutive start in place of Carroll. Also sidelined for the Hawks are Al Horford (torn right pectoral) and John Jenkins (back surgery).
Horford update: Horford has begun to rehabilitate his surgically repaired pectoral muscle. The center posted photos of his first session Wednesday on Instagram. He also posted the following message on Twitter: "First Rehab session. Done with recovery phase, now getting mobility back."
The first session was Tuesday.
Horford suffered the torn pectoral muscle Dec. 26 against the Cavaliers. He underwent season-ending surgery Dec. 31. The surgery was performed at Piedmont Hospital by Dr. Xavier Duralde and accompanied by Hawks team physician Dr. Michael Bernot from the Peachtree Orthopaedic Clinic.
Horford has not spoken publicly since the injury. He indicated on social media last month that he first needed to recover from surgery before he could begin the rehabilitation process.
Antic update: Antic continues to do conditioning exercises and light shooting as he enters the fourth week of his injury. He missed his 12th game Wednesday.
According to the Hawks, Antic continues to feel minor discomfort during certain rehabilitation activities. There is no timetable for his return to normal basketball activity. Antic said Wednesday that he would be back “soon.”
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