On the seventh day, Lou Williams rests.
Five and a half months into his recovery from a torn right ACL, the Hawks guard works out six days a week in Atlanta and hopes to be ready for the start of training camp.
“That is what we are shooting for,” Williams told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Tuesday after a workout.
Williams is jogging and doing a variety of drills. On Tuesday, he completed a full basketball workout for the first time since he tore the ACL on Jan. 18 against the Nets, just 39 games into last season.
As the Hawks reshape their roster — now through free agency — a healthy Williams is important. He is one of the few returning players from last season’s playoff team. The Hawks are using a roster that includes Al Horford and Williams as part of their pitch to free agents.
Williams saw Dr. James Andrews, who performed his surgery, three weeks ago in Florida for a checkup. Williams said Andrews was pleased with his progress and told physical therapists to ramp up workouts.
In one area, Williams has taken control of his own rehabilitation. He is determined not to have mental hurdles to clear once he is fully recovered. Williams practices — in the same shoes — the move he was making when injured.
“We shoot a lot now,” Williams said. “I was very adamant about that. I wanted to maintain some sort of muscle memory with my jump shot, especially taking some time off the way I rely on my jump shot so much.
“Not only that, I wanted to keep my mind in the zone of ‘don’t be scared to play.’ I think that is one thing you deal with when you take eight or nine months off. You deal with that mental aspect of ‘I don’t know what’s going to happen.’ … So when I get cleared to play, I’m at a 100 mph.”
A typical week in Williams’ rehab goes like this:
- Monday: treatment (ice and stimulation)
- Tuesday: lift weights
- Wednesday: basketball and agility drills
- Thursday: lift weights
- Friday: cardio work
- Saturday: work out on own
- Sunday: rest
The schedule starts all over.
Williams said he is very happy with his recovery, but there is no timetable for when he will be 100 percent. Most of the pain is gone. It is a process that includes setbacks, especially after the rehabilitation takes another step forward. He said he will do everything doctors and physical therapists tell him. He has made strides, but still can’t make all his cuts. Williams said he is very close to being able to run, which he called a milestone.
“This is my first time getting hurt, so I’m kind of naive to the whole process,” Williams said. “I’m like one day I’m going to be hurt, and the next day I’m not going to be hurt. I’m going to pick up right where I left off. It takes an extreme amount of work to get to that point. I’m just trying to face as many hurdles as I can early on before I get all of my movement back so when I do get it back I feel like I will be on par with everybody else.”
General manager Danny Ferry said after last week’s draft that he was very pleased with the work and progress Williams has made.
Williams said he has met with new coach Mike Budenholzer several times and is excited about the opportunity to play for the new staff. Williams was the Hawks’ third-leading scorer at the time of his injury. He averaged 14.1 points and 3.6 assists per game before the painful end of the season.
“He really enjoys the way that I play the game,” Williams said. “He thinks that I can fit in his program the way a Tony Parker or a Manu Ginobili have played in (the Spurs) organization in the past. That is right up my alley. I look forward to the team that we are trying to assemble. We’ve been a playoff team in the past, and I plan on being that again and being even better.”
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