With the Hawks missing three players, including two starters, Lou Williams made his third start of the season Sunday against the Magic. Williams replaced DeMarre Carroll, who remained in Atlanta for treatment on his sprained right thumb.
Williams was going to replace Carroll on Saturday had Carroll been unable to play. The forward, who started all 30 previous games, was clearly bothered by his thumb in the overtime victory over the Bobcats. He played just 19 minutes and went scoreless after missing all four shot attempts. Carroll will also miss Tuesday’s game at the Celtics.
“His thumb has been bothering him and it’s to the point where it’s best he take a couple days and rest it and hopefully it improves,” coach Mike Budenholzer said.
Williams was one of the stars for the Hawks in the win over the Bobcats. He scored a season-high 28 points, including 10 free throws in overtime, in 34 minutes. His two previous starts came when Kyle Korver was out with a rib contusion.
Elton Brand got his second start at center in place of Al Horford, who is out indefinitely with a torn right pectoral muscle. There was no update Sunday on a timetable for Horford’s next course of action, which may include surgery. Budenholzer would not say if Brand would remain in the starting lineup beyond Sunday.
In other injury news, John Jenkins continues to be sidelined with nerve pain in his leg related to a lower back injury. Jenkins did not travel on the two-game trip. Budenholzer had no update on Jenkins’ condition or a course of action for the guard’s recovery.
Cunningham recalled: With three roster spots open, the Hawks recalled Jared Cunningham from the NBA Development League Sunday. The guard arrived in Orlando in time to be available against the Magic.
Cunningham was re-assigned to the Bakersfield (Calif.) Jam on Dec. 16, his second stint with the team this season. In this last two games, he averaged 27.5 points, nine assists and four rebounds in 34.5 minutes.
In his eight total games with the Jam, all of them starts, Cunningham averaged 18.1 points, 5.4 assists and 4.5 rebounds in 33.1 minutes.
Playing overtime: The Hawks are coming off three straight overtime games, the first time they have done so since Jan. 7-11, 1997.
Budenholzer said he needed to be wary of extra minutes on his players, considering the four extra periods and the current thin roster.
“We always want to be cognizant of keeping our guys as fresh as possible,” Budenholzer said. “It’s a long season. One game is not. We don’t want to overvalue or put too much on that. We want to develop our bench. We want to use our guys. We want to build confidence in our bench. In these kinds of situations, there may be some adjustments or there may be none. But you have to appreciate what the guys have been through.”
