Atlanta Hawks Minicamp: Joe Alexander A Roster Possibility?

The Atlanta Hawks wrapped up their 2011 free agent minicamp yesterday at Philips Arena and AJC beat writer Michael Cunningham gives us an update on how things went. If you believe what you hear coming out of the camp then it seems like both David Lighty and Joe Alexander made a pretty good impression on the Hawks. 

In the case of LIghty, it sounds like Atlanta liked him before the draft and gambled that he would be available afterwards.

Whenever the Hawks can sign players, it sounds as if they will make a run at David Lighty. The Hawks worked him out before the draft.

Atlanta potentially has openings in the backcourt depending on whether or not they decide to try and bring back Jamal Crawford. There will be some competition for Lighty as he is also set to work out with some other teams. 

By all accounts Joe Alexander had a strong showing at minicamp and Larry Drew had this to say about him. 

"When I think about [Alexander] when he came into the league, he was predominantly a jump-shooter and he took a lot of threes," L.D. said. "He hasn’t taken one three since he’s been here in camp. Down low when he has the ball he really looks to finesse and then muscle his way to the basket. I think with him picking up a little weight and getting stronger I think he has pretty much solidified who he is, and that’s a four."

If the Hawks see Alexander as a power forward then he could potentially step into the spot that Josh Powell occupied.

The biggest problem with the impending lockout is that these deals can't get done until it is over. Players like Alexander or maybe even Lighty could draw some interest from overseas and might not still be available once the lockout ends. That is the cold hard reality of what each NBA team is facing once the lockout begins on Friday. For a team like Atlanta that has so many open spots, it just adds more pressure to be in position to get things done quickly once the lockout finally ends.