Hawks guard Law feels he has 'much to prove'

[Cwell]

http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/h...hawks_0714.html

Hawks guard Law feels he has 'much to prove'

By SEKOU SMITH

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Published on: 07/13/08

Acie Law IV doesn't mind working without the boisterous crowds, the bright lights and the glamour of the NBA.

In fact, he doesn't need it right now.

Not in the frame of mind he's been in since the Hawks' season ended with a Game 7 loss to the Boston Celtics in a first round playoff series in early May.

These days Law has traded the limelight for a spotlight on his own personal challenge — the Hawks' point guard's sole focus is to regain the game that made him the No. 11 pick in the 2007 draft and shed the memories of an uneven rookie season plagued by injuries and lost opportunity.

That's why he's attacking the start of rookie/free agent mini-camp Monday, the Hawks don't begin summer league play in Salt Lake City until Friday, as the first official step of his comeback tour.

"I had high expectations for my rookie season and I didn't get to show off my game," Law said after sweating through a grueling workout on the Hawks' practice court last week. "I feel like I have so much to prove. This is the first step. But I'm really looking forward to training camp and proving to my teammates, the new general manager [Rick Sund] and coach that I can play.

"I'm just so hungry. And it's kind of like replaying the way things went for me in college, though I hate to go back to that, but it's true. People are doubting me, I've got something to prove. And I have to prove what I think I am, what I know I am."

Law's rookie season was a disappointment by any measure but especially when compared to the masterful showcase put on by Al Horford, who started at center all season and finished as the runner-up to Kevin Durant for Rookie of the Year honors.

Law played in just 56 games, missing 26 games due to injuries and complications from injuries that dogged him all year or coach Mike Woodson's decision to use someone else.

He averaged 4.2 points and 2.0 assists and shot a dreadful 20.6 percent (7-for-34) from beyond the 3-point line and just 40 percent from the floor.

The skills that had teams smitten with Law before the draft seemed to disappear as his rookie season moved from a promising start to an almost anonymous finish once the Hawks traded for Mike Bibby at the All-Star break.

Law averaged just 15.4 minutes per game, logging a total of 865 minutes on the season, limited time that both Law and Woodson admit now haven't allowed for any accurate evaluation of his potential.

"Unfortunately for Acie," Woodson said, "people are going to weigh his rookie season with Al Horford's. Al got the big minutes and he produced and Acie got minutes early and then he got hurt and then he came back and got hurt. He was on an off as far as injuries were concerned. As a coach, I just didn't have time to wait on him. And I probably didn't help him as much or like I needed to.

"That's also why its important this summer that we really push him and that in summer league he goes out wit the attitude that this is his team. I want him to just play and play freely and do the things I think he can do as a point guard."

That's why this week of work in mini-camp and the chance to run things in Salt Lake City are so appealing to Law, who save for a two-week break has been in the gym, weight room and therapy, for the wrist injury that cost him much of his rookie season, with military precision.

The Monday morning after the 4th of July holiday Law was in the gym with hardly any lights on, sprinting through his paces when Woodson came through the door to check on the new floor being put down and noticed Law working on the far end of the floor.

"Acie's a good pro in that way," Woodson said. "I think the sky is the limit for him because he's willing to put forth the effort, he's very good about taking coaching and he's going to get better.

"The bottom line is this, when I got desperate coming down the home stretch last season I'm the one that shrunk the rotation," Woodson said. "Nobody did that but me. My coaches fought me on it. But I thought it was the right thing for us to do in terms of making a serious run to get that playoff spot. It worked out in our favor, but if I had it to do all over again I wish I would have played [Law] a little bit more. But that's hindsight now."

While Law appreciates his coach's attempt to take some responsibility for the unrealized expectations of his rookie season, he's not buying into anyone else owning his destiny.

"That doesn't mean anything to me," Law said of the explanations other people have for his uneven rookie season. "If coach wasn't comfortable with me on the floor that means I have to do a better job of making him feel comfortable with me playing. I have to a better job of that this summer and then again in training camp to make sure that everybody is comfortable with me on that floor.

"That's why I'm here now working with [strength and conditioning coach] Chattin [Hill] and trying to get my body in tip-top shape for what I know is coming. And I'm going to be here. I'm going to be right here waiting on everybody to get back here for training camp. And I won't let up."

[DJ_Money]

Woodson bashing in 3...2...1...

[Cwell]

Woodson bashed himself...apprently his coaching staff did too.

[Chris18]

Acie is going to blow up this year and he may be the starting point guard before the all star break. As for Woody I'm glad he's actually taking some heat for not playing Acie more and I expect he is going to play the bench more this season.

[Gray Mule]

We, the Hawks, didn't have a draft pick this year - - Or, maybe we did! We have

Acie Law IV coming out, ready and rarin' to go. He didn't get a lot of floor time last

season and didn't contribute greatly to the Hawks regular season.

Sure, it's his second season but, as we all know, it wasn't what we all expected.

Now, he sounds ready to prove to everyone he's ready. If he is, and we're sure

that he's driving toward that goal, we have better than a draft pick to throw into

the mix next season.

GO HAWKS!! GO ACIE!!!

[Supporter]

Man i cant wait for acie to play, i hope he becomes something special. Reminiscent of michael

[hawkman]

You have to cheer for this guy if you are a Hawk fan. The determination of this kid makes me think he will succeed. I was one of the people that doubted him after his rookie season, but it's good to know that he's taking it upon himself to get better and not making excuses. There are signs of a future leader there. I hope he surprises the naysayers this season, including me.

[jezmund]

Love the article. If Law backs up the talk we'll be in good shape.

[DrReality]

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Woodson bashed himself...apprently his coaching staff did too.

that's what jumped out at me and I'm glad to hear it. that has to be addressed by mgt. But Law has to stay healhy. And the summer league is pretty wild. Would love to see this guy go to the head of the class re pg's.

[Cwell]

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You have to cheer for this guy if you are a Hawk fan. The determination of this kid makes me think he will succeed. I was one of the people that doubted him after his rookie season, but it's good to know that he's taking it upon himself to get better and not making excuses. There are signs of a future leader there. I hope he surprises the naysayers this season, including me.

yeah it would feel great to have gotten two great players and leaders in one draft.considering how we wasted every one but two picks before that.

[TheNorthCydeRises]

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Acie is going to blow up this year and he may be the starting point guard before the all star break. As for Woody I'm glad he's actually taking some heat for not playing Acie more and I expect he is going to play the bench more this season.

Woody said it right though. He should've played him more, but he had to assess what was the #1 priority for the team. And that was making the playoffs, not developing Acie during a critical point in the season. It's nice to see that kind of honesty from Woody. It's also nice to see Acie being honest about how he should've gave the coach trust enough to play him more.

When people talk about reducing JJ's minutes to around 36 a game, Acie playing well may go a long way in seeing that happen.

[ATLBob]

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It's also nice to see Acie being honest about how he should've gave the coach trust enough to play him more.

That's the quote that stood out to me, too. If coach isn't playing you as much as you'd like, make his decision to keep you on the bench increasingly more difficult. Very mature attitude.

[TheTruth]

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Woody said it right though. He should've played him more, but he had to assess what was the #1 priority for the team. And that was making the playoffs, not developing Acie during a critical point in the season. It's nice to see that kind of honesty from Woody. It's also nice to see Acie being honest about how he should've gave the coach trust enough to play him more.

When people talk about reducing JJ's minutes to around 36 a game, Acie playing well may go a long way in seeing that happen.

I normally don't agree with you, but I have to agree with this assessment. I don't care what any vehement Woody nut-hugger says, Acie SHOULD have played more. Period. End of story.

However, Acie still did not play well enough to warrant playing him considerably more (like from 15 to 25 mpg). Part of this has to do with Woodson's incorrect tactic of "making the playoffs at all costs while neglecting the development of our 'PG of the future,'" and part of it had to do with multiple injuries and Acie's glaring lack of confidence.

Fortunately for us, Acie appears determined to shed any doubts that Acie was in fact the best PG of his draft class. He is working out and has adopted a mature perception as it relates to his role as agressive leader and facilitator--as opposed to one caught in headlights.

His work ethic and desire is there...if Woodson grants him more PT, and Acie delivers on the court when called upon, we may, just may, have a sleeping giant on our hands Atlanta.

[hawkman]

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It's also nice to see Acie being honest about how he should've gave the coach trust enough to play him more.

That's the quote that stood out to me, too. If coach isn't playing you as much as you'd like, make his decision to keep you on the bench increasingly more difficult. Very mature attitude.

That sounded like the guy that played at Texas A&M. It's nice to see that his response to having a tough Rookie season is to work harder to prove that he's the player the analysts said he was coming into the draft. He takes responsibility for his lack of playing time/opportunities rather than blaming the coach. Like I said earlier, those are traits of a leader. I hope his game matches his mentality this season. If it does, it won't take long for Woody and the rest of his teammates to take notice and trust him on the court. I heavily favor Bibby starting the season as our PG, but I have to be realistic here too. He's not our "future" PG. We NEED Law to be successful.

[Cwell]

and Mike Conley isn't looking as good as a sophomore PG should.I thought he'd come out better than he has.Law just might turn out to be the best PG from the 07 class.

[AtLaS]

Great to see this. I'm a huge Law supporter and felt he was shafted all season. If retard Ryan Hollins wouldn't have injured Law, he may have started 40+ games. When he started those 2 in a row before getting hurt he was playing very well.

[Cwell]

yeah that's what really got me on his side I didn't see any of his college games (that I paid attention to) so I wasn't totally familiar with his game.Reading scouting reports is what led me wrong and everyone else.He was having a great game against Charlotte then that dumb scrub had to pull that.U can't put that injury on Law and say he's injury prone. He has the skills of a complete PG,he just needs to put it all together. This year he would have games where he had 6-8 assists with barely any turnovers and other games where he was scoring well. They usually didn't happen on the same night. Even though his career high is only 16 he has the ability to score more than that. He had an off shooting year but when I see people that have made up their minds that Acie just can't shoot period makes me think that they're out of their minds.

[ATLBob]

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Great to see this. I'm a huge Law supporter and felt he was shafted all season. If retard Ryan Hollins wouldn't have injured Law, he may have started 40+ games. When he started those 2 in a row before getting hurt he was playing very well.

That might have benefitted us in the end. Doubt ownership would have had the brass to let BK go get Bibby had Acie been healthy and effective. Having Bibby around for a full season to take the pressure off Acie and show him how a vet handles his biz should not be underestimated. Bibby will be a hands-down better PG next year than Law will (unless injuries or something miraculous happens). The question is: Can Law play solid in *hopefully* increasing minutes down the stretch, gaining the team's confidence come life without Bibby next year (My preference would be to re-sign him, contract numbers palatable). Let's see what both can do this season, though. Law could make me change my mind.

Seriously, we could have been getting ready to trot out the AJ-Law-Lue show again.

[jhay610]

Acie can get anywhere on the floor that he wants at any time. That is God-given talent that can't be taught, and it definitely gives him the potential to be a very good player in the league. He needs to get better at his decision-making, shot, and figure out how to finish on his drives.

He just looked lost at times last year after the injury, like he just had 0 confidence in himself and knew that Woody had 0 confidence in him too. He stopped being aggressive and played not to mess up rather than trying to make plays. I dont like Woody at all, but AC was playing scared last year (after the injuries), whomever was to blame notwithstanding.

He showed flashes of what he can be in the playoffs, matching up with Rondo quite well. If he can get that J in order I expect him to be a fine player going forward.

[Guest]

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That's why this week of work in mini-camp and the chance to run things in Salt Lake City are so appealing to Law, who save for a two-week break has been in the gym, weight room and

therapy, for the wrist injury

that cost him much of his rookie season, with military precision.

If he is still going to therapy for his wrist, then that tells me it is not 100%. He injured it on February 20th, that is roughly 5 months. What is the timetable for a sprained wrist injury? I would guess the first time its something like 2 months, but when it is a recurring injury it takes longer.