AJC: Atlanta Hawks: Lawal gets close look from Hawks

[Hawksquawk]

Lawal wants the Hawks. They might want him, too. (Johnny Crawford/jcrawford@ajc.com)

Gani Lawal, out of Norcross High School and Georgia Tech, hopes the Hawks draft him next week. It could happen, too: Word is he’s one of five players the Hawks are considering selecting with the No. 24 overall pick.

Lawal was at Philips Arena today to work out. He said it was his 13th stop on the predraft workout circuit and he’s still not done. Lawal put his name on the early-entry list in 2009 but decided to return to Tech for his junior season.

“I needed to go back to school,” he said. “I don’t think it was a bad decision to go back. I felt confident, and I feel like it helped me. It may not jump out on the stat sheet. [but] my understanding of the game increased and improved and I’m glad I went back.”

When he got back his 2009 draft evaluation, in what areas did NBA personnel types tell him he needed to improve?

“Passing out of the post, playing through double teams, my anticipation on …

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