3 goals for Atlanta Hawks rookie AJ Griffin in the 2022-23 season
Goals for Atlanta Hawks rookie AJ Griffin for the season: No. 3 – Stay Healthy
Griffin played 39 games for Duke last season so staying on the floor was not a problem during college. However, prior to his first Summer League game, he felt something wrong with his foot. Scans came back negative but he was held out of games on a day-to-day basis as a precaution.
He now has to try and stay in shape without inflaming the mystery injury until training camp starts. From there he can press his claim for a spot moving forward, something which is impossible to do if you are actively rehabilitating an injury while the rest of the team is doing work together.
This was an issue last season for Jalen Johnson. He would move forward two steps in his development, playing with the College Park Skyhawks. The problem was that he suffered so many freak injuries last season, that the Hawks would not have been worried but it was just frustrating for both player and franchise.
Next. Will Dejounte Murray's numbers regress much this season. dark
He even played well at the end of the season when John Collins was out but his luck would not stick and he was injured again. If Griffin is able to stay healthy for the majority of the season, he will go a long way to ensuring he is playing solid minutes when the postseason comes around.