Developing Dan

Dickau goes up for a layup Tuesday at the Shaw's Pro Summer League Photo By Chris Aduama

If you need one snapshot of Dickau and his basketball mentality, look no further than the second half of Atlanta’s game versus the New Jersey Nets on Tuesday at the Shaw’s Pro Summer League. After setting a screen below the basket, Dickau found himself in a headlock at the mercy of Richard Jefferson. And then down on the floor.

“Dan is a tough competitor,” said Atlanta’s General Manager Pete Babcock with a chuckle. “You’d have to ask him, but maybe part of it is from playing with (John) Stockton in the summers. He is a tough competitor. Dan’s just trying to compete against everybody.”

Neither Dickau or Jefferson had an opportunity to compete for the rest of Tuesday’s game, as they were both ejected for the altercation. But you can be sure that Dickau, still in the first few weeks of his rookie season with the Hawks, will be back with the same feistiness when the Hawks take the floor again on Wednesday.

“The biggest thing we have told our guys is that we have to treat the summer league like it is a regular season game,” said Eric Musselman, Atlanta’s assistant coach who is serving as head coach of the summer league squad. “That is how we are approaching it as a staff, that is how we want them to approach it.

“The thing about Dan is that he is a tough kid. He is not going to back down from anything. The other thing we have talked a lot about is whatever reputation you have starting on Day One is a reputation that sticks with you. I think he felt he had to stand his ground. And he did.”

Developing his reputation and on-court demeanor in pro ball is just one of the aspects of his game that Dickau is working on this week in Boston. The player who made a name for himself with his hustle, speed and play making ability in college is finding that meshing the three facets at this level might take some time. And stamina.

After a pre-draft period in which he traveled all over the country to work out for coaches and scouts, he completed a string of two-a-days with the Hawks – all before a week in which he will play six games. Above all of that, he has plans to get married within a months time. “I am getting more comfortable as time goes on, it is just a matter of slowing myself down even more at times,” said Dickau, who logged 5 assists to 11 turnovers thus far. “When I get in a hurry, I turn the ball over a little bit. But when I stay patient, in control, I don’t turn the ball over and get good shots for myself and my teammates.”

“It is floor leadership that I really like,” said Babcock. “He directs things, and makes pretty good decisions. He needs to work on keeping his turnovers down. Half of them probably are unforced turnovers where he just dribbles into heavy traffic. The quickness is so much greater than he faced before. You turn your back now, and somebody is around the corner waiting there for you.”

The Hawks are hoping that the experience Dickau gains at the Shaw’s Pro Summer League will help him turn the corner from his All-American college career to a long, successful one as a pro.