ATLANTA – The Atlanta Hawks today announced the team has signed Johnny Hamilton, A.J. Lawson, Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot and Jahlil Okafor. Per team policy, terms of the agreements were not disclosed.
Hamilton, a 7’0 center, played in 13 games last season with Fenerbahce in Turkey before being loaned to Mornar Bar (Montenegro) for the remainder of the season. He finished his college career at UT-Arlington in 2017-18 after two seasons at Jacksonville College and two at Virginia Tech. As a graduate student at UTA, Hamilton averaged 11.1 points and 8.1 rebounds in 23.4 minutes (.629 FG%, .664 FT%) in 34 contests (31 starts). Hamilton has also spent time with the Grand Rapids Drive of the NBA G League and Darussafaka in Turkey.
Lawson, a 6’6 guard who participated for the Hawks in the 2021 NBA Summer League, played three seasons at South Carolina. As a junior in 2020-21, he averaged 16.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 1.2 assists in 31.3 minutes, earning second team All-SEC honors. Over his three-year career at USC, the 6’6 guard put in 14.2 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.2 steals in 30.0 minutes in 81 contests (80 starts). The native of Brampton, Ontario has competed for Canada’s men’s national under-19 team.
Luwawu-Cabarrot, a 6’7 guard/forward, played in 58 games (seven starts) for the Brooklyn Nets last season, averaging 6.4 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 18.1 minutes. He has appeared in 276 career contests (42 starts) in five seasons with Philadelphia, Oklahoma City and Brooklyn, putting up 6.2 points and 2.1 rebounds in 16.6 minutes. The native of Cannes, France has also played in 11 career postseason contests with averages of 6.5 points and 1.6 rebounds in 14.2 minutes. He was originally selected by the 76ers in the first round (24th overall) of the 2016 NBA Draft. He also has played internationally with Antibes (France) and Mega Leks (Serbia). Luwawu-Cabarrot won a silver medal as part of the French Olympic team last month. His name is pronounced TEAM-oh-tay loo-WA-woo cab-uh-RO.
Okafor, a 6’11 center, played in 27 games (two starts) for the Detroit Pistons last season and averaged 5.4 points and 2.4 rebounds in 12.9 minutes (.618 FG%, .708 FT%). In 247 career regular season contests (116 starts) with Philadelphia, New Orleans, Brooklyn and Detroit, he has compiled 10.4 points and 4.7 rebounds in 19.5 minutes (.542 FG%, .676 FT%). He was an NBA All-Rookie First Team selection in 2016. The third overall pick by the 76ers in 2015, Okafor helped Duke to a 35-4 mark and the 2015 national championship, averaging 17.3 points, 8.5 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 1.4 blocks, finishing second in the nation in FG% (.664). He was a consensus First Team All-American and ACC Player of the Year following his freshman season.