| | ATLANTA -- After another disappearing act, Isaiah Rider returned the Atlanta Hawks for their first game at Philips Arena on
Thursday night, insisting his latest unexplained absence was merely
part of the grieving process.
Rider played in the Hawks' 119-109 loss to the Bucks, contributing 19 points, five assists and five rebounds. He also had six turnovers.
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Rider, who has a troubled history in the NBA, was excused from
Tuesday night's opener at Washington, a 94-87 loss to the Wizards,
so he could attend his grandfather's funeral in Texas.
He was supposed to return to the Hawks for Wednesday's practice,
but failed to show up and didn't tell the team where he was.
"I just lost some of my people," Rider said as he sat at his
locker prior to the game against Milwaukee. "The Hawks
totally understand. As far as they're concerned, it's fine."
General manager Pete Babcock didn't sound quite as convinced.
Asked if everything was settled, he replied, "For today." He also
said Rider will be fined for missing practice, likely around
$2,500.
The Hawks acquired Rider in an August trade from the Portland
Trail Blazers despite his stormy past. The Hawks, who also got
guard Jim Jackson in the deal, gave up Steve Smith, their leading scorer and
one of the league's upstanding citizens.
Rider showed up late for his first pro practice with the
Minnesota Timberwolves in 1993 and has been adding to his list of
offenses ever since, including feuds with coaches and convictions
for marijuana possession and assault.
The 6-foot-5 guard insisted he was looking forward to a new start in Atlanta but had his first run-in before even taking the court.
He failed to show up for the first day of training camp in
Chattanooga, Tenn., on Oct. 5, then gave a bizarre explanation
ranging from a fear of flying on a small plane to his reluctance to
play for a rebuilding team.
"I feel a lot better about the team," Rider said Thursday. "I
think we're a lot better now than we were at the start of the
preseason.
"But it's a long year and it's going to be a learning process.
We're certainly not the most dominant team in the East, so we're
going to have to work hard every night."
Rider said his grandfather died "very recently" and he needed
to be with his family to provide support.
"We didn't think he would pass away so quickly," he said.
"It's OK. He lived a long life."
Rider met with Babcock on Wednesday, then discussed the
situation with coach Lenny Wilkens on Thursday.
"He's an emotional person," Wilkens said. "He may not show
it, but he is. We had a nice talk. ... He should be ready."
The other Hawks insisted all was forgiven after another no-show
by Rider, who is expected to add scoring punch to an offense that
ranked next-to-last in the NBA a year ago.
"A death in the family is a serious thing," forward Alan
Henderson said. "I can't say anything about that. It's tough on
people. But I'm happy he's back. I look forward to play with him."
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