ATLANTA -- Atlanta Hawks forward DeMarre Carroll's status for Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals on Friday will be a game-time decision, Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said following the team's shootaround.
"We'll see how he does the rest of the day, if he progresses," Budenholzer said. "He did some things this morning and we're hopeful for the best."
Carroll, who suffered a sprained knee on Wednesday in the fourth quarter of Atlanta's Game 1 loss to Cleveland, continues to undergo extensive treatment as the game approaches. He wore a knee brace at the Hawks' shootaround on Friday and walked with a slight limp. Carroll was not made available to the media.
Should Carroll be unable to play on Friday night, Hawks forward Kent Bazemore would start in his place. Bazemore, a third-year player who went undrafted in 2012, is routinely commended by coaches and teammates for his defensive activity and energy.
"[Bazemore] is a competitor," Hawks point guard Jeff Teague said. "He's going to fight. He gives his body up. He's going to run the floor. He's going to push it. When he's out on the floor, we have a lot of confidence in him and his ability. We're not really worried."
Bazemore, who has appeared in all 13 of Atlanta's postseason games, has averaged 4.2 points and 2.8 rebounds in 16.5 minutes with a true shooting percentage of 50.4. If he does replace Carroll on Friday night, he will draw the assignment of defending Cavaliers forward LeBron James.
"It's a great platform to show what you can do," Bazemore said. "They brought me here as a defender and that's my job. What a great measuring stick to go against one of the best."
Bazemore said he's been watching film of James battling elite NBA defenders as part of his preparation, in addition to spending time decompressing with video games and his pair of French bulldogs.
"I've got a Synergy account, so I'm on that thing a lot, trying to be a student of the game," Bazemore said of the advanced video tracking platform used by many NBA teams and players. "That makes it so much easier when you prepare yourself beforehand, knowing what you're getting yourself into instead of going in there blindfolded."
For much of the season, Thabo Sefolosha served as Carroll's backup at small forward, but the veteran swingman suffered a broken leg in an altercation with law enforcement in New York in April and is out for the remainder of the season.