THE HAWKS don't know when bargain recruit Tom Scully will play again and have labelled a round one return next year his best-case scenario.

Scully's move to Hawthorn was one of the surprises of the NAB AFL Trade Period with the former No.1 draft pick shifting to Waverley from the Giants for a future fourth-round selection.

The 27-year-old's price caught many by surprise given his known talent and previous status as the Giants' 2011 marquee signing.

TRADE BARGAIN Hawks snare former No.1 pick Scully

Hawks football manager Graham Wright said on Thursday the Giants had initially wanted something "a bit more than that" for the midfielder.

We won't be aiming for round one, we'll just be aiming for when he's right.

But he said the deal had to factor in the "little bit of a risk" that came with recruiting Scully on the back of the horrific ankle injury he sustained back in round two this year.

Wright said he wasn't sure when Scully would be available to play following the incident that saw him fracture the fibula in his ankle and also suffer a syndesmosis injury.

"We'll be hopeful [for round one, 2019]," Wright told RSN Breakfast Club. "We think that would be a best-case scenario, to be honest.

INSIDE STORY Why Scully became a Hawk steal

"From our perspective, we will just be like we are with all of our players who are injured.

"It's just about how they're going and how their body reacts, and whether they've got enough work in them to actually be capable of playing at that time.

"We won't be aiming for round one, we'll just be aiming for when he's right."

Scully was initially expected to miss around 12 weeks with the bad break suffered against Collingwood.

But he suffered a setback, needed another bout of recent surgery to remove plates and screws, and still won't start running for at least another five or six weeks.

Tom Scully hasn't played since injuring his ankle in round two this season. Picture: AFL Photos

Despite the outside perception the Hawks landed Scully in a steal, Wright said the deal had been brokered to the benefit of both clubs.

"The Giants were in a position where they needed to get some money out," he said.

"It might have looked like it wasn't that much but I think from the overall perspective from the Giants, it was a bigger picture scenario."

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