The Atlanta Hawks may not be getting talked about as a real Eastern Conference heavyweight, but they do look like a team that should be in the playoff picture again. After a season that had its share of twists, they got back into the top six in the East for the first time since 2021, and they kept most of that group intact while adding pieces that fit the mission.
So what actually stands out about this team going into next season? The answer starts with depth, moves to defense, and ends with the kind of internal growth that can change a season.
Depth was a real problem for Atlanta when it mattered most, even though the starting group of CJ McCollum, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Dyson Daniels, Jalen Johnson, and Onyeka Okongwu was one of the best lineups in the NBA over the final 26 games of the season. The Hawks clearly went after that weakness this offseason.
Bringing in Lu Dort, Aaron Wiggins, Devin Carter, and Ryan Nembhard should give them more usable bodies and more ways to mix and match. Jock Landale, Kingston Flemings, Mouhamed Gueye, and Asa Newell are also in the mix, which gives Atlanta the kind of lineup flexibility it was missing before.
Defense is another major reason this group looks better on paper. For much of the Trae Young era, the Hawks were stuck near the bottom of the league on that end.
That should change this season. They still may not have enough rim protection to claim the No. 1 defense in the NBA, but the perimeter talent is a problem for opponents.
Dyson Daniels, Lu Dort, and Nickeil Alexander-Walker give Atlanta a nasty defensive edge on the outside, and Onyeka Okongwu, Kingston Flemings, Devin Carter, Mouhamed Gueye, and Zuby Ejiofor add more options behind them. This has a chance to be the best defense of the Quin Snyder era.
The other big strength is harder to quantify, but maybe just as important: this roster still has plenty of room to grow. Atlanta doesn’t have a superstar on the roster, but it does have a bunch of players who could keep climbing.
Outside of CJ McCollum and some lower-end bench pieces, there’s a case that nobody on the team has fully reached his ceiling yet. That helps explain why the Hawks focused on continuity this offseason instead of chasing a star trade.
The names here are pretty compelling. Jalen Johnson has already made his first All-Star game and All-NBA team.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker just handled the biggest role of his NBA career and won the NBA’s Most Improved Player award. Dyson Daniels is already one of the league’s best defenders, and Onyeka Okongwu remains one of the most underrated centers in the game.
Then there’s the next wave. Kingston Flemings, Aaron Wiggins, Asa Newell, and Mouhamed Gueye all have real upside, and some of them could make noticeable jumps this season, even if expectations for a rookie should stay measured.
No, that doesn’t make the Hawks the next Thunder or Spurs. But it does give them something real to lean on: a roster with multiple paths to improvement and several players who can take a step forward at the same time. That may be Atlanta’s strongest trait of all.
In Other News...
Kyrie Irving Rumors Give Hawks A Potential Answer They Desperately Need
The Hawks have spent plenty of time searching for another perimeter creator, and Kyrie Irving is the sort of name that naturally draws attention. Even in a speculative trade market, his ability to create his own shot and bend a defense would give Atlanta a very different kind of option alongside its current core, especially if he looks like the same explosive guard teams have long had to game plan around.
ESPN's Tim MacMahon recently added more fuel to the conversation by noting that league observers are keeping an eye on how Irving fits in Dallas. For Atlanta, that matters because any real path to landing a player of his caliber would depend on how the Mavericks view their own direction, and whether they decide to engage at all as the deadline approaches. [Read more 🡒]
Hawks Floated For A Three-Team Trade That Could Reshape Everything
The Hawks have been looking for ways to sharpen the roster around their core, and a recent three-team concept offers a fairly clean argument for why they might be willing to get involved. The framework would help Atlanta address a few needs at once while also creating more salary flexibility, which is the kind of dual-purpose move front offices tend to study when they think a roster is close but still missing something.
Houston is part of the appeal, too, because the Rockets would be adding shooting and a future pick, while Boston would be looking at a separate route to move money and change the shape of its rotation. For Atlanta, the real intrigue is whether this is the sort of upgrade worth paying for now, especially if it means parting with useful depth and a draft asset in a deal that could alter the teams direction. [Read more 🡒]
Hawks Give Lamont Butler Another Chance After A Brutal Lost Year
Lamont Butlers path with the Hawks has already been defined by patience, and Atlanta is giving him another runway after a lost year that never really got started. The undrafted guard out of Kentucky first landed with the organization after his college career ended, but an ankle injury kept him out of the 2025 Summer League and a torn ACL wiped out his rookie season with the College Park Skyhawks before it could begin.
Now the Hawks are bringing Butler back on another low-risk chance to keep developing within the system, with the G League route still the most likely next stop. The plan is for him to spend the coming season with College Park, where the organization can keep a closer eye on his recovery and progress while leaving the door open for a bigger opportunity if he shows hes ready. [Read more 🡒]