The Atlanta Hawks looked headed for a rough night against San Antonio, then flipped the game with a furious second-quarter surge and walked away with a 123-116 win. Atlanta erased a 23-point deficit by hitting 39.1% of its threes as a team, including 10 makes from deep in the second quarter alone. That kind of comeback won’t be a nightly blueprint, but it was enough to give the Hawks a much-needed response after their disappointing outing against Memphis and send them into Saturday’s matchup with the Pacers with some momentum.
A few players clearly drove that swing, while others had quieter or shakier nights.
For the rookie, this was the kind of performance that offers a real glimpse of what Atlanta hopes he can become. He is still not even 20 years old, and with NAW, Dyson Daniels and CJ McCollum ahead of him, the role expectations remain modest.
But he made his presence felt everywhere. He finished with 15 points, three rebounds, five assists and just one turnover, while also coming away with three steals.
The best moment may have come in transition, when he stripped Ja'Kobi Gillepsie and finished at the rim through Tarris Reed Jr's block attempt. Later, he jumped a pass meant for Dylan Harper with the starters on the floor and immediately sent it to Zuby Ejiofor for a dunk.
Those are the kinds of quick-read, high-energy plays that can earn him more run. He also showed off his speed on several possessions, getting downhill against defenders and flashing enough deceleration to create easy looks.
Daniels also gave Atlanta a lot to like, even with the jumper still very much a talking point. He didn’t exactly torch the net, going 6-16 from the field, but he did knock down a catch-and-shoot three and made enough plays offensively to stay involved.
The bigger story was everything else. He posted 13 points and 11 rebounds after a quiet game against Memphis, and his rebounding stood out again.
Nights like this are a reminder of why it’s easy to make the case that Daniels is one of the five best rebounding guards in the NBA.
McCollum was the Hawks’ most dangerous shooter, plain and simple. In just 19 minutes, he scored 14 points and buried four threes in six tries.
That burst helped drag Atlanta back into the game, and they probably don’t complete the comeback without him. He also added four assists and five rebounds.
Even at 35, he’s still giving this team plenty, and the case for keeping him in the starting lineup has only gotten stronger even with Lu Dort eventually returning from injury.
Not everyone made the same kind of impact. Wilson brought physicality and athleticism that look useful on paper, and he had a solid game against Memphis with 12 points on 3-6 shooting.
But he couldn’t build on that here. He still finished at plus-10, yet his box score was modest: two points on 1-3 shooting, with no major imprint on the game.
DFS turned in a stronger performance despite not shooting it well, and Zuby Ejiofor and Asa Newell, both first-round picks by this regime, played reasonably well too. That leaves Wilson with a murky path to minutes.
Kispert’s night went in the other direction as well. His shooting helped against Memphis, but against San Antonio his defense was a problem and the offense wasn’t efficient enough to make up for it.
He scored 10 points on 11 shots, which just wasn’t enough to justify bigger minutes. If Finney-Smith keeps settling in, Kispert’s role may keep shrinking.
In Other News...
Aaron Wiggins Is Forcing An Early Hawks Rotation Decision
The Hawks got their first look at Aaron Wiggins in the preseason opener, and the new guard wasted little time making his case for a bigger role. Acquired via trade, Wiggins chipped in seven points in 11 minutes and looked like a player who can fit into multiple backcourt looks, which matters for a team still sorting out its bench mix before the games start counting.
The lineup picture was already a little unsettled before tip-off, with CJ McCollum and Lu Dort both ruled out and the rotation order left open to interpretation. Wiggins early minutes only add another layer to the decision once Dort is back, because Atlanta now has to figure out where the newcomer fits when the bench is full and the coaching staff has more options to juggle. [Read more 🡒]
Hawks Rotation Still Feels Unsettled Ahead Of Another Big Preseason Test
The Hawks head into another preseason test against the Spurs with the same basic issue hanging over camp: the rotation still does not look settled. Atlanta will be without Jalen Johnson, Lu Dort and Keshon Gilbert, while San Antonio is also dealing with its own absence, as Tobias Harris will sit. The Spurs are expected to open with De'Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, Dylan Harper, Devin Vassell and Victor Wembanyama, which gives Atlanta another look at a lineup with plenty of size and pace to solve.
CJ McCollum is expected to return to Atlanta's starting group after missing the previous game, giving the Hawks a veteran presence back in the mix as they continue sorting out roles. The bigger subplot remains how the pieces fit together around him, especially with the team still shuffling bodies and trying to build some continuity before the games start to count. [Read more 🡒]
Hawks Bench Battle Just Got More Interesting After Spurs Win
The Hawks preseason bounce-back against the Spurs offered a useful reminder that the second unit is going to be under a microscope all month. After the loss to Memphis, Atlanta got a much cleaner response on the defensive end, forcing 22 turnovers and turning them into 30 points, with the bench supplying much of the energy that changed the games tone.
Kingston Flemings and Asa Newell were central to that push, giving Atlanta the kind of active, disruptive minutes coaches tend to notice in October. Flemings handled the ball, created for others and made plays on defense, while Newell kept popping up in the right spots and gave the Hawks a strong all-around impact. For a roster still sorting out roles, that kind of production only makes the bench conversation more crowded. [Read more 🡒]