The Hawks are only two days into training camp, and Quin Snyder already has a few rotation calls that could shape how far this team goes.
The biggest one, though, feels pretty clear: Kingston Flemings has to be in the mix.
Atlanta spent the No. 8 pick on Flemings for a reason. After trading Trae Young to the Wizards, the Hawks were left without a true point guard.
Sure, Jalen Johnson can pile up assists, and CJ McCollum, Nickeil Alexander-Walker, and Dyson Daniels can all help with the ball, but that’s not the same as having someone who can actually steer the offense when Johnson sits. Flemings fills that gap now and down the road.
That matters because there was real concern, at least from the fanbase, that Snyder might lean on veterans instead of giving Flemings real run. Devin Carter and Ryan Nembhard both had limitations, but they also had experience, and Snyder has never been the type to hand out minutes just for the sake of development.
He wants to win first. If a player is hurting the team, he’s not going to keep him out there.
Zaccharie Risacher was the example last year. When he struggled, Snyder didn’t just ride it out.
Sometimes he pulled him, and sometimes he stopped playing him altogether, even if the alternatives - like Corey Kispert - could be argued to have been worse. Risacher wasn’t a perfect player, and Atlanta moved him this offseason, but the pattern was obvious: Snyder was hesitant to let a young player work through mistakes on the floor.
That’s why the recent roster moves matter so much. Carter was waived, and Nembhard was traded to Charlotte with Buddy Hield. With those guards gone, there really isn’t a veteran sitting there ready to block Flemings from the bench rotation.
So now the path looks open. Flemings should be one of the top bench pieces for Atlanta, alongside Lu Dort, Aaron Wiggins, and Jock Landale.
Snyder needs to make sure he gets on the court every night and develops with that group. If the Hawks get into the postseason, that kind of investment could end up paying off in a big way.
The other rotation spot worth watching is backup power forward. Behind Jalen Johnson, Atlanta has Mouhamed Gueye, Zuby Ejiofor, Asa Newell, and Dorian Finney-Smith.
Gueye is injured, while Newell and Ejiofor are younger. Finney-Smith, who the Hawks recently acquired from Charlotte, gives Snyder a veteran alternative if he rebounds the way Atlanta is hoping.
He’d bring defense on the wing and some three-point shooting, and that’s a useful fallback if the younger options aren’t ready.
Then there’s the third center spot, which may not sound glamorous but could matter before long. The Hawks are banking on Onyeka Okongwu and Jock Landale holding up, but injuries happen. Atlanta already felt Landale’s absence in the playoffs, and Snyder may need to turn to smaller, defense-first options like Finney-Smith or Ejiofor if the frontcourt gets thin.
Those are the decisions sitting in front of Snyder now. Flemings is the one that could define the whole thing.
In Other News...
Quin Snyder Just Framed The Hawks Question That Will Define This Season
Quin Snyder has spent the opening stretch of the season making the Hawks priorities sound simple enough: defend well enough to create offense, and then turn those stops into clean, usable possessions at the other end. That idea has shaped the way Atlanta is talking about itself, especially with a roster that was retooled to give the team more versatility around the margins and more options when it wants to change pace.
The challenge, as Snyder framed it, is turning that theory into a nightly habit. Atlanta still has to sort through which lineups can sustain the balance it wants, and the real test will be whether the Hawks can keep their execution sharp enough to make that two-way style hold up for more than short bursts. That part is easy to describe in October. It gets a lot harder once the games start asking for the same answer over and over again. [Read more 🡒]
Hawks May Regret Letting Ryan Nembhard Find A Better Opening
Ryan Nembhards path changed quickly after a brief stop in Atlanta. The 23-year-old guard spent last season with the Dallas Mavericks before the Hawks cut him loose during roster trims, and he has now landed on a two-way contract with the Denver Nuggets, a team that can at least dangle a clearer route to the floor.
For Denver, the appeal is obvious. With an aging core and the possibility that injuries could reshape the guard rotation, Nembhard has a chance to matter as bench depth and a source of offense if he earns trust in the rotation. For Atlanta, it is the kind of move that can linger if a player finds a better opening somewhere else, especially when the new team has a more immediate need for what he brings. [Read more 🡒]
Onyeka Okongwu Deadline Could Expose Hawks' Real Center Plan
Onyeka Okongwus next contract talk has become one of the cleaner windows into how the Hawks see their frontcourt. He is eligible for an extension that could run through three years and reach $76.6 million, and the team has until October 19 to work out a deal. Even without a final answer, the timing alone makes this a meaningful marker for Atlanta as it sorts out where Okongwu fits in the long term.
The bigger question is what the deadline says about the center spot overall. If the Hawks move forward with Okongwu, that would reinforce his place in the teams plans. If they do not, the uncertainty only adds weight to recent chatter about Atlantas interest in Jalen Duren and suggests the Hawks may be keeping their options open rather than locking in a single answer. [Read more 🡒]